Deal Check: 2024 Equinox EV 2RS FWD

[user40]

Hi everyone,

I recently received a deal for the 2024 Chevy Equinox EV 2 RS FWD (MSRP: $47,495) and would like your input on it.

Deal Details:

• One-Pay Lease: $6,177.19 (including taxes and fees)
• Tax Rate: 10.25%
• Term: 24 months, 10,000 miles/year

Breakdown of Rebates:

$3,500 in qualified rebates

• $1,000 Costco discount
• $1,000 Supplier discount
• $1,500 Conquest discount

Attached screenshot is the quote I received from the dealer. Does this seem like a good deal? Any feedback or suggestions are greatly appreciated.

P.S.: I have a few specific questions about this offer:

1. The residual value (RV) is set at 76%. However, I’ve seen 78% in other deal check posts. Is this normal or negotiable?
2. The dealer discount appears to be 1 - (43,995 ÷ 47,495) = 7.4%. Would this be considered a low discount? I’ve seen 10% dealer discounts in other posts.
3. The APR seems low (0.37% in my case vs 1.4%~1.5% in other posts)—does this indicate the dealer is using a favorable money factor (MF)?

Thank you for your insights!

[delta737h]

Don’t waste time trying to decipher a dealer’s worksheet or chasing after them. Otherwise, you’re allowing them to control the deal. They often omit a lot of relevant detail and even make mistakes. You need to rely on credible outside sources (e.g., LH marketplace and signed deals, Edmunds, etc.). Do your own research and establish a reasonable selling price in your market. Be sure to get a copy of the factory window sticker. Check for non-factory add-ons or dealer-installed options. And, if possible, eliminate those you don’t need or want. Get a list of all customer and dealer rebates/incentives including VIN#-specific discounts/incentives, if any. And, yes, the dealer has such a list.

The only thing useful about dealer lease worksheets is the input data. All data should be vetted such as acquisition fee, doc fee (regulated by some states), cost of money (e.g., money factor, interest rate), gov fees, residual, rebates/incentives, sales tax rate, etc. Make sure the residual matches the term and annual mileage requirement. Check available tax credits/incentives via the fund provider who may cover taxes or, at minimum, may assess a lower sales tax rate to energize sales for some models.

@user40

The residual value (RV) is set at 76%. However, I’ve seen 78% in other deal check posts. Is this normal or negotiable?

The RV is set by the fund provider and is non-negotiable as it is based on the term and annual mileage requirement.

@user40

The dealer discount appears to be 1 - (43,995 ÷ 47,495) = 7.4%. Would this be considered a low discount? I’ve seen 10% dealer discounts in other posts.

As mentioned above, you need to do the research for your market area. You establish the sell price and make the dealer an offer. You’re allowing the dealer to control the deal. Create a one-page lease proposal. I’ve posted several on this website.

@user40

The APR seems low (0.37% in my case vs 1.4%~1.5% in other posts)—does this indicate the dealer is using a favorable money factor (MF)?

It appears that the dealer is using Ally Bank as they use an interest rate. In your case, it is 0.370%. So, there is no money factor. I would ask the dealer why they’re not using GM Financial. GM uses a money factor which I believe is high. I would explore GM financial anyway. Be careful with Ally Bank if that’s who they are using.

BTW, based on the data provided, here is a summary…

One-Pay 4692.48 = 195.52 x 24 NOT 6177.19
Sales Tax 480.98 = 10.235% x 4692.48
Tire Fee 7.00
Initial Fee 37.00
DMV 392.00
License 608.00
CCR TAX 358.75
DAS 6576.21

The 839.71 tax = 480.98 + 358.75. Something doesn’t seem right. Have no idea how they got 1219.31 drive off or the 6177.19. This is why I don’t give much credence to dealer worksheets.

[user40]

Thank you, @delta737h , for your detailed response! I learned a lot from your post.

Regarding the fair pricing for this model, I plan to conduct my own research before making a decision.

You mentioned Ally Bank as the lender and advised caution. Could you clarify what specific concerns I should have about using Ally Bank? With their relatively low APR (0.37%), wouldn’t they be a better option compared to GM Financial?

Additionally, your calculations indicate a discrepancy in the DAS amount ( $6,576.21 vs. $6,117.19). If the dealer insists on charging me $6,117.19 as agreed on the quote page, does that mean everything checks out, or should I be looking for potential issues elsewhere?

[delta737h]

@user40

You mentioned Ally Bank as the lender and advised caution. Could you clarify what specific concerns I should have about using Ally Bank?

You would need to read Ally’s lease agreement especially their excess wear/tear criteria. Some lessees have said that they are very stringent in that regard.

@user40

With their relatively low APR (0.37%), wouldn’t they be a better option compared to GM Financial?

Not necessarily. See above. Also, Ally’s RV may be considerably lower than GM’s which could more than offset the cost of money differential. If you can get GM’s Residual factor and their money factor buy rate, I can run the numbers if you like. There is no question that Ally’s 0.37% is outstanding. Other things to keep in mind is that GM no longer has an acquisition fee. I’m sure Ally does which is not disclosed in the dealer’s quote. However, it could have been waived which I doubt b/c of the low interest rate.

@user40

your calculations indicate a discrepancy in the DAS amount ( $6,576.21 vs. $6,117.19). If the dealer insists on charging me $6,117.19 as agreed on the quote page, does that mean everything checks out

Not necessarily. Often, I see a lot of dealer mistakes. For example, dealer doc fees in Ohio are no longer taxable effective May 1, 2023. I caught two dealers taxing the doc fee last week. You would think they would know better by now.

Continuing, you would need to determine why the discrepancy exists. Again, I generally ignore dealer quote sheets except for useful information (e.g., cost of money, DMV fees, etc… but these should be vetted). When I’ve collected and vetted all input data, I construct a lease proposal and will post one later today.

[delta737h]

As promised, below is the proposal…

Craft a lease proposal and email it to the sales manager (SM), not a floor salesperson as they’re often order takers and lack knowledge. All numbers should be accurate otherwise, you’ll lose credibility. Negotiate via phone/email. Once an agreement is reached, ask the dealer for a review copy of the lease agreement and all contract addenda BEFORE you go to the dealer and sign. Moreover, it’s helpful to know the terms and conditions of the lease contract such as early termination liability criteria and purchase option criteria as well as lease amortization methodology and excess wear/tear criteria. If all is as agreed, tell the SM that you’ll come in to sign right away. You don’t want any surprises or dealer excuses like …. Oh, we made a mistake. That’s unacceptable and shouldn’t be tolerated.

If the dealer isn’t transparent or is uncooperative or showing signs of incompetence, WALK AWAY AND MOVE ON!

Leasing is time-consuming and requires a good deal of study and attention to detail. If you don’t have the time to commit, perhaps your best alternative is a good broker. There are some outstanding brokers on this website. However, if you’re willing to commit your time and resources, always control the deal. That can only be achieved with education which breeds confidence and increases the likelihood of success.

??? Let me know.

[max_g]

Don’t get a FWD EV when an AWD option exists.

[user40]

@delta737h Thank you so much for sharing the lease proposal template. I’ve learned more about car leasing in the past few days since joining this forum than I have in my entire life. I really appreciate contributors like you who share their knowledge with the community.

As for an update on my purchase: I ended up getting a car from the dealer mentioned in my earlier post, but a different model (2RS AWD instead of FWD). I’m not sure if the deal I got is good or not, but I’ll add it to the signed deals section later. Following your suggestion, I asked the dealer about the wear-and-tear terms. They only mentioned it applies to dents smaller than a quarter, which I think is reasonable.

Regarding the lender, I’m unsure how to identify them. I couldn’t find any mention of GM Financial or Ally Bank in my lease agreement. Do you have any suggestions on where to look for this information?

[user40]

Yes, I decided to go with the 2RS AWD instead of the FWD, which cost me about $500 more as a one-pay lease.

[trism]

The Ally Lease-End Guide is linked in this thread.

The Lease-End Damage Question Thread

Lease End Guides (work in process - missing links appreciated) Ally Financial Audi Financial Services BMW Financial Services Chrysler Capital Ford Credit GM Financial - Buick GM Financial - Chevrolet GM Financial - GMC Hyundai Motor Finance INFINITI Finance Kia Finance Mercedes-Benz Financial Services Nissan Finance Volvo Financial VW Credit

Ally has a 2" exterior damage guideline, so the dealer didn’t give you correct information. At least the standard is more forgiving than you were told.

For the future, don’t rely on the dealer’s verbal representation of a lessor’s return guidelines (or even what the lease agreement says), even if it’s a captive finance company.

[delta737h]

Many thanks for your kind words.

@user40

Regarding the lender, I’m unsure how to identify them. I couldn’t find any mention of GM Financial or Ally Bank in my lease agreement.

WOW! I’m flabbergasted. The fund provider must be disclosed somewhere. I doubt it’s GM b/c they use a money factor, not an interest rate. At the top of the first page, my lease agreement shows…

As you can see, GMF is the fund provider. If it’s Ally, it might say…

Ally SmartLease Agreement

Or there is an assignment section, as there is in every lease…

If you’re still not seeing it, ask the dealer. They shouldn’t be using a “one size fits all” boiler plate form where no fund provider is identified. Lease agreement language and format is dependent upon your state.

Anyway, enjoy your new ride!