2013 Nissan Leaf Lease - March offer

[jnk0a]

Hello, I am really new to lease thing..never ever thought about it before. Due to daily 60 mile commute, I am now actively considering Leaf. I am going with lease (not buy) option as I am expecting lot of technology improvement in next 2-3 years and don't want to own the current vehicle. Hopefully my logic is correct. Btw I live in northern CA.

Now I contacted couple of dealers via email and got exact same information

$2000 downpayment

S - $99 (2yr lease), $199 (3yr lease)
SV - $139 (2yr lease), $269 (3yr lease)
SL - $199 (2yr lease), $289 (3yr lease)

Q1. I just want to go with Leaf S due to low cost. However, I am not able to decide if I should go with 2yr or 3yr lease.
Q2. I read in all other post that people negotiate price. Does anybody have suggestion how should I negotiate price for lease? If I do then will it be towards downpayment or monthly payment?
Q3. Are people currently getting better deals than what dealers emailed me?

Thank you so much in advance for your comments and advise.

 

[Boomer23]

Since you live in CA, you are eligible for a $2500 cash rebate from the CVRP program, funded by CARB funds, as long as your lease is 36 months or more, and you keep the car registered in CA. For this reason, I would strongly recommend a 3 year lease for anyone in CA.

 

[planet4ever]

Yes, you'd be a fool to throw away the $2,500. Those numbers are for a 15K/year lease, right? With a 60 mile commute you'll be using the whole 15K just driving to and from work. I can guarantee you are going to want to drive the car evenings and weekends. Not to mention all those lunch trips with co-workers as you proudly show off your baby.

Ray

 

[cwerdna]

How much of that commute is on the highway? Can you charge at work?

Do you live in/commute to a cold part of the Bay Area? Hope you realize that the S doesn't come w/cruise control nor the more efficient hybrid heat-pump heater. Towards the end of the lease, a 60 mile commute w/mostly highway speed driving w/heater use could get a bit dicey w/o workplace charging.

Agree about planet4ever's comments about using the whole 15K miles just to commute.

I personally wouldn't want to lease/buy an S. I'd personally go for the the SV w/LED + quick charge port package.

 

[BEVeedom]

Those are the best lease prices I've seen. I'm leasing my 2012 SL Leaf for the $1999 down and $199/ month for 2 years and 12,000 miles/year. No other fees or charges, period. No negotiation necessary. Look at other ads and read the fine print of total lease costs for, as an example, a new VW Jetta diesel. Crazy money to "borrow" a conventional car, I think. For 2013 I would likely get the "S" model with the 6.6KW optional Level II charger package. it also includes the CHAdeMO DC Quick Charge port but there is no Level III infrastructure here in the Washington, DC area. Can you believe that? Anyway I think CHAdeMO is going away and will be replaced with SAE combo. No one should have to pay extra to charge their car faster. Do you know a gas pump can dispense 10,000 miles of range in an hour? That's what we are up against, why make that sober fact more crippling.

You folks in California get great State incentives, so it would be harder to decide to buy or lease but I really think my 2012 Leaf will be somewhat obsolete when I turn it in in late 2014. There will be more selection in the marketplace, prices will go down, range will go up, innovation will rule the day. Leasing means I don't have the worry of depreciation, concerns over battery life, and I get to try the technology in an affordable way. I have never leased a car before and have never bought a new vehicle for over $17K (1991 Honda Accord LX coupe automatic and 2007 Honda Fit Sport manual) in my 40 years of driving. For me, leasing is the way for now but I'm not going back to gasoline and am looking forward to trying the Chevy Spark EV coming out this summer. Did I read correctly? - 400 lb. ft. of torque? In a shoebox? Oh yes, I'll have that one, and maybe I'll be willing to buy it at under $26K before incentives. Or who knows what will be available in October of 2014 when I turn in this garage kept, perfect condition, super black 2012 Leaf SL? One thing, it will be a sweet 24K mile "previously owned" car for the next guy to try out that might not want to lease or qualify for a new car lease at a decent price.

 

[Sublime]

By my simpleton math, those deals actually look almost exactly equal if there is no other money involved (ie taxes, title, tag). Assuming the $2000 down is actually the out the door price.

24 month lease:
$99 x 23 months + $2000 down = $4277 total / 24 = $178.21 per month

36 month lease:
$199 x 35 months + $2000 down - $2500 CA tax incentive = $6465 total / 36 = $179.58 per month


There are pros and cons to each. 24 months you don't have to deal with the tax credit and you're only locked up for 24 months. Downside is you only have the deal locked up for 24 months. Who knows what prices will be like in 24 months? Leases might be more expensive in 2 years, might be less. I'd go with the 24, but what I'd do doesn't matter

 

[DaveinOlyWA]

Hello, I am really new to lease thing..never ever thought about it before. Due to daily 60 mile commute, I am now actively considering Leaf. I am going with lease (not buy) option as I am expecting lot of technology improvement in next 2-3 years and don't want to own the current vehicle. Hopefully my logic is correct. Btw I live in northern CA.

Now I contacted couple of dealers via email and got exact same information

$2000 downpayment

S - $99 (2yr lease), $199 (3yr lease)
SV - $139 (2yr lease), $269 (3yr lease)
SL - $199 (2yr lease), $289 (3yr lease)

Q1. I just want to go with Leaf S due to low cost. However, I am not able to decide if I should go with 2yr or 3yr lease.
Q2. I read in all other post that people negotiate price. Does anybody have suggestion how should I negotiate price for lease? If I do then will it be towards downpayment or monthly payment?
Q3. Are people currently getting better deals than what dealers emailed me?

Thank you so much in advance for your comments and advise.

on a 2 year you pay about $4400 (2000 down 2400 in payments) on a 3 year you pay $9200 minus your 2500 which makes 6700. which means the 3 year is essentially $100 more expensive ( 3 years at 2 yr lease rates would be $6600)

now your monthly is slightly lower with the 3 year so there is an advantage BUT

Nissan will be changing its EV game dramatically soon. Your LEAF will probably make its 60 mile commute for 3 years if you drive conservatively.

But Nissan will have 100+ (real miles!) cars in less than 2 years. a 2 year lease will insure range degradation is not an issue and you would be perfect set to get a car with much better range.

the other thing is that the LEAF is cool and might be worth hanging onto for the 3 years because the weighted 3 year price is still a bargain at under $200 a month.

I also think that in 2 years you have a chance of still getting the Fed Cred. in 3 years??

 

[MikeD]

I was just now told by a local TN dealership that the 2-year lease deals (like $99 for S trim line) are not available here.

 

[leafedbehind]

The difference in lease price between 2yr and 3yr seem awfully strange. You would normally expect a longer lease to have a lower cost, since the third year of depreciation is going to be less than the first or second year's. I'm guessing Nissan is trying to eek out more profit with the 3 year, knowing that you're getting the $2500 from the state. In any state that doesn't have an incentive structured like California's, the 2-year lease seems more attractive. Unless you really believe that EVs are going to be more expensive than they are now in two years, and you really want to guarantee that third year of EV driving. I suppose that's remotely possible if the $7500 tax credit goes away, and/or state incentive all evaporate.

 

[DaveinOlyWA]

The difference in lease price between 2yr and 3yr seem awfully strange. You would normally expect a longer lease to have a lower cost, since the third year of depreciation is going to be less than the first or second year's. I'm guessing Nissan is trying to eek out more profit with the 3 year, knowing that you're getting the $2500 from the state. In any state that doesn't have an incentive structured like California's, the 2-year lease seems more attractive. Unless you really believe that EVs are going to be more expensive than they are now in two years, and you really want to guarantee that third year of EV driving. I suppose that's remotely possible if the $7500 tax credit goes away, and/or state incentive all evaporate.

you need to factor in 3 YO car values verses a 2 YO car value which would be lower on a 3 year lease against the resulting "sell" price which is essentially the same which means that BIG thing that changes is the interest rates and market value

so on the one hand you have 9000 in payments on a 3 year verses 4300 on a 2 year and why so much? well, you cant compare total cost when the length is not the same

so what you have is the 2 year term where 46% of the total payment is paid upfront verses the 3 year term where only 22% is paid up front

so lets ignore the term lengths. do you think it fair to pay more when you put $10,000 down verses someone who only put $5000 down because that is what you are essentially suggesting.

so the reason why you pay less on the 2 year lease is because you are essentially reducing the "terms" by a larger down payment which if purchasing a car would result in either a shorter term or lower payments or both.


i also think the lease terms are attractive on a 2 year to reduce possible fallout if degradation is advanced in the owners area.

 

[cwerdna]

it also includes the CHAdeMO DC Quick Charge port but there is no Level III infrastructure here in the Washington, DC area. Can you believe that? Anyway I think CHAdeMO is going away and will be replaced with SAE combo.
...
For me, leasing is the way for now but I'm not going back to gasoline and am looking forward to trying the Chevy Spark EV coming out this summer.

Do you seriously believe the bolded part? Why do you think that when the roll call for Frankenplug doesn't look so good? See http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?p=247516#p247516" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;.

http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=8938" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; tracks CHAdeMO counts vs. http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=11679" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; for Frankenplug.

As for Spark EV, I'm not sure what area you're in but you mention DC and I saw your mention MD before. The Spark EV may not even become available in your region.

 

[Sublime]

The difference in lease price between 2yr and 3yr seem awfully strange. You would normally expect a longer lease to have a lower cost, since the third year of depreciation is going to be less than the first or second year's.

The $7500 federal tax incentive is changes that. It works for the buyer like a $7500 down payment. If you made that down payment you'd want to stretch out its effect as long as you could (3 yr lease) and take advantage of the slower rate of depriciation in the 3rd or even 4th year. However since it's Uncle Sam's dime you don't care that you burn through it in 2 years.

If you factored in the $7500 as money out of your pocket, the 3 year lease would make more sense by over $100 a month.

 

[BEVeedom]

The SAE did drag their feet in getting to the 'SAE Combo' plug/receptor approved as a standard for EVSE. In the meantime much effort, time, and money went into the CHAdeMO effort and until recently was the premier system for DC Fast Charging in terms of infrastructure. But the closest CHAdeMO plug to me here in the DC, MD. region is in Tennessee so in my world it doesn't exist, though I do have an unused port on my 2012 Leaf. It seems to me that from an engineering and marketing standpoint the SAE Combo will win favor. Why?

One plug for Level I, II, and III
No way to charge extra cash for faster refueling (a ridiculous idea)
Takes up less real estate in car design, the importance here cannot be overstressed
Faster charging than CHAdeMO (200 vs 150 amp DC)
Less parts, less weight

I'm sure there will adaptors to go from CHAdeMO to SAE combo as to not negate the effort of early adopters.

 

[ydnas7]

One plug for Level I, II, and III
No way to charge extra cash for faster refueling (a ridiculous idea)
Takes up less real estate in car design, the importance here cannot be overstressed
Faster charging than CHAdeMO (200 vs 150 amp DC)
Less parts, less weight

Chademo's Tepco plug is used for up to 160kW systems today (thicker cable + software permission so technically not Chademo) http://www.jfe-eng.co.jp/en/en_release/news_e11026e.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Takes up less real estate in car design, the importance here cannot be overstressed

Its only important for conversion cars, its a non issue for a dedicated car, front port is far better than single side port.

Combo DC is a regional standard, with different plugs for EU or USA etc, that non uniformity adds to development costs and risk. Chademo is a global standard, it works in EU, Japan or USA.

As far as charging cash for faster refuelling, thats essentially a local laws type of issue.

 

[bruce27513]

Lease miles don't matter is you are going to buy the vehicle at the end of the lease or trade for another Nissan.

 

[DaveinOlyWA]

Lease miles don't matter is you are going to buy the vehicle at the end of the lease or trade for another Nissan.

really?

 

[user 8662]

I just wanted to chime-in on this, I am about a week away from leasing a 2013 Cayenne SL....and there are definitely some hidden feeds in the lease offers--at least here in AZ. The monthly payment that Nissan states will go up if you choose to not pay the taxes / registration fees up front. My down payment is in the multiple thousands of dollars to keep the payment at a reasonable level. Otherwise, that 'really low' $199 monthly payment (for an S model) goes up by potentially $100 or more per month if you have to finance in all the taxes / title / license etc into the monthly payment.

I had not leased a vehicle in quite some time and thought it was really bizarre that there was that much tax and such on a lease vs buying the car outright. Just thought I'd let everyone know. If you look at the lease details on Nissan's site, it does state this but there is no calculator to show you what your down payment would truly be if you pay all the fees vs if you finance them into the monthly payment.

Also, the 2-year, cheaper monthly payment, lease does not appear to be available in Phoenix.

--Joe

 

[MrIanB]

I just wanted to chime-in on this, I am about a week away from leasing a 2013 Cayenne SL....and there are definitely some hidden feeds in the lease offers--at least here in AZ. The monthly payment that Nissan states will go up if you choose to not pay the taxes / registration fees up front. My down payment is in the multiple thousands of dollars to keep the payment at a reasonable level. Otherwise, that 'really low' $199 monthly payment (for an S model) goes up by potentially $100 or more per month if you have to finance in all the taxes / title / license etc into the monthly payment.

I had not leased a vehicle in quite some time and thought it was really bizarre that there was that much tax and such on a lease vs buying the car outright. Just thought I'd let everyone know. If you look at the lease details on Nissan's site, it does state this but there is no calculator to show you what your down payment would truly be if you pay all the fees vs if you finance them into the monthly payment.

Also, the 2-year, cheaper monthly payment, lease does not appear to be available in Phoenix.

--Joe

Carefully with thousands dollars used on down payment. If car totalled you will most likely lose it all. Keep in bank, pull what u need monthly for payment and pay rest. Lease has built in gap insurance.

Ian B

 

[DaveinOlyWA]

I just wanted to chime-in on this, I am about a week away from leasing a 2013 Cayenne SL....and there are definitely some hidden feeds in the lease offers--at least here in AZ. The monthly payment that Nissan states will go up if you choose to not pay the taxes / registration fees up front. My down payment is in the multiple thousands of dollars to keep the payment at a reasonable level. Otherwise, that 'really low' $199 monthly payment (for an S model) goes up by potentially $100 or more per month if you have to finance in all the taxes / title / license etc into the monthly payment.

I had not leased a vehicle in quite some time and thought it was really bizarre that there was that much tax and such on a lease vs buying the car outright. Just thought I'd let everyone know. If you look at the lease details on Nissan's site, it does state this but there is no calculator to show you what your down payment would truly be if you pay all the fees vs if you finance them into the monthly payment.

Also, the 2-year, cheaper monthly payment, lease does not appear to be available in Phoenix.

--Joe

Carefully with thousands dollars used on down payment. If car totalled you will most likely lose it all. Keep in bank, pull what u need monthly for payment and pay rest. Lease has built in gap insurance.

Ian B

this point has been discussed at length based on a clause in the lease agreement but the final determination (as always) rests with your insurance company. there have been people who got money back after the insurance company was done with NMAC

 

[cwerdna]

nidocamen: What part of AZ are you in? Can you update your location info? How long do you plan to lease for? How long is your commute? Can your charge at your destination?