December 2008 Do Not Lease List

Published 2008/12/192012/01/10 by G

Here you will find the lease rates for cars that I don’t recommend leasing this month. A poor combination of low residual value and high money factors usually means one thing…if you want it, don’t lease it, buy it.

2008 Acura MDX December Lease Rates

* .00300 x 2400 = 7.2% APR, need I say more?

2008/2009 Toyota Highlander December Lease Rates

* The 08 model’s MF isn’t too bad (3.9% APR) but the residual kills the deal for me.

2009 Porsche 911 December Lease Rates

* These numbers are actually not terrible, but the price tag of this vehicle pretty much takes this car off the average person’s wishlist.

2008/2009 Honda S2000 December Lease Rates

* 7.2%+ APR PLUS weak residuals = no thanks.

2009 Volvo XC90 December Lease Rates

* You see that big LeaseCompare.com ad at the end of this post, try them…avoid Ford Credit like the plague.

If you like the site and would like to receive my latest posts, please consider subscribing to our newsletter on a reader or have it delivered to your email. Got questions? JOIN the RIDE AUTO FORUM TODAY!

09 Honda Pilot Lease Rates for December 2008

Published 2008/12/082008/12/08 by G

			At Invoice		At MSRP
Make/Model	Invoice	MSRP	24-month	36-month	24-month	36-month
09 Honda Pilot Touring 2WD	$33,994	$37,465	N/A	$502	N/A	$602
09 Honda Pilot EX-L AWD	$32,548	$35,865	N/A	$471	N/A	$567

My Take: The Pilot is one UGLY SUV. I’m a believer in driving something that not only drives well, but also makes you look good riding it it. This car fails miserably in that department. Despite that fact, this is still a very good family hauler and it’s very well appointed, like all Hondas/Acuras are. The lease looks pretty decent on the 36mo/15k term at invoice. Go with the 12k lease and you will see your payments drop some more. Remember that RES and Navi models tend to have lower residual values, so if you opt for that, make sure you aren’t paying more (over 36 months) than buying a portable Navi or RES which you get to keep AFTER your lease is over.

If you like the site and would like to receive my latest posts, please consider subscribing to our newsletter on a reader or have it delivered to your email.

NOTE: Estimates do assuming the following:

Inception fees (1st month payment, DMV, doc fee, bank fee, tire tax and possible security deposit) will be paid at signing.
Local Taxes not included.
24-month/15k and 36-month/15k terms.
All cars are stock, without any options.

2009 Honda Pilot December Lease Rates

Touring 2WD
36-month | 15k miles | residual 48% | .0011 base money factor

EX-L AWD
36-month | 15k miles | residual 49% | .0011 base money factor

2009 Top Safety Pick Awards by IIHS

Published 2008/12/03 by G

From IIHS

How vehicles are evaluated: The Institute’s frontal crashworthiness evaluations are based on results of 40 mph frontal offset crash tests. Each vehicle’s overall evaluation is based on measurements of intrusion into the occupant compartment, injury measures recorded on a Hybrid III dummy in the driver seat, and analysis of slow-motion film to assess how well the restraint system controlled dummy movement during the test.

Side evaluations are based on performance in a crash test in which the side of a vehicle is struck by a barrier moving at 31 mph. The barrier represents the front end of a pickup or SUV. Ratings reflect injury measures recorded on two instrumented SID-IIs dummies, assessment of head protection countermeasures, and the vehicle’s structural performance during the impact.

Rear crash protection is rated according to a two-step procedure. Starting points for the ratings are measurements of head restraint geometry — the height of a restraint and its horizontal distance behind the back of the head of an average-size man. Seat/head restraints with good or acceptable geometry are tested dynamically using a dummy that measures forces on the neck. This test simulates a collision in which a stationary vehicle is struck in the rear at 20 mph. Seats without good or acceptable geometry are rated poor overall because they can’t be positioned to protect many people.

ALL 72 WINNERS

Large cars
Acura RL
Audi A6
Cadillac CTS
Ford Taurus
Lincoln MKS
Mercury Sable
Toyota Avalon
Volvo S80

Midsize cars
Acura TL, TSX
Audi A3, A4
BMW 3 series 4-door models
Ford Fusion with optional electronic stability control
Honda Accord 4-door models
Mercedes C class
Mercury Milan with optional electronic stability control
Saab 9-3
Subaru Legacy
Volkswagen Jetta, Passat

Midsize convertibles
Saab 9-3
Volkswagen Eos
Volvo C70

Small cars
Honda Civic 4-door models (except Si) with optional electronic stability control
Mitsubishi Lancer with optional electronic stability control
Scion xB
Subaru Impreza with optional electronic stability control
Toyota Corolla with optional electronic stability control
Volkswagen Rabbit

Minicar
Honda Fit with optional electronic stability control

Minivans
Honda Odyssey
Hyundai Entourage
Kia Sedona

Large SUVs
Audi Q7
Buick Enclave
Chevrolet Traverse
GMC Acadia
Saturn Outlook

Midsize SUVs
Acura MDX, RDX
BMW X3, X5
Ford Edge, Flex, Taurus X
Honda Pilot
Hyundai Santa Fe, Veracruz
Infiniti EX35
Lincoln MKX
Mercedes M class
Nissan Murano
Saturn VUE
Subaru Tribeca
Toyota FJ Cruiser, Highlander
Volvo XC90

Small SUVs
Ford Escape
Honda CR-V, Element
Mazda Tribute
Mercury Mariner
Mitsubishi Outlander
Nissan Rogue
Subaru Forester
Toyota RAV4
Volkswagen Tiguan

Large pickups
Ford F-150
Honda Ridgeline
Toyota Tundra

Small pickup
Toyota Tacoma

Shamefully, my G37 didn’t make the cut, but it made it into the “ALSO RANS” list:

ALSO-RANS
These 26 vehicles earn good ratings in front and side crash tests. They have ESC, standard or optional. They would be 2009 Top Safety Pick winners if their seat/head restraints also earn good ratings:

Chevrolet Malibu
Chrysler Sebring, Sebring convertible, Town & Country
Dodge Avenger, Grand Caravan
Infiniti G35, M35
Kia Amanti
Lexus ES, GS,IS
Mazda CX-7, CX-9
Mitsubishi Eclipse Spyder, Endeavor
Nissan Altima, Pathfinder, Quest, Xterra
Saturn AURA
Smart Fortwo
Toyota 4Runner, Camry, Prius, Sienna

Something sad to note here, no Chrysler cars made it to the top of the list. I’m starting to feel like Chrysler is one automaker that probably doesn’t need the bailout since they build such “average” cars.

November 2008 Lease Rate for 09 Honda Pilot

Published 2008/11/17 by G

My Take: There aren’t cash rebates for the Pilot this month, but you can get special financing at 3.9% for 60 months. I would lease personally since the interest rate is lower. If you want to lease the EX, I think the sweet spot would be a 36 month/12k mile term. Assuming you can get it at invoice, your payments should hover around $386 + tax with inception fees due at signing. Thats not bad for $30k dollar SUV that sits 6-8 people.

Got questions? Post it on the RIDE Auto Forum! Sign up HERE. If you like the site and would like to receive my latest posts, you may want to consider subscribing to our newsletter on a reader or have it delivered to your email.

			At Invoice		At MSRP
Make/Model	Invoice	MSRP	24-month	36-month	24-month	36-month
09 Honda Pilot 4WD EX	$29,657	$32,665	$513	$403	$641	$490

Inception fees (1st month payment, DMV, doc fee, bank fee, tire tax and possible security deposit) will be paid at signing.
Local Taxes not included.
24-month/15k and 36-month/15k terms.
All cars are stock, without any options.
Yellow boxes denotes “lowest” lease payments for each car.

2009 Honda Pilot 4WD EX
24 Month – Residual 57% of MSRP – .00110 Base Rate
36 Month – Residual 52% of MSRP – .00110 Base Rate
48 Month – Residual 43% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate
60 Month – Residual 35% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate

QUICK LINKS:
LEASE CALCULATOR (requires MS Excel)
THE LIST, monthly list of car rankings on monthly payments

2009 Honda Pilot 4WD EX-L
24 Month – Residual 55% of MSRP – .00110 Base Rate
36 Month – Residual 49% of MSRP – .00110 Base Rate
48 Month – Residual 41% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate
60 Month – Residual 34% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate

2009 Honda Pilot 4WD EX-L w/ RES
24 Month – Residual 54% of MSRP – .00110 Base Rate
36 Month – Residual 48% of MSRP – .00110 Base Rate
48 Month – Residual 40% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate
60 Month – Residual 34% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate

2009 Honda Pilot 4WD LX
24 Month – Residual 56% of MSRP – .00110 Base Rate
36 Month – Residual 51% of MSRP – .00110 Base Rate
48 Month – Residual 42% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate
60 Month – Residual 35% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate

2009 Honda Pilot 4WD Touring w/Nav
24 Month – Residual 53% of MSRP – .00110 Base Rate
36 Month – Residual 47% of MSRP – .00110 Base Rate
48 Month – Residual 39% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate
60 Month – Residual 33% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate

2009 Honda Pilot 4WD Touring w/Nav/Res
24 Month – Residual 52% of MSRP – .00110 Base Rate
36 Month – Residual 48% of MSRP – .00110 Base Rate
48 Month – Residual 38% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate
60 Month – Residual 32% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate

Rates provided by Leasecompare.com

October 2008 Lease Rate for 09 Honda Accord Coupe

Published 2008/10/222008/10/22 by G

My Take: The money factor on the Accord coupe isn’t looking very good. It gets worse if you try to lease the car for more than 36 months. The residual value is fairly high, so it will help offset the higher money factor. Personally I prefer a slightly higher residual value than a slightly lower money factor. A 1% residual increase is a far better discount than say .0001 money factor reduction.

QUICK LINKS:

LEASE CALCULATOR (requires MS Excel)
THE LIST, monthly list of car rankings on monthly payments

2009 Honda Accord Coupe EX I4
24 Month – Residual 68% of MSRP – .00249 Base Rate
36 Month – Residual 60% of MSRP – .00249 Base Rate
48 Month – Residual 51% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate
60 Month – Residual 38% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate

2009 Honda Accord Coupe EX-L V6
24 Month – Residual 67% of MSRP – .00249 Base Rate
36 Month – Residual 56% of MSRP – .00249 Base Rate
48 Month – Residual 47% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate
60 Month – Residual 36% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate

2009 Honda Accord Coupe EX-L w/Nav V6
24 Month – Residual 65% of MSRP – .00249 Base Rate
36 Month – Residual 54% of MSRP – .00249 Base Rate
48 Month – Residual 45% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate
60 Month – Residual 35% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate

2009 Honda Accord Coupe LX-S I4
24 Month – Residual 68% of MSRP – .00249 Base Rate
36 Month – Residual 60% of MSRP – .00249 Base Rate
48 Month – Residual 51% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate
60 Month – Residual 38% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate

Rates provided by Tarry Shebesta from Leasecompare.com

October 2008 Lease Rates for 08/09 FX50, IS350, Odyssey, Impreza WRX and ML350

Published 2008/10/16 by G

My Take: One word sums this bunch…UNINSPIRING. Residuals are mediocre to pathetic, while the money factor is WAY too high. I’m just bundling these lease rates together since it’s pointless to analyze the numbers. After looking at lease rates monthly for six months (yes folks! RIDE with G is six months old!!! WOOT!) I can pretty much tell whats worth the time and what’s not. It’s a shame too since I really like the FX50 and the IS350.

QUICK LINKS:

LEASE CALCULATOR (requires MS Excel)
THE LIST, monthly list of car rankings on monthly payments

2009 Infiniti FX50 AWD
24 Month – Residual 55% of MSRP – .00280 Base Rate
36 Month – Residual 50% of MSRP – .00223 Base Rate
48 Month – Residual 43% of MSRP – .00226 Base Rate
60 Month – Residual 37% of MSRP – .00219 Base Rate

2009 Mercedes ML350 4WD SUV
24 Month – Residual 56% of MSRP – .00420 Base Rate
36 Month – Residual 45% of MSRP – .00147 Base Rate
48 Month – Residual 37% of MSRP – .00385 Base Rate
60 Month – Residual 32% of MSRP – .00385 Base Rate

2009 Honda Odyssey EX-L
24 Month – Residual 64% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate
36 Month – Residual 54% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate
48 Month – Residual 45% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate
60 Month – Residual 37% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate

2008 Honda Odyssey EX-L
24 Month – Residual 58% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate
36 Month – Residual 51% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate
48 Month – Residual 43% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate
60 Month – Residual 34% of MSRP – .00290 Base Rate

2009 Subaru Impreza WRX Wagon
24 Month – Residual 65% of MSRP – .00305 Base Rate
36 Month – Residual 58% of MSRP – .00280 Base Rate
48 Month – Residual 49% of MSRP – .00280 Base Rate
60 Month – Residual 42% of MSRP – .00300 Base Rate

2008 Lexus IS350 Sedan
24 Month – Residual 53% of MSRP – .00100 Base Rate
36 Month – Residual 46% of MSRP – .00100 Base Rate
48 Month – Residual 37% of MSRP – .00100 Base Rate
60 Month – Residual 29% of MSRP – .00255 Base Rate

Rates provided by Tarry Shebesta from Leasecompare.com

Featured Question 2 – Lease Rate for 09 Honda Fit

Published 2008/10/072009/08/21 by G

One of my readers, Crystal from Northern California, recently emailed me requesting lease rates for the 09 Honda Fit. As some of you may have noticed, the Honda Fit isn’t on the list of promotions under the Honda website. A good reason for that is that the Fit is selling rather well due to the high cost of gasoline. In some parts, I am hearing a whopping $2000 over MSRP, but most sell it for about MSRP. Now, I don’t have lease rates for the Fit right now, nor have I come across it since I started this website. I have been rather unless in terms of helping Crystal out here, so I am hoping that perhaps any of you reading this blog have had any luck getting a hold of these rates.

Here’s what Crystal has been able to find thus far:

ALL for 2009 Fit Sport, AT, 36mo, 12k/year

Dealer #1
MF=0.00280 residual value 64% with 36 months

Dealer #2
MF=0.00310 residual value 64% with 36 months

Dealer #3
MF=0.00280 residual value 64% with 36 months

Dealer #4
MF=0.00280 residual value 64% with 36 months

The consensus seems to be 64% for the residual and .00280 for the money factor. However, I am not sold on the money factor being .00280. For a 36 month lease, Honda seems to use .00270 as their “Super-preferred” rate, not .00280. That is the case with Acura as well. Then again, .00010 isn’t exactly a major markup either, so I don’t see why they would bother to mark it up so little if .00270 was indeed the case. There is also an outside chance that the rate could be .00255. If there are any readers who can help confirm this, that would be great.

Many thanks in advance.

Smart Car…Is it really?

Published 2008/10/012009/08/21 by G

If you haven’t heard, Daimler-Chrysler has officially brought the new Smart ForTwo model to the USA. It seems like a good idea. With fuel prices skyrocketing with no end in sight, why not bring a super compact, efficient automobile to America. They’ve been selling the Smart Car in Europe for about a decade now and it’s been reasonably successful.

I thought it was a pretty good idea as well. What’s there not to love? You get German engineering, great fuel economy, and it’s got to be one of the easiest cars to park. However, once I looked at the spec sheets and comparable “normal” cars, I had my doubts.

Smart or Not?
	Base Price	Powerplant	Performance	Fuel Type	Seats	EPA
Smart ForTwo	$11,590	1.0L, 71HP, 3 cyl, 5 sp auto	0-60, 14.1 secs	Premium	2	33/41
Nissan Versa 1.8S	$12,990	1.8L, 122HP, 4 cyl, 6 sp manual	0-60, 9.5 secs	Regular	5	26/31
Toyota Yaris	$11,550	1.5L, 106HP, 4 cyl, 5 sp manual	0-60, 9.48 secs	Regular	5	29/36
Honda Fit	$13,950	1.5L, 109HP, 4 cyl, 5 sp manual	0-60, 9.0 secs	Regular	5	27/34
Scion xD	$14,550	1.8L, 128HP, 4 cyl, 5 sp manual	0-60, 8.4 secs	Regular	5	27/33
Ford Focus	$14,395	2.0L, 140HP, 4 cyl, 5 sp manual	0-60, 8.3 secs	Regular	5	24/35

The problem I have with the Smart car is that I expected more. I’m not saying that the mileage isn’t great. An EPA rated 33/41 for a non-hybrid is pretty awesome, but when you take into consideration that it only seats two and requires premium fuel, you start to furrow your brow a little. Maybe it’ll make up in sheer price? The price is pretty low at a base MSRP of just $11,590, but then your eyes look down the list and you see that the Toyota Yaris is around the same price, has more power, better performance, seats five, drinks regular fuel, and still manages to get 29/36!

10 of 14
« Previous
1
…
8
9
10
11
12
…
14
Next »