Why is leasing a new 4runner bad? Is buying and financing better?

alext72888

alext72888

New member
This is somewhat embarrassing, but for the past 9 years (through college and a few years after) I've been driving a passed down old 1992 volvo 940 while building up my income and career. She's treated me well, and now I'm ready to make my very FIRST car purchase. That purchase will be a black 2014-2015 4runner trail edition with KDSS.

This means I'm somewhat of a newb when it comes to buying cars.

Now I understand these vehicles maintain their value very well.

I'm interested in total cost as being the #1 deciding factor on if I should lease or buy.

If the price of leasing a vehicle for three years and purchasing it after far exceeds the price if simply financing the vehicle for whatever number of months you choose, than buying is a better option.

if the difference is only a few to several hundred dollars, but allows me to spread the payments across seven years to reduce overall payment amount, this for me makes more sense.

Why are people so against leasing THIS particular vehicle?


Secondary question:

Can some one give me a breakdown of all the typical fees and taxes that one must pay when leasing or buying a car? I know they are different everywhere. I live in CT. If someone here lives in the same area, please respond or PM me with the list. I would greatly appreciate it.:)
 
Register to hide this ad
Resale is very high, your interest rate and monthly payments will likely be higher on the vehicle two years later than if you financed it brand new, you get free two years service on a new vehicle so any argument for "reduced maintenance costs" is irrelevant. It's very hard to predict if you'll actually stay under the mileage, and that can be a large penalty.
 
I heard modding is not allowed if u lease... That's a no no for me right off the bat. Also mileage restriction would be a problem for me also.
 
These are bad to lease because Toyita's internal residuals that they use for the calculations are never as good as the real world. My 2010 stickered for $36k. I paid $32k new. I traded it 4 years later for $27,500. There is no way that Toyota would have leased that to me for ~$150/month that I'd have needed for leasing to even be in the same ballpark.
 
First question's answer is simple. The 4Runner has an exceptional residual value after three years. Lease a vehicle that does not hold it's value If you plan on purchasing it after the lease period.
Second question can be answered by a simple google search.
 
While price is important....it can be secondary to some buyers. When you buy a car...you buy it. Very simple. It's yours. Even if you finance it, you've agree to buy the car and that someone is lending you money.

Lease is basically a rental agreement...and most of options to buy. However, most manufacturers use a lease to offer some sort of incentive. i.e. the factory buys down some of the lease terms to offset the price/options over the term. So, you need to understand the various options.

On the 4Runner..it's pretty simple. There are none. I've owned (5) 4Runners and can only remember (1) finance deal over that period...which was a very quick 1.9% finance rate for 48 months last May. I do not recall any lease "special", yet you can use a lease as a means to buy a car. However, it's generally not a good idea.

Generally speaking, the times to use a lease are when you will turn in the car at the end of the term and walk away. Of course, if you're in a lease and choose to buy the car are when you will get screwed by turning it in.....damage to the car, too many miles, etc.

Long story short....IMO, you buy 4Runners. You lease Range Rovers.

As for financial considerations: Finance rate, terms, flexibility, trade in value and trade in tax implications. Generally speaking, in today's used car world....you're better off trading in your used car for the tax savings. However, check you local markets.
 
leasing is only good for problematic luxury cars that depreciate like crazy.

i.e. Jags, Land Rovers, BMWs, Mercs.

High residuals makes leasing not worth while. European luxury cars are ticking time bombs once the bumper to bumper warranty runs out.

I also consider Nissan part of the ticking time bomb after 2 horrible Nissans (Altima and a Rouge) in the family. Everything fell apart on both these 2 cars after the bumper to bumper ran out, this is with the maintenance schedule recommended by the dealers were followed to the T.
 
Look out for deals as the 16s start to come in soon. I don't know about up north but Southeast Toyota Finance runs deals every month. I picked up mine for 0% financing for 60 months.
 
We looked into leasing simy because planned on trading in the vehicle in 3 years, we an on growing our family. We decided to buy because the rate we were offered was really low, slightly upside down, and I want to keep this 4Runner for myself. The wife can get the upgraded, we are currently looking at leasing a Volvo, Toyota, or Acura to replace my daily commuter with the intention of getting a large vehicle later.

Leasing is "great" if just want a new car relatively maintenance free all the time, if you don't care about having a payment or playing by the dealers rules.

Good luck!
 
High resale value and low interest rates. No brainer for me but I'm obviously not familiar with the details of your personal finances.
 
alext72888 said:
This is somewhat embarrassing, but for the past 9 years (through college and a few years after) I've been driving a passed down old 1992 volvo 940 while building up my income and career. She's treated me well, and now I'm ready to make my very FIRST car purchase. That purchase will be a black 2014-2015 4runner trail edition with KDSS.

This means I'm somewhat of a newb when it comes to buying cars.

Now I understand these vehicles maintain their value very well.

I'm interested in total cost as being the #1 deciding factor on if I should lease or buy.

If the price of leasing a vehicle for three years and purchasing it after far exceeds the price if simply financing the vehicle for whatever number of months you choose, than buying is a better option.

if the difference is only a few to several hundred dollars, but allows me to spread the payments across seven years to reduce overall payment amount, this for me makes more sense.

Why are people so against leasing THIS particular vehicle?


Secondary question:

Can some one give me a breakdown of all the typical fees and taxes that one must pay when leasing or buying a car? I know they are different everywhere. I live in CT. If someone here lives in the same area, please respond or PM me with the list. I would greatly appreciate it.:)
Click to expand...

You sound like a person who is level headed and careful with financial choices. I will offer my opinion FWIW;

If you can, keep the Volvo. Having an extra vehicle that is paid for really helps in time of need. I have always had a 3rd vehicle and use it a lot. Only extra expense are tags and insurance.

If you like the 4 Runner, buy it. Test drive it thoroughly, read through this thread for issues that are unique to the T4R. If you have driven your used Volvo for that long, you will get 10-15 years easy from the T4R, then it can become your second vehicle. After a few years you will have NO PAYMENT instead of turning a lease back in or then purchasing it.

I have a buddy that leases expensive cars, changes them regularly but is always worried about the fine print details. He could own two T4R's outright for what he has tied up in rented vehicles, but he likes to "look good". He has even borrowed my 3rd vehicle a few times :).

Buying / Leasing is really a personal choice based on circumstances. With what you posted, my guess is that buying (if you research and like it) will work best for you. The total deferred payment, total cost of ownership etc. is not always the best graph to base personal choices on. If all we needed was basic economical transportation, we would all be on a civic or corolla forum.

Good Luck!
 
Last edited:
New Car Fever

Leasing a car is a huge waste of money. You might as well just drive down the road throwing money out the window. Im also a firm believer that if you have to finance it, you cant really afford it. Save up for the car you want, pay cash, get a better deal, own the vehicle out-right.

Ive paid cash for every car Ive owned and I can tell you for a fact when you pull out a pile of cash the sellers knees go weak and you can practically steal the vehicle from them, especially at auctions. This holds true for pretty much anything thats for sale.
 
My current 2015 is leased, my 2013 was a lease as well, right now for me leasing is the way to go. New vehicle, with all the guarantees/warranty etc, in 3-4 years, bring it back, drop off the keys and walk away. Or as in my case, two years into the lease, get a call, walk in, one month later walk away with a 2015, brand new, and payments less than the 2013. Just have to accept the fact you will have monthly payments as a regular. If you don't need to modify the heck out of it, can anticipate you'll stay within the mileage allowances, it's a good deal...for me it is. My wife has been leasing for years, she loves the convenience, new car every couple of years, just when repairs and maintenance issues start to creep up. I do admit though, having to fight the urge to modify, add accessories and change things is a bit tough!
 
If you plan on leasing with the intent of paying the residule at the end remember you will have to pay the tax then on that amount. This eats away at the possibility of capturing an amount bigger by buying it at the end and reselling due to higher resale value than the buyout number. Even if you buy it at the end to keep it is always cheaper to not lease at all and just purchase at the start. In my case my salesman was trying to convince me leasing and buying at the end was exactly the same as purchasing. He was omitting the tax at the end (23k x 8%= $1840). Never ever believe anything that comes out of the lips of a car salesman. Either he had financiial incentive to be pushing the lease on me or he truly didnt know about the tax in the end. After I added this into his equasion he just clammed up. This was when I bought the 14 SR5. Needless to say I went elsewere to buy the 15 LE.
 
Last edited:
Leasing a 4runner is terrible because Toyota doesnt offer special incentives. go ahead and finance it for 5 or 6 years and pay it off early. best scenario!
 
alext72888 said:
This is somewhat embarrassing, but for the past 9 years (through college and a few years after) I've been driving a passed down old 1992 volvo 940 while building up my income and career.
Click to expand...

That's not embarrassing at all. That's smart. You sound smarter than 90% of people out there, who get their first job and dump a perfectly good car to get into a new one they can't afford to impress people they don't know and who don't care. I'm 33 and before I bought the 4Runner 3 years ago I was driving the same car I had in college: a 1987 4x4 GMC Suburban with 400,000 miles on it.
 
Last edited:
unfortunately I could never lease any vehicle. I put too many miles on it. I avg 36-40 miles a day currently.

most decent lease terms are 10-12k per year which currently I am running around 13-14k per year.

the warden is a different story, she only avg about 6-7k per year.
 
alext72888 said:
This is somewhat embarrassing, but for the past 9 years (through college and a few years after) I've been driving a passed down old 1992 volvo 940 while building up my income and career.
Click to expand...

There is nothing embarrassing about driving an old car to save money. More people should try it. What should be embarrassing is to amass a large pile of debt to impress other people, especially people you don't even like or even know.

Somehow my friend got into a bad deal and traded his almost new Tacoma for a Tundra and now he owes more money on the Tundra than it it worth. About $45K. Well that's just stupid. Luckily, he makes a lot of money and can dig himself out of that hole with a little effort.

So back to your question. Leasing is a terrible idea, it is how car dealers make all their money. They make almost no money at all on the sale of new cars.

For used cars the amount of money they make is very variable since it is very hard to compare vehicles against each other as they have different mileage and condition, etc.

Of course, I am talking about averages here. Each individual deal is different.

If you are worried about total cost of ownership, then you should buy for sure. And you should buy a used vehicle because someone else has already taken the initial depreciation. If you were going to spend X, think about spending X - $2K and save that money for repairs or something else down the road.

Of course, as people have mentioned in this thread before, you won't save much by buying a few years old 4Runner because they hold their value so well. In that case, if you buy new, buy a base model without any bells and whistles, to save money.
 
Last edited:
RedMagik said:
Leasing is "great" if just want a new car relatively maintenance free all the time, if you don't care about having a payment or playing by the dealers rules.
Click to expand...
^^^ This. Leasing serves a purpose, but unless you meet specific criteria leasing is insanely bad math.

People who drive clients around and need to look prosperous can benefit from leasing. People like Realtors, developers, some salesmen, etc. always have a need for a new vehicle that is under warranty, and leasing meets that need. The downside is a never-ending car payment and having to pay penalties for going over miles.

For everyone else, just say no to leasing unless your ego demands a new vehicle every few years and your income can support it.

Finally, are you paying extra for the Trail because you actually want to go off road, or is this based on looks? I don't know what the penalties would be for off-road damage to a lease vehicle... definitely read the fine print on that one.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

H
Buying advice - new/slightly used, limited or SR5 premium
2
Replies
34
Views
48K
Lexington
Lexington
thegipper
Weird parasitic draw, possible bad (new) battery?
2
Replies
22
Views
8K
ArthurKotb
ArthurKotb
M
In need of a new vehicle - what would you do?
2 3
Replies
49
Views
57K
Ripper238
Ripper238
054Runner1
Convince me to buy a New 4Runner
3 4 5
Replies
95
Views
28K
2021nightshade4x4
2
J
  • Locked
FS: [NEW] Scepter MFC Jerry Cans [MILSPEC] *Summer/Fall 2022 Edition*
Replies
7
Views
9K
JordanLee
J

Members online

Total: 5,182 (members: 4, guests: 5,178)

Forum statistics

Threads
278,316
Messages
3,554,120
Members
248,016
Latest member
Advally Service

Share this page

Trending content

Back
Top