Getting Out of Lease

[bronxborn]

At the risk of exposing myself to attack on this issue, I am seeking guidance from other members of the forum. I am thinking about getting out of my 2004 330ci and getting a new Acura RL. I love the 330 but I have collected a handful of tickets. This may create a serious problem in the near future (the last two were in NYC and apparently I will not be able to plead them down). In the meantime, something less likely to inspire the driver in me will keep me safe. I know the RL is overpriced and I agree that it looks a little too much like an Accord to justify a $50K price tag. But I need my license. The average age of an RL purchaser is 55. If this car doesn't slow me down, nothing will.

I am only going to do this if I can get out of the 330 without taking a bath. Some earlier posts have discussed leasertrader and swapalease. Does anyone have recent experience that might assist me? My car is in near-perfect condition and I am a little low on miles. The lease is 3 years (until Sept. 2007). I have used 13,800 out of 45,000 miles. That means the car can be driven 1440 miles per month for the remaining 21.5 months and still make mileage. The lease payment is $527.36 before tax (I am in CT and must pay tax as part of the lease payment -- the total is $559 with tax). Any thoughts?

 

[Unit74]

Sounds like you'll need a "Take over lease" type of situation. I looked into getting out of our lease due to the car being a total POS, but found that trying to off load it, even back to the BMW dealer was not going to be fun.

If your that hard up to get rid of it, try and sell it on the market. Hopefully you can get close to what's owed for the car overall, as if it was a lease buyout.....But you'll probably still be upside down and pay a few grand out of pocket.

Or, you'll have to pay off the entire lease term, but then your paying for a car you'll not be driving and the only winner will be BMW as they got all the money and an almost new car back.....

So bottom line.....I think your screwed.

 

[MyHarley]

It's okay if you want to trade your BMW for another car, but if you're thinking that another car will slow you down, it won't. The only thing that will slow you down is the foot that is on the pedal and a little self-control. I have owned many cars over the years, even a Pinto, and I can guarantee you the only change in number of speeding tickets is my foot on the pedal, my driving habits, not the car...............

 

[MrElussive]

Yeah, I agree with MyHarley. I had a Jetta 2.0 5-speed that does 0-60 in 10.4 seconds (according to VW), and I managed to get a speeding ticket for 70mph in a 35 zone. And on the other end, I have never received a legitimate speeding ticket for my car now that does 0-60 in 5.7 seconds.

Hire a good lawyer to fight your NYC traffic tickets (checkout Http://www.notspeeding.com/) and just chill out with your driving habbits.

The new Acura RL has a 290hp V6 and I seriously doubt it would be any slower than the 330Ci you have now. It really just sounds like you want a new car and you want the Acura RL.

 

[Bmw 325i 7803]

You can go to the BMW dealer and see if they are willing to buyout your lease provided you buy another one from them... A CPO 323i or X3 2.5 sounds like a good idea, both with 9-10 second 0-60 times. Although as has been said above that is not likely to slow you down, and neither will the 290hp 0-60 in 6 seconds Acura RL. I think you just think the new RL looks much better than the E46 and figured you'd throw in the speed and age thing so we'd provide you with unbiased advice on how to ditch the bimmer.

IMO if you want to slow down, I'd get an old beater that does 0-60 in 10 seconds and has a top speed of 78mph like a 15yr old Lincoln Town car... When the engine is roaring and you're in the 70's for fear of killing the car or going too fast your reflex will be to slow down. You'll also find that you get more right-of-way on the road and since you can drop collision coverage, insurance is cheaper.

 

[deutsch100]

I totally agree with Lisha, Emile & Steve. Getting an RL will not slow you down...it's not like the RL is a 50 hp 3 cylinder. If you just want to get an Acura instead of a BMW, just say so...no excuses needed!!!

You can post your car on the various online lease trader sites.

www.swaplease.com
www.leasetrade.com

Your payment seems very good, and right on for a 2004 330ci. E46s have held their value very well for the most part, but now that the E90 is out, and the public is aware that the coupe and M3 will be coming, sadly E46s values have begun their deep dip in retained value.

It also depends on what you owe. Maybe you put a lot down when you leased it, or it was heavily discounted...maybe what you owe is not that different from what the dealer will offer you. As long as you realize you WILL have to pay some money, ending a lease is really easy. Don't forget to try multiple dealerships in regards to trading your 330 in. I got $4000.00 more for my M3, by just dealing with multiple dealers. Good Luck.

 

[Kirby]

A "Me too" post - a different car won't slow you down. I have a 95 Suburban that does 0-60 in 30 seconds but it doesn't keep me from speeding.

 

[bronxborn]

You guys are brutal - but you're probably right. While I do think the automatic would slow me down a little, the real problem with my 330 is that I don't feel the speed on the highway. The 14 years I spent in Honda Civics was very different. You knew it when you cruised past 70 or 80mph. The 330 just isn't like that, and the RL won't be either. I'm going to drop the idea and listen to my girlfriend - she suggested that I use cruise control anytime I'm on the highway. She also said I would be nuts to trade a 330 for an RL. After test driving an RL and then driving my 330 home, I have to agree.

I guess this idea was like the "geographical cure" that friends of Bill talk about. In the end, you can never get away from yourself.

 

[sly]

It's possible to get out of a lease by selling it. Here's one of several companies that offer the service: http://www.swapalease.com/?keyword=lease+swap&engine=google

 

[MrElussive]

You guys are brutal - but you're probably right. While I do think the automatic would slow me down a little, the real problem with my 330 is that I don't feel the speed on the highway. The 14 years I spent in Honda Civics was very different. You knew it when you cruised past 70 or 80mph. The 330 just isn't like that, and the RL won't be either. I'm going to drop the idea and listen to my girlfriend - she suggested that I use cruise control anytime I'm on the highway. She also said I would be nuts to trade a 330 for an RL. After test driving an RL and then driving my 330 home, I have to agree.

I guess this idea was like the "geographical cure" that friends of Bill talk about. In the end, you can never get away from yourself.

Keep your eyes on the speedo and find some traffic lawyers in NYC to fight the tickets for you. You pay the lawyer a couple hundred dollars and he can represent you in court so you do not even have to show up. Some cars are more encouraging than others when it comes to speeding, but it just takes a good habbit to keep your eyes on the speedo and make sure you are obeying the limits.
The system that has been working out for me personally, is to obey the speed limits for as long as I can. When I am starting to lose my sanity, I will pick a highway and a time that I am going to use one night anyways, and just get the speeding urge out of my system, and it keeps me cool for a while.