evboy said:
.For those that bought a Leaf in 2011, how has the math added up for you.
Taking a snapshot in time right now for a 2011 LEAF SL purchased or leased around April of 2011, leasing vs purchase is basically a push.
Excluding license fees, state rebates, etc, which vary state to state, but including sales tax.
Purchase:
$34,500 sales price
$2,910 sales tax
-$7,500 Fed rebate
-$17,000 trade-in price
__________
$12,910 out of pocket cost if sold today
Lease: (3yr 12K miles/yr, $1,000 at delivery includes only first payment, DMV fees, lease inception fee rolled into mo pmnt, therefore, DMV fees excluded from calculation since excluded from purchase calc)
Lease pmnts total 26 X $415/mo = $10,790
Payoff to get out of lease early = $2.300 @ ($19,300 remaining lease amount less $17,000 trade in value)
Lease end fee $395 (if due, may not be due if a dealer buys out your lease)
____________
$13,485 total lease costs if leased car bought back by dealer today
Extend things out an additional year and your guess is as good as mine. Lease payments would add up to about $5K more after 12 more months. For the purchase comparison, will a used 2011 LEAF with 35,000 miles and 10 battery bars be worth only $12,000 in July of 2104? I think it may well be. So if this is true, the decision is still a push. Except that the customer who leased gets to walk away from the car, while the purchaser has to sell it to someone. Plus by leasing, you don't have to come up with close to $40K up front and then file a tax return and hope you get the full $7,500 off your taxes.