Term: 36 months / 12k miles annually ($0.15/mile over)
Residual: 73% ($42,097)
MF: 0.00265 (Toyota base, no markup)
Capitalized Fees: $2,042.54
Adjusted Cap Cost: $52,785.78
Monthly: $548.35 pretax / $599.82 with AZ tax
DAS: $799
Total 3-Year Cost: ~$21,793
Negotiation:
Initially offered $49,000, but the dealer’s best was $50,900 (11.7% off). Felt that was competitive for this trim and spec..
Why I Leased Instead of Buying:
I typically purchase vehicles and sell within 2–3 years, effectively treating ownership as a short-term lease while managing depreciation myself.
This time, the 73% residual combined with the 11.7% discount made leasing attractive, despite the less-than-stellar money factor.
My thinking was that for a three-year horizon, I preferred keeping ~$51k invested rather than tied up in a depreciating asset, while getting a predictable ~$21.8k total lease cost. Investment returns obviously aren’t guaranteed, but I value the liquidity and potential upside.
I also liked transferring the downside depreciation risk to Toyota Financial, especially given uncertainty in the used-car market now and perhaps in the future even more so. If the truck’s worth less than the residual in three years, I hand back the keys. If it’s worth more, I have the option to buy it.
Had I planned to keep the truck for 5–7+ years, purchasing at the discounted price probably would have made more financial sense.
Overall, happy with the deal and the flexibility. Could buying have worked out cheaper over three years? Absolutely, depending on resale values. But I liked locking in the cost and avoiding the uncertainty of negotiating another trade-in down the road.
Curious what others think of the deal and the lease-versus-buy rationale.
You can’t go wrong with a Tacoma. As you said, worst case scenario is that you turn the truck back in to TFS in 3 years and it won’t lose any more value than the stated 73% residual. This is the main benefit of leasing. Your depreciation cost is fixed. Historically, resale value on used Tacomas is strong, despite Toyota selling hundreds of thousands of them every year. There is a possibility of trading your truck in at the end of the lease (or before) and having positive equity.
If you have the cash anyway, next time consider giving TFS Multiple Security Deposits (MSD). Giving TFS extra security deposits lets you buy down the money factor, which lowers your interest rate, & makes your payment less. You’ll get this money back at the end of the lease. It is an excellent return on investment. If a dealer isn’t familiar, then sometime you have to push them to look into the program. TFS also has a 1 pay program that has you pay all your lease payments up front. In exchange, TFS charges you less for the money factor.
I’m not in the market, but an 11.7% discount on a TRD Off Road Hybrid seems strong. Others can and will certainly chime in regarding this matter.
Congrats and enjoy your truck. Post a photo if you can. I leased a 2019 & 2023 Tacoma from brokers on this site. They were fantastic trucks. I had the opportunity to drive a friend’s recently acquired low optioned 2026 Tacoma SR5 4WD and was very impressed with it. Solid trucks, they look cool, are reliable, & hold their value extremely well.
Thanks I appreciate your feedback. Yeah, just being aggressive and shopping around for a uniquely trimmed spec that had been sitting on the dealer lot for quite some time got me the discount and prompted me to strike for either leasing or buying, and the lease structure just made sense because it gives me more options.
also, it’s probably not going to affect Tacoma resale too much, but I have a little bit of hesitancy as to how the hybrid Toyota trucks will resell in 5 to 7 years from now, Those are relatively new for Toyota to put in trucks, and not sure how people will come to like them. It’s not like you’re getting a Prius level efficiency, it’s just that you’re getting more power. I will say, especially if you live at elevation, that is a huge difference and totally worth it.
That’s interesting. I wasn’t aware of the multiple security deposits to change the MF. For this deal the MF was straight from Toyota and thus was not marked up by the dealer, but I wasn’t aware that there are ways to possibly get it lower. I’ve always been cautioned against doing a cash upfront deal due to the risks associated with it. I’ll keep those things in mind for the future!
Oh interesting. And it just depends if they accept those or not depending on the deal or manufacturer? Or are they always available - just need to know to ask?
That’s the way to do it. Be flexible on color, options, & trim level. Find a lot queen that’s costing them a lot of money in floor plan interest. Most Tacoma buyers aren’t out there actively looking for a $58,000 truck. Nice job!
Always available with most manufacturers financing.
You can even do a one pay lease and pay the entire lease up front, many brokers are advertising Tacoma one pays on here right now.
You did well but now you know you can “buy down” the rate next time.
