Sr. Citizen Questions Re Leased Cars

Hello,

Very Sr. Citizen now, so please bear with me a bit, even though not a true technical car question. Great Forum, and you folks have helped me out a lot in the past.

My guess is that I can drive safely for probably another year or so.

Need a new car.

With a year left for driving, probably silly to buy a new one.

Thinking of a leased car. Don't want a used one.

I have never had one, and know nothing about them. Would like to learn something about doing so before pursuing further at the Dealerships.

Do they lease cars for only 1 year ?

Does some kind of Rental, instead, make make sense ?

I guess I would still have to carry Collision insurance for any Rental ? True ? Same rates as for my personal car, probably ?

What should I be asking, or negotiating, if I go this route ?

What are the caveats, pitfalls, etc. of Leasing, etc. ?

Any thoughts on this, or opinions, would be most appreciated.

Thanks, Bob

Reply to
Bob
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Move to a country where these are street legal and just buy one:

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The best answer is always Italian.

Reply to
AMuzi

I've never leased a car, because in my case it would not be cost-effective.

So, I asked my uncle. My uncle works in a business where he has to look like he's making a lot of money in order to attract clients. But he does not actually make all that much money. So he always gets a new Mercedes every year, but he gets it on a one-year lease.

He says the one-year lease is a good thing, although it can cost more than a longer-term lease. But, if you want to extend the lease beyond a year they'll let you do that. He says the main gotcha is that the leases have a maximum mileage on them; if you drive more than 15,000 miles a year you can get very high fees for additional mileage. You can add miles to the contract up front for a lower rate but then if you add them and you don't use them, you've lost that money.

He says also to watch out for the insurance costs, that you insure the car just like if you'd owned the car, except that the leasing company will probably force you to get the highest tier comprehensive insurance possible.

You should go to the BMW dealer and ask about a one-year lease on a 7-series BMW. It's a big car, but it's a big car that drives like a much smaller car. It's a horrible maintenance nightmare, but you don't care, you'll be leasing it and won't have to pay when it breaks. And if you're only going to be driving for another year, you might as well just spend all your money and do it in something that is fun to drive.

--scott

Reply to
Scott Dorsey

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