I went to the Acura Dealer yesterday for routine service on my TL. While waiting I decided to go in the showroom and look at the RL. I have always considering getting the RL over my TL, but the RL didn't come with a 6-speed so I got the TL instead. Anyway I decided to take it (RL) for a test drive and I must say I was pretty impressed. It has a lot of features that my TL-Navi doesn't have. I love my TL, but the RL seems to be a bit more refined with even more luxury features and even a better looking cabin than the TL.

After the test drive I went inside and asked the guy to throw around some numbers. I was leaning towards purchasing it out right, then he mentioned to me that Acura has a lease special on the RL this month for $599/month @ 36 months with only $1399 down (first month payment + other fees). To me that seems like a pretty good deal, and eventhough its only 10,000 miles/year, I plan to keep my other two cars (05 TL, and 98 Escort). I purchased (traditional finance) the TL back in november of '04 and only logged 9500 miles in the first year; now it has 13,000. I think 10,000 would be plenty for the RL considering I don't drive very much and also am able to spread it across 3 cars. Also the wife can't drive a stick so she has to the drive the escort. And when I take the escort to work, she can't go anywhere. So in a way the RL would be the "family car".


$599/month @ 36 months a good deal? Should I do it? Talk me into (or out of) doing it.

 

Good Luck. In my opinion, it's gonna be hard NOT to drive the RL.

 

Acura's lease deal runs thru April 30th and isn't a bad deal. But, you can do better. Try negotiating the sales price keeping in mind that besides the standard 3% dealer hold back, Acura is giving $2,000 to the dealership for each RL leased. See if you get a sliver of that money off the sales price and see what your final payments would be.

On a side note, I'm against putting any money down on a lease. You'll never get the money get.

 

Yeah me too. The $1399 down is the first months payment, destination charge and aquisition fee. The actual offer is $599/month, 36 months, $0 Cost Cap reduction. Its no down payment, but those fees are required.

If I decide to get it, I'll try to see if I can do better that what they are offering. Now that I see its running through the end of April, I have a bit more time to think about it.

 

i was on-line searching for a new car and i too had interest in the rl i got a price for 559 for 36 months

 

Soooo.......You currently have a faily new TL and a 98 Escort. And you feel like you need another new car which would give you a total of 3 autos. Your wife can only drive the 98 Escort and apparently you drive it to work at times so your wife is stranded. How are you going to keep her out of the new RL? Tell her it's a manual? Can you spell Greed?

 

Read better next time before you start criticizing, let me help you out a little... \/

Of course I would let the wife drive it, hence the term "Family car" right back at cha.

 

I fixed the post, Happy Now?

 

You go to Ed Voyles?

I agree, see if you can get the price down some, or more miles per year allowance.

 

Hey guys,

I'm new to the form so please excuse any stupid questions I may post. I'm looking at the acura home page for this $599 lease deal. It states inception of lease $1399 includes 1st months, acquistion fee, and captial cost reduction while the security deposit is waived. So 36 months x $599 = $21,564 is the total monthly payments combined.
Residual = $27453.25. Add those numbers together equal $49017.25. I'm trying to figure out what this line is " actual net capitalized cost $43,713.60" and if that's what they charged your for the negotiated price of the vehicle the deaership and honda pockets some $7000 dollars. Is this the price the dealer is selling the car to the leaser? The numbers just don't add up for me or I'm doing something wrong. I'm trying to see why this is such a deal versus if I go in negotiate a less price X money factor (lease interest rate)+ any fees.
Can someone help straighten me out on this deal. I'll like to get the RL for this $599 price and buy it at the end of the lease but if it's cheaper for me to negotiate a deal and get a loan from the credit union I might as well do that.

thanks,

Robert

 

It is at www.acura.com under the Acura RL's current offers. Click on "Launch Website," then "RL" at top of screen and then "Current Offers."

 

Leasing is a "double declining balance" calculation --- you're financing not only the leased amount (difference between actual cap cost ["selling price"] and residual) but you are also paying a lease fee (i.e. rent) and you are paying for their depreciation on the vehicle.

If you add your monthly payments to the residual it isn't going to equal the selling price. The residual is expressed as a percentage of MSRP (here, 46%).

The thing to do is to compare the monthly payment total to the actual net capitalized cost minus the residual -- so you've got $16,020 of "car value" that you're "renting" from Acura for $21,564 in payments -- which works out to about $5544 in lease fee and depreciation over 36 months.

Comapre that to a straight finance deal for 60 months at 7% (say, $10000 down on the same "selling price" or $33,713 financed, no tax etc you're looking at $667 a month for 60 months, which is a total of $40020.00, which is $6,308 in interest -- paid to the bank.

If you're looking to lease then purchase afterwards, you're going to get KILLED on finance charges. It's the most expensive way to acquire a car. If you lease, expect to pay rent and leave it at the end of the lease. If your thoughts are long term acquisition, you're MUCH better off in the long run to finance it. But of course, your monthy payments will be higher.



Hope this helps.

 

As a frame of reference, I had a 2004 TL (leased on 10/10/2003 - first week of availability) and held out until end of year 'clearance' on 2005 RL's.

My lease is $570/mo, 36 months with 12k miles/year. Nothing out-of-pocket except motor vehicle and lease origination fees.

The only word of caution is that I was ALWAYS above water on my TL (nearly from day one). I could have traded (or sold) it anywhere and made money. Unfortunately not the case with the RL...

 

Yeah, definetely do not purchase after the lease. If one is planning to do that, then they should buy in the first place. Pay for the car during the lease term and dump it back on them at the end.

I figured out some high estimates on a RL finance assuming that your out the door price is 52,470 including 6% taxes and all other dealer fees with a 4.09% interest rate.

$0 down
===============
60 months: $968.45
48 months: $1186.84
36 months: $1551.23

$5000 down
===============
60 months: $876.16
48 months: $1,073.74
36 months: $1,403.40

$10000 down
===============
60 months: $783.88
48 months: $960.64
36 months: $1,255.58

$15000 down
===============
60 months: $691.59
48 months: $847.55
36 months: $1,107.76

 

Thanks for all the answer. I appreciate the assistance. What do you guys think if I negotiate a lower price. Hopefully $43500-$44500. Paying the tax, title, and license upfront. Paying the $1399 down. Pay the monthly lease $599 x 35 (minus the first payment). Thus lowering my net capitalization cost. Not refinancing at the end of the lease but flat out pay cash on too keep the car. Based on everyones information the leasing fees (rent) seems lower then my credit union rate of 5.75% for a 60 month finance. I figure I could invest some of the cash and just pay it off at the end of the 36 months. This is my first lease and I'm a more skeptical about the sales and finance guys trying to hide extra fees. What are my chances of going to a dealership and asking them on their money factor rates on this lease is and what % of the residual values? Certains sites I've visited like leaseguide.com and leasetips.com seem to have different information on the residual value on the RL. Final question. I'm not against dealerships making money but what happens if I call them out on others stating they're going to receive a 3% kickback from honda and a $2000 kickback on leases?

thanks again, sorry for some many questions.

Robert

 

I am currently paying 399 plus tax for 3 yrs on my RL. It is a lease and i put about 5k down. You guys think I got a good deal on it? I get 12k miles a yr.

 

You will want to run the numbers through a loan amortization program. Sometimes the mfg will give a low money factor (interest cost) on the lease. This can often lead to a better "deal" than you can get through a loan. If you are comparing the two methods keep in mind a few things. If you purchase you will also finance the sales tax. If you lease you will pay the sales tax each month and with the residual payment. The mfg (finance company) also has the risk of the residual value tanking during the lease term. Example, they might assume a 48% residual after 36 months. If the value of the car is less than that you will most likely be able to negotiate a lower residual when you purchase the car at the end of the lease. You can also just give the car back. If you purchase the car and the value tanks you will absorb the loss when you sell your car. The real key is to determine the interest that you are paying during the lease term. The difference between the total payments (excluding sales tax) plus the residual value less the cap cost is the interest you are paying.

I am leasing my car and calculated about a 4% interest cost during the lease term. I plan to purchase the car at the end of the lease. Based on the current sales of the vehicle there is a good chance the residual will take a hit before the lease is up so I may be able to negotiate a better buyout. If it doesn't, I am happy paying the residual cost.

If you plug all the cash payments (license fees) for a lease into a loan amortization program and then plug all the cash payments for a purchase into a loan amortization program and then compare the two interest rates you will be able to tell which is the better deal. Keep in mind that if Honda Finance has a lease deal you may be able to negotiate a lower cap cost for the lease than a purchase as the dealer gets a rebate from Honda Finance for the lease. I would not assume any decrease in the residual in your comparison, it will just be an upside if you end up paying less.

I would be surprised if you were able to get a better rate through a bank given Honda's desire to move these vehicles.

Don't lose sight of the fact that you are going to love this car.

Kris

 

Hey guys,

wanted to give you guys an update. I finally went down to the local dealership. I also put in a request from the internet manager last night. Well the sales guy was honest and told me what the dealer would probably give me for my trade in and do my homework. I'll sale my old car in the recycler. The internet manager calls me this morning and I mention to him about the lease and he either was playing dumb or really didn't know the acura lease deal. Awesfully strange and backs everyone's comment on how acura of america doesn't advertise or market the RL properly. I asked to him tell me the residual, money factor and price they would give me the vehicle for. He calls me back after 30 minutes and states $43000, residual of 55% ($27,xxx) and the money factor was .00207 which equates to about 4.97%. All without having even to negotiate. I also asked him about the dealer incentives, he didn't confirm how much they were but did say that's why he was able to offer it for below Invoice. Seems people on the forum are correct. It's not as good as some other people's deal but I think it's a fair no-hassle price. I'm probably going to jump on it. Even though it's a 10k a year lease he stated it's about $13 ($468 entire lease duration) more a month for 12K mileage. Something else I learned was 15 of the 20 states (Texas, Illonis...) require a leaser to pay tax on the vehicle upfront. In 35 state (California....) allows you to pay tax only on the monthly stream payment. You're save in the long end in tax if you lease and turn it in. Some cool sites beside this one was www.leasetips.com, and www.leaseguide.com.



thanks again guys.

Robert

 

Also check out www.carbuyingtips.com. The guy that runs this site is cool as hell. When you mentioned the leasing stipulations for Texas and Illinois, I remembered that the guy on this site said do not lease in Illinois or Texas for that very reason. Good luck on your decision! I am still up in the air and also considering the Infiniti M series and the Lexus GS series