copper00

Hi folks -

My 24 month lease is up at the end of this month. My 07 ML350 currently has 21,500 miles and its' residual is $33,000. With tax, it will cost me about $37,000 to purchase the car. MB won't budge on the cost. Should I purchase? The cost seems too high. What will be the resale value likely be in a couple of years when I would want to sell the car?

Thanks!

nkole

I think the $33K price is $9K - $10K too much. Look at what used 07's are going for on Craigslist or Ebay.

360º

shouldnt have signed a lease to begin with

entre

To be objective as to its value you should list the option codes, warranty status, mileage and the carfax report. The local dealer can reprint the option codes if you do not have them handy. The Carfax report is cheap when compared to what you try trying to accomplish. If there are mistakes in it then you need to know now, not later. Is the exterior and interior anything less than almost perfect? Are all mechanical issues closed? How much work was done by the dealership vs aftermarket? Which wheels and tires are included and rubber remaining? Which state and city is it domiciled? What state is it titled in? From that you can compare several options for like kind ML values such as Manheim, Black Book, NADA, eBay, AutoTrader etc. It does sound high priced but by how much depends on all these factors and the current free market environment for purchasing used ML series vehicles.

copper00

Similar cars are selling in the same range, $29,000- $33,000. The car is in perfect shape, clean carfax, no mechanical issues, only 21,500 miles, and I know where it's coming from. It was due for Service B a month ago though. My problem is deciding if all this really matters in this economy, with paying "market value" for the car. If the price was lower, this would be a no-brainer.

Blk04cobra1

The pre-owned market is so strong right now, that MBF does not have to negotiate at this time. They know that if they throw it in an auction they will be able to get their money out of it. If they are willing to go down to $30k, I think that would be a good buy. You can always do a search to see what is out there that is certified and you might find yourself a better vehicle with certification.

copper00

Not only won't MBF negotiate the buy price with me, but they are gracious enough to provide me financing at 8%!! I laughed. I suppose there really are suckers out there, or they REALLY want this car back...

entre

Again the option codes are significant. Just for instance, the Premium interior package 1 was $1650 or so and the Premium interior package 2 was $6150 or so. There are many others, or lack thereof.

copper00

Sorry, don't have option codes but...It has P1, Nav, Power liftgate, Rear Camera, aftermarket running boards and front grille. 3 foot long key scratch on the passenger side, small ding on the driver side. Otherwise, car looks brand new! You wanna buy it? :-)

1st amg

Why wouldnt you lease another one? I wouldnt buy any vehicle in the economic crunch, people who purchased their cars in the last year are in for a rude awakening if they want to sell or trade their vehicle, then again, I am from the school of "never buy a depreciating asset".

copper00

Well let's see: This is the best quote I got so far for a new ML350 lease ($53,300): 36/10K $588/m $4000 out of pocket (Down payment + fees) Payment includes tax .................... At the end of this 3 year lease I would have paid $25,168, and be left with no car. If I purchase my current car for $37,000 (including tax), it would have to be worth no more than $12,000 ($37,000-$25,000) in three years to make this an even situation. You're telling me that I won't be able to sell a 5 year old ML350 with ~60,000 for more than $12,000?? Or am I calculating this incorrectly?

1st amg

Hoping that nothing will go wrong with your vehicle, then the manufacturers warranty will have expired, to calculate out of pocket expenses for any repairs...not my thing, I like the piece of mind that everything is covered under warranty. You also failed to mention how much you have paid on the lease so far, calculate that into your figures of how much you have paid for this vehicle in 5 years of potential ownership. I am not sure if it works out. BTW, this is my opinion, so I am not trying to insult you or anything, I just have my own rational of owning vehicles, I would rather tie up my money elsewhere.

copper00

You're not being insulting at all. I appreciate you bringing stuff to the table that I haven't thought of. The funny thing is, I'm going crazy here trying to save a couple of K over a period of 3 years. I need to keep that in perspective. I just hate being ripped off!

I've been leasing cars for 12+ years and still think it's the way to go. With the current economy, leases are much more expensive than 2-3 years ago, and the used car market is going through the roof. Just don't want to make a mistake here...

1st amg

A couple of a K over a few years, I think you may have answered your own question, like I stated before, you may end up spending that on repairs out of warranty and even new tires, I know the lease rates arent the best and the residuals have dropped as used cars arent fetching what they used to, but to have that real good sleep at night knowing you are completely covered of any surprises is good enough for me, besides, I like the newly refreshed look of the MY09 ML, it has a little more presence. Good luck with the choices, dont go to bonkers over it.

Nickerz

My lease for my '06 ML350 is up this November so I'm wondering what I want to do as well, return it and get something else or buy it. I really like my ML350 and I'm also a fan of leasing. I'm hoping MB will make me a reasonable offer if I want to buy it, meaning they will have to drop the price that I would normally have to pay to buy it as I know the '06 models by then (and even now) are going for a lot less.

I think someone said MB will call you around 3 months before it's time to turn in the vehicle. I guess at that point I will see what they are willing to do.

Again, as a lease, it's nice knowing I can simply give back the car and look for a new one if things don't work out. But if I do keep it, I have to consider the price of an extended warranty, especially as I wouldn't want to be stuck with an air suspension gone bad with no warranty. Decisions, decisions.

1st amg

If your lease is up in November, you should try going to your MB dealer and see if they would take your 06 off your hands and get you into a 09 with no penalty, manufactures such as MB and BMW will get you out of your current lease in advance so that you dont go off to its competitor. I had a 07 BMW 525i for my wife and the lease was due in sept 09 and MB got me in their 09 ML35o in march 09, they bought out the remainder of the lease on the bimmer in order to keep from going to get an X5, so it worked out pretty good.

Nickerz

I'll definitely check this out, thanks for the tip! I'm approaching my limit of miles next month anyway, so if they decide to take my '06 back to get me into an '09, I won't have to worry about paying for the additional miles!

Thanks!