There are many topics related to this currently with 100-200+ posts in them, wouldn’t be bad idea to sift through those first…
I wouldn’t have even bothered asking about the current environment and their monthly quota programs because it makes seem it seem like your an unrealistic buyer that’s just looking for that “CORONA FIRE SALE” however you answered your own question…The fact they are no longer working towards a quota bonus means they are less likely to give an aggressive discount on the car and make it up via the bonus money.
Even though lease programs for some brands may be decent, there needs to be an aggressive dealer discount to coincide with the lease program in order to get to the overall goal which would be a “hacker worthy deal”
New York is the heart of the pandemic in the United States, I know many New York dealers laid off about 80-90% of their workforce and a lot of them decided to remain closed even though Governor Cuomo allowed for remote vehicle sales.
While there are always exceptions, what’s being heard from a lot of dealers is that with sales so far down and no hopes of volume bonuses, gross profit on each vehicle is becoming the target. The covid19 fire sales that some people are wanting to exist aren’t existing. Could always change in the future if manufacturer support changes, but right now, I wouldn’t count on finding a better than normal (or even as good as normal) deal right now.
I don’t know if they’re no long being offered or if they’re just no longer achievable in the current market. In the end, the effect is pretty much the same though.
Have you looked through the Share Deals & Marketplace section on this forum and run a search on interested models?
BMW is one of the more talked about brands on LH, with some Audi and the occasional Lexus deal. Brokers have most of there deals posted in the Marketplace section which would give you an indicator of what is possibly achievable as well as other individuals have posted in the Shared Deals section what they were able to achieve.
Is MBFS able to complete requests to transfer vehicles to third parties at this time?
Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) office closures throughout the country have impacted the transfer of title and registration process. As a result, we are unable to accept vehicle transfer requests until further notice. Vehicle transfers already in progress will be completed and both parties will receive a confirmation package from Mercedes-Benz Financial Services when the transfer is complete.
I have extended my BMW 430 lease since December 2019 while a new BMW car was being built-also a lease. Inspections are suspended as of now but the dealership figured out a way to contactless deliver me the new car, which was sitting for about a month on their lot. I called BMW FS to get a sense of potential issues and extend the old lease and they offered me a courtesy free month extension (without my even requesting for it). Just in case anyone out there is in the same situation, it does not hurt requesting for this unexpected courtesy.
Those who have a Mercedes with lease ending soon, what is your experience returning the car (NOT purchasing it or a new one)? Mercedes suspended ALL lease return inspection.
I have a lease ending on my i3 in 4 days and still haven’t gotten an answer how to return it. BMW offered half off monthly rate but I’m already over miles and it’s an extra car which is sitting and collecting dust. Want it gone so I don’t have to pay insurance on it.
anyone else dealing with GMF on this topic? no dealer in my area would take my car when the lease ended, including the originating dealer (shelter in place was in effect.) so i arranged with GM what (apparently) amounted to a 1-month extension with no payment due. i had/have every intention of returning the car, and it’s not registered so i can’t drive it; i am essentially storing it for GM right now.
yesterday they called back and said “well? where is it??” which is ludicrous since nothing has changed here in the bay area lockdown-wise. the dealerships are still closed. they told me i’d have to make another payment, which to me is crazy. i can’t use the car (registration) don’t need it (leased an M3 in december) and just want to get rid of it. i think i may have convinced them to send a truck out to pick it up but like all things GM i don’t expect this to fall through.
In Bay Area. Was able to return my volt to the originating lender in Dublin on may 1. Had to make few calls and there was no inspection aside from mileage. Totally contactless except one document to sign where we were in masks and hand gloves.
that’s interesting. a couple weeks before the shutdown i contacted a bunch of bay area dealers asking if they would take the return and none of them would unless i was willing to entertain buying a new car. then when i called the originating dealer on march 20th they were closed and would not take the car. i called them on may 4th and they said they were still closed and again would not take the car. maybe this is the difference between contra costa county and alameda county… who knows.
anyway GMF claims the truck pickup is winding its way through their system but who knows. good to hear they just took your car and didn’t try to coop you up in the finance guy’s office trying to make you buy a new car.
probably. but the point is that the lease is over and 1) i don’t need the car 2) don’t want to drive it anywhere so as not to give the impression i’m trying to get a free car and 3) not 100% sure it is registered. i can see in my USPS daily digest that a letter from the DMV regarding this car is going to hit my mailbox today. it looks like another registration letter. we’ll see.
interestingly, this is a letter saying that i failed to register the car and owe a fine even if i want to file PNO. however the govenor’s order about this clearly covers the date range for me, so i guess i have to call the DMV and sort it out. PNO costs $22 so i suppose if i can get them to waive the fee i will do that. of course then there’s the issue of whether or not it is legal for me to drive it to the dealer, if it comes to that.
GM financial called us about payment (we stopped the auto payments) and found us a dealer in the Bay Area that would accept lease returns. We just returned to Los Gatos GMC/Buick yesterday. Hope this helps someone.
thanks. my dealer is fremont; i guess i can call them back and ask again. maybe they are just trying to duck out of lease returns - i don’t see why santa clara county would let a car dealership operate while alameda would not given the bay area “pact”. but it sounds like GM financial might be able to twist a dealer’s arm. i assume you didn’t originate the lease at Los Gatos?
anyway if nothing happens with the pickup i’ll see if i can get GMF to arrange with Los Gatos.
I did not originate the lose in Los Gatos, it was in San Jose. I let a coworker know as well, she called up the dealership and also arranged a lease return appointment today.
