I just received an email telling me I could lease a preowned ( used ) Acura vehicle. That is just wrong .
To be fair, unless one is running a business, and therefore entitled to tax-deduct lease payments, it is NEVER a good idea to lease a vehicle. If you are a consumer, leasing any vehicle is a tremendous waste of money.
3 Likes
It is correct. Used car leases have been around for decades.
Just as bad as frequently buying new vehicles, lots of people enjoy new vehicles every few years.
2 Likes
At least they’re leasing you a whole car. There used to be a place that would lease you wheels and tires to bling up your ride for a bit. When you turned your rims back in they would just lease them to the next guy.
Doesn’t the value in leasing depend on how each person views their time/money/effort and their specific vehicle requirements?
2 Likes
I’ve never leased a vehicle and never will. It’s the absolute worse way to get a vehicle.
5 Likes
+1
I worked with a man that bought his wife a new Lexus ES when the warranty ran out. She insisted he do it. He wanted to lease given this situation, but she insisted on owning the car.
I agree. Many people think that just because something works for them, it’s best for everyone. I’m not going to lease a car, but I showed above a situation where leasing would make sense.
2 Likes
Never leased before, never considered it when working, drove to much… But now:
As someone that has only put 2,492 miles on there vehicle since late August 2024, I had thought about leasing, with no more than I drive it might make sense for me to lease so when the 3 year basic bumper to bumper warranty is about to be up (I’ll never hit the miles) and with free 2 year free maintenance, it would only cost me 1 (maybe 2) basic oil change(s) and a few sets of wipers and maybe a filter or 2, then I could just trade it in on a new one and start all over again, but because I didn’t want to be a test subject on a new gen vehicle, I just bought what I wanted, plus I can customize it to be mine, yes I have done over 20 things to it and have plans for many more that most on here would mostly never notice… lol
Plus if the wife and I want to travel any, we can without having to worry about miles…
1 Like
I don’t drive a lot of miles in a year either (aside from my work vehicle, which the company owns). However, my thinking has gone in the opposite direction to yours. If I am only going to drive a car 3,000 to 4,000 miles in a year, then I can buy a vehicle with far more miles on it than I normally would, because it will still last a decent number of years. For example, if I think a particular model is good for about 250,000 miles, if I were someone who plans to drive it 10,000 miles in a year, it wouldn’t make sense to buy this model with 220,000 miles on it. If I only plan to drive it 4,000 miles in a year, that means I can still get another 7-8 years out of it. And if the price is right, it could be a good buy.
Sounds like you’re planning on buying a 1997 Camry and putting 10k miles/year on it 
3 Likes
All of the vehicles in my household, put together don’t drive 10,000 miles in a year. That being said, a low-mileage 1997-2001 Toyota Camry is possibly the best quality, most dependable vehicle one could buy.
It continues to astound me that you insist a nearly 30-year old vehicle could be “best quality” and “most dependable”
In my experience, ALL vehicles that old need a tremendous amount of money, time and parts constantly thrown at them
There’s always something going on and parts become increasingly hard to locate and repair
7 Likes
Been their got way to many of those T-shirts… I have had many older high mileage vehicles, the car parked next to the truck is a 2009, but after a lifetime of working on vehicles as a pro, I decided it was time to treat myself and buy something new/almost new. I was looking for what I bought myself, and I had been wanting what I bought since at least 2018, so now that I am retired I figured it was time to spoil myself for once, I always put myself last, made sure the kids had nice cloths, wifey had what she wanted etc etc etc bablah bablah bablah…
Grandpa gots a nice truck now!!! And it is for ME, ME, ME!!! 
3 Likes
Wow. You folks must live close to work and school, and I suppose you drive a company service truck so you may not even need a personal vehicle during the week.
I log about 20,000 miles a year. My 18 year old has put 31,000 miles on his car since he turned 16 in 2023. My wife drives a 2018 that has 77,000 miles on it, so that’s 11,000 yearly for her. I think the national average is 13,000 miles per year. You must not spend much on gas at your house!
I would agree with you 20 years ago. But today the car you’re describing is a unicorn, at least in my area.
1 Like
Worked out well for me, got to buy it out at the end of lease for 17k, worth 28 k post covid price. So I spent 10k in lease payments over 3 years, then bought 1400 warranty a few months before the end of lease so my 2017 rav4 covered bumper to bumper warranty from toy till 2027 or 70k miles. at 28 k now. 6 year loan for 30k estimated payment @6.25 Google says 470 a month, bought it out for cash. Last offer carvana in June, 20,200
Financially? If so you’re the ONLY one I’ve ever heard of who ever did.
1 Like
I have never leased a vehicle and I don’t plan to in this lifetime.
Insurance is higher on leased vehicles. And if the car gets dented by a shopping cart in the parking lot, I have to fix it immediately, unlike owning. Like Dave outlined above, one generally cannot modify a leased vehicle, and I’m one of those drivers who enjoy some modifications to his ride.
Leased vehicles would increase my anxiety from constantly worrying about dents and scratches.
Plus, the feeling of owning compared to borrowing is wonderful.
1 Like
afaik . . . it’s higher on any vehicle you don’t own outright, because you have to carry the expensive comprehensive insurance
which would mean a financed vehicle is pretty expensive to insure during those long years before it’s paid off
I want to be able to make that choice for myself
which is why I’ve always bought cars outright, whether they’re used or new
I’m generally not into bumper stickers, but were I to get one, I’d consider this sticker
2 Likes
I have a friend who insists on leasing vehicles because it lessens her anxiety,
In her own words, she does not ever want to think about when to replace the brakes or what kind of tires to buy or how much to plan on spending when the car needs a new timing chain or 100K service. She has decided that the best course of action is to pay the monthly lease, turn the car in for a new one every 2 years, and have one less thing to worry about in life.
2 Likes
Both the Lexus and the rav4 are paid for. I don’t owe the bank for them.
P.s. I still carry comprehensive insurance on both as they are fairly new vehicles ( to me ) and I don’t want to wound up having to pay for an accident out of pocket if it’s my fault.
1 Like
Good point.
I’m just more relaxed at leaving my car dented until I’m ready to fix it. And I tend to get emotionally attached to my vehicles.
But the points you pointed out here are legit.
1 Like