GL Class (X166) 2013-2015 after facelift became GLS (X166)

Lease vs. Star Advantage vs. Finance

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Old Aug 7, 2013 | 10:26 AM
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volvoguy's Avatar
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Volvo XC70
Lease vs. Star Advantage vs. Finance

Hey folks, so we rented a GL450 on our trip to LA earlier this year. It was an unplanned rental and we ended up loving the vehicle.

Now I'm considering purchasing a GL350 since we live in Canada and that's what sells around here. MY13 is almost impossible to find now, so I may have to go with MY14.

One thing that concerns me is that I do fairly high mileage, between 30,000 to 40,000 kms (say 20K-25K in miles) per year, mostly driving the family to and from sports events and practices and so on. So the diesel would pay off for that.

Up to now I've owned Volvo XC70s and I've been trading them in every 2-3 years once it nears the end of the warranty period (80K kms). If I wanted to do the same with the GL, is it better to finance (straight or the Star Advantage balloon) or lease? I get different opinions from folks as to what works best when you have fairly high mileage. Sadly, I'm under water in my current XC70 finance situation (probably $18K in negative equity at this point, only 1 year in on a 5-year finance) and so it will cost me a lot more to switch to a GL, which muddies the waters a lot. The fact that there are no deals to be had for the GLs makes it worse... (It's like they practically walk themselves off the lot...)

Eric
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Old Aug 7, 2013 | 12:44 PM
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2013 BMW 550ix
Originally Posted by volvoguy
Hey folks, so we rented a GL450 on our trip to LA earlier this year.
This is off topic, but if you don't mind my asking, from which company did you rent your GL and how much was it per day?
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Old Aug 7, 2013 | 01:57 PM
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2015 Ram 2500, former 2013 GL350, 2007 GL450
I'm not as high of mileage as you, typically running 18-20K miles per year. I don't mind keeping my vehicles for 5-10 years. I've found that for me purchase/loan has usually been the better option. My brother just bought a GLK250 and I think he said his interest on the loan was 1.45%. Can't hardly ignore that.

Canada's situation might be different, but that's my experience.
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Old Aug 7, 2013 | 03:08 PM
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Originally Posted by cordoor
This is off topic, but if you don't mind my asking, from which company did you rent your GL and how much was it per day?
It was Hertz. The attendant took pity on us trying to stuff our luggage into an Altima and offered us a discounted upgrade to a SUV. There were a couple of Escalades and something else, plus this new GL. We chose the GL. I think we paid $550 for a week.

Eric
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Old Aug 7, 2013 | 03:12 PM
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Originally Posted by JimBarnhart
I'm not as high of mileage as you, typically running 18-20K miles per year. I don't mind keeping my vehicles for 5-10 years. I've found that for me purchase/loan has usually been the better option. My brother just bought a GLK250 and I think he said his interest on the loan was 1.45%. Can't hardly ignore that.

Canada's situation might be different, but that's my experience.
The dealers here have 3.9% for financing and 5.9% for leasing.

I kept my first two cars for 7-8 years each, but the three Volvos I've been switching every 2 years. But maybe I wouldn't feel like doing that with a GL? Hard to say. But before the Volvos I wasn't driving so much.

Eric
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