Look at it this way Ed, the first 10,000 miles each year is about 50 cents a mile. Every mile over that is only 20 cents. So who cares how many miles are put on if they are cheaper than the base. Just like a lot of things in production, the first production run is the most expensive with pieces after that being cheap to produce. Once you are in that cheap mode, you can run circles around the competition with lower pricing and still make money.
Galant, I wish I could disagree with you, but I cannot. I suspect that most of the leased cars are driven by people who want a flashier car than they can actually afford, and many (perhaps most) donāt understand how expensive it really is in the long run. Perhaps part of the blame goes to guys like the OPā¦ great sales pitch that can lead to a very bad decision.
Feel like itās the new way of the future. Why buy something ānewā when you can get the next best thing in a few years and so on. Damn the price difference!
John, Iām afraid it has already taken hold amoung the younger crowd (below 40) as an acceptable way to get a new car. When I was young leases werenāt even available to private purchasers. They were designed for businesses only. Of course, back then a two year loan was standard and a three year loan was a long loan. My, how the years have changed our culture. 
mountainbike
" . . . donāt understand how expensive it really is in the long run."
Yup
I have some relatives who really arenāt that smart when it comes to cars and expenses. Theyāre getting rid of vehicles too early, when just a few repairs are needed. And then they get themselves into a lease
They got rid of a truck which just needed a clutch job and tires. Instead of asking me if I wanted to buy it off them cheap, they sold it for pennies on the dollar. What the got for it was truly insulting to them, but they arenāt savvy enough to see that they got taken. I didnāt have the heart to tell them.
When I see basically the same trucks listed on craigslist for a LOT more than they got, it makes me kind of upset. It would have been a perfect truck for me, to run errands, do chores, pick up stuff, etc.
The āfunniestā thing . . . the husband knew that the latest acquisition was a lease, but the wife and everybody else thought they were financing it :trollface:
That speaking of long loans . . . my brother had either a 6- or 7-year loan on one of his cars. And that was with an excellent credit score
Iāll go off-topic again . . . a few years ago, I had basically āsavedā a family. Their car was essentially undriveable, because of a major engine oil leak. I took care of it, far quicker and cheaper than any shop would have. Simply because I got started right away. And a shop might not be able to start right away, because other customer cars have been there, waiting to get started on.
Anyways . . . I got the car fixed. All the leaks were fixed. The car ran great. Everybody was happy
A few years later, I hear from my brother that these guys have come into some money, and somehow got rid of the car, because there was mechanical problem with it. Instead of asking that ānice mechanic who got us out of a jam so quickly and cheaply a few years agoā if he wants it cheap, they just dumped it. Iām not exactly sure what the āmechanical problemā was, but I remember the car as being in pretty good shape, when I released it to them after the repair. Would have made an excellent spare car.
My view of spending money was shaped by my parents who suffered through the great depression. When I was in elementary school my dad was teaching full time, working to complete a doctorate, and sending what money he could spare to help his father. In addition, my maternal grandmother lived with us and my mother had to care for her. We didnāt buy anything we couldnāt pay for with cashāthe only exception was the mortgage on our modest house. It was a great education to learn the value of money and to learn to do things for ourselves. We had what we neededāa roof over our head, food on the table and clothes on our backs. I would rather own something outright than to make payments to a lending organization. My brother and I learned how to do electrical and plumbing repairs and auto maintenance. All of this paid off when I was a young, adult starting out. It meant more to me to keep an old car running than to make payments on a new car. Our first television was almost free as a friend didnāt want if vecause the sound cut in and out and two trips to a repair shop,didnāt solve the problem. I tracked the problem to a bad solder joint and with one hour of labor had a working tv. I tapped into the amplifier section of our little clock radio and with an,inexpensive record changer, played records. Then, when I had a little more money, I found a,used preamp and power amplifier that had belonged to a person,who,had,to have the latest and the best. I did buy a new high fidelity speaker and built a speaker enclosure for $3 worth of celotex from plans I found in Popular Electronics. I then,had,a,pretty good sounding system. One of the best buys I ever made was when,we,needed a,second car. I,bought a 1961_Corvair at a,very low,price from a,Rambler dealer. The dealer thought the Corvair needed a valve job and his mexhanics didnāt want to work,on Corvairs. I figured that the car would get me around rown for a while until I could get the valves ground. However, the first time we wers, out in a,thunderstorm in the Corvair, I didnāt think we would get back home. All I had to do was replace the spark plug wires and distributor cap and I had a great running car. I really feel sorry for people who extend their budgets to lease cars and borrow money to have the latest.and the best. They,miss,out on the satisfaction of living well within your means and,still having what you want.
Yepā¦ My sister got a 6 year on her new VW and my dad was shocked at that But as prices go up then the years will continue to climb. If you can get a used car kept in good condition for $5000 then that beats the car payments over a 6 year period in my mind.
I know someone of the type that db4690 mentioned. The person who gets rid of a car for a minor reason and wanting to upgrade. This just leads to a progressively deeper financial hole.
One 80k miles as new car in and out that was traded off because the coolant overflow bottle seeped about a cup of coolant per monthā¦
The next car was traded off because they āthoughtā the CVT might act up on a near new car.
The next because a Recall was not doneā¦
Might as well bale money up and throw it off the bridge into the river.
I guess this is the wave of the future but I hate with every fiber of my being owing anyone a stinking dime for anything.
Hxxx, I was 29 years old before I ever bought a car on a payment plan through GMAC.
A year and a half of payments and I was sick of them so the car went up for sale. The stars were in alignment I guess because it sold the day after putting it up for sale for way more than I owed on it. The buyer just āhad to have itā after going for a test ride with me.
As stated previously for wifey a lease made sense as she is a 8k a year driver. $200 a month for lease vs $218 per month total for purchase sales tax interest and maintenance besides oil change for a purchased car kept 11 years until too big a repair bill. So I save 18 dollars a month over 11 years for a car with 2k msrp less, no brakes no out of warranty cost, no tires, sure you all say it is a waste of money, but my math proves differently. So I save $18 month, never have to worry about brakes, coolant, trans fluid tires, tell me again what I am missing. Sure gotta play both sides of the fence, my 03 trailblazer I bought and need for boat towing, rationolize repairs vs buying an suv with 4wd, many repairs I have done, starter motor, thermostat, etc. some I could not, looking at $500 for front struts, life goes on.
Bet you had a big garden too. Everybody had huge gardens. Peas, corn, onions, potatoes, etc. and an apple tree. It was great when we hired a guy with a power tiller so I didnāt have to dig it up by hand. Canāt stand having a garden now though.
Bet you still save paper bags, I do, bet you save plastic containers, I do also, stopped saving coffee cans, in fact tossed the old ones, wish I had them now as we drink starbucks cofee on flexible bags, and every now and hen I wish I had a can
Seeing as LA county charges for grocery bags now (ridiculous) I save all I can
Frugal? Iām Not Frugal. Iām Cheap!
I can afford to pay cash for new cars, but I donāt. Iāve purchased new cars, CPO cars, and used cars. They all work out just fine, but the used cars give the most satisfaction and save the most money. I donāt like to waste anything, including money.
My children learned from me, almost too well. I bought a pop-rivet tool set and a bunch of assorted rivets at a yard sale in a case for like 4 bucks. I had one, but when I see tools for my kids I buy them. I gave it to my son a while back and explained how it works.
About a week ago he texted me a photo of a cracked plastic snow shovel that he ārepairedā with wood and pop rivets. He was proud! Yikes! This kid lives almost walking distance from snow shovel stores and has plenty of disposable income, butā¦ I shouldnāt have, but told him he might want to consider a new oneā¦ next time it breaks. :neutral:
My daughter 21, and at college, clips and uses couponsā¦ Yes! She doesnāt understand why her 3 roommates donāt know anything about saving on utility bills, dialing down heat, turning out lights, brewing their own coffee with a Mr. Coffee, etceteraā¦ 
Back to cars. Iām checking my file. Our 2001 Impala that both my kids drove, one at a time (7 year age difference) I bought with 132,610 miles on 11/10/07 for $4,000. The car sold new 08/22/01 for $24,974.58. I have the paper work.) Itās still on the road as a āsalt carā for me to drive with just under 300,000 miles, no major repairs.
See the little silver car above left? Itās comfy (seats hit me right!) and fun to drive. I bought that Grand Prix locally on Craigās list, 104,445 miles, southern car, new tires, on 09/04/15 for $4,000. It needed practically nothing. What a find. Itāll be a summer car for the probably ten years or unless I get tired of it.
You tell me. Can I get that much pleasure from a $25,000 new car?
I still have my Caravan, itās been a summer car, with just under 100,000 miles that I bought new (purchased in 1997) for $18,000 cash (temporary insanity). Itās been great, but anybody can buy a new car.
CSA
My wife calls me cheap all the time and Iām not that at all. Iām thrifty.
Anytime something around here quits I HAVE to tear it apart and find out why it quit; even if itās not worth messing with and goes to the dumpster. Itās just a āhave to knowā quirk I haveā¦
We have a high end microwave that I bought my wife 30 years ago and itās always worked perfectly. Several weeks ago it quit and the wife wanted another. Not so fast. After getting it apart I found a single wire connection with a hazy coating of corrosion. Cleaned it with a fingernail file and works just as good now as the day it was new.
On occasion Iāve bought cars with serious problems that were brought into the shop. When someone said they were just going to scrap it Iād offer them 25 bucks more than the boneyard, fix it, and drive them with pride.
One of them when done left me with about a 350 dollar total investment and it became my daily driver for many years. At the time I was commuting 160+ miles a day to work so the miles added up. My cost per mile to operate was almost nothingā¦
Another Subaru I bought was 5 years old and showroom clean both in and out with low miles.
It had a piston failure and the owner decided to just dump it. I bought it for 700 bucks and when done had less than a grand in it. I kept that one for almost 15 years and 300k miles.
I even loaded up the family and took a vacation to Colorado in it 2 weeks after getting it up and going. Again, that cost per mileā¦ 
@Bing We grew big vegetable gardens when I was growing up. My mother did a,lot of canning in the summer. Later on, we did get a freezer. I still grow a little vegetable garden in my back yard. The university where I taught made garden plots available to faculty and staff. When I first joined the institution in 1965 people scrambled to get plots. However, about 2000 I was only one of about 6 people signing up for a plot, so the university quit furnishing plots. I guess young people donāt go in for gardening
"I guess young people don't go in for gardening"
Based on what I have observed locally, I am going to disagree with that statement, Triedaq.
Not far from my home is Duke Farms, the former estate of tobacco heiress Doris Duke. In addition to being a wonderful place for hiking, biking, and bird-watching, the foundation that administers the property also makes small allotments of land available to community members, for a very nominal fee. My observation of the folks who raise vegetables on those plots is that most of them are 30 years of age, or less.
All of my children, their spouses, and most of their friends that I know buy things, including cars, that they can afford and donāt lease. They all come from upper middle class homes, and could have Entitlement Disease, but they donāt. They spend from their own earnings (everybody works) and donāt overextend themselves. We led by example, and the few parents of the next generation that I know did the same.
OK, enough lucidity. Time to get crazy againā¦
I know several people who lease. Very smart people who have money to burnā¦and they like to drive new fancy cars.
One guy I know was the same wayā¦until he get married and had kids. Found out that leasing was NOT practical for a family of 4. Wasted way too much money.
@VDCdriver I am happy that there are going people that like to grow vegetable gardens and take advantage of the garden plots at Duke farms. My sample here consists of university faculty members. I think the younger faculty donāt have time. If they are to earn tenure, they have to publish and more importantly bring in grant monies. When I began my career at the institution, we were told that teaching was the number one priority. I did have time in the summer to raise a garden. When the university decided to discontinue the plots, there were only a few of us geezer faculty using them. Even though I was tenured and fully promoted, I felt the pressure to publish. I was able to retire with one of the best publication records in my departmentāit was a,matter of personal pride. Even though I am retired, I still have a couple of articles I am working on, but I donāt let my research get in the way of my gardening.
Car salesman now ask routinely: āHow much can you spend per month?ā. Then push the lease option that āCan get you into a better carā, a logic that completely escapes rational buyers, but seems to work.
This question is legitimate when asked by a real estate salesman, since monthly payments as a percent of gross earnings determine the maximum mortgage one can get. But a house is an INVESTMENT, whereas car payments are money down the drain.
Yet many transactions go that way.