End of Lease Strategies?

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rogersleaf said:
DaveinOlyWA said:
rogersleaf said:
I just went through the acquisition process and did not see any leasing deal that made any sense to me financially. So, just broke my own rule #1 for getting a Leaf... lease it, don’t buy it. Basically decided to take the roughly 1/3 off in incentives & tax credits combined, roll the sales tax basis from my trade-in, and finance the remainder with my local bank. Fortunately my trade was worth a little more than the Federal tax credit so will eventually net out OK after filling next January and likely not too up-side-down in the loan.

As for hedging battery degradation, likely still have a usable car for my needs even if I loose 1/3 capacity. Likely blow though the 100k mile warranty in 5-6 years. If it gets that bad, safe to assume I’m already having ugly discussions with Nissan.

Just add that the Leaf specialist at the dealership has his own lease on a 30KWh Leaf expiring soon. He leaning toward buying his off rather than getting a new lease because the lease deals are not very good.

Its all about timing. Lease deals change monthly for a reason. My current one is definitely more expensive than my 30 kwh lease but then its a $9600 residual which isn't too bad. All in with taxes, etc. etc. etc. I can own it for under $23,000. I find it hard to throw stones at that.
That’s about where I wanted to see on a lease. Mine netted out to @ $25,000 before sales tax. That is an SL with tech pkg. and premium paint with a few small add ons. The key factor in Ohio is that must purchase to get the utility company rebate (currently $3500) and another ~$3000 discount from a fleet pricing that is tied to the utility rebate program. Figured this is likely my last chance to take advantage of the $7500 Federal tax credit so why not...

Your deal is better than mine especially if you want the SL stuff.
 
Switching topic. Has anyone here been able to get the dealer to extend their lease? My 24 month lease is coming to an end in Aug and I'd like to extend it by at least 6 months. Do I need to come up with an "excuse" for this lease extension request?
 
coupedncal said:
Switching topic. Has anyone here been able to get the dealer to extend their lease? My 24 month lease is coming to an end in Aug and I'd like to extend it by at least 6 months. Do I need to come up with an "excuse" for this lease extension request?

Yep, usually. Try "I'm waiting for the 2019 ePlus Leaf to be available in my area, in the configuration I want. The dealership said 6 months." Hopefully you don't live where the lots are full of them now...
 
Might have to try that next month if we still don’t have a viable/affordable option to replace the wife’s Leaf lease.

I called NMAC a few days ago and I asked for a lease extension. They asked how long and I said 3-12 months. Then they asked why, and I said we’re still looking for a new lease, including possibly the e-plus and haven’t decided yet.

Apparently that wasn’t good enough for them and they said no deal. They said maybe could give us a one month extension, but generally only extend leases if the new vehicle is on order but not delivered yet. So maybe they have tightened down.
 
iPlug said:
Anyone successful at negotiating with NMAC to let you buy out the lease for less than the residual?

You can't negotiate with NMAC - you never could. It's always the dealers you have to negotiate with. The good(ish) news is that it can be any USA Nissan dealership.
 
LeftieBiker said:
iPlug said:
Anyone successful at negotiating with NMAC to let you buy out the lease for less than the residual?

You can't negotiate with NMAC - you never could. It's always the dealers you have to negotiate with. The good(ish) news is that it can be any USA Nissan dealership.
Ok, then lets rephrase:

Anyone successful at negotiating with a Nissan dealership to let you buy out your lease for less than the residual?
 
Back when Nissan was offering huge incentives it was easy. I could have bought my 2013 SV, with a residual of either $19k or $21k, for $6,000. Now that they are gone it's a whole different show...
 
iPlug said:
LeftieBiker said:
iPlug said:
Anyone successful at negotiating with NMAC to let you buy out the lease for less than the residual?

You can't negotiate with NMAC - you never could. It's always the dealers you have to negotiate with. The good(ish) news is that it can be any USA Nissan dealership.
Ok, then lets rephrase:

Anyone successful at negotiating with a Nissan dealership to let you buy out your lease for less than the residual?

Yes, about a year ago. I tried numerous dealers; most wouldn't budge. Some were outright indignant that I would suggest a discount was even possible. One angrily demanded to know where I'd heard such a thing. But finally one dealer somehow "worked with Nissan" to get a lower price. I got the impression it was some kind of bargaining chip they had made available to this dealership that wasn't necessarily tied to LEAF. From the discussions here since then it seems they are becoming even more predisposed to insisting on the full residual. But when it comes to dealerships most things are negotiable, if you catch them at the right moment. From what I've heard the last day or two of the month is the time to haggle. Dealerships struggling to make a quota are more likely to be flexible.
 
From what I've heard the last day or two of the month is the time to haggle. Dealerships struggling to make a quota are more likely to be flexible.

Yes indeed, and the incentives change every month, with dealerships being sent any info on about the 3rd.
 
LeftieBiker said:
Maybe that is how they get people on the fence to fall into Nissan's yard. ;)
I'd still try the line I gave above. You HAVE to say that you will be getting another Leaf.
Quite right. Thanks.

I just called them and now I have a 90 day lease extension, official documentation to be mailed to me in about 7 to 10 days.

Only major downside I can see is that we had to renew California vehicle registration for another full year. Would be nice if such things were prorated, but what state would want to do that?
 
I think the price depends on time, availability, and location. I paid list for my 2012 when they were in limited availability, I did get a pretty good discount on my 3013 Leaf.

II just purchased(leased) a IoniQ and I paid list. The car currently is in limited availability.. At least I did not pay over list, The car originaly had a ADM of over 5K.

Kinda like buying a Kona EV. The dealers are getting more than list currently.
 
iPlug said:
Anyone successful at negotiating with NMAC to let you buy out the lease for less than the residual?

I posted about this a page or two ago, but this option only existed when Nissan offered Gross Payoff (GPO) discounts on Leaf's. That ended back in October 2018, so right now you either pay the full residual or you turn the car back in. Nothing in between.

Keith
 
I'm at end of lease on my 2016 SV which I just extended for 3 months. I would have happily extended it for longer but that is the longest they would go, and better than they were telling me a couple months ago which was no extension at all.

I'll probably buy the car (residual is $11600) but I'm in an interesting situation. When I leased the car there was no sales tax on electric vehicles in Washington State, but now there is. So buying the car out I'd pay about 10% on the $11600. It appears the lease extension will knock that $11600 residual down to less than $11000 so I'll save a bit on tax when I purchase it, I'll also maintain some flexibility if I change my mind.
 
jjgilham said:
I'm at end of lease on my 2016 SV which I just extended for 3 months. I would have happily extended it for longer but that is the longest they would go, and better than they were telling me a couple months ago which was no extension at all.

I'll probably buy the car (residual is $11600) but I'm in an interesting situation. When I leased the car there was no sales tax on electric vehicles in Washington State, but now there is. So buying the car out I'd pay about 10% on the $11600. It appears the lease extension will knock that $11600 residual down to less than $11000 so I'll save a bit on tax when I purchase it, I'll also maintain some flexibility if I change my mind.

It may also be possible to make over-payments on the lease extension, and reduce the residual even more. Maybe.
 
I was curious about the strategy you mention. If I overpaid, would they just credit it to my account and lower the payoff value? I asked two different people on the Leaf-line (800 854 3310) and they both said that NMC would not accept over payment which is a shame.

Why they don't have it setup so you can just send them the balance owed to execute a buyout? It does appear that banks can do that and the best "buyout" option may be buying the car out through a bank or credit union. My credit union sets up a loan for the balance, there are no fees, they become the lien holder and it does not appear there are dealer fees involved. The credit union charges no fee for early payoff so I could just settle with them at my leisure. Has anyone tried this?

When I was investigating buyout my local dealer (Eastside Nissan, Redmond WA) wants to cut themselves in for $1500 for handling the buyout. I told them no-thank you. When I later told them that another dealer (Younker Nissan, Renton WA) would do it for $300 they said they would as well. This is Just disgusting in my opinion. I've got no problem with them making a little bit on the transaction as it is some paperwork etc. but I think a few hundred is more than plenty.
 
I've seen the bank/credit union buyout strategy before, and if no tax is owed that does make it the best strategy.

Car dealerships, sleazy??? I'm shocked - shocked, I say! When we leased my housemate's Prius PHEV, they made a "mistake on the paperwork", and tried to pocket an extra thousand dollars. Oddly, that kind of "mistake" never seems to benefit the customer in that way...
 
LeftieBiker said:
jjgilham said:
I'm at end of lease on my 2016 SV which I just extended for 3 months. I would have happily extended it for longer but that is the longest they would go, and better than they were telling me a couple months ago which was no extension at all.

I'll probably buy the car (residual is $11600) but I'm in an interesting situation. When I leased the car there was no sales tax on electric vehicles in Washington State, but now there is. So buying the car out I'd pay about 10% on the $11600. It appears the lease extension will knock that $11600 residual down to less than $11000 so I'll save a bit on tax when I purchase it, I'll also maintain some flexibility if I change my mind.

It may also be possible to make over-payments on the lease extension, and reduce the residual even more. Maybe.

Nope. Its a contract that means payment balance is run to zero. Residual value is the terms of a new contract; used car purchase. He would simply be refunded the difference.
 
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