I have one heck of an offer on a Red 03 sitting at a dealership in SC. They want to give the car to me for 330/month leadership (lease to own) program. This sounds like a heck of deal due to the stature of the loan agreements. The big thing that gets me is that I drive a lot. 15-20K miles a year. I just like to drive, dont know why...I just do. As for the 04, my payments just to just under 400/ month but I like the fact of having a clock on the dash along with the 17in wheels.

Can some one give me some advice on what I should regarding the lease to own along with the 03 vs. 04 delima I seem to be having. PS. Dante is a good friend of mine, everyone should thank him for getting me hooked on the S2K.

 

If you like to drive, you better buy, not lease. Because once you get the S..... you will LOVE to drive!! And being fairly close to the Dragon (Clemson) your gonna drive, drive, drive.

Or you could lease and get a beater car, for those crummy weather days that you know is gonna happen.

 

Definitely agree with Volguy here...I bought my S cause I knew I was gonna drive the hell out of it. Good luck!

 

buy it, you're going to miss it when you have to give it back(i know i would).

 

When I was getting ready to get my S, I had originally chosen an '01 Spa that was still on the lot. This was May '02.

When I was prepared to sign for it, and the finance manager got involved, it turned out that Honda wouldn't lease it, only sell it. Basically, the 01 would come off a 3 year lease and be a 4 year old car.

That made the decision very easy for me - I waited 5 weeks or so for an 02 Suzuka.

As for driving - I'm on 22 months or so, and just hit 24K miles. I'm headed to the Dragon in 2 weeks (at least a 1600 mile weekend), so by my 2 year anniversary, I'm expecting to be closer to 28K.

I leased to keep the payments low, and give me the choice when it expires of what I want to do. I can pay the buyout, hand it in, etc... If I'm over on mileage (which I will be), so be it. It's just like making another payment or two for the enjoyment I've had over the 3 years I would have had it.

The S is not my daily driver, so I'd say I enjoy getting in it and driving.

Consider BOTH, your financial situation and your driving habits when you're ready to sign. To some degree, you'll have to seperate them, and think what's 'worth' more.

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by VOLGUY
If you like to drive, you better buy, not lease. Because once you get the S..... you will LOVE to drive!!

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Heyitsgary
When I was getting ready to get my S, I had originally chosen an '01 Spa that was still on the lot.

 

You need to get all the numbers on the lease and figure out your total cost to own. Then you need to run the numbers on a purchase and come up with the same number. I do this on every car I purchase and have never found a lease that came close to purchasing the car over the life of the deal. Run the numbers and do the math. That will answer your question.l

 

George-

I'll disagree with your statement. My total cost of ownership for my lease is 17,100, + a 21,000 buyout. Total after three years is about 38,000.

If I recall correctly, my purchase price, over five years was about $500 difference.

Of course, this relies on paying the buyout in one sum, not financing the remainder over another 3 years. If you do that, the number for the lease goes way higher.

 

The answer is to do the math and decide whether you're a "keeper" kind of guy or not. S2000s have pretty good resale, so the buyout option on leases is potentially close to market value at that time.

Be smart, and don't let anyone talk you into anything. If you're gonna keep the car, it almost always pays to buy, but you have to look at the numbers.