Is a 96 month loan actually worth it?

So, I’m new to the factory ordering process and I’m currently in the process of ordering one of Lexus’ rarest vehicles, the IS500 F Sport Performance (Premium package) and the dealer is quoting me one at MSRP ($63k). The funny thing is that when I searched up a couple of used ones nationwide with just a couple thousand miles, the OTD price goes anywhere between $75k-$85k. (Side note: I figured this car would be a perfect replacement for my aging 2008 Acura TL Type S) I’m the type of person who keeps their cars about 8-12 years before itching to get another one. So I naturally gravitate towards financing before looking at a lease option. And ordinarily, I would stay away from 7 or 8 year loans but in this instance, it’s starting to seem like it would probably make sense since one of the biggest downsides of a 96 month loan just went out the window. So unless I’m missing something, does a 96 month loan make sense in this instance?

The longer term is going to cost you more in interest (higher rate on a larger balance over a longer term) and you’ll be at risk of the value being below your loan balance for a longer period of time. Do the math on this first, and compare the total interest you’ll pay for the longer and shorter terms.

The second part can be mitigated with a down payment, maintaining liquid savings, or if you must, GAP (but that just adds more cost).

I personally hate debt, and I only have a car loan now because the rate is well under what liquid savings earns. But I also know I’m in the minority on this. Some of this depends on how you view money and indebtedness.

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The ONLY way it would make sense is for the LOW monthly payments, you would pay a lot more in interest… if you wanna keep the monthly at the lowest end and have flexibility to pay EXTRA every month I would do it, otherwise NO NO NO lot more expensive TCO :ok_hand:

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Here, use this loan calculator to figure out the difference… roughly $4K for 96 vs 72 months as interest rates are lower on 72, 60 etc…

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Short answer is no. First of, what is the interest rate for such a loan? As others have said, it will probably cost you more in interest payments vs say a 60 month or 72 month loan.

I don’t want to be that guy, but if you are considering a 96 month loan, maybe you should consider a more affordable car.

Depends on the terms. If you can get 96 months 0% sure , highly worth it(obviously not really doable in todays environment). If you are paying a significant interest premium to get it, then no.

If you are doing it to afford a car you couldn’t otherwise, probably not a great idea unless you have a large income increase coming soon.

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