Car leases, and what about those gift cards?

It is the end of the year, and I haven't posted for a while. I have leased 2 new cars in the months since my last post, and I think it is time to share a little knowledge. I got the first deal on "my" car. I jumped out of my lease on my 2005 Nissan Altima V6 about 4 months early, as I got a deal on a new 2007 VW Passat I could not pass up. First off, for most leases, the dealers add a payment on the end of the lease for those who turn in their cars and walk away. This is usually to the tune of $350.00. The idea is that if you don't lease another car from them, buy your car, or another from them, they will be able to make a parting gift to themselves of your money. You don't have to pay this amount by trading the car to another dealer of another brand of car, it turns out. The VW dealer in this case was more than happy to take the Nissan in trade, as the car had only 13,000 miles on it, was in perfect condition, and I actually had "equity" in a leased car, as I owed less than it was worth. It didn't cost me anything to trade it in, and enhanced my position in the deal to get the new car. I won't go into it now how to negotiate the best deal on a lease, but VW had something called "Loyalty Cash" going on at the time, which means that if you have a VW in the immediate family (in this case, my wife's leased 2004 Passat), I qualified for $1,500.00 cash toward the purchase, or lease of my new car. On a lease, that means that about $45.00 less per month, in payments on the lease. I negotiated the lease down to an amazing total payment of $287.00 per month, including state tax, with nothing down, for the next 4 years (the length of VW's warranty). The deal included the first payment on the lease! This is not a stripped-down model. It is silver with a black leatherette interior, radio and CD player, Tiptronic auto trans, 200-hp turbo 4, mag wheels, A.C. and "bun warmers." Though not as fast as the Nissan V6, the turbo 4 is no slouch.

Well, even though I thought I got a fantastic deal, last month I got my wife to trade out of her beloved 2004 Passat, for an even better deal on a new white 2008 Passat. It has the same equipment (and more additional equipment) as my car does, but we got it for even less than I am paying. VW had the loyalty cash available again, only this time, it was for $2,000.00. Her payments are $269.00 per month for 4 years, nothing down, and the first payment is made for us.

If you would like to know how I negotiated such good deals on these cars, email me at mercsuv@hotmail.com. I am selling this information as it will save you big bucks on your next car lease or purchase. Each of the above cars had an MSRP of over $25,000.

Some words on car leasing:

If you have a business, you can write off the car lease against your federal taxes to the percentage that you use the car in your business. This allows me to have a better car than I can possibly afford if I purchased it.

I haven't paid for a car repair since 1999. I haven't put enough miles on any of the cars to need tires or brakes. All the cars have been in warranty as long as the lease term. Gasoline, tires, maintenance, brakes, and wipers are all that I have to pay for on these cars besides the payments. So all I have paid for is the payments, gas, maintenance, and the occasional wiper blade. Everything else has been covered. No surprises. If the transmission or engine blows up, I can take it to the dealer, and say "Fix it!" I don't care what it costs, as it is on warranty. And if they keep the car too long, I can usually get them to throw in a free loaner or rental car, until my car is ready.

Lastly, let me say a word about gift cards: WHAT WERE YOU THINKING? Why give someone a gift card? Cash does the same thing, never expires or loses value the way the cards do. Cash doesn't lock someone into a particular store, or have time limits. Do you think the person you are giving it to thinks you thought more of them than if you gave them cash? You didn't even need to go to the store, you could have ordered it online. What if the person you gave that Sears card to needs cash to buy food? What good is a gift card to that person. I can't understand the idea that I need to entrust Sears or another huge retailer with my money, in the hope you will use the card I gave you before it expires. The other thing the retailer hopes is the card is not enough money to buy something and your recipient needs to pony up extra money to purchase something. The retailer doesn't even list the card as a sale, but rather waits until the card is spent to show that as a sale. You and I couldn't even get away with that. They get all the money spent on the card. If the card expires, or isn't used, don't they get to keep all that as profit, or money they are holding? It is already out of your pocket! If you want to give me present, give me CASH.

Have a Happy New Year.