Hummer H3 finance/lease question

[rck0025]

Originally Posted by Agriv8r

sorry to disagree, but under MSRP, over MSRP, 0% beats the lease....30k truck, 2899 due at lease signing, tax/title/process fees also due (approx 1800), 39 months @ 299....the only real way to get out of this is to finish the lease....30k truck, 2899 down, ttl down, 359 72 months...every payment towards principal, no buy out mileage limitation....work it out....

Not to be a pain, but I should have said that leasing is cheaper with several reservations - such as miles, vehicle preferences, opportunity cost of holding more cash, etc, etc. I guess the point is that leasing can be great for some, but bad for others. Same logic with traditional finance. I like to drive a new car every couple of years (although I may keep the alpha as a weekend vehicle in two years depending on the financing), and I live, work and go to school in the city - i dont get anywhere near the milage limitations (15k per year), therefore leasing works well for me. I always drive a new car, my monthy payment is well below 400 per month and I don't worry about things like.. "is this car is still suitable for me in two years" as I have the option to give it back at the end of the lease.

With financing you have to assume the risk of that vehicle not meeting your preferences for however long you took the loan or you have to sell it outright or take an automatic loss and trade the dealer for a new one or keep the vehicle until the wheels fall off. I don't want the hassle of assuming those risks, which are in fact costs (they just dont get quantified as neatly or as a clean and simple monthly payment). As young aspiring economist, I see that assuming people's preferences don't change over a 6 year period (especially, in view of volatile oil markets, newer and better technology, etc), and not including the risks associated with traditional finance into one's TOTAL COSTS (not just your monthly payment, but also what is forgone by making the decision to lease or buy) as suffering from bad logic.

However, if you want to drive an H3 for 6 or seven years despite innovations in technology (say a biofuel powered, 300 hp, 40 mpg Hummer type vehicle) and don't care about resell-ability down the road and truly consume the vehicle - then yes, 0 percent financing is probably cheaper.