Hi y’all, uncoiled up a 2021 GLE 350 with about $10k in options. I wind up going with a leas instead of a buy. I love the car and it’s fun to drive. The kids are enjoying all the space they want in the back. The total MSRP came out to $65k.

I had a very difficult time getting price quotes as there aren’t many to find and a lot of the dealerships just did not have good stock.

can some one tell me if I did good on my price?

they discounted the car to $59k and I put $5.5k down at 36 month with 10k miles a year. I also have 2 services that are prepaid, my Baden payment came out to $730.59, $800 including tax. I’m not asking for anyone to tell me what they’re paying but why is this information so hard to find online?


If I did overpay I’m okay with it especially if it’s like $20 difference

 

For starters, congratulations on the new GLE! I have a similar build that is on its way, hopefully arriving in 2 weeks.

The best place to check if you got a good deal would be the forums on Leasehackr.com. Fair warning, they can be pretty harsh and they may rip you a new one if you post this deal. However, that website is full of valuable information regarding leases. Also, there are lease brokers on that website that constantly post ads for leases which you can use as a general basis of what you should be paying around.

To determine if this is a good deal or not, we would need more information, such as:

• Money Factor
• Residual Value
• Location where car is registered
• Preferably the deal sheet showing all the fees and costs that the dealership charged you.

However, from looking at this deal with the limited information provided, it looks like you are paying about $866.88 for a 65K car, which in my opinion, you absolutely overpaid for the car. At this point the deal is done, you live and you learn. Enjoy the car it is stunning!

 

I appreciate your feedback. The base monthly payment is $730 + CA Tax $70 so $800 a month including the tax. I was told the sales price is $58,925 that’s what the manger discounted the car to before my down payment. I just called and confirmed this with the finance manager. The sticker price is $64,435 -$5,500 down = $58,935 so they discounted the car $500? I updated my post and included the breaks down.

 

You now have the car. If you made a good or bad deal will change nothing. Let it go and enjoy the car.

 

I fail to see where a lease is ever a good deal...

 

No! I need to know if they’re lying to me. They told me they sold me the car for $58900. I need to know if it’s true. They sold me a lemon CPO while knowing about it. They lied and said they can’t give me my money back. After I threatened to get a lawyer they they quickly took the car back.

 

You haven't provided the key info on the lease but since I like math, I'll work out the numbers backward for you:

- The MSRP of the car is $64,435 and the sale price is $58,925.34. That's 8.55% off the MSRP. I have no idea how much discount is good on these cars, but 8.55% off doesn't seem to be that bad given the limited inventory this time of the year.
- The residual is $37,411.95 which is around 56% of the MSRP. As per Edmunds lease forums, 2021 GLE350 RWD 36/12K lease in Dec has 0.00160 MF (interest rate 3.84%) and 56% residual, so your 36/10K lease should have a 57% residual. I'm not sure why they used 56%, but your current residual is interestingly 57% of an MSRP of $65,635. That's exactly $1200 more than your listed MSRP, so there was something else added to MSRP, which I suspect was the prepaid maintenance (good thing, since it will be residualized). Is the standard 2-yr plan $1200? If so, the dealer marked it up to $1650 when adding it to the sale price.
- Your adjusted cap cost is $58,925.34 (sale price) plus $99 (footprints) plus $1095 (AC) plus $1650 (maintenance) minus $3563.63 (down/cap reduction) = $58,205.71.
- The amount financed in your lease is $58,205.71 minus residual ($37,411.95). When I plug the numbers in my calculator, in order to make the monthly payment of $730.59 ($800 with tax), the interest rate should be 3.84% (which is the current standard rate for this car) and tax rate should be 9.5%. So, your dealer used the standard MF/interest rate and didn't mark it up which is a good thing. As long as your local tax rate is indeed 9.5% then the lease numbers are fine.

So taken altogether, it doesn't seem that you got a terrible deal and the lease numbers look fine too. The dealer probably marked up the maintenance plan by $450, which comes down to less than $15 per month so it should still be within your comfort level and hopefully not a big deal. Enjoy the car!

(Edit: Btw if my assumption about maintenance plan mark up is correct, then you got the car for 7.7% off the MSRP with the maintenance plan included which is still a decent deal.)

 

Agree, seems like 8ish% off is a good to even very good deal given limited inventory. There's always someone who gets a better deal - and just like when you go to the track with friends, everyone counts their winners and forgets their losers - so take most people's account of their deal with a good deal of skepticism. If you do choose to go on Leasehackr, you will find a lot of excellent information - but those are lease enthusiasts, who want the best deal on any car. Service loaners, oddball configurations, etc. If you got the car you wanted with about 8% off and didn't get robbed on money factor or robbed much on prepaid maintenance, pat yourself on the back and enjoy driving it.

 

I truly appreciate the breakdown thank you so much. Im in the position where I can give the car back at any time this month! Im just trying to find out if somehow they are marking something up in the backend. There’s a bigger story to all this that I will post in a few days. This was one of the worst car buying experiences ever! I work in retail and I’m a retail business owner. No one should be treated and lied to the way these people did to me. I went back in yesterday so I can have the finance manager explain the breakdown to me yet she had a hard time. Everything that she was saying did not make any since. Again, thank you!!!

 

I’m okay with the 8% off, I just feel like something is happing on the backend where I can’t see what they’re doing. To someone that has had many leases this is probably a bad deal. This is my first lease with MBF.

I originally purchased a MB CPO 2018 E400 coupe from them 3 months ago. This car passed a 150 point inspection that 3 people signed off on. I order my $4000 ArmyTrix exhaust system to be installed in the car, they take the mufflers out and guess what they see, the whole back side of the car was replaced. This car has a clean car fax by the way. Then we remove the trunk padding inside, it’s like someone glued the car together. I paid $42k for it, imagine if I found out about this in a year! The MB manger in the shop that did the inspection said the car has “catastrophic frame damage” and they did not contest to what I provided them. Then that’s where all the BS lying started. I’ll have a detailed post up soon

 

I suppose there could be something behind the curtain - but you have a competitive price on the GLE and a lease that passes the sniff test. Given that - how much more do you want to think about it?

The E400 coupe - taking nothing away from your inconvenience and potential economic loss (which was luckily avoided) - I have to believe the dealer did not do this deliberately. There are likely sins of omission, in that CPO inspections seem rather cursory these days, that type of undisclosed damage should have been caught. But no big dealer would knowingly sell that car - too much reputational and legal exposure - and business is good for most MB dealers right now, they don't need to sell rebuilt cars.

You have a great looking GLE with good economics - hopefully that closes a painful chapter.

 

You have a great car. You got a better deal than I got on my custom build 350. The only difference is my interest rate is lower since I prefer a 1 payment lease. Mine started at a higher list price but my price was published invoice (on which, of course, they still make a well-deserved profit). Your price was below invoice. Besides, I am not as aggressive in my youth of fighting for every dollar. I want a fair price from a rep and dealership I trust. That was well worth the perhaps 1.5% differential between our respective deals. You did well, particularly considering the fact that you didn't come armed with all of the numbers and were at their mercy. Drive it in good health!