Fontaine

The lease is up on my nearly three year old car (11,000 miles). I have decided to stick with Lexus and this model works best for me. What I can't decide is whether I should buy this car or lease a new one.

Leasing a new car: I get a brand new car. I was told by Lexus that the 2011 model will be refreshed but I can't find any information on it. If that's the case, I would need to continue to lease this car until the fall when the 2011 is available.

Buying this car: I did the 10,000 mile check but not the 2 year maintenance, so I am looking at spending some money on this car. The battery in my key went this morning (no simple thing when your car is parked in a packed NYC garage across town) which is a "sign", in some fashion, especially when I read that key batteries should last a much longer time.

I will pay almost the same thing to lease a new car as buying my current car. At the end of another three years I will have go through this again, or I will have a 6 year old car with about 20,000 miles on it. My current car is in fairly good shape. I made one discounted lease payment for the three years of the lease so I wouldn't be writing out monthly checks on a car I use so little (giving you an insight into my personality).

Any advice would be appreciated including any information about the 2011 refresh. Thanks very much.

CJS57

Lease a new one. Almost the same price so why not? The 2010 was refreshed inside and out, don't know if they will do it again in 11.

Dave Mac

I would suggest leasing a new 2010. I would not expect any changes on the 2011 because they just did so on the 2010.

Also, before returning your 2007 take a lot of pictures and maybe even have the service dept. perform an inspection. I am currently having a discussion with Lexus Financial over about $500 worth of "excessive wear" charges on my 2007. I got billed for such things as two completely worn out tires (1/32nd) and a chipped windshield. I don't know what happened but it is just not my car that they are describing. My tires had only 10K miles and 7-8/32nds. of tread remaining and there was no chip in the windshield. Fortunately I took several pictures just hours before turning it in and I think we will be able to work it out. It seems clear to me that the appraisal report they received is for another car.

Dave Mac

Macklin

11,000 miles in three years? That car is barely broken in! And your FOB battery needing replacement after three years is not a "sign". That is quite normal.

What year is it? And what is the difference between paying it off and paying for a new lease...up front?

flowrider

iTrader: (9)

The owner's manual for my F states to change the battery every year, my wife's ES remains silent on the subject. I changed them both yesterday. It was 14 months for her car, and 13 months for mine. These are not like the old key fobs that rarely needed changing. The old type only activated when you pushed a button. Due to the SmartKey, ours are always on. The batteries are so inexpensive, it's beyond me why anyone would wait for a failure.

Lou

YotaCarFan

I'd definitely dump the '07 and lease/buy a '10. The '07 is not exactly the paragon of quality (many have transmission problems and/or engine piston slap), and I wouldn't want to be stuck with one once the warranty expired. The '10 is a much nicer car than the '07, not only because (presumably) the mechanical problems of the '07 have been addressed, but it's more refined looking inside and has a few nicer toys (e.g., better navigation system).

As for the key fob battery: Batteries are expected to fail in time; it's the nature of their internal chemistry. Three years is a pretty good life for something the size of a nickel.

Regarding replacement interval: Just do it when the battery gets low. The fob and the car let you know when the battery is low. First, the red lamp on the fob will fail to light when you push buttons on it. Second, a warning will appear next to your speedometer where the outside temp is displayed telling you "key battery low". The fob tells the car its battery is weak, and then the car tells you. Pretty cool.

Fontaine

Thanks everyone for your replies. I really appreciate it. I am a car novice and frankly have no one to talk to about this.

I know the answer to some of your questions. It is a 2007. The reason that I thought the battery should last longer was because I searched this forum for instructions on how to replace the battery (get a jewelers screwdriver, don't strip the screw, carefully remove the O ring - when I got to that I called Lexus and asked how much for you to do this and they said $10) and that poster said his battery was much older. I sat in a 2010 and it looked almost identical to my 2007 - perhaps the 'refresh' are things I wouldn't notice. I will look up the purchase amount in the lease documents tomorrow and let you know.

Thanks for the tip on the photos too. I was in a bad accident when the car only had 500 miles on it (a kid went through a stop sign at 40 mph while he was texting), Before I settled with the insurance company I went in to Lexus and asked how much this would cost me when I returned the car (the service department admitted that the repair was first-class) and was told nothing, but I am expecting the worst. If I do roll into another Lexus I am sure it will be a different story rather than a straight end of term return.

By the way, the car did great in the accident and that's why I am sticking with this model. I had four people in the car and we were all fine.

Thanks again for your responses. For some reason making a 'big decision' like this was hard for me.

MD350

Because you have low miles, your car could be worth more than the residual value stated on your lease contract. If it is, don't turn the car in. Instead, trade it in for a 2010, or sell it to Carmax. You will get the difference between the payoff and true value.

For example, my elderly Father's lease on his 2005 Accord ended in 2008. With about 10K miles, we sold it to Carmax and he took home $2,000. Plus, no worries about condition reports from the leasing company.

Also, there are some states (like Maryland) where you only pay sales tax on the difference between your trade and the new purchase. So, you are not double taxed. For example. $40,000 for the new car and you received $30,000 for your trade. You are only taxed on the $10,000. So, you saved some money there.

Just make sure you evaluate all options.

miniz

You should have shared this in your first post. This is key information that makes it very easy to say whether you should turn the car in or buy it.
Turn it in.....without any question. You now have a car with diminished value. Even if the repair was first rate, its never factory. The best thing about leases is that the financing company eats the diminished value of the car, not you. If you buy at the residual value in your lease contract, you would be overpaying for a damaged car. Once a car is in accident, it is never ever the same in terms of market value.
On another note. There will be no changes for 2011. The car was just refreshed for 2010. Go to a dealer and park your car right beside a 2010. Look at it. Notice the new front bumper, fog lights, headlights, rear bumper, rear tail lights, rear view mirrors, chrome on the bottom of the doors, then get inside and compare the navigation system. You sound like my mother. She can't even tell the difference between a complete redesign, much less a face lift.
You can try to sign a lease on a 2010, but opt for a real low mileage allotment. You are overpaying, if you are only driving 3-4k miles per year, yet have 10k mile per year cap. It may be better just to purchase a 2010 and don't get into any accidents!

bnizzle87

much agreed. ideally what you should consider is whether having the car 3 yrs/11k so far is better than having the comparable ES for the same year with higher mileage. if anything purchase the remainder of the car and then sell it for higher than what the dealership would offer to have it back from the lease. but for the question you asked, i would surely lease a new one if you could not find a buyer. practically same price for a new lease as your old one, there is no question. but for 3 yrs/11k miles, that is still a brand new ride, and im pretty sure people will see how well maintained it is for such a low mileage vehicle. not to mention, where you live my guess would be people would want a ride that is comfortable and relaxing after a hard day, so it should be an easy sell if you take that approach. best of luck to you!

Joeb427

iTrader: (1)

You really shouldn't lease when putting that kind of low mileage on a vehicle.
The accident will hurt the car's value because if I believe two panels(or maybe three) are changed,Lexus won't certify the car.

Fontaine

Here are the numbers if anyone is curious:

The base vehicle price was $33,470.
With the navigation system, premium plus package, parking assist, and delivery etc, but NOT Mark Levinson the car came out to $41,711.

My one time lease payment was $18,648 plus taxes and acquisition fee.

I added a side rail of some sort because I park in a garage where they put the cars basically on top of each other.

My purchase option is $23,775.27.

Fontaine

When I initially leased the car I tried to negotiate a lease with lower miles and was told it was not possible.

And the person who said I reminded him of your mother - HA! - but you are probably right. Even if someone pointed out the difference to me I probably wouldn't see it. And after three years I still don't know how to turn on the fog lights. But in fairness, you guys park your car in front of your house or in your garage - plenty of time to figure things out. I have about five seconds to get out of my car and get my stuff out before it is moved. OK - that's only part of the problem....

I hear you about the accident. The entire front bumper was replaced - it just pulled away from the car, taking with it the 'energy' of the crash, if that makes any sense (the crumple zone worked) - along with some lights (I have some photos but have no idea how to post them - and they make me sick to look at).

Thanks again.

rx300mm

If the car has had an accident .. don't keep it, there will be signs of rust, etc appearing later. ES350 is great car and 2010 model has few eye catching changes that look great. Good luck.

miniz

I almost wished you lived closer to me. I'd show you how to use everything on the car and compare it to an 2010 for you! You need to find a better dealer who will actually show you how to use the product.
Anyway, with that kind of damage..... you don't want to own this car. It is now a repaired wreck that cannot be certified. It will go straight to auction upon your lease return. It isn't worth $42423.27 (before tax), mostly due to the accident. Remember, you should always negotiate a lease like a purchase. It sounds like you paid whatever they quoted you (MSRP). There is no reason to do that, especially in a highly competitive NY/NJ/CT (possibly MA) market. There are several big Lexus dealers in the area.