^ I hear ya on that. Your smart for doing this.

Lease is a risk to reward situation is the way I look at it anymore. If you drive under the mileage a yr. they give you then it might be your best bet. Also your in a new vehicle every couple years. Me personally, I'd rather own mine, simply because I keep mine for a long time and technically run it in the ground. Works for me.

 

Another consideration - if you lease, don't do any mods. You will just have to take them all off when you turn it in.

 

You didn't say how much they were going to give you for your trade in. Also you might want to see if they can get an X-Plan PIN for you. Between that and my rebates I had about $9,000 off of the price of my truck that I bought just last month.

I got $19,000 for my trade in (2008 Mustang GT/ California Special) I owed a little over $3,800 on it, in addition I put $6,000 down (of which about $3,800 went to pay off the 'stang I'm sure) which means that I put an additional $2,200 down with the $19,000 trade in allowance, add in the roughly $9,000 in rebates and X-plan and my final price on the truck...I ended up with a $210.70 payment...that is why that trade in figure is important to find out.

One other thing about leasing...the 2.5% rate quoted is low but what a lot of people don't realize when leasing is that you have the residual and the amount that is actual divided into your payments...the big surprise is that the interest is calculated on the entire amount of what the truck is selling for. Also be aware you will be paying a higher insurance rate for a leased vehicle because you are insuring the dealer (for liability for instance) not you so the minimum limits are a lot higher so you might not be saving as much as you think.



Dennis

118 dtg Dubai

119 dtg Home for good!

 

How does the lease work when you use the truck for work and dent/scratch up the bed or tailgate? Would they ding you for that when the lease is up?

 

The short version is...yes.

Between tire wear (will they have to replace those tires upon the end of the lease) weathered paint, scratches, dents and not to mention the (more than likely it will happen) higher than allowed for mileage...there can be some money due at the end of the lease to the dealer/lessor.

And as 1903 - 2003 mentioned at the end of the lease there is nothing to trade in for a new one and you will have to come up with the money for a downpayment or finance the whole amount minus your discounts, rebates and any X-Plan PIN savings you may get...that could get expensive real fast.

In some cases if it is not too excessive you can be the benefit of a "waiver" for the additional mileage or minor damage but I would not count on it. This can usually happen if the dealer wants to retain your business in case you just want to go ahead and get a new car or truck...meaning they will "forgive" it if it isn't too excessive...remember the residual is the expected value of the car when they get it back that they hope to be able to sell it for...it is what it is.

Be aware also that if you decide to "break" the lease (you end up not liking the car/truck after all or it uses too much gas, maintenance costs are higher than expected...etc...) it will end up costing you a pretty penny. Generally you will pay a penalty for breaking the lease and then the lessor (I think that is right) will try and sell the car. Whatever the price they get for it will be deducted from the residual but you will be liable for the difference...that can get expensive real fast especially if you need another vehicle to drive in the meantime and have to deal with that payment as well. Usually they (the lessor) will work with you in working out payments but that is not guaranteed.

Again, good luck in whatever you decide.

Personally, with the distance that I travel and the mileage I am probably going to put on the car/truck in a year leasing does not make sense.

Dennis

118 dtg Dubai

119 dtg Home for good!

 

Ding ding ding!!! We have a winner!! There are very nice used trucks out there.

And to the original poster, don't look at it as $xxx/month. Look at the total purchase price. Then you know what you are spending, then figure out if you can afford the loan payment.

The dealers WANT you to look at it as $xxx/month so that they can tack on all the little extras and you won't notice a buck here and a buck there. Plus they can hide what they really give you for your trade.

 

If you can wait it out a bit you might want to consider a newer used. I have a feeling many off lease 08/09's will be hitting the lots once again when gas climbs over $4.50 per gallon. We may have a buyer's market similar to the one in '08.

 

$31000, 5 years, 5% is $585/mo. 6 years = $500.

Like I said, the dealer's numbers are high.

 

trade in on my truck is about $5000, thats with the $1000 trade in assistance(i still think the $4000 value is low on it), and $5000 down. i can get an x plan pin, since im a ford share holder. and theres only about $2000 in FX4 rebates if i buy. x plan price is about $40k. so with my math thats about $28k plus taxes, interest, and other stuff to finance. loan calulator puts the payment at $485/mo, and im lookin to stay around $375-$425...... i have been looking at a white 4x4 XLT Screw with 5.0 and 3.55 LS, and sticker is $36K, x plan should be about $33-34k, with rebates and all that stuff i should be exactly where i want.....

 

Unless they have changed the rebates in the last two weeks I was under the impression that there were $3,500 in rebatets. Also my X-plan was worth over $4,000 off of my truck I believe (don't have the paperwork here to look at) or the dealer took off more on the truck than I thought.

Remember you should negotiate the price of the truck first...get it as low as you can then subtract the rebates and X-plan price and then your trade. I would think you would have gotten the truck you are looking at for a couple of thousand less at least.

And do you really need a 4X4? I would say do you really need a ScrewCab but since I am guilty of deciding to go from a SuperCab to a Screw...I'll leave that one alone. Living where I live in Florida I just decided that I had very little use for the 4X4 and saved probably $2,000 to $2,500 by leaving that off of the table.

Again, good luck.

Dennis

117 dtg Dubai
118 dtg Home for good!

 

If you have a 02FX4 (supercrew?) you should be able to sell it yourself for atleast $8k if it's in decent condition. Look up the kbb private party on it.

I don't know anything about leasing, but make sure you get an X pin + rebates price. They are still making holdback off of you. http://www.safecarguide.com/gui/neg/holdback.htm

 

4x4, yes, mostly in fall and winter. (winter can get pretty messy here in IA, plus i live in the country) Screw... id love to get a screw from never seemin to have enough room in my Scab now.
and i saw the $3500 in rebates on the XLT's, none of the FX4's i have seen seem to have it over $2000. i really dont care about leather or cloth, so an XLT is no big deal on that. i know for sure i want a 5.0 and towing pkg... i really liked the XLT with convenience and towing pkg, but loved the FX4....

and i have an 02 FX4 Supercab with 135k on it, and the interior is in good condition, and exterior is in great condition.

 

Unless you have a Business write off, "Leasing Sucks!".....

 

Blue02FX4, I asked that of my salesman while I was in Afghanistan, before I came stateside on R&R, and he assured me that the XLT rebates ($3,500) also applied to the FX models (both the FX2...which was what I was looking at...and the FX4)...not only that but I even got it on the Lariat I ended up buying which was totally unexpected (though that may have been just discounted that much...I don't remember but I believe it said $4,250 in rebates which included my $750 coupon I got in the brochure that was mailed to me and interestingly enough the dealership already knew about it).

The only thing I think I lost was a $1,000 discount because it was not applicable to the Lariat.

I know you seem to be set on the FX4 but you can also get the 4X4 in the XLT Screw version.

Dennis

117 dtg Dubai
118 dtg Home for good!

 

There is a $1000 XLT Retail Bonus Customer Cash rebate that only applies to XLT trucks, can't get it on FX4 or Lariat. I had the dealer look it up on an FX4 and it does not apply.