TOPSPIN71

MB is offering 2006 E350 lease for $549 for 39 months. How good is this deal? and can you add options like Command to this type of lease specials?

Thanks In Advance

e350amg

how about down payment??

TOPSPIN71

$4294 ($549 first month, $2950 cap cost reduction, $795 acq)

dalazernet

That offer includes the premium package (according to the fine print), consisting of a sunroof, Harmon Kardon Logic7 stereo, command navigation, etc. Very sweet deal indeed.... and of course you can add additional items to your car - but expect your total payments to go up accordingly. Add $1000 worth of "toys" and expect to pay for most if not all of it (in some cases).

Hope this helps!
PS - Good deal.
- Eric

CE750

9 out of 10 times, and advertised lease is great.. IF YOU CAN FIND THE CAR they are leasing.

$549+tax with $2500 down is pretty good, but make sure you get at least 10,000/yr.. and not 8K

Acropora

Would a European delivery purchase be a better deal?

konigstiger

For what it’s worth, ED normally runs 7% - 10% off MSRP.

Acropora

I was thinking of going Euro delivery but don't know the mathematics behind the lease and if that would be the way to go.
Any accountants care to step up?

CE750

logically yes... worth looking into it. But you have to pay for airfare with MB, unlike with Volvo.

Brian_I.

That deal would be okay as long as it does come with the Premium Package. Otherwise it's not really that great.

farrbar

Sorry in advance for long post, but contains good info:

As a CPA with an appreciation for cars, I have been evaluating the recent lease special, and here are my thoughts: As a nationally advertised special it is just the starting point, dealers can do much better.

Be careful when negotiating a lease as the car dealer will always try to change multiple variables (mileage, residual, cap cost reduction…..) to "reduce" the payment - but you may be getting a worse deal. Also, keep in mind each $1,000 upfront equals about $28-30 per month in savings.

Therefore, first negotiate the price of the car. $7k below MSRP can be done easily, some claim $8k. $8k off MSRP will already put you $4,112 ahead of the nationally advertised deal (the fine print in special says $3,888 discount - of which $2k is from MB). Then refuse to pay the BS fee of $795. At this point you have struck a good deal. Now just be sure they don't change the residual and money factor offered in the "Special". The residual in the MB model is 63% (i.e. on the day you turn the car in it will be worth 63% of MSRP). The money factor is effectively interest, and the special is at 6.36%. Therefore, to figure out your monthly payment you can use a simple loan calculator with the "sales price" (i.e. $7 or 8k off sticker) less any money you put down (i.e. cap cost reduction) as the initial value. Set the period at 39 months, rate at 6.36% and the ending value at 63% of MSRP and you have your payment.

On an E350 with premium package (msrp of $53,775) and 10,000 miles per year you should be able to get a ZERO down (other than first mo. Payment) for $532 per month (assuming you get $7500 off msrp). For each $1000 you put down, your payment will drop by $28-30 per month. The above numbers exclude taxes, so depending on how your state handles taxes on leased items, be prepared to write a check for this. Therefore, if you put down the $2950 in the ad, your payment will be about $450 per month (yep, you just saved $100 per mo.)

Premium Package is the way to go, for about the same price as sunroof, 6 disc and heated seats (if bought separate), you also get the HK sound, DVD Nav and sunshade.

In summary, I think you can get a great deal on an E350 lease. The thing that is causing a good deal is the inflated residual by MBCredit. They are saying that a car that stickers for $53,775, but we know could be bought today for $46,275 will be worth $33,878 in 39 months, I think they are crazy (car only drop 27% in 39 months…) = Great deal for you and me.

Farrbar

P.S. - I am picking up E350 4-matic with Premium package on sat. (and yes it is a lease)

CE750

Residuals are higher on the E350 than reality, but since rates are still low, the bank will risk it. IF you want an even better lease, lease a CDI, with a residual of 63%, only the Mini is higher, and you'll save even more. But you'll also pay more for the car.. and have to burn oil.

CE750

Lease residuals are typically proprietary to banks, but here is some interesting info I dug up.

http://www.cars.com/go/crp/buyingGui...erResidual.jsp

Calcio

farrbar - could you share the actual purchase price of the 4-matic and options (or % discount off MSRP) and what part of the country you are in? I'm considering the same vehicle (buy not lease) and also looking at the Audi A6 3.2 quattro.

farrbar

The purch. price for my deal was $49,465 (i.e. $7500 below MSRP). It was the 4-matic, plus metalic paint and premium package.

However, $2000 of the discount comes from MB credit (valid if you lease or finance). If you are normally a cash buyer you can finance a portion of the car to get the extra $2k then pay in full in 3 months w/ no penalty.

I am in Chicago.

Calcio

That is a sweet deal. I did the math (I'm also a number cruncher by trade) and it works out to $3,567 under invoice. Add back the $2,000 MBCC money and the 3% holdback on MSRP (excluding freight) and your dealer made all of $119. How did you pull that off? I was quoted $1,500 under invoice including the $2,000 MBCC money, albeit pre-negotiation. Are other folks getting this large a discount?

konigstiger

Rest assured there are back door earnings from MBUSA (sometimes advertised, sometimes not). Also new car sales isn’t their strongest earner, used car sales and service/parts take up the slack.

Brav

Sums it up right there.

jimlai322

Yup, I got a way better deal than what is advertised.

$3100 drive off, including first month payment and fees
$470 per month
10k miles per year
06E350 with Metallic paint and premium package with panaroma roof.

tranctk

Can you tell me where you got your car? MF? Residual Value?
Thanks

Alfa Fan

Armed with the info that farrbar stated, I went to the dealer to negotiate a deal. They immediately took over $5000 off the MSRP. The residual was set at 63% (of the original MSRP?) and a money factor of 0.00265 applied to get at a final number.

Is the 6.36% that farrbar stated the same as the 0.00265 number used by the dealer? Also, he figured the monthly cost by ADDING the price of the car and the residual cost and multiplying it by the money factor. the numbers were: (Price + Residual) x Money Factor
($52,000 + $37,620) x 0.00265 = 237.49

He then said that with no money down, my monthly payments would be $698! How did he come up with that number.

Please give me more info so I can negotiate better.

csumt76

$2000 down, $405/month, 10K

06 Flint Grey, Apperance package, sunroof package, tinted windows

CE750

Residual would be off of the PRICE, not MSRP.

Also, $698 (includes tax?) sounds good with no CAP reduction.. most leases have a down payment of at least $3000.. On my Volvo with a sticker of $50450, and a sell price of $47400, I put $5000 down, which includes about $1200 in fees/first payment/license, and pay $519/mo for 39 inclusive of tax.

CE750

Sounds too good to be true.. and the 10K sucks, I could never do with that. What's the excessive milage charge? On my Volvo lease it's a mere .07/mile, some get as much as .35, which is usury.

Alfa Fan

I am still unclear about the money factor. I have bought all my cars in the past and interest percentage points make sense. How is a money factor used and how can I get it to relate to farrbar's 6.36% he stated?