metrathon

I think leasing comes very close to buying, if you're getting a good deal. For a $50k car, the difference over 36 mo between leasing and buying comes to smth like $1.5k. So if you can afford an extra $1.5k over 3 years, you could keep leasing $50k cars and not worry about warranty.

dseag2

My lease on my Audi S5 is $975 per month for 2 years (payments are always higher for a 2-year rather than 3-year lease). S5s are pretty rare, so dealers still don't need to discount them. Compare that to the high lease figures on the GS, which is part of a much broader, bread-and-butter market and competes with many more cars (5 series, A6, CTS, MB E Class, Hyundai Genesis). Those lease prices will have to come down eventually if they want to move them.

dseag2

I'm not going to dig out the reliability argument. Only to say that I had an A6 3.0T as a loaner car and as strong as that engine was the car bored me to death. It was so detached from the road and anything but a driver's car. It was the whole interior and driving experience. The salesman actually told me I needed to move to an S6 if I wanted a great driving experience. How much are THOSE lease payments?

My '13 GS F Sport always put a smile on my face every time I drove it. There are many other reasons for not choosing those other brands. The GS F Sport was one of my all-time favorite cars.

ItzFilyO

Damn man! One grand car payment?

coolsaber

Damn I heard audi lease deals are terrible to begin with, but DAMN. Your leasing higher then a BMW M3/4

SW17LS

I was quoted a lease on a $65,000 A6 that was very similar to my lease on my $80,000 LS. Audi leases are terrible.

praetor

Audi leases are terrible because of their poor resale value. Great cars from what I've been told but once the warranty expires, resale value really tanks due to expensive maintenance and upkeep.

Ever look at a Range Rover lease? It's like $1,200+ a month.

abbeyrd

Agreed. But, if something happens drastically financially, you're out of a car if you are leasing. Buying and owning obviously a different story.

jjscsix

Audi's do not have low resale value. For quite a few years they were one of the highest of mainstream cars. I have not studied them recently, but last year I traded a 10 month old A7 that I took a 15% hit on. That's almost unheard of to come out that well. And the dealer sold the car in a week obviously marked up from what they gave me.

And think about your comment. You say resale tanks when the warranty runs out. On a three year lease there is still a year left on the warranty.

Many car makers don't have heavily subsidized leases like BMW does. In fact, BMW resale is nothing special, so resale value is obviously not always the reason for cheap leases

ItzFilyO

What are the leases like for M3/4 anyway? I've always thought they're in the 1000s range too.

coolsaber

Depends on where you live, and of course when you buy it, but typically mid 800s

coolsaber

Well thats with any car. No warranty takes away one of the biggest safety nets on any car, even a lexus.

Audi lease are terrible is cause they dont hyperinflate their residual values. Plus not many dealers like to negotiate on Audi, so most buyers just take whatever they get (although I know right now 6-7% or more after their VW gate has been replicated

metrathon

Happiness is such a subjective chemical. While I agree the GS has a more exiting chassis, I loathe the engine. The A6 might be a bit boring, but it has a great engine and a better designed interior. Pros and cons.

metrathon

A7 holds its value much better than the A6, so you cannot apply the A7 example to the whole Audi range. You're right about subsidizing the leases tho, BMW does that.

SW17LS

If you're in a position where something could happen drastically financially to the point where you would be forced to get rid of your car or unable to pay for your car then you shouldn't have this sort of car anyway...financed or leased.

In any event if you have a car loan and you don't make the payments or can't make the payments they'll come and get it same as if it were a lease.

Actual resale value and lease prices aren't always connected. Audis have better resale than the GS does...yet look at the leases. Thats because Lexus is offering cheap lease deals by using low MFs, incentives , and unrealistically high residuals. Audi isn't doing that and you see the result.

As for the Range Rover, $1,200 a month is not unusually high for a vehicle as expensive as a Range Rover. Bear in mind that an LS460L can be $1,200 a month pretty easily. S Classes closer to $1,400 a month. Nowadays $1,200 a month is a fairly typical flagship class lease. My barely optioned LS460 with $10k off list price is just under $1,000 a month.