2014 Nissan Leaf SV for $24,000 before fed/state rebate?

[pawneepawn]

Hi,

I found this forum because I'm interested in buying a new Nissan Leaf. I looked at this car a couple of years ago and it was price above $30,000.

Now I am finding dealerships that are cutting the MSRP by $10,000 before tax credits. This is an example of a car in the Houston area - I called to verify and it had been sold the day before. It apparently was new, never owned by a leasing company, so after tax credits, I would be looking at a vehicle price of approximately $14,000.
http://www.robbinsnissan.com/vehicle-details/2014-nissan-leaf-sv-houston-tx-id-6530396

That seems a little too good to be true. What's the catch here? Are they clearing out 2014 Leafs for 2015? Better Nissan incentives? Am I going to buy a lemon?

As for buy vs. lease, I've always favored buying because I tend to own cars for 10-15yrs and I put about 20,000 miles a year on my cars.

Anyhow, any advice would be appreciated. I am strongly leaning towards buying one of these cars by the end of the month if I can get it for under $24,000.

 

[derkraut]

Welcome to the Leaf Forum; If your daily round trip commute/useage is 50 miles or thereabouts, and if this car is brand new- never previously titled, it's a great deal, imho. I would absolutely jump on it.

 

[pawneepawn]

Welcome to the Leaf Forum; If your daily round trip commute/useage is 50 miles or thereabouts, and if this car is brand new- never previously titled, it's a great deal, imho. I would absolutely jump on it.

Thanks for the reassurance. I have a 34 mile roundtrip commute in Houston. I need to use A/C. I think this car has the necessary range.

 

[flyonpa]

Sounds like a Great deal .. There web site shows it the last one in stock, So i would call 1st then race over.

 

[Kubla]

when you get there they will tell you that the price is the lease price, since the dealer takes the tax credit and the rebate off the front end of the lease, i had the same type of ad when I got my 2014 leaf S last month

 

[flyonpa]

The click option on say loan.. So i hope it is...

 

[EAGERBEAVER]

I checked out the description of this vehicle and found it had no SV package, no Premium package and no options. That means that it had no quick charge port, LED headlights, fog lights, etc and no Around View Monitor. I suspect that it was one of those bait and switch vehicles that disappears as soon as someone wants to buy it. When I showed up at a dealership 200 miles south in Oregon I found that the SV I wanted did not have the advertised, rear view monitor that I expected and required. Discounts will be available until the overproduced 2014s are cleared but nowhere near that deep.

 

[LeftieBiker]

Since you live in a hot climate, keep in mind that the battery will degrade - and has probably already degraded somewhat on the lot. In your cased, with a 35 mile commute and no (or not much) heat needed), range isn't a primary issue, but keep in mind that once you've lost two bars of capacity the car will not have a lot of range beyond the commute. I suggest that if you want to by a Leaf, stick to the 2015 model year, or instead lease a 2014.

 

[pawneepawn]

Since you live in a hot climate, keep in mind that the battery will degrade - and has probably already degraded somewhat on the lot. In your cased, with a 35 mile commute and no (or not much) heat needed), range isn't a primary issue, but keep in mind that once you've lost two bars of capacity the car will not have a lot of range beyond the commute. I suggest that if you want to by a Leaf, stick to the 2015 model year, or instead lease a 2014.

Are you suggesting the 2015 model year because they have the hot climate battery?

I don't know what it is about Houston but they seem to have quite a few 2013 and 2014 new leafs sitting on the lots.

In Texas, we pay sales tax on the full vehicle value rather than the value of the lease so it can be more expensive to lease vs. buying.

http://www.centralhoustonnissan.com/New-2013-Nissan-LEAF-S-Houston-TX/vd/18129812" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

23,620 for a Nissan Leaf to buy and after state (2500) and fed (7500) credits it costs = $13620
Leasing it costs $199 a month +1999 down = $9163
Before tax, title, etc.

The difference is I pay $4457 more to own the leaf at the end of 3 years. Is it still a good idea to lease?

 

[dhanson865]

The difference is I pay $4457 more to own the leaf at the end of 3 years. Is it still a good idea to lease?

If that is the difference on a brand new car I'd buy because the car would be worth more than $4500 even if you wanted to sell it at the end of year 3.

Right now a 2011/2012 that is coming off lease is worth more than $10,000

The only way I see the lease making sense is if you think you'll drive it / store it hot killing the battery and then refuse to let Nissan replace it under warranty and still want to get rid of the car.

Scenario A. you hit the 4 bars lost and Nissan replaces the battery before year 3 is up you have a car near the end of that period that is like new and you came out better buying than leasing. You get to decide if you want to Sell it or keep it with less pressure on timing (you know your degradation rate but you don't have to deal with lease termination).

Scenario B. you don't hit 4 bars lost and the car is still worth $6,000 to $12,000 depending on condition and you came out better buying than leasing. You get to decide if you want to Sell it or keep it with no pressure on timing.

Scenario C. You lease it and turn it back in even though it's worth more than the difference in pricing because the residual value on the lease contractually keeps you from reaping the value of the car at end of lease.

The bet on leasing is that scenario B somehow leaves you with a 3 bar loser at the end of 3 years that won't sell for more than $4,500, I just don't see that happening. Too many traditional gasoline vehicles on the road that need to be replaced, tons of fresh converts that would be willing to buy a cheap EV down the road.

The range limited leaf is better than most beaters because it has

* no oil change, spark plug, brake job, antifreeze/traditional radiator issues
* working AC
* cabin air filter
* heated seats

probably more that I missed. Lots of reasons why it is a better car than so many 10-15 year old gas beaters, someone will consider an old Leaf a luxury car vs the beater they currently hate maintaining all the time.