I miss the days of subsidized leases.

B

BMWTurboDzl

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After months of waiting wife was finally able to test drive a 2022 C300 that she ordered sight unseen and isn't thrilled about the car. The monthly lease payment is ridiculous and when I was asked I told her I'm not thrilled about it because she's not thrilled about the car. What's even crazier is that leases on cheaper models from other makes aren't significantly lower and she's not thrilled about them either. Today she's going to take a look at a G70 so hopefully she'll be happy with that at the price. This car is basically a place card for the next 2-3 years because we want to see how the market shakes out

Funny thing is I asked her to find something she liked and she picked out a CPO 2018 SLK which was only selling for $6k less than the 2022 C300. She's a smart woman but I'm like honey, you're looking at a 4 yr old car with 1 year warranty vs a new car with 4 yr warranty and you want to basically pay the same payment? Her reply was "Well I thought you wanted me to get something I liked". :rolleyes:
 
drtyler said:
Nothing wrong with an 18 SLK if thats what she wants!

Beats a G70.
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I agree however we both aren't thrilled with the idea of large repairs on a car which isn't paid off and/or is upside down on.

The '18 SLK was listed for $45k. New G70 would run ~$250/mo less on a 3 yr lease vs 4 yr finance of a 4 yr old out of warranty SLK.
 
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You would think with projected residuals likely much higher than in previous years that leasing would be a better option than it's ever been. It appears the reality is dealers are determined to pack more profit than ever into them.
 
Inventory for Mercedes still seems very limited. What's the premium over MSRP they're asking for these days? Some places are still allowing you to place an order at MSRP or so they say. They do say the shortages should ease over the next 6 months and then things are supposed to get better in 2023 especially if the economy starts to tank.

As for the used car prices, they're still pretty high now and some say that they're also starting to ease a little. As for CPO, they come with a 1 year warranty but you can buy 2 extra years of CPO from Mercedes, usually there's dealers that will discount the extra two years, you can find them mentioned in various Mercedes forums.
KCJeep said:
You would think with projected residuals likely much higher than in previous years that leasing would be a better option than it's ever been. It appears the reality is dealers are determined to pack more profit than ever into them.
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Maybe they're thinking prices will be back to normal in 3 years once the chip shortages end and they don't want to be caught with their pants down.
 
KCJeep said:
You would think with projected residuals likely much higher than in previous years that leasing would be a better option than it's ever been. It appears the reality is dealers are determined to pack more profit than ever into them.
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Yep high money factor (MF).

I also wonder if residuals are lower due to uncertainty around electrification 3-4 yrs down the road. If electrification takes off they stand to lose a lot of money on lease turn-ins so they're trying to protect themselves. Plus there's a lack of competition among brands because everyone is in the same boat in terms of inventory.

BTW the lease on the '23 C300 was over $840/mo ($0 down) at 7,500 miles/yr for 4 years. That's just absurd.
 
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Wolf359 said:
Inventory for Mercedes still seems very limited. What's the premium over MSRP they're asking for these days? Some places are still allowing you to place an order at MSRP or so they say. They do say the shortages should ease over the next 6 months and then things are supposed to get better in 2023 especially if the economy starts to tank.

As for the used car prices, they're still pretty high now and some say that they're also starting to ease a little. As for CPO, they come with a 1 year warranty but you can buy 2 extra years of CPO from Mercedes, usually there's dealers that will discount the extra two years, you can find them mentioned in various Mercedes forums.

Maybe they're thinking prices will be back to normal in 3 years once the chip shortages end and they don't want to be caught with their pants down.
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No premium for C and E Class. SUV's are another story.

The C was delayed since Fall 2021 and she ordered around March 2022. Prices were announced a couple of weeks ago.
 
BMWTurboDzl said:
BTW the lease on the '23 C300 was over $840/mo ($0 down) at 7,500 miles/yr for 4 years.
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That's over $40,000 in payments plus whatever BS upfront fees they charge so probably $42,000 total, and after 4 years you turn it in and have nothing to show for it. You can buy one for a couple thousand more and after 4 years have something worth $15-20K. Why would you lease?
 
atikovi said:
That's over $40,000 in payments plus whatever BS upfront fees they charge so probably $42,000 total, and after 4 years you turn it in and have nothing to show for it. You can buy one for a couple thousand more and after 4 years have something worth $15-20K. Why would you lease?
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Yep. Absurd.

BTW to buy. $877/mo for 72 months.

People lease for a variety of reasons. - get bored with cars, enjoy owning a car under a warranty, cannot DIY, don't want to be upside down on a finance, business write-off, don't want to get stuck with a problem vehicle.
 
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atikovi said:
That's over $40,000 in payments plus whatever BS upfront fees they charge so probably $42,000 total, and after 4 years you turn it in and have nothing to show for it. You can buy one for a couple thousand more and after 4 years have something worth $15-20K. Why would you lease?
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Leases used to be much cheaper in the past, maybe $600-$700 on a C class and in the $800-$900 range on an E class. I priced out an E450 and it came back with an estimated lease of about $1300. Even a basic E350 is about $1200. Probably a combination of higher money factor and lower residual value.
 
BMWTurboDzl said:
No premium for C and E Class. SUV's are another story.

The C was delayed since Fall 2021 and she ordered around March 2022. Prices were announced a couple of weeks ago.
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The used car prices are still a little crazy. I saw a 2021 E class with a few thousand miles priced about 1k below MSRP. Mind as well buy a new with with zero miles and 1 year newer if you can get MSRP. Although maybe they expected you to negotiate hard and knock off a few thousand off the asking price.
 
I sold my 2018 Elantra GT back to the dealer when the lease was up and netted $6200 over the residual.
Doing the math I drove a new car with a warranty for 3 years for $94 a month,lunch money.
I didn't have to buy or lease to replace it I was given an SUV for free.
 
BMWTurboDzl said:
Ya. I'd rather save $50k for retirement and she doesn't want to own.
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Just get her a Toyota Camry. No worries about maintenance and waiting at the dealer for them to diagnose the Christmas Tree on the dashboard. Who cares about the free sandwiches and extra nice coffee in the waiting room. Stealth Wealth my friend.
 
measureman said:
I sold my 2018 Elantra GT back to the dealer when the lease was up and netted $6200 over the residual.
Doing the math I drove a new car with a warranty for 3 years for $94 a month,lunch money.
I didn't have to buy or lease to replace it I was given an SUV for free.
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That was basically cashing in on the rise in used car prices. Basically the rising tide lifted all boats. Many people also bought cars and sold them either for a gain or very little loss. It's not a normal market so can't use that as any justification for a lease, also works for purchases if you assume the same conditions. Will probably not continue in the future or at least out to 3 years when normal leases end.
 
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