Are you leasing or buying?

[hwoalang]

Finanace~~~ BUY BUY BUY~~

just paid off my Mercedesn Benz SLK~~~ and looking forward to buying a FR-S

lease is wasting money~~people~

[DuMa]

credit union

[Giccin]

Originally Posted by Snoopyalien24

Buy 2nd or 3rd year released. Or at least when the TRD/STI verion comes out

What I plan on doing. :x

I have 10k right now. By next year.. I'll have 25k saved specifically for a car + added some (Just incase sh*t happens).

I will wait and seeee. But buy buy buy! :P

[HyperTech]

i have 25k cash ready in a black case, thats will be my only and last offer for this car, im not paying more than that.

[Squatch86]

I'll be buying... in spring 2013. I figured it'd be smart to wait a year... but I will have one.

[Mari0]

Buying mine! Trading in my tC + have $10k saved up, and the rest will be covered by my parents as an early college graduation gift (I know I'm lucky)

[Tainen]

I think a lot of people here have hit it on the head- leasing is a big waste of money- but no one has proven it.

Here's some basic figures to think about.

Let's take a standard 3 year lease. 12k miles a year max, with insane overage charges (which btw, the vast majority of people go over on, and make these calculations even crazier)
let's say it's a fairly standard $250 a month, as with most cheap sporty cars.

OK, 250 a month for 36 months, without going over 12k miles a year. And we're talking base model car, because they don't lease fully optioned models without jacking up the price a ton. (and they don't give incentives or deals on those either).

Let's take a fairly standard $2300 downpayment on the lease.

$2300 downpayment (10%, average)
$9000 in payments over three years
$11,300 total. for 3 years. You just paid around 3800 a year just to have the ability to drive this car less than the national average (15k a year). Say the base model FR-S was 23 grand out the door. You just paid 11 grand to drive it for 3 years, and you give it back, and now you have nothing to show for it, and the car is still worth 18 grand or so (because it's low miles and unmodified).

OK, now let's do the math on financing the same exact car.

23 grand base price
same $2300 downpayment
let's say a 3.9% interest rate. You would be financing 20,700 and your payments would be:
$380 a month.
(I did not factor in tax- it varies by state)
So after 3 years, you've paid off 13,680 dollars on the car, plus your $2300 downpayment, and you owe $8,766.36 on the car. It has as many miles as you want on it, it's yours, and you can mod it.

The difference: With the purchase, you had an extra $130 a month in payments over 3 years, a total of $4,680. But you own the car, you only owe $8,800 on it, and you can sell it at that time for let's say 17 grand (less than what the lease buyout would be worth by far). you'd walk away with 3-5 grand MORE than the lease option, even after you subtract the extra 4700 you paid over the 3 years.

SO- the math on the lease doesn't make sense. Unless you are willing to walk away from a car that you invested 11 grand in after three years, and have nothing to show for it- and you can afford that. (and again, I did not factor in all of the fees they charge you when you return the lease. on average, over a thousand dollars for regular wear and tear, and mileage overages).

Please read and learn, and don't waste your money. The only reason dealerships offer leases, is because they make a lot of money on them.

[suprachica79]

Originally Posted by Tainen

I think a lot of people here have hit it on the head- leasing is a big waste of money- but no one has proven it.

Here's some basic figures to think about.

Let's take a standard 3 year lease. 12k miles a year max, with insane overage charges (which btw, the vast majority of people go over on, and make these calculations even crazier)
let's say it's a fairly standard $250 a month, as with most cheap sporty cars.

OK, 250 a month for 36 months, without going over 12k miles a year. And we're talking base model car, because they don't lease fully optioned models without jacking up the price a ton. (and they don't give incentives or deals on those either).

Let's take a fairly standard $2300 downpayment on the lease.

$2300 downpayment (10%, average)
$9000 in payments over three years
$11,300 total. for 3 years. You just paid around 3800 a year just to have the ability to drive this car less than the national average (15k a year). Say the base model FR-S was 23 grand out the door. You just paid 11 grand to drive it for 3 years, and you give it back, and now you have nothing to show for it, and the car is still worth 18 grand or so (because it's low miles and unmodified).

OK, now let's do the math on financing the same exact car.

23 grand base price
same $2300 downpayment
let's say a 3.9% interest rate. You would be financing 20,700 and your payments would be:
$380 a month.
(I did not factor in tax- it varies by state)
So after 3 years, you've paid off 13,680 dollars on the car, plus your $2300 downpayment, and you owe $8,766.36 on the car. It has as many miles as you want on it, it's yours, and you can mod it.

The difference: With the purchase, you had an extra $130 a month in payments over 3 years, a total of $4,680. But you own the car, you only owe $8,800 on it, and you can sell it at that time for let's say 17 grand (less than what the lease buyout would be worth by far). you'd walk away with 3-5 grand MORE than the lease option, even after you subtract the extra 4700 you paid over the 3 years.

SO- the math on the lease doesn't make sense. Unless you are willing to walk away from a car that you invested 11 grand in after three years, and have nothing to show for it- and you can afford that. (and again, I did not factor in all of the fees they charge you when you return the lease. on average, over a thousand dollars for regular wear and tear, and mileage overages).

Please read and learn, and don't waste your money. The only reason dealerships offer leases, is because they make a lot of money on them.

really excellent break down there. You explained it exactly - it looks really attractive that you can have a car for let's say $100-$150 less per month than if you were paying payments to own it, but when you actually do the math out, it's really not financially responsible.

[Longhorn248]

Originally Posted by suprachica79

really excellent break down there. You explained it exactly - it looks really attractive that you can have a car for let's say $100-$150 less per month than if you were paying payments to own it, but when you actually do the math out, it's really not financially responsible.

+1

You're basically throwing money away if you lease the car. Granted it's a depreciating asset, but you're at least building some equity into the car if you finance it that you can sell at a later date as opposed to owning absolutely zero at the end of a lease.

Additionally, if $150-$200 a month is going to break your monthly budget for all expenses, you really shouldn't be buying a brand new sports car. Stretching a budget that thin leaves no room for life's unexpected emergencies.

[tranzformer]

Originally Posted by WingsofWar

Ill be leasing the BRZ until a STI model surfaces this way i wont be loosing money from depreciation and ill be well versed in the car before my final purchase. This is the only time ill be leasing because it makes sense to in my situation. I dont plan on owning and keeping the first AS1 until im satisfied with the model i get.

Why not just buy the BRZ, see if you like it. If you want the STI when/if it comes out, just sell it/trade it in for the STI?

[WingsofWar]

Originally Posted by tranzformer

Why not just buy the BRZ, see if you like it. If you want the STI when/if it comes out, just sell it/trade it in for the STI?

In my situation its more hassle for me to own the first gen. While I want the car, i don't want to own it upright. Its actually financially cheaper for me (in my life situation)also to go this route vs buying. Especially since my goal is to get rid of the car as soon as the "better" model comes out..in which may be 2-4 years. But until then i get to play around with the car.

**taken from some random website**
LEASE - If you enjoy driving a new car every two or three years, want lower monthly payments, like having a car that has the latest safety features and is always under warranty, don't like trading and selling used cars, don't care about building ownership equity, have a stable predictable lifestyle, drive an average number of miles, properly maintain your cars, are willing to pay more over the long haul to get these benefits, and understand how leasing works, then you should lease.

I suggest everyone NOT lease like some people have said before, unless you are actually going to benefit from a lease and know what your getting into.

But my situation may change though, if i can get a better job in the next few months. My wife suggests that we buy the car in full (which is ultimately the cheapest route) and it wont damage our annual budget.

[Longhorn248]

Wings, are you going to be using your car to do the prototyping and test fitting of your aero kits? Just wondering if that has any affect on your decision to lease or buy?

[WingsofWar]

Originally Posted by Longhorn248

Wings, are you going to be using your car to do the prototyping and test fitting of your aero kits? Just wondering if that has any affect on your decision to lease or buy?

yeah it does change things in my decision in buying vs leasing. Bottom line is.. If i plan on doing test fitting of the aero on my own car...i would need to buy upright and it would have the be the model im sticking with. If i bought the car i planned on selling in 2-4 years...put an prototype aero on it and god knows what..iv destroyed any chance of retaining good equity for a trade for a better model. Leasing is the worst idea, if i plan on doing substantial mods right away that could void my warranty. Which forces me not to spend so much on the early model. XD

There are a few people (i cant give names) who are willing to be test fitters once the first molds are out. But ultimately my own DEMO car wont be seen for another 2-3 years.

[Longhorn248]

Okay that (the test fitters) makes a lot more sense. I was scratching my head a bit if you were going to lease the car and then tear it apart to start test fitting kits. I can't imagine the guys at the dealership would be very willing to give back your deposit if they figured that out