drjosh123

I have a 2014 GS350 F-Sport lease that is ending in September. Coming from a 2011 BMW M3, I was enamored with the technology but terribly disappointed with the acceleration/performance. Those were my feelings in my first several months of leasing back in January 2014.

Fast forward to the present day - this car is great! It hasn't been in the shop other than scheduled services and has no issues that I can find. The cars performance dynamics have really grown on me - to the point that I would love to purchase this car at lease end. Therein lies the rub as my residual is stupid high. Probably why my payment is as low as it is. My car retailed for ~$62k. It has ML sound, dynamic rear steering, and every other bell and whistle with the exception of radar cruise (if that was even an option). My lease end buyout is $40,200. That is quite a chunk of change for a car from 2014 that will have 33k miles on it. I called LFS and they stated that the residuals are not negotiable whatsoever.

My options:
1) bite the bullet and buy my car at lease end (doesn't seem financially prudent)

2) turn the car in and get another GS350 F-Sport lease - Seems as though my payment would be quite a bit higher than my last and I am not sure I would be willing to shell out an extra $100 - $200 each month. Possibly the lease deals improve come September or October?

3) switch over to a German competitor that has better residuals and money factors

Any advice from my fellow GS350 fans? FYI - I am in South Florida.

SRC350F

hey! I do not think you should buy out the car, if you wanted to buy it, you should have done so a year or 18 months before it ended. If you like the GS Fsport, wait until September/October for better deals (or end of the quarter in August). It would not also hurt to see what is around the market, example: Alfa Romeo Gulia. Just a thought and good luck!

joedaddy1

iTrader: (1)

what difference would it have made if he bought the car a year ago?

I would go talk to a dealership.. they might be able to CPO it and sell it to you right away at a lower price.. since they don't have to prep it to sell.

dchar

To the OP, definitely don't buy out your car after the lease. Lease another GS350 or look at the competition, especially that newly redesigned Mercedes E-class. Hopefully they'll have the 6-cylinder options by August/September, but good luck on getting a good deal on a recently redesigned car.

The Gulia might be a consideration for someone who's interested in a small sport sedan, but the only one that'll probably be intriguing is the Quadrifoglio model (which will probably be very expensive). Not only will that sedan be cramped compared to the GS, the reliability will probably suck too. It'll be a basically be a new company (since they barely sell any cars), with a new car with parts from FCA. FCA cars have been towards the bottom of reliability...so we'll see about Alfa Romeo.

Meraki Autoworks

iTrader: (8)

I like the sound of option 3..

Don't get me wrong, I have German, Japanese, and American cars.. Nothing beats the performance of a German car.. (BMW M3).

Yet again, it depends what you are in the market for.. My ISF is way more of a bettery daily driver than a M3.

-Josh

AJLex19

Agreed with joedaddy1 - see if they will take the car back and then certify it and sell it to you. A 2014 with that mileage shouldn't be anywhere close to 40k. Here's examples where it is substantially cheaper:
https://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/d...3497/overview/
https://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/d...4411/overview/

You should be able to get a '14 RWD F-Sport for under 35k certified.

islandbeef

Which is more expensive?
Buying it out at the $40k residual or leasing a newer one (per month)? Also, did you incur any overage in the miles? I went WAY over on my other leases, I ended up buying the car at lease end to avoid the high fees (then trading up later).

Like others have said, you'll find 2014's at much cheaper prices than your residual value. Maybe return it at lease end and find another 2014? You can also lease a CPO 2014 at a lower monthly, that's another route you can take.

drjosh123

Hey joedaddy1, that is a good idea and I will definitely try going that route. Cannot hurt to talk to the dealership about them taking in the lease and selling or leasing it back to me. My only concern with that is it could possibly be sent to auction. It seems there isn't much rhyme or reason why they CPO some and send others off to auction.

Islandbeef, leasing a different CPO 2014 or 2015 with a nice low payment is definitely a good option. It may take time to find one in the condition mine is in with all the goodies though.

Or, as others have stated, it is probably time to go have some fun and test drive a couple of the German options again, regardless of which direction I go.

If the lease deals improve come September, this will all be moot because I would most likely lease a 2016. I just can't convince myself to pay way more for the same car again. Alas, first world problems.

drjosh123

Not sure the answer to which is cheaper, but my guess would be a new lease would be the lesser of the two. My miles are spot on - right at the limit. That will be a non-factor.

NickL

Turn in the car and buy a CPO 2014/2015 F-Sport. I'm sure you'll find one with less mileage for less.

2SwiFt29

iTrader: (6)

2 years 33k miles? My guess was that your lease deal was 2 years at 12k a year.

I'm in the same dilemma as I know there's no more 2 year lease for the GS350. For the price, I don't think I will buy it. I may consider leasing another Lexus but that's my 2nd option. My first option is to switch to a BMW. Really leaning towards 340i, 435i GC or 535i.

drjosh123

I had a 33 month/12k per year lease. As for the 340i and 435i GC, make sure you sit in the back of that Gran Coupe. It is a beautiful car but it feels really tight. 340i is on my list, the 535i isn't until they change the body style.

islandbeef

I must admit, BMW's pre-paid maintenance during the entire lease duration is hard to beat.

namzug

Bit the bullet and get a new lease into a 2016/17. You will pay less and be much happier.. In fact by SEPT the new leases on the GS's will drop. Or you can opt and get into a lease on a 2015. Lexus is starting to re-lease their cars at a much lower rate.

rominl

iTrader: (4)

with the high residual it makes zero sense to buy out. like someone said might as well return the car, let them cpo, and you still get it for cheaper. they can try to list the car for 40k and no one is buying.

unless you can get good price on 16 i wouldn't get it, my philosophy is if i can pay x amount for a car, it's hard for me to pay more than x for it again.

i had a e93 m3 so i know how you feel. get the new m3