Lease end - what next?
Lexus Champion
Joined: Nov 2013
Posts: 13,260
Likes: 1,884
From: WA
I will never agree that reliability is a non issue on a lease. I may not pay for repairs under warranty, but time is money and I have no desire to own a new car and deal with getting it to and from a shop.
Lexus Champion
Joined: Nov 2014
Posts: 13,614
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From: Texas
Thread Starter
Driver School Candidate
Joined: Dec 2015
Posts: 25
Likes: 2
From: pennsylvania
Exactly. Reliability has always been a factor I consider when leasing or buying a new vehicle. I don't want to lease a car that I have to constantly take back and forth to the shop. I've definitely gotten spoiled by leasing the GS350. What a rock solid vehicle it has been. Only took to the dealer for regular maintenance. Decisions, decisions. I will keep looking...
Thread Starter
Driver School Candidate
Joined: Dec 2015
Posts: 25
Likes: 2
From: pennsylvania
yround - Was the Kia Stinger you drove a GT? Also, have you considered the possibility of negotiating a better lease end buyout? If the car is worth less than the buyout price, you'd be saving the dealer the hassle of prepping and reselling the car (not to mention your own hassle of buying another car).
Thread Starter
Driver School Candidate
Joined: Dec 2015
Posts: 25
Likes: 2
From: pennsylvania
Lexus Champion
Joined: Nov 2014
Posts: 13,614
Likes: 2,921
From: Texas
Racer
Joined: Jun 2018
Posts: 1,952
Likes: 972
From: FL
Well you certainly got me there... I've always owned Japanese, so I guess I take reliability for granted. And within 36,000 miles, these Euro cars need repairs??? Are you kidding me, they're that much of a hit-and-miss?
Lexus Test Driver
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 7,657
Likes: 1,413
From: Florida
Pretty much. My cousin had a 335i that threw a rod at 38k miles. Engine blown 25k repair Car was totaled by insurance since he had purchased a mechanical insurance rider.
Instructor
Joined: May 2015
Posts: 780
Likes: 120
From: MA
I like Lexus as a brand, but leasing one is mind numbing- unless someone doesn't drive anywhere and is so OCD or something about getting a new car every 3 years... but the end is bittersweet basically because you paid to barely break in a car
for someone else... and whoever buys that CPO ends up being the real winner, and you, basically, just set a big pile of cash on fire for their (and the dealer's) benefit.... lol. An 18 F sport is like what, 6-7 grand a year to lease? By the time you get to the end of a 3 year, you've blown 18-21K on a car that you barely drove (30K is essentially nothing) plus whatever the down payment you had to leave. Plus whatever mileage and damage penalties you racked up. Now, if you have a dealer that lets you do it for 2 years and punch out without a penalty into a new one that becomes more appetizing I guess.
Then again I am biased because I actually drive my cars and lease limitations are unacceptable. Even my GS which I basically almost never commute with now, will still accumulate more than 10K a year just in weekend use. It's like the guys who set up these lease terms assume grandma is driving it or something. I don't get it. And everyone I know on a lease panics about mileage and they end up "taking someone else's car because of the lease and the mileage" half the time, that just seems obnoxious to me, and pretty much sucks out the entire
enjoyment of having the car.
On the other hand, I shouldn't talk too loudly, I want people that don't drive anywhere to continue to lease more Lexus sedans so that I have a better pick of barely used CPOs whenever the next time comes around. If it weren't for people setting cash on fire I wouldn't have been able to get a car with only 11.5K on it,...
-Mike
Lexus Champion
Joined: Nov 2013
Posts: 13,260
Likes: 1,884
From: WA
I like Lexus as a brand, but leasing one is mind numbing- unless someone doesn't drive anywhere and is so OCD or something about getting a new car every 3 years... but the end is bittersweet basically because you paid to barely break in a car
for someone else... and whoever buys that CPO ends up being the real winner, and you, basically, just set a big pile of cash on fire for their (and the dealer's) benefit.... lol. An 18 F sport is like what, 6-7 grand a year to lease? By the time you get to the end of a 3 year, you've blown 18-21K on a car that you barely drove (30K is essentially nothing) plus whatever the down payment you had to leave. Plus whatever mileage and damage penalties you racked up. Now, if you have a dealer that lets you do it for 2 years and punch out without a penalty into a new one that becomes more appetizing I guess.
for someone else... and whoever buys that CPO ends up being the real winner, and you, basically, just set a big pile of cash on fire for their (and the dealer's) benefit.... lol. An 18 F sport is like what, 6-7 grand a year to lease? By the time you get to the end of a 3 year, you've blown 18-21K on a car that you barely drove (30K is essentially nothing) plus whatever the down payment you had to leave. Plus whatever mileage and damage penalties you racked up. Now, if you have a dealer that lets you do it for 2 years and punch out without a penalty into a new one that becomes more appetizing I guess.
Then again I am biased because I actually drive my cars and lease limitations are unacceptable. Even my GS which I basically almost never commute with now, will still accumulate more than 10K a year just in weekend use. It's like the guys who set up these lease terms assume grandma is driving it or something. I don't get it. And everyone I know on a lease panics about mileage and they end up "taking someone else's car because of the lease and the mileage" half the time, that just seems obnoxious to me, and pretty much sucks out the entire
enjoyment of having the car.
On the other hand, I shouldn't talk too loudly, I want people that don't drive anywhere to continue to lease more Lexus sedans so that I have a better pick of barely used CPOs whenever the next time comes around. If it weren't for people setting cash on fire I wouldn't have been able to get a car with only 11.5K on it,...
-Mike
enjoyment of having the car.
On the other hand, I shouldn't talk too loudly, I want people that don't drive anywhere to continue to lease more Lexus sedans so that I have a better pick of barely used CPOs whenever the next time comes around. If it weren't for people setting cash on fire I wouldn't have been able to get a car with only 11.5K on it,...
-Mike
With all that said, I regret leasing my GS. As I noted previously, this is the first car I've ever had where I didn't get bored with it. I've had it just shy of 3 years, it's in perfect condition, and only has 19k miles on it. Had I known I would feel this way, I would have just purchased it. C'est la vie.
Lexus Champion
Joined: Nov 2013
Posts: 13,260
Likes: 1,884
From: WA
An admittedly extreme example, but it's all good, it's under warranty, right? 
https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews...ability-update
Our Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio at 10,000 Miles Has Spent a Month in the Shop
https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews...ability-update
Our Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio at 10,000 Miles Has Spent a Month in the Shop
When we have it, we love driving it. We just wish we had it more.
WHAT WE LIKE: What we like is driving the Giulia Quadrifoglio, something we’re doing a lot less of than we would prefer.
WHAT WE DON’T LIKE: What we don't like is driving a loaner Chrysler 300 for a month while our Alfa is in the shop.
WHAT WENT WRONG: Okay, here we go. So, our couple of bouts with electronic-throttle and check-engine lights, which we addressed in the introduction story for the Giulia, appear to have been solved. Our dealer replaced the fuel pump under warranty at 5040 miles, and we haven't had that problem since. That's the good news. The bad news is that when we took the Giulia in for its first regular service (oil change and routine inspections) at 10,021 miles, we ended up leaving it there for a month. We'd been hearing some whining from our car's rear end and asked the dealership techs to check it out. They diagnosed the sound as bearing noise from the differential. Okay. The solution, after the dealer consulted with Alfa corporate support, was to replace the whole diff. But it would have to be ordered. Further delaying the dealership (and us) was that it has only one Alfa Romeo technician, and he is apparently a very busy man. We called around to other area dealers to see if we could sneak in for quicker service elsewhere. No dice; all booked up. So, we waited and made jokes about our white Chrysler 300 loaner that were not just unfunny but also sad. The Giulia was out of commission from July 10 to August 10, a full month during prime driving season. As much as we love to drive the Giulia QF, this—combined with the earlier lengthy dealership stays—is really inexcusable for a modern car. By the way, that 10K service cost $169; the diff was covered under warranty at no cost.
Last edited by JDR76; Sep 25, 2018 at 09:46 AM.
Lexus Test Driver
Joined: Feb 2013
Posts: 5,822
Likes: 1,065
From: California
I went from GS 350 to RC 350. 
At first it felt weird but now I like it more than my GS, this thing sits low to the ground and I like driving low and slow.
Plus LA traffic, no matter how fast and tight handling ur car is, ur still sitting low and slow with everybody else here.
At first it felt weird but now I like it more than my GS, this thing sits low to the ground and I like driving low and slow. Plus LA traffic, no matter how fast and tight handling ur car is, ur still sitting low and slow with everybody else here.