I have to agree with Ursus here. If the reason of buy out a car is to avoid long term payment, which should include maintenance cost and potential repair cost, Volvo is not my choice. In fact, Subaru is one of the top choices.
Also, I will skip the Nav option. 'They get obsolete very soon. You stuck with a old map data and out dated interface.
Well, so after all, it really depend on what you want. To have a reliable and low cost of ownership car, Europeans are not the right choice.
Subaru includes 3 years of free map updates and you can buy update after that. Besides, Android auto is coming (or is it already there?) to Subaru, anyway. Also - nav does not come as a separate option, it’s part of eyesight package (at least it was in 2016)
It sounds like you have soured on the car more than anything else. As you get close to lease end, you might find dealers to eat the overage. Even at .25 cents per mile, you will still only pay $3750. Subarus have very strong resale, start looking as you get within 3-4 months. I bet you can easily get away breaking even.
Volvo S60, the car will be worth $10K after another 3 years
Thought I would update this thread, took my 2017 Outback Limited to CarMax and shopped it at a few dealers. I owe $30k on my lease buyout and no one would give me more than $25k, which seems very low for a $36k MSRP Outback. I expected to get like $28k or so, but $25k is just awful.
I am wondering if the Ascent will make the Outback have worse resale coming up too.
Typically you need to keep a Subie lease 1.5-2 years before you’re right side up, if you will be at all.
Out of curiosity, how did the dealers compare to CarMax? Were they Subaru dealers?
It was even worse then CarMax. Most dealers wanted to give $23-24k - definite low ball. I wrote some back to see if i can get more, but I would need at least $28k to trade it in.
You can find new '18 Outback Limiteds for well under $30K.
Why would they give you $28K for yours?
The cheapest I think you could get is $32k plus tax/tag/title. Maybe for a limited w/o eyesight and nav
There’s nothing low ball about it, go on cars.com and look what 2017’s are going for. Nobody cares about whatever extras something has in the used market, they just look at price and miles.
Tax/tag/title you pay can not be counted toward the value of the car. Buyer will need to pay for that again. The fair market value is what is a new 18 outback limited’s selling price, right?
November '16 I was 26 months into a 36/12 lease on 2015 Outback 3.6 Limited. It was under 23K miles. Immaculate condition.
I was able to sell it to local Honda dealer for +$600 over payoff. That was more than Carmax.
Just a data point for you.
I am in MD so I guess roughly $2k of the $30k I owe is tax. I think if I wait another year I may break even.
My payment is $360 X 12 months = $4320 - interest charge. So probably about $3500.
$30,400 - $3,500 = $26,900 which is a lot closer. Hopefully it does not depreciate too much more.
Just know there will be an all new Outback for my20, arriving in August '19.
This will drive down the value of the '19s. Your '17 even further.
Worse case I keep it and give it back at the end of the lease.
If you keep miles in check and take care of it, you should be in + equity before lease end
Thought I would update this. So car values have tanked and I am at lease end next month. Most I have been offered for my 2017 Subaru Outback limited with 38k miles is $13k. My buyout is $22,650 plus taxes. Chase mentioned if I buy it out I have to repay all taxes.
Learned my lesson leasing and will most likely be buying something used with all these car values tanking. Tried to negotiate a Volvo lease but was unsuccessful and don’t want to do this every 2-3 years.
You don’t have to. Just hire a broker, that’s why they exist. Even with shipping and their fee you can still have a good deal on a Volvo. You qualify for conquest on some models through Subaru, btw
This is one of the reasons why I do lease. Turn the car in at the end of the lease. Find a good broker to get you what you’re looking for at a good price. No reason to do it yourself.
Am I missing something or did it work out in your favor? Someone else bore the brunt of that initial, massive depreciation
Anyway for anyone in it for the long haul I usually recommend buying a brand new (often previous model year) Toyota, Honda or Subaru for multiple reasons: remove possibility of a lemon or someone else’s neglect, OEM warranty that can be extended for relatively cheap, low APR, insane dealer retail asking prices for 2-3 year old CPO models, strong resale value.
Outside of that the other decent bet for strong-ish resale value in the long run is cult cars with strong followings that get discontinued in the US, such as the Golf wagen and Alltrack, BMW 3-Series wagon, etc.