“Should I buy out my lease?” super-thread

Only 3-row that’s possible rn is the Pathfinder and maybe the Jeep GCL but apples to apples (at the same payment) you’ll find a better equipped Pathfinder.

Telluride and GV80 are finance only; lease programs are terrible.

@bourbonup1 go check out the GCL…jeep has stepped up their interior quality. You can get a decently appointed limited for this range.

In 2020 I leased my first vehicle, a 2020 Volvo XC90 T6. Monthly is around $600 and I’ve been pretty happy with it.

I spent a lot of time agonizing over details and hired a hacker.

Once the car arrived, it was great, but I don’t care about engine stuff. It was a new car and I hadn’t had one for 10 years, so everything was A-Ok with me.

What’s important to me are quality of life and safety features (360 camera, Auto braking, collision detection, good entertainment center console that is intuitive and easily navigable, children’s built in booster, easy access 3rd row and good trunk space)

My lease is coming up in June and I know it’s early, but what should I be thinking about for a new vehicle lease at that time? We love the space of a 7-seater SUV and have filled it up numerous times. I’d love to keep my monthly where it’s at, but I know the market has changed!

Which makes/models are the ones to look out for? I recall the Kia Telluride being the category winner, but I was steered towards Volvo for the lease price.

Any thoughts, advice? Just thinking ahead.

1 Like

If you aren’t set on pulling-ahead into another XC90, go drive all the three row SUV options and check the safety ratings and see what you like/hate. Sooner than later so you can watch the marketplace for deals.

If you are set on another XC90, even with a pull-ahead, now isn’t a good time to lease another one. Programs were much more favorable last month, and make sure you’re a Costco member in case there is a spring program (maybe/maybe not). If you aren’t a VCOA member to get A Plan, you’re six months too late to join, you need to be a member for a year, and A Plan is currently much worse than it was when you leased.

I suspect the consensus will be “don’t buy out this lease” either, since XC90s don’t historically hold that value well. I don’t see that changing in six months.

I read this post about redeeming the $7500 incentive with a VW/Audi lease and then "buying out the vehicle immediately to save on the hefty finance charges ".

I am super new to leasing so pardon all the dumb questions. Can someone help me understand this? I looked at Audi’s website, I see the MSRP, the $7500 deduction, some of those fees for documents etc but I don’t see a variable for MF or “Interest”. So I am not getting where I am paying the finance charges here.

Here is the breakdown I am seeing for Q4e/36/10k:
MSRP: 57,790
Lease Bonus: 7,500
Due at signing: 0
Taxes & Fee: 2150 (Up-front: 482, DMV fee: 688, Documentation fee: 85, Acquisition Fee: 895
First month payment: 1054
Eat Adjusted Cap Cost: 53,494

Fineprint: Total monthly payments equal $37,944. Due at signing includes $4,297 capitalized cost reduction, a required security deposit of $0, and first month’s lease payment of $1,054.

This thread is for people assessing whether to buy out the lease near the end - several others discussion Section 45 of the IRA (allows these to be leased).

It sounds like you’re also looking for Leasing 101 to understand how leases work.

The source for the buy rate Money Factor (which dealer can mark up) is either Edmunds Leasing Forums, or pay to become a Super Supporter here to get access to Rate Finder.

https://calculator.leasehackr.com/auth

And if you don’t want to take the time to read and understand Leasing 101, there are brokers in the Marketplace offering Audis, who can also talk you through their lease programs.

3 Likes

Thanks jeisensc, this is super useful. I’ll move the discussion to the other forum.

However, this is also the lease I am looking at for a car I am interested in and when I saw the $7500 offer followed by a buy-out, that piqued my interest so I thought maybe I can get recommendations here for the specific lease I mentioned earlier and if I go for it followed by a buy-out. Any thoughts on that?

I guess I don’t know what other info I need to share to evaluate whether a buy-out makes sense for this Q4e lease buy out. Are there finer details during the lease sign time perhaps that I don’t know about.

I’ll continue following up in the 101 forum in the meantime.

You’re read time is 1 hour. Spend some time in the threads I posted, they’re more appropriate for your question. At least one has a discussion about how the Audi leases are better than they have been, but not good. But if you aren’t at least competent in leasing 101, how will you evaluate them for yourself?

1 Like

I have $45,000 on my m550i, 3850 in taxes, 16500 miles, zero damage.

BMW has been avoiding me rolling it into a used car. I’ve noticed no responses from dealerships that I’ve worked with for years. One gave me a pathetic offer, like 42k in ‘KBB value’ with ‘Good’

I’d note one thing I don’t see much mentioned here: warranty. I got quoted at $7500 on a warranty after BMW gives me 1 more year of their CPO warranty? The n63 v-8s are fussy and warranties are expensive. Anyone else get big warranty quotes on higher-end engines? Same guy said he put a $12,500 warranty on a 2018 750i. This seems insane.

I’m in the exact same situation as you (bar two months ahead).

I’ve had a look already and think I’ve settled in buying a Nissan Pathfinder or Hyundai Pallisade.

While both are not quite as nice as an XC90, they’re better equipped and total cost of ownership looks to be much less than than another XC90 Lease.

Tellurides are still impossible to get hold of it seems, without paying over the odds or having to wait/ get lucky

Deffo don’t overlook the Nissan, we only stopped to take a look as we were passing the dealership, it’s a very nice car inside

The Pallisade would still be my first choice but it looks like it’s going to cost 10% or so and I’m not sure it’s worth that

Check out pricing for Fidelity platinum warranty- won’t be cheap but you can probably get 5-6 additional years for less $$ than what dealer is telling you. Fidelity is one of the best 3rd party programs. This site is a Volvo dealer but any brand can buy the Fidelity warranty.

1 Like

Nissan’s 50,000+ mile reliability is questionable at best, if not downright terrible, especially with a first year product.

You don’t want to be stuck selling a vehicle that nobody wants. Ask anyone who bought a JX35/QX60 from the first couple years.

Get an 18m lease on the Pathfinder and then half way through order a Telluride or Palisade.

1 Like

Had a first year new model Murano in 2015 and that was fine

I suspect we’ll do about 10-15k miles in 3 years in it

Will definitely weigh up the lease option at the time though

The likelier problem isn’t that you’ll get a lemon, it’s that no one will want to buy the vehicle above a big discount to the competition.

In other words, you’ll suffer higher depreciation even if your personal car’s history is immaculate.

1 Like

Good point, if I’m saving 10% over the competition to start with, what are the likely impacts 3-5 years down the road?

Assume it would need to be a 20%ish… difference at that stage to make up the $5k

I’ll take a look at residuals of the Pallisade and the other models you mention and see if it’s worth consideration

Separate to my XC90, as referenced in the other discussion above, I have v60, due to term in Feb.

I assume this is a no brainer but wanted to double check with the experts before I pull the trigger…

Firstly, I love this car, super comfy, enjoyable to drive, has the tech I need at this point
Secondly, thanks to the pandemic, I have only done 8,000 of the 30,000 miles leased.

Buy out is $28,000, equivalents seem to be selling for $45,000 according to Cars.com, Carvana offers $35,000

Should I try to get a warranty or similar with Volvo? I assume we will trade it in 2-3 years (maybe sooner), I would be surprised if its hit 15k miles by then…

I’m in a similar situation. My V90 lease is up this summer. I’m quite a bit under in terms of miles. Would consider a buyout, but I leased one that didn’t have a clean carfax. During its time as a loaner, had some minor bumper work done due to a rear-end collision. Assuming that makes buyout a no-go in terms of future value. Tough, because my monthly is relatively low and I know it will be impossible to replicate now.

It has a 4/48 warranty, but if you plan to keep it longer I’d consider at least a third party extended warranty (link to one above, and an entire thread about them if you search).

Get third party buyout quotes (as if you own it) on the v90 now to see how the dirty carfax affects it. And be watching/waiting for better Volvo programs throughout the year to pull-ahead — if you aren’t a Costco member, hedge your bets and get a membership.

2 Likes

2020 BMW X3M comp
My lease is up in May.
Residual is at $48,100
Mileage: ~23k
Monthly: $785

Is it no brainer these days to buy it out or should i extend the lease, if they let me, and see where the market will be in 3-6months?
I think BMW warranty is good for another year, not 100% sure.
Thanks for any recommendations!

Are you though?

A Pathfinder Platinum is 52,xxx MSRP and after 6-7% off that’s ~49k.

A Telluride SXP is ~50k MSRP and thousands of people have bought them with no markup.