Nissan Lease Ad: Too good to be true?

Just in from a MyCarlady.com follower, was this question regarding a Nissan Altima Lease ad he saw on TV, wondering, “IS it TOO good to be true?”

“Today I saw an ad for 2012 Nissan Altima for $78/month for 24 month, $3000 first payment, 15cents/mile and option to buy $15,046. this sounds like a really good but what is the catch?”

Without knowing the exact Nissan dealership, Nissan Altima: year, make or model platform… here is my first reaction and reply… “The $78.00 is plus tax. The $3000.00 represents approximately $99.00 per month of payment, so realistically with nothing down the payment is really $178.00 a month, and the tax is accordingly now higher. An example would be another $14.41 (if registered in Nevada) for a total of $192.00  if nothing is amiss, and you want this particular model. I would imagine a base model with manual transmission.”  My other observation is the POSSIBLE caveat for the ad which MIGHT indicate one or more of the following requirements to obtain this car at the said advertised price:

1. There is only one at this price.
2. You must qualify for all applicable rebates and incentives* (I’ll get back to this further down in the post.) 
3. You must have a credit score exceding XXX, the highest possible number in the Nissan Finance and Lease rating system.
4. There could be another disclaimer regarding the requirement of a trade-in with a value of XXX.)
5. This payment is plus transportation, destination or dealer installed equipment, you may/may not want. (make sure it is actually installed and you can see it/work it.)
6. You can drive the allotted miles without going over at a cost of .15/mile. (This clause indicates the miles may be low for the average driver.)

SO  about #2.  The factory often offers special incentives or additional rebates for: first time buyers, military or armed forces, repeat or “loyal” clients of the brand or “conquest” those who own a comparable competing brand.  These rebates are SOMETIMES included in the advertising, where they CAN be STACKED or CUMLATIVE, however, YOU may not be eligible for one or any of them, hence, you must add the rebate credits reflected in the advertised price BACK into the payment, making it go higher or require MORE money down to stay within budget. The $15k residual value, may not be the actual buy-out figure, as we have witnessed with the ALLY leases reflecting a surcharge of $2500.00 at the end of the lease if you elect to buy the vehicle at lease end maturity.  In this case the BUYOUT is NOT the residual, DO NOT BE MISLED, the buyout is not automatically negotiable. SO, in the case of this NISSAN ad, I would love to see the actual contract proposal to respond regarding the buyout figure of $15k. Even on a 2 year lease of XXX miles per year, (a factor we don’t know from the writer’s email), the likely price of the car was over $20,000, making the depreciation very low??? NOTE TO SELF: FIND OUT MORE. In the end, if the Nissan lease is all true, with a reasonable credit score and none of the aforementioned “stuff”, this is a great deal presuming you like the color, features and options of the car. GOOD LUCK HW!  Send me the name of the dealership and I’ll carry on the investigation and provide more details for you and the rest of the MyCarlady tribe! Happy Car Shopping! ———————————————– Continue reading my MYCARLADY tips and Tricks for Women buying cars here: TRADE-INS. If you have any questions concerning your car buying search, need help or free advice, contact me at sarahlee@mycarlady.com,mvides422@gmail.com,carlady@cox.net or use the form below. I try to answer every email personally, usually within an hour, PST. ——————————————————-    ]]>