I'm hoping someone can help me out here. I've got a year left on my Infiniti QX4 lease and am willing to do just about anything to get out of it for a Type S.



Considering I'm going to have to eat some major $$$$ to get out of my lease, I'm thinking I might looking into leasing the Type S, then buying it after the lease. I'm just curious if anyone has leased the Type S and what sort of lease payments they are going for. If they are high, I may as well just buy it from the start.

I can't wait much longer!!! Need the TL Type S badly! Buy or Lease? Please help!

 

Hey welcome aboard. My lease for the QX4 is ending in January, so I too almost have a year left. Don't really understand why you would want to go through all the trouble to get out of it early though. =)

Personally, I'm waiting for the Type-S to get the anthracite metallic color! I was just looking through the brochure... and it's weird how they have the color samples on a separate sheet. Perhaps they do intend to change the color choices in the near future...

 

D@mn, it basically boils down to "it's us against them (the dealers)".

One thing though: How should we treat these dealers who won't budge from MSRP? Since we're basically paying their salary when we buy the TL-S, we should treat them like sh!t if they don't give us what we want.

 

I think you should wait out your lease, before going in for the TL-s.... the TL-s will still be around and will be available for a lot less than the current prices...

But that is me....as for yourself, whatever floats your boat...

just my 2c



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2000 Naples Gold 3.2TL/Navi - Factory Stock but with up-graded tires

 

I'm sure it won't be economical for you to buy at the end of the lease. When I was looking at the 2001 TL in January, both the residual and money factor were high compared to most other makes. Made for a reasonable lease payment thanks to the high residual but the high residual, added to the interest you paid during the lease due to the high money factor, would have leasing to buy at lease end a bad decision. Don't know lease rates for the TL-S since I leased a Saab instead. Due to their low residual, Saab had to decrease their money factor (under 1% as compared to 8.28% for the TL in January)so it actually pays to lease and then buy rather than finance an outright purchase.

 

Be patient. Wait until the end of your lease so you don't take the hit getting out of it. By then, you will have a nice selection of the TL-S from which to choose at a good price.

P.S. Leasing is not a good deal for many people. Have you read any of the analysis on various sites? I believe Edmonds has a pretty good explanation written for a non-financial person.

 

I agree with Hunter and everyone else here. Wait out your lease. If you have a choice and dont need another ar right now, you'll save on the car by not paying MSRP a year from now, and you wont get stuck with trying to get out of the lease you are in now

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Just call me..................Mr Hyde
TL Type-S Moderator
02 Aegean Blue TL Type-S with Navi
Accord Forum Moderator/Honda-Acura.net
96 Sherwood Green Accord EX

 

Getting the TL S is not the most important thing you could do right now. There will be lots of them made so you'll not have to worry about them running out.
Just hold tight. Don't do anything rash. That's what they want you to do but don't cave in!!!

 

You definitely have a tough decision. My dealer informed me that they are only producing 40,000 TL-Ses a year, which is what they're also doing with the MDX. So, I'm not really sure how this will affect the price of the TL-S in the future.

Anyway, unless you can write off your lease payments on your vehicles (for income tax purposes), it doesn't really make sense lease a vehicle. The really only pros for leasing are that you have a lower monthly payment. However, there are a lot more cons, as you are now aware of. You are basically stuck with your leased vehicle through the terms of the lease, you can't trade it in or sell it, unless you pay for the residual value of the vehicle, and in theory you are just renting the vehicle. Then you have other restrictions you must consider as well when leasing. Lastly, when your lease is up, you have nothing to show for the lease payments you made on the vehicle.

I have financed all of my vehicles, and will never lease one, unless I can write it off on my taxes.

Good luck with your decision, just keep in mind if you break your lease, you might have to break open your piggy bank.

 

You are wrong about leasing. If you take care of your car, don't put high mileage on it, and plan on buying a new car every 3 years or so leasing may be a better option than financing.(Regardless of tax write- offs.)

 

I say you wait. I have three lease payments left on my BMW M3, and I'm waiting until I only have two left. (Then again, my payments are almso $800). Keep in mind that the only way to get out of the lease is to pay the rest of the payments. So if your payments are, for example $400/month (which they probably are, at least on the QX4), you will need to pay over 4 grand.

The only reason I am getting out three months early (not a year!) is because I can sell the car, pay off the lease company and still get some money (think low miles, think $800/months, hence low residual). If you are not planning to do that, I'd suggest you wait.

Now the TL-S. I am thinking of leasing it too, and then MAYBE buying out at the end. So far that does not look like a good idea, since the residual on the lease (36 months/12K miles) is pretty high -- 64%. You can, of course take 17,000 miles and a 42 months lease to get the residual down, but that would defy the point of leasing the car.

My final advice (repeating many others): don't do anything rash. This is not a limited production car. QX4 is a good car and is not so freaking expensive that you just have to get out of it. Sit tight. Do the smart thing.

 

If you take care of the car, put a reasonable amount of miles on it and keep it for about 3 years you have savings to show. Plus you have a new car every 2-3 years to show.

For example. Lets say you put $2000 down on both a lease and traditional financing. First of all, your monthly payments will be lower.(For me it was about $200 lower per month on my TL Type S lease.) If I would had financed it and sold it in 3 years the money I would get from the sale would payoff the remaining balance of the loan with some equity left over. However, since my monthly lease payments were $200 cheaper I come out ahead compared to financing.(I have leasing software to compare the two.)

When the 3 years is up I can trade it in for a new car without the hassle of trying to sell my old car. Of course you can put more money down when you finance but the end result would have been the same for me. Plus the large sum, I would have put down to finance, has been invested.

The auto issue of Consumer Reports has some good info on leasing a car. There's a simple test you can take to see if you are a good leasing candidate.

If you plan on keeping your car until you run it into the ground leasing is not the way to go. If you want a new car ever 2 to 3 years leasing may be a reasonable choice. Just make sure you want the car because it's expensive to get out of a lease.

 

If you save $200 a month, that's $7200 savinges over the term of the lease. Let's say the payments are $400(lease) vs. $600 for 60 months. Then you still owe $14,400 after 36months. Add that to the $7200 that you paid vs. leasing, and if you sell the car for only $21,600 after 3 years, then you break even with the lease.

 

Ok, I started this issue comparing financing to leasing, and I apologize for it, and should have just answered the original topic question.

I am extremely knowledgeable about the pros adn cons of leasing. However, I am not sold on the fact of paying hard earned money for a car, and having restrictions put on my utilization of it (mileage, wear and tear, selling or trading it, and etc), as well as nothing to show for it at the end of the lease. If I could ever write off lease payments on my income taxes, then I would consider leasing. Otherwise, I personally would not. Opinions between leasing and financing can go on for a very long time. But I strongly believe that leasing just isn't the way to go unless you can write it off at income tax filing time.

In the end, it all comes down to what one wants to do with their money.

 

What are some reasons you can write off your car lease?

 

If you lease a vehicle for business use, or utilize it for a percentage of business use. For example, if you were a Realtor and used your leased vehicle in that capacity (such as showing houses, and etc.), you could write off those lease payments (or percentage of them) on your income taxes. Of course, one should always consult their tax advisor before hand, to ensure IRS compliance. Lots of people who own their own businesses lease their vehicle (and planes) to take advantage of this tax benefit. Additionally, some key executives of companies are also given company leased vehicles, which of course, is written off the company's taxes at income tax filing time.

 

Steveb, I both agree and disagree with you about vehicle leasing. What you noted is indeed correct, and these are usually some of the restrictions of a lease. However, on the other hand, what do you have to show for your lease payments after your lease is over? Additionally, what if you wanted to buy, sell or trade in your leased vehicle before the end of the lease? You would end up paying very high fees to break the lease.

 

honda might be willing to cover ur lease payments for the QX4 as part of ur deal for the TL-S, and the amount will get added to ur "purchase" price for the TL-S. talk to a finance guy at an acura dealership... they've been know to do this...



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'02 Nighthawk TL-S
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Comptech Springs / Comptech Headers
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Alpine CVA-1005 Head Unit / Alpine G320 EQ / Alpine DVA-5205 DVD / Alpine NVE-N851A Navi / JL Audio XR653-CS 3-Way comps for the front powered by a bridged Alpine MRV-F407 amp / Boston Acoustics 5.5 ProSeries 2-Way comps for the rear powered by Alpine MRV-1002 amp / Dual 10" JL Audio W-6 sub powered by Alpine MRV-1005 amp / Two Alpine CHA-1214 CD Changers

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'00 Nighthawk TL
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Aem Short Ram / Comptech Sway Bars / Comptech Springs / Cross-Drilled Rotors / Pirelli SP7000 Tires
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Pics of my TL and Fun/Crazy Pics

 

Which is why I am just going to pay to get out of my lease (unless it is something rediculous like 4gs). I have a year left on my lease and am already at my mileage limit. 15 cents per mile for 12,000 miles, plus 12 months at 400. Over six grand I'll have to shell out over the next year. I'm willing to eat some money to get out of this lease! I've done a little checking around and looks like I'll have to eat about a grand. Who knows...maybe this is my own warped logic just so I can get into a TL S sooner (I'm not the most patient person in the world).

Thanks everyone for the suggestions / help, it's appreciated. I'll keep checking back for more updates!

 

Simply put, leasing is a way to get more car than you probably could generally afford. Instead of putting down 8-10K and paying $500+ a month for 5 years, you can put down next to nothing, have smaller payments, and get rid of the car in 3 years with no strings attached. What's to show for all the money you shelled out?? NOTHING. Unless you plan to pay the residual and take another loan to buy the car out. I leased a GS-R back in 1995 for a good deal ($250/month, nothing down). Thing is, it is now 2001 and I am still paying for it because I bought it out. Fortunately I owe a lot less than the current value of the car.
I will definately be buying a TL-s, not leasing.

 

Your lease has a pay off value just like a loan.

Just call your creditor and see how much your payoff is and then see how much the dealer will give you.

 

Yes, and if you lease for less than 3 years you come out ahead if you lease. Even if you break even with a lease, payments are lower so you can have a more expensive car if you're on a budget.

 

This ('02 TL-S) is my first lease experience. Prior to this, I owned a VW and a Saab. This time I decided to lease for the following:

- I love new cars and am scheming for the next one as soon as the "new car smell" is gone...

- I don't find a lot of value in "owning" a car...terrible use of money and reliability concerns make old cars a non-starter for me

- I drive less than 15k miles per year

- At this point, I'd rather take the $10 - $15 thousand I would have used as a down payment and invest it in a private realestate fund that should return between 20% - 30%.

So...my lease for the TL-S comes to $480 per month, for 42 months with 15k miles per year. Total upfront costs were $1300. My dealer wouldn't negotiate the MSRP of the TL, but I did get him to move up $2000 on my trade (from $6 to $8,000, which I took as a check). I'm sure others will find issues with this, but so far IT WORKS FOR ME.

 

No need to apologize. I think this is an informative discussion.

I think everyone would agree that a car is not a good investment from an investment stand point. Even if you financed it, eventually the value of the vehicle will go down to zero. Excessive mileage and wear and tear on a financed car will cost you money as it would on a leased car. So in a sense you have the same restrictions on the financed car unless you plan on keeping your car indefinitely.

According to Consumer Reports and other publications leasing is a valid option if you meet a certain criteria.(with or without tax writeoffs.)