KyleE

With the markets the way they are, and the depreciate most MB's take, wouldn't it be wiser to lease the C63 as apposed to purchasing? I am looking into the car in detail now and want to know my options before talking to the salesman.



Thanks!

-Kyle

LZH

Yes, lease. Unless you plan to keep the car fora long time (4+ years).

taylorcoleman

Buy it my friend. Will cost you more to lease than to buy an AMG. Search for "PenFed.org" on this forum and I have some posts regarding a great way to finance (for some people).

shap07s550

probably cheaper to buy because Mercedes leases for this car stink right now. I'd be happy to break it down if someone has the lease numbers, money factor, residual etc.

KyleE

What are MB's rates for financing now right now?

I've only financed in the past, however, I only keep cars for 3 years or so, and MB AMG's tank so much I hate to think what I would be in for in a few years. Look at E55's or other AMG's on eBay. Makes me nervous to buy in a market like this. Especially when they aren't cutting any crazy deals.

Any breakdowns or comparisons would be very much appreciated!

Thanks again!

sleewell

mileage should be a factor too, if you drive a lot or take road trips sometimes you will get screwed with a lease. those extra fees for mileage can add up fast, unless you plan to buy the car when the lease is up.

KyleE

That is a good point. I do about 25-30k miles a year. Do leases even go this high?

GNALUZU

You can set mileage on a lease up to 100,000 miles (for the term of the lease). So, if it is a 3 year lease it can be as high as 33,333 miles per year.

Of course, all you are doing is prepaying the miles. If you don't put them all on the car then you are out of luck. (actually, with BMW if you have more than 10,000 extra miles at the end of the lease, and you payed up front for more miles, they will cut you a check back).

On the other hand, pre-purchasing the miles will have a significant impact on the residual value at the end of the lease.

Keep in mind that some dealers will try pretty hard to not let you put a lot of miles on a lease. They don't want to get a car back at the end of the term with high mileage. When we leased the 911 turbo cab last winter they would only allow 20k miles per year, not the 33,333.

KyleE

So where can I find numbers on a lease with 25k-30k miles, compared to financing over 4 years with 5k down.

shap07s550

Just got some lease numbers for the c63 today and 24 month lease with 10k miles per year is a 64% residual and 8+% interest rate....30 month lease with 10k miles per year is 59% residual and 8+% interest rate. With a not-so-good 8+% interest rate even for super-prime credit rated customers and the not-so-good residuals - not more than 64%(my s550 was 72% residual for 27months!!) you might as well save some money over time and buy it outright. Paying 8+% a year and a lousy residual will suck a lot of money out of your wallet. Anybody on the forum have recent 5yr lease numbers for 30-40k miles a year, residual and money factor? If we can get that we can run some numbers for you and do the comparison, as we have an idea that a 5yr old 63 will be worth no more than low 20k after 5yrs(consensus in earlier thread)...

reelgr

I prefer leasing most of the time, even if it cost a little more... I just love to tear up the car and hand it back in 2 years for a new one....

beemaze

Lease if you use your car for business, can keep within the mileage allowance, and intend on upgrading after a few years.

Otherwise, buy if you intend to keep it for more than 4 years and invest in an extended warranty since we all know Benz reliability is below average...

beemaze

That's just plain ugly. Banks clearly don't want to lease anymore....

Here's what I got LAST MONTH through US Bank with very good credit:

Fully Loaded C63 with PP minus tele-aid at MSRP.
36 month lease with 12k/year allowance
59-61% residual (I can't recall exactly I have to look it up....)
.00259 money factor (6.24%)

paulGT3

if you HAVE to lease the M3 would be a better deal. For some reason BMW subsidizes their cars alot more than MB does. I dont know why BMW does this but you can get CRAZY deals if you can find a car thats been on the lot awhile. They throw trunk money at it and you can get 5-7 thousand from BMW and you can get below invoice by several thousand if you get the right deal. AMG? not so much.

1st amg

Never buy a depreciating asset, unless of course you intend to keep it for more than 5 yrs, and then only will you be ahead if you keep it from 7-10yrs if you buy.

taylorcoleman

This is not a bad rule of thumb, but it does not hold true in all cases. Specifically for the 2009 C63 AMG, the lease rate (from MB) is grossly high. When you lease, you are paying interest on both the depreciation of the car as well as the residual. With MB lease rates at apx 9%, and finance rates at 4-5%, I believe you're better off purchasing the C63.

So whether you buy or lease, you pay for the depreciation. Leasing might make more sense when the lease rate is very close to the finance rate, and when there are other factors that make the leasing equation more favorable (such as higher residuals). Leasing also makes perfect sense if you can use it as a tax write-off for your business.

Leasing can make sense, it just depends on the situation.

rory breaker

So lets break it down:

So the lease comes out a bit cheaper. This takes into account 2 major variables:

1) that the c63 will follow the c55's depreciation rate
and
2) $1,200/mo is about right for a $65k C63 lease

taylorcoleman

Well, another way to look at this is based on the following:

Assumptions:
* C63 selling price $65K
* 8% sales tax
* 51% residual after 3 years (based on feedback I got through MB)
* 9% lease rate (based on feedback I got through MB)
* 4.75% finance rate (based on PenFed.org)
* No money down
* No other fees included

36 month lease:
- Depreciation expense: $31,850
- Rent charge: $13,250
- Sales Tax: $3,608
- Total lease cost: $48,708

36 month loan:
- Interest expense: $4,869.56
- Sales tax: $5,200
- Principal payments: $65000
- Total finance cost: $75,069.56
- Value of car: $33,150
- Total finance cost -Value of Car = $41,919.56

So, financing saves you about $6,700.

Then one might say, well, the lease costs you about $1,350 per month and the loan costs you about $1,940 per month, so the difference each month over the 36 month period is $21,240 Taking that into consideration, you'll have $21K at the end of the lease if you pocketed the difference (bump that up a bit if you invest monthly in an interest bearing account). On the other hand if you financed the car, you'd have an asset of $33,150 (C63). So here again financing the car (to own) makes better financial sense.

As I said before, as the difference between the lease rate and the finance rate closes, the more favorable leasing becomes. But given the miserable lease rates on the C63 versus the finance rates (that I've found at least), it makes better financial sense to buy versus lease.

rory breaker

All that is way over my head. Depreciation expense, etc...lets just work it out in simple monthly payment terms please!

Reason being, 36 month loan is a very high monthly payment. Also, doing 24 months for those of us who dont want to keep a car longer than 2 years.

taylorcoleman

OK then. Monthly lease payment < monthly loan payment. Therefore leasing is better. That's music to a leasing company's ears (especially at a .00375 money factor).

Newzchspy

That's because BMW would sell no cars otherwise. AMGs are often rare and hard to find on dealers lots. In Chicago, M Cars are a dime a dozen and the calibre of drivers reflects that as well.

rory breaker

Right, but the question is, if you were to own the car for 2 years, does it make more sense to lease it or buy it with 60 month financing (meaning comparable monthly payments)?

The breakdown I posted, to me, looks like it makes more sense to lease - especially since I think $1200/mo is a very high estimate.

taylorcoleman

As you probably know, a significant proportion of the car's depreciation happens in the first 2 years. So using a 60% residual after 24 months, 9% lease rate, and 8% sales tax, you're paying close to $1,600 per month to lease for 24 months. For about $1,300/mo over 5 years at 4.75% with tax included, you own it.

PM me if you want more info. Long time ago I made a bad lease decision just so that I could afford a car. Bad idea.

rory breaker

I guess Im just not following this...how is it $1600 a month to lease it when guys are getting monthly payments as low as $1k fully loaded, and at the end of the lease there is no balloon, no payment, no ownership, just turn it in and say buh bye? What does the residual matter if youre not buying it?

The scenario Im describing is 24 months leasing the car and turning it in vs 24 months buying the car and selling it. I dont see how financing makes sense in that case.

KyleE

That exactly why I am asking. Since the speed of depreciation of these cars are so fast, and being that I want a new car as apposed to use, wouldn't it be better to lease and then (if I want) I can buy it, or just turn it back in, as apposed to finance it and take risk of losing more after 3 years or so.