Would you purchased an off lease vehicle

[Jeepster_nut]

Hi, I test drove a 04 Honda CR-V EX today. I like it, when the Honda dealer came and showed me the carfax report, ugggg it was a corporate lease vehicle. That sucked because I was going to work out a deal.
Anyway, now I am rethinking it. Would you guys buy an off lease vehicle? The CR-V is clean, 29,000 miles with 1 lease only. I am wanting to replace my civic and Jeep with the CR-V. I will be using for commuting as well as a weekend vehicle. Thanks for any input.

P.S.- it is a Certified used Honda, so there will be a 7/100,000 powertrain warranty along with a 12/12,000 bumper to bumper warranty.

 

[CBDFrontier06]

On one hand, you have minimum maintenance requirements to meet when you lease a car, so it likely wasn't neglected...but most people who realize the car isn't really 'theirs' don't treat them all that well in regards to the products they choose. Cheap oil, lowest grade gas available...you get the picture. While it may not have been abused, it probably didn't receive the treatment it may have had it been pre-owned by a caring person.

 

[JTK]

It's got a good warranty to back it, so no worries there. My Windstar was a lease return from a major metropolitan area no less (near Toronto ON). Got it cheap and I've owned it for almost 4yrs with no major concerns, *knock on wood*. The Trailblazer I owned was a former rental. No probs there either, but I only owned it ~1.5yrs. I've got no complaints either way and would do it again.

Joel

 

[rpn453]

With any used vehicle from a dealer you have no way to determine the previous owner's habits other than the visible condition of vehicle. I don't think it's much more likely to have been abused than any other lease return. If it's the right one at the right price, it wouldn't concern me too much. At least the warranty is good and it sounds like you'll have maintenance records for it.

 

[cousincletus]

I have a lease return 2004 Impala. No problems and I've had it for 4 months.

 

[Lonnie]

You have to do some snooping around and take a close look at the vehicle. Look at what might be replacement parts that you can see, brake pedal pads, belts, hoses and ask them if you can rent one of their mechanics for his opinion while you are there. Look under the valve cover and into the radiator. Look in the door jams and under the seats and get a feel for the car. But most important, buy it if you like it after some messing around. I manage software for a bunch of lease vehicles, thousands of them and there are good and bad returned vehicles and the bad ones usually show themselves with a little looking around.

 

[mstrjon32]

Basically, with a vehicle that new, with that kind of warranty, you're set. I bought a 2006 Monte Carlo LT, the previous owner being an "enterprise" owner (so it was either corporate owned or an ex-rental, probably the latter) and don't regret my decision at all. I saved a solid $12,000 off the price of a new car.

That said, I have had two problems with it, both of which the dealership and Chevrolet were eager to remedy. The first was a broken serpentine belt. A long story short, the car needed an oil pan replacement; the pan was replaced, but when the A/C compressor was bolted back on, the bolts weren't torqued properly. The A/C compressor came loose, dragged the belt, and it broke. Chevrolet reimbursed me $497 for a rental car and my inconvenience, and fixed the car.

The second problem was the headliner rattled. It appeared to me as though someone had pulled down on it, damaging the velcro which held it in place. I had to bring it back twice, but they finally replaced the headliner with an entirely new unit, and I haven't had a problem since.

I recommend Certified Used cars to everybody, regardless of the make or model. You can save a boatload of cash over the price of a new car. I'd rather buy a car with (in my case 9,400) a few miles on it and save tens of thousands of dollars than spend the extra money for, essentially, no added value.

 

[BGK]

If you can find the vehicle you want off of lease with factory warranty and it passes your inspection, the savings are worth it.

 

[ChaChy]

Quote:

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Basically,.... I saved a solid $12,000 off the price of a new car.

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Whoa AAaah

That will make up for a couple problems and even minor or slight excessive wear in the heavy foot department.

12 Grand buys a lot of bumper!

 

[ALS]

The used Volvo's come with a 6 yr and up to 100K mile warranty. One the other hand all the techs and service writers have told me to steer clear of any leased Volvo.
They are easy to pick out in the service area. Usually the back seat is filled with McDonald's bags, food and drink cups. The car is filthy inside and out. Under the oil cap usually has sludge from the 2 or 3 dino oil changes it has had since being delivered even though it has 25K-30K miles on the odometer. These are $40K to $55K automobiles.
But now after saying that there are cream puff's out there you just have to keep your eyes open for the right car.
And you DO NOT want this Chevrolet rental car.
Rental Car Destruction May have a bad word or two in the video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucjy4U0mIyQ

 

[mstrjon32]

What a bunch of !@#holes in that video. I would punch that guy in the face if I saw him. I don't care who owns the thing, you shouldn't treat any vehicle that way.

 

[VeeDubb]

I can tell you this. If I were leasing my vehicle, I wouldn't be spending anytime on BITOG worrying about what oil to put in it. And I doubt there are many leasers on this site.

 

[ThirdeYe]

My dad almost always leases his cars and he is always very easy on them, all highway miles and he always has it changed at 3k no matter what the circumstances are, even though I told him he could do 5k easy in his Ion. But I bet he's in the minority when it comes to lease owners. I got lucky though with my old car, it was a rental car for the first 15k miles or so, then the next owner had it for about 75k, then the last owner before I bought it had it for 2 years or so, and about 30k miles and when I bought it from her asking when the oil was changed last, she didn't even know, nor was there any oil change sticker on the windshield. The valve cover gasket was leaking so I can only imagine how dirty that oil must've been. Had it for 2 years and only replaced the valve cover gasket, routine maintenance, then the last week I had it or so, I had the alternator rebuilt. Pretty lucky I'd say. I looked down the oil filler before I sold it and it was still relatively clean, even with the unknown past, surprisingly.

 

[Brogy]

I would be hesitant to buy a leased vehicle, I would run away from a company owned lease.

When I had a lease vehicle, it was great, because I could redline it, "test" the tranny, ect. I would take off on the coldest mornings (10*) and be down the street within 10 seconds of stepping foot in the car. If i wanted the heat to come on faster, I would rev the engine at 5000rpm in neutral while coasting. I would take corners hard and wasnt easy on the brakes. I would shift from R to D while rolling too. And there was a lot of general revving going on, while in the parking lot with friends ect., and the only time it ever recieved a warm up was when it was covered in snow. It had almost 20,000 miles when I returned it, probally 15,000 of those were 1 mile trips, from home to school, school to home, home to work, all cold starts.

But I did have the oil changed every 3000 miles or 3 months, no matter what, and washed it once a week and waxed every month. I vaccumed the interior and didnt put any stains on the seats, and used aftermarket floor mats to keep the original ones looking like new.

I didnt neglect the car, but I definetly didnt treat it good. It was my first car if that means anything, but the moment I got my next car, which was all mine, paid off, I took good care of it and was gentle.

I never did what those guys in the video did, I wasnt trying to ruin the car, I was just doing what was conevient and fun, why give a car a warmup before giving it some revs if I dont plan on keeping it? But then again it was my first car, and back then I didnt even know what oil did, maybe if I got another lease now i'd treat it nice, but im the reason I wont buy a leased car! If I were to buy a car only a couple of years old, it'd be from the person, and it'd be because they cant afford it, they dont need it, or they're moving or something. I want a seller who planned on keeping the car.

 

[i30krab]

I would never buy an off lease vehicle. But I am in the market for a 7 year old Mercedes, Bmw, Lexus, or Infiniti.

Of course I would take these cars only to a dealership where I know I would get the lowest prices on parts and labor.

No! what's so funny? Aren't all new car dealerships up front and honest? please don't burst my bubble

 

[Shannow]

I was after a 2 or 3 year old vehicle with 50-60,000km on it.

Novated leasing was offered at work, I did the sums and took out a lease...paid off the residual (i.e. bought it).

I ended up with a three year old vehicle with 53,00km on it, run exclusively on synthetics, and perfectly maintained.

So yes, I'd buy a lease vehicle...my lease.

As to business leases, I see how the guys at work (including the mechanics) mistreat a car that is never goig to be theirs...never.

 

[VeeDubb]

I would purchase a lease vehicle only if all maintenance records are available. But I would not purchase a leased vehicle that offers "free" maintenance (i.e. BMW and Audi) even if they have all the maintenance records. I noticed that those manufacturers stretch out the maintenance intervals to the point of absurdity. 10k oil recommended oil changes on A4's with 1.8T sludge prone engines.

My mom's new X3 is at 12K and the service computer tells her she still has another 4000 miles to go and she does nothing but short trips.

 

[Roger]

I think you are safe as it still has the warranty. I bought my '01 Maxima from Hertz when it had 23K miles. Today it has 110K. One warranty claim for a power window switch, otherwise no issues. Love the car.

 

[dwendt44]

You can find a used car anywhere that hasn't had good maintenance, lease or not.
Use the same eagle eye exam you would with any other car and you should be good.
I've had former rental cars that served me well, and regular used cars that were junk from the day I bought them.

 

[JMG]

I bought a 2001 CR-V off lease and put on 45K troublefree miles in 3 years...Car was beatiful inside and out. Off lease, car from Florida...Bought at Honda Dealership.