Lease up in Oct, want to buy-out but nervous!

[shawner123]

Hello,

I have leased a 2015 LE w/ 17k miles which due to be returned this October, it will probably still have under 20k miles by then.

I leased for $4500 out the the door + $139/month * 36 months. Received $2500 rebate from CA and the $7500 Federal was applied to the lease to lower the payments. After tax and "lease protection" I paid $176/month.

So total for the lease, $8336. My lease buyout cost is $12350, so total if I bought would be about $20686, or say $22,000ish after tax for sake making it easy. While this is certainly much more than most of you who bought the car outright for that price before incentives from the get-go, in my head I still feel like this is a decent deal for a car with a MSRP of 35k, and would be closer to 40k after tax, title, blah blah bla.

Other than a factory recall for the battery voltage spike shutdown issue, this car has been great and knock of wood, never been a problem. I like the car, and for 99% of my driving the range isn't an issue, the one or two times a year if I want to take a road trip I just rent a car for $100.

A couple things worry me, my 35-mile drive from Burbank to Thousand Oaks (a few times a month) where my girlfriend lives leaves me with about 10-15 miles if I don't charge for my return trip, never a problem now, but a little concerned if the battery degrades too much, I'll have to get a new girlfriend (joking!) however there are charging options not only at her house, but a free Volta L2 charger at a nearby grocery store. The other thing is I currently rent an apartment, and right now I have a garage with an outlet to allow me to charge, if I do buy this car, I am committing myself to this apartment for as long as I own the car since it will be difficult to find another place that I'll have the ability to plug in at home.

I was thinking about rolling the dice and buying it instead of returning it...and of course right when I make this decision I see a lease deal for a 2018 Volt, 3k down $99 a month, so I figure about $8,000 for another three years of leasing, bringing me to a total of about $16,000 for leasing for 6 years between the two cars, which is ultimately cheaper than buying the e-golf (total cost lease+residual) assuming I only kept it for another three years, however honestly barring unforeseen circumstances I'd like to keep it as long as it suits my needs, but with the e-golf being so new still, nobody really knows how reliable they'll be long term, or how the battery will hold up, and if VW will be honest about honoring their warrenty.

Basically I'm unsure if I should keep the car because I've been happy with it, it has low miles (usually only put 5-6k miles a year on it), I know what it has been through, or return and go for another cheap three year lease, and hope by then that EVs are much further along, I was hoping we'd be there by now, but with the availability date of my Model 3 cheap edition reservation getting pushed now into early 2019 doesn't look like I'll qualify for the full Federal rebate, and I'll need a car before then with my lease running out.

Basically I need someone to go into the future, and tell me if the e-golf will be as reliable as a blender like I hope and think it will be, and that the battery will hang on giving me just enough range for everything to work out fine and dandy! Or if buying it is a fool's choice and go with another cheap lease and after the next three years are up look into buying whatever wondering EV exists then, but most likely not getting any tax incentives.

I don't know if I'm asking a question or just venting my concerns but I've been struggling with this decision for several months now so just wanted to see what others thought.

Thanks for your time,
Shawn

 

[RonDawg]

As someone who was recently struggling with the same decision as you (buy out or not), I feel your pain. However, my situation is such that battery degradation is not a significant concern, as I have a short commute.

The part where you say you rent an apartment is also a situation that I don't face. That could complicate things should your landlord in the future raise your rent beyond what you consider acceptable.

If you like the Volt, personally I think that's a good deal, especially if the car's all electric range works for your commute. You get the benefits of an EV most of the time, and if you can charge up at girlfriend's place you can drive all electric both ways. You then have a gas engine for when you need to drive further, and aren't shackled to your current living situation.

 

[shawner123]

As someone who was recently struggling with the same decision as you (buy out or not), I feel your pain. However, my situation is such that battery degradation is not a significant concern, as I have a short commute.

The part where you say you rent an apartment is also a situation that I don't face. That could complicate things should your landlord in the future raise your rent beyond what you consider acceptable.

If you like the Volt, personally I think that's a good deal, especially if the car's all electric range works for your commute. You get the benefits of an EV most of the time, and if you can charge up at girlfriend's place you can drive all electric both ways. You then have a gas engine for when you need to drive further, and aren't shackled to your current living situation.

Thank you very much for your reply.

That's part of what makes it so hard, my commute for work is never over 13 miles each way, and generally about 5 each way, so for almost everything it really is the perfect car, even if I eventually have to start charing it for my return trip from Thousand Oaks.

Living in LA, my rent does go up every year, but I have a good relationship with my landlord and he always keeps it just under market value, so realistically, barring unforeseen circumstances, it doesn't make much sense for me to move unless I want to pay higher rent than what he would raise mine to anyway.

I've never driven the Volt, I'm sure it's fine, but I really like the idea of not having to deal with any ICE related issues at all, and I feel like if I'd have to charge it to go all electric both ways at my girlfriends, I might as well just do that with the e-golf since it gets me everywhere else I need to go as well.

Anyway I'm sure you can tell I want to keep the car, but I'm one of those people who "what ifs" themselves to death and beats myself up if I make a decision and it doesn't turn out how I want, but I really really do appreciate the the feedback even if my response seems to tell me that I'm looking for excuses to keep the car instead of get rid of it.

Thanks again!

 

[pheonix]

I am in a similar situation with my lease of the 2016 but I have until January to figure it out. The buy out cost is a bit high for a 2015. Granted it has very low mileage! My buy out is $11,926 for 3 years, 36k miles.
I will probably turn it in for something else because of the limited range and slow charging.

 

[johnnylingo]

I think the buy-out quotes posted here have mostly been reasonable if not better than reasonable. Mine for the 2016 SE is $13.5k and I'm sure the dealer will have no trouble flipping it back on the lot and selling for $15k. If it had a fast charger, I'd certainly be keeping it. But the range has been a problem, especially in winter, so I pulled the trigger on a 2018 i3 last week.

Apart from the $10k discount for the BMW i3s, there's not many great deals right now for BEVs with ranges over 100 miles. The Bolts, e-Golfs, and Focuses are extremely scarce. LEAF is probably the best bet and even so the current pricing is just so-so. It's worth jumping on though if you're in a limited time county rebate, which is the current case for Santa Cruz and Monterey.

 

[shawner123]

I think the buy-out quotes posted here have mostly been reasonable if not better than reasonable. Mine for the 2016 SE is $13.5k and I'm sure the dealer will have no trouble flipping it back on the lot and selling for $15k. If it had a fast charger, I'd certainly be keeping it. But the range has been a problem, especially in winter, so I pulled the trigger on a 2018 i3 last week.

Apart from the $10k discount for the BMW i3s, there's not many great deals right now for BEVs with ranges over 100 miles. The Bolts, e-Golfs, and Focuses are extremely scarce. Leaf is probably the best bet and even so the current pricing is just so-so. It's worth jumping on though if you're in a limited time county rebate, which is the current case for Santa Cruz and Monterey.

I agree, they aren't giving it away, but it isn't too insane if the range can work for you. On my 2015 the Limited Edition (cheaper version) still came w/ the fast charger, and I do 95% of my charing at my apartment on 110v anyway, sure it might take all night to recharge, but even if it isn't completely charged by morning I still have enough to go to work and back with some to spare.

It does seem for sure like a lot of the insane deals have mostly gone away now that people have realized how great electric cars are.

Thanks for your response

 

[shawner123]

I am in a similar situation with my lease of the 2016 but I have until January to figure it out. The buy out cost is a bit high for a 2015. Granted it has very low mileage! My buy out is $11,926 for 3 years, 36k miles.
I will probably turn it in for something else because of the limited range and slow charging.

Oddly enough the cost of the 2015 was more than the 2016 which is probably why the buy out cost is higher, since the 2015 was the first year they made it, even my cheaper "LE" came with all bells and whistles except alloy rims and LED headlights, so it has DC fast charge, and all the other fun pointless stuff that will surely break and cost a fortune some day.

Thanks for your input, good luck with your decision, I hope it's easier than mine!

 

[johnnylingo]

I see a lease deal for a 2018 Volt, 3k down $99 a month, so I figure about $8,000 for another three years of leasing

Yeah if you're open to hybrids, I'd say the Volt is unbeatable in terms of value right now:

Current Lease Offers for Selected EVs

Leasing of course does have its advantages, but in hindsight I certainly wish I'd bought my e-Golf. It would have been under $25k after discount, or $15k after federal and state rebates. I imagine I could sell it in January with fresh red HOV stickers for $13k at worse, making for a net cost of under $100/mo.

Bottom line: for a variety of factors, these cars have started to maintain their value much better than the previous generation. If it works for you, I say keep it. It's not like resale values are going to plunge; actually quite the opposite as folks are realizing the Bolt and Model 3s are not quite having the impact that was anticipated.

 

[shawner123]

I see a lease deal for a 2018 Volt, 3k down $99 a month, so I figure about $8,000 for another three years of leasing

Yeah if you're open to hybrids, I'd say the Volt is unbeatable in terms of value right now:

Current Lease Offers for Selected EVs

Leasing of course does have its advantages, but in hindsight I certainly wish I'd bought my e-Golf. It would have been under $25k after discount, or $15k after federal and state rebates. I imagine I could sell it in January with red HOV stickers for $13k at worse, making for a net cost of under $100/mo.

Bottom line: these cars have started to maintain their value much better than the previous generation.

You're singing my song....I watch that website religiously and I was all convinced that buying out my e-golf lease was the best way to go due to not being such great leases anymore, until I saw that $99 lease. I've already talked to the Martin Chevrolet, they're offering a one-pay lease for around 10k....very tempting w/ my buyout at $12,350.

I wish I had done the same w/ my Golf, but it's 20/20 hindsight, at the time I thought we'd be further ahead as far as low-end electric's range for 30k, I probably could of saved another 5k as opposed to buying out my lease.

The Volt is super temping, and would seem to be a great solution to my worries, I am honestly split 50/50, the pros and cons list of keeping the golf vs leasing another car are exactly the same length.

 

[johnnylingo]

I've already talked to the Martin Chevrolet, they're offering a one-pay lease for around 10k....very tempting w/ my buyout at $12,350.

Something to be aware of: if a leased car is totaled, you will lose the down payment, regardless of who is at fault. For this reason, many will advise always doing a zero down lease. This will raise the overall cost due to finance fees, but avoids risk of a potential financial calamity.

 

[shawner123]

I've already talked to the Martin Chevrolet, they're offering a one-pay lease for around 10k....very tempting w/ my buyout at $12,350.

Something to be aware of: if a leased car is totaled, you will lose the down payment, regardless of who is at fault. For this reason, many will advise always doing a zero down lease. This will raise the overall cost due to interest rates and finance fees, but avoids risk of a potential financial calamity.

Thanks for the tip, that actually just happened to a friend of mine who leased a Mazda, lost the 2k down. I seriously almost wish I never saw that lease so I wasn't considering it as an option. But I keep having this nagging feeling that the Golf will serve me well, which means it'll probably catch on fire the day after I actually own it.

 

[pheonix]

I am in a similar situation with my lease of the 2016 but I have until January to figure it out. The buy out cost is a bit high for a 2015. Granted it has very low mileage! My buy out is $11,926 for 3 years, 36k miles.
I will probably turn it in for something else because of the limited range and slow charging.

Oddly enough the cost of the 2015 was more than the 2016 which is probably why the buy out cost is higher, since the 2015 was the first year they made it, even my cheaper "LE" came with all bells and whistles except alloy rims and LED headlights, so it has DC fast charge, and all the other fun pointless stuff that will surely break and cost a fortune some day.

Thanks for your input, good luck with your decision, I hope it's easier than mine!

Oh, I realized the 2015 had better options than the 2016! The car seems to fit your current situation pretty well so maybe keeping it would be a good option. For me, the range is barely working out for me! My commute is 62 miles both way. I mostly charge at work since it is free. Plus home charging at home (rental property) is so slow). I usually make it to and from work with one full charge. Sometimes only couple miles left on the charge of I drive a bit more spirited.
It will be hard to beat the current lease of $185/month ( after rebate). There are too many good deal right now so hopefully that will change toward the end of the year.

 

[RonDawg]

Oh, I realized the 2015 had better options than the 2016!

There are disadvantages with the 2015's as well.

2015 doesn't come with Apple Car Play/Android Auto and you must use VW's proprietary cable to connect your smartphone or music player. From what I seem to gather from sites like Amazon, third-party ones don't work very well and you have to spend a lot to get the factory cable. The 2016's have a normal USB port plus a regular aux-in jack.

2015's require CarNet for charge timer settings. 2016 charge settings can be done via the infotainment system.

The car seems to fit your current situation pretty well so maybe keeping it would be a good option. For me, the range is barely working out for me! My commute is 62 miles both way. I mostly charge at work since it is free. Plus home charging at home (rental property) is so slow). I usually make it to and from work with one full charge. Sometimes only couple miles left on the charge of I drive a bit more spirited.

In your case definitely do not keep the car. But as I mentioned before, I have a short commute so range is not a big issue, plus I can supplement it with DCFC for the few times I need more range.

 

[shawner123]

Oh, I realized the 2015 had better options than the 2016!

There are disadvantages with the 2015's as well.

2015 doesn't come with Apple Car Play/Android Auto and you must use VW's proprietary cable to connect your smartphone or music player. From what I seem to gather from sites like Amazon, third-party ones don't work very well and you have to spend a lot to get the factory cable. The 2016's have a normal USB port plus a regular aux-in jack.

2015's require CarNet for charge timer settings. 2016 charge settings can be done via the infotainment system.


No doubt, but my phone connects via bluetooth automatically when I get in the car so it's never been an issue for me. Also I just charge when I get home if the car needs it I don't have to set timers it's the same rate all the time