I currently lease a 2019 Infiniti Q50 3.0t Luxe AWD in Michigan, with weather package (heated seats, steering wheel, remote start, navigation). The car is in solid condition, and has only 22,500 miles on it (I have up to 32,500 limit). Regular oil changes, tire rotations, service, etc.
Maturity is in February 2023. Did a 39-month lease; MSRP was $45K, but negotiated down purchase price to $32K, leased at 0.09% interest rate, and a 49% RV if I recall… I put nothing down and have been living with a monthly payment of $315/mo. Sweet deal.
My purchase option is for $21.5K… and the KBB value has been dropping like a rock down to $24K as of today. I have my inspection scheduled next week in order to keep my options open.
The car works fine for me especially with Michigan winters… though Infiniti as a brand has been on the decline for a decade. Looking at comments on this forum, everyone likes to hate on Infiniti. Looking at the market, looks like values are declining but there appears to be NO good value in the luxury or lease market. From Lexus to BMW to Benz, inflation looks downright nuts right now.
What should I do? I would appreciate your input. I have the financial means to simply buy out the lease directly from Infiniti Finance, but also open to trying something new. I’m fairly agnostic to car brand - but want something nice to drive, but also not trying to jump up to a $600/mo+ payment. I’m really not sure what is the best way to go about this.
I’d appreciate any thoughts. Thank you in advance for reading!
Other brands may not be doing hot, but Infiniti is easily doing the worst.
If the car works and you don’t hate it when you see it everyday, then maybe hold onto it for a bit? Out there are lots of broker deals for bMW 330s out there, just get one of those.
In a similar situation - 2020 Q50 Red Sport with 340+tax payment. One option is to buy out, I am looking at gifting the buyout to family to save on tax, not sure if this is possible or depends on the state. Extended warranty - you can buy Infiniti CPO wrap at any dealer in the US, check out Q50 forums, it runs $2.5-$3.5K for 4 year/100.000 miles. Make sure turbos are covered.
I cannot justify paying $750 for BMW 540. Was looking at Alfa Romeo, but it’s nowhere near the performance of Red Sport.
It’s a matter of taste but to me this car looks better than most of lease darlings
Unfortunately there’s no best way here. It’s more like choosing what’s the least worst.
Payments on most things are awful, especially luxury cars. It’s an outcome of not just shortages and inflation, but also the fact that consumers migrated en masse towards more expensive vehicles during the pandemic.
I’m optimistic things will be better in a couple years, so what to drive for 18-24 months? It almost comes down to personal preference between (A) buying out your lease and taking the chance on depreciation and (B) leasing something like a Nissan or Jeep knowing your expenses are fixed for that duration.
BTW You put MI, here’s the rules.
The only qualifying relationships are:
• Spouse
• Parent (natural or adoptive)
• Brother or Sister
• Child (natural or adopted)
• Grandparent or Grandchild
• Step relationship (i.e. stepparent,
stepbrother, stepsister, stepchild)*
• Legal ward or legally appointed guardian
with a certified letter of guardianship
• In-laws
The laws around gifting are set up to avoid double taxation. Sounds like you’re either trying to commit tax fraud or go through all this trouble to pay the tax you’d normally owe.
If this is legally allowed (and I said I am only looking at it) it is not tax fraud, but tax avoidance. Ever did “mega backdoor Roth” at work? Is this fraud or avoidance?
FWIW q50s are absolutely plummeting right now. Haven’t seen one that’s in the positive for a while. Strongly suggest anyone looking to buy one out be very wary…
If anything this is a particularly asymmetric market where lease pricing has barely improved aside from a few exceptions, while prior trade-ins have resulted in losses for buyers and now bids reflect a very skittish buyers’ mentality.
FWIW I just got the car back to the dealer and they are paying me $4K in equity (35 offer vs 31 payoff). I’ve got similar estimates at RODO and Autonation. Looks like dealerships are gobbling cars right now, but I think this will change in a few weeks. Dealer specifically said they will CPO the car and not wholesale it.
