Leasing help :)

[bestknightmare]

Hi

My girlfriend is looking to lease a car (either a scion or mazda), but she would like to know what are some things to consider when leasing besides having an limited amount of km per year ie: Does oil changes have to be at a dealership? In the case of accidents, does she bring the car back to the dealership to be fixed? Any help, advice, or knowledge would be wonderful.

Thanks!!

[m_bisson]

Oil changes anywhere. Accidents anywhere the insurance company is OK with.

Leasing is a horrible idea, though.

Is she doing this simply because of the low monthly payment?

[bestknightmare]

Oil changes anywhere. Accidents anywhere the insurance company is OK with.

Leasing is a horrible idea, though.

Is she doing this simply because of the low monthly payment?
No, just want to drive the frs for a bit, then give it back.

Why is it a horrible idea?

[greyseason]

No, just want to drive the frs for a bit, then give it back.

Why is it a horrible idea?

its not that simple

[greyseason]

rent a car

[bestknightmare]

its not that simple

enlighten me :)

[Jimjang]

If you drive a car you likely have a payment. Leasing is great if you want to control your depreciation, have the lowest cost of driving ( maintenance), and like to drive a new car more often. Look at where you are at the end of say a 3 year term. You might pay a little more, but you will have options instead of obligations. Lease what depreciate, buy what appreciates.

[staax]

I personally don't see a problem with leasing a car, but most people here will tell you to finance/buy outright.

Why?

Most people on this forum are car enthusiasts that tend to mod to their car - this is how I see it. In a lease, I'm not sure if you can do this without having to de-mod your car before you give it back and start all over. I have personally never leased a car but my girlfriend is currently leasing a 2012 Honda Civic. I plan to mod my vehicles and therefore I want to own them!

Things to consider:

- At the end of a lease, you will need to pay for any damages to the car that are not deemed acceptable by the manufacturer.
- You can buy a warranty that will cover up to x amount of $ in damages done.
- You will generally pay more for the car in the long run if you decide to buy your lease, however your monthly payments are lower and therefore save you a bit of money in the short run.
- Lease rates can be higher than finance rates.
- At the end of a lease, your car will have a residual value that you can decide to purchase it at. By leasing a car and then buying it out you generally pay more for the vehicle than if you were to finance it.

Hope this helps.

[Noisy Crow]

The reason to avoid leasing is simple: it usually costs more than buying.

Reason: When you lease a car the lease holder makes part of their money through the payments you make, and part through selling the car when the lease is up. Since there is a degree of uncertainly about how much they will be able to sell the car for in five (or whatever) years, they pad the lease payments to ensure they don't lose money if their projections are too low. Whereas if you buy the car outright the seller knows exactly how much money they are making, and that certainty removes the need to pad the amount paid. You will get exceptions to this...if a car manufacturer is trying to reduce inventory they may be willing to subsidise the lease in order to encourage sales, as they would rather make less or even lose a bit money on a car rather than lose lots of money as the model year rolls over.

[Jimjang]

No one knows how much a car will be worth in the future. The manufacturer gives you there best estimate based on auction prices and market conditions. They have been wrong on many occasions and that is the beauty of a guaranteed future value. At least you have choices at the end of your term. If you an on kidding your car it is probably worth purchasing it. Just be prepared to take the depreciation hit as soon as you drive off the lot. Either option can be a good one and it really depends on several factors that are related to your specific situation.

[Jimjang]

Damn spellchecker. That was "if you plan on modding your car" it might be better to purchase.

[m_bisson]

If you're rich and you like having a new car every few years then lease. But the people who can afford to do that aren't driving mazdas and scions...

[Slade]

I hate hate hate leasing, I leased my mazda 3. And at the end of the 4 years I paid almost $20,000 and had nothing to show for it, and my buyout was almost 13-14,000 at least when you buy you have something that will be yours, and something you can trade in. You can mod a leased car, it just has to go back to stock.

[greyseason]

enlighten me :)

Basically whats already been stated. You dont just lease a FRS to "drive it and give it back." That is the exact meaning of a rental vehicle. Technically, yes with a lease you just give it back, but thats in a x amount of years, with under xx,xxx KM, with xxx yadadada.

If youre going to buy a frs, and youve already modded the 3, youre going to mod the frs. Now that saying, the frs will be a tuner/sports/mod friendly car forever, so why not buy it and if you cant affford the car at some point, you sell and recoup your losses (hopefully)

[m_bisson]

That's an epic double post. Reminds me of the 2000s. Back before cable Internet.