Leasing your G? Happy turn in time

[telcoman]

Check this out

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07...login

Telcoman

[rn79870]

I'm not a member there. What is the cliff notes version. Anyone?

[telcoman]

I'm not a member there. What is the cliff notes version. Anyone?

Bob

And here I thought everyone here read the New York Times? This is why I don't lease. Its cheaper to buy & you don't have the bs to go thru every couple of years & get nickel & dimed for dings etc.

MotoringDemystifying the Dreaded End-of-Lease Inspection G. Paul Burnett/The New York TimesSam Casarella performs a turn-in inspection on a 2005 Infiniti G35x in Queens. Fixing damage to the right rear door and quarter panel will cost the lessee about $300.

E-MailPrint Reprints Save ShareDiggFacebookMixxYahoo! BuzzPermalink By CHERYL JENSENPublished: July 13, 2008SAM CASARELLA was in Queens, poking his nose under the hood and trunk floor of a white 2005 Infiniti G35x with a yellow deodorizer in the shape of a Christmas tree hanging from the rearview mirror.

Skip to next paragraph RelatedWhich Dents Ding the Wallet? (July 13, 2008) As an inspector for Alliance Inspection Management, Mr. Casarella was giving the car a final checkup that many drivers of leased cars dread: the turn-in inspection. The Infiniti was near the end of its three-year lease, and the leasing company, the Nissan Motor Acceptance Corporation, had hired Alliance to make sure the car was in good shape.

The expectation is that when a lease expires the car will be returned in good condition, without excessive wear and tear. If the car has anything beyond minor damage, the lessee may have to pay for the repairs. That could be a few hundred dollars for a small dent or a few thousand for severe accident damage.

But who determines the cost and what would be considered “beyond normal” wear and tear? That’s where lease inspections can become mystifying, because it’s up to the inspector, the parameters of the lease agreement and the guidelines of the leasing company. And those rules can differ from company to company, although many try to make the process easy to understand.

For example, BMW Financial Services has its Inspection Wheel, a measuring tool device that helps consumers determine whether they will be charged for damage. Chrysler Financial tells consumers how to use a credit card as the measurement device to check damage. The Ford Motor Credit Company has a Wear and Use Evaluator card and the Honda Finance Corporation has its Self-Inspection Reference Card.

The inspection makes it clear to consumers about their responsibility for any end-of-lease charges before they actually turn in the vehicle, said Shaun Bugbee, vice president of sales operations for BMW Financial. This gives them time to decide whether they will get a better deal on repairs from the dealership or at an independent shop, or whether it’s simpler just to pay up.

In the past, customers whose lease had ended would drop off the car, it would be inspected and then they would get a bill. “It was a real wake-up call,” Mr. Bugbee said.

Chrysler Financial found that customers who leased vehicles didn’t like surprises. “Everybody said, ‘We don’t want a bill 10, 15, 20 days after we turn in the car,’ ” said Eckart Klumpp, vice president for remarketing at Chrysler Financial. “We want to understand our obligations at the turn-in.”

Inspectors use an appraisal process devised to be objective, following guidelines set by the lessor, said Jim Yates, chief executive of Alliance Inspection, which performs inspections for Nissan and other automakers. Otherwise, the appraiser could say the same car looks bad when he’s having a bad day or it looks good when he’s having a good day. “That’s not the way it’s supposed to work,” Mr. Yates said.

Mr. Casarella, for example, starts his inspection at the same position on every car — in front of the hood on the driver’s side — and performs the same inspection on every vehicle. He said he had heard stories of inspectors who have had a garden hose turned on them by irate lessees who didn’t like the outcome of their inspections.

But, Mr. Yates said, it is an inspector’s job to note any damage. “We then give that information to the consumer and the leasing company,” he said. “If there are issues, a gray area, it’s between those two. It’s not our job to turn our head and ignore it.”

Inspections can be done at the workplace, at the dealership, or at the lessee’s home, like Mr. Casarella’s inspection of the G35x in Astoria. They are often done by third parties like Alliance, AutoVIN and DataScan Field Services. Mr. Casarella’s notebook computer has damage-repair-estimation software, which includes prices for parts. When he types in the vehicle identification number, up come inspection criteria specific to the manufacturer.

It’s like a detective game, looking for telltale clues that perhaps the vehicle was in a crash that the owner isn’t disclosing. Under the hood and the trunk floor, Mr. Casarella checked for welds that looked different from those done when the car was built; if there has been a repair, they won’t look like the originals. And touch plays a part as he runs his fingers along surfaces, feeling for rough edges caused by repainting.

Inside, he looks for anything that might be broken, rips in the upholstery, cigarette burns, missing safety belts or lost head restraints.

“People take the headrests out, maybe to fold the seats down,” Mr. Casarella said. “Then they put them in their garage and forget about them.”

Most carpet stains are considered normal wear and tear and will come out with the reconditioning that will be done at a detailing shop. “They come out beautiful,” Mr. Casarella said.

“Now if the stain is really bad, if they took the pizza and went like this,” he said, making a grinding motion with his foot, “then we’ll have to charge them for an interior cleanup.”

Mr. Bugbee said BMW does not charge as often for interior wear as it used to. “We are talking about a three-year-old vehicle,” he said. “I don’t think there’s an expectation that it comes back like it left the lot.”

If that were the case, all BMW customers would incur charges for excess wear, whereas only 35 percent do, he said. Alliance said 51 percent of its inspections showed excess wear.

Mr. Casarella estimated that it would take about seven hours to fix a dented right rear door and quarter panel on the G35x. He fed that information into his computer, which contained Infiniti’s hourly rate for this work and up popped the cost, which was $296.

Sometimes he finds more serious problems. At the next inspection, of a 2005 Nissan Murano, he found a dented engine cradle, which could compromise the vehicle’s structural integrity. The fix will cost almost $600.

There was no charge for what he described as a scuff on the back bumper of the G35x. These are usually polished out when the car is reconditioned.

Because Mr. Casarella is dealing with New Yorkers, such a sophisticated crowd must have ingenious ways to disguise damage and avoid having to pay up. So what’s the secret of streetwise New Yorkers with something to hide?

“They stand in front of it,” he said.

More Articles in Automobiles »

Telcoman

[rn79870]

Thanks telco, I agree that leasing can be a real problem. I understand that MB is one of the worst for lease end rip offs.

BTW, I don't mention my news source too much, but I find this one fairly accurate too... http://www.csmonitor.com/

[SVTCOBRA]

Very interesting to me, since I've never leased. Not a clue as to the process.

[rn79870]

It used to be a good deal for a small business owner. You could lease a car that was more expensive than a car with an equal payment. You could also write off the lease payment (subject to a few restrictions) before computing your business earnings. That was a great deal. However, this has changed. I am told that the IRS is setting a limit on lease write offs, something to do with not financing luxury cars for small business owners.

In short, if anyone is interested in leasing they should have a talk with their accountant to see how much it benefits them. If you can't write it off, it's probably a poor way to finance a car, not to mention the potential screwing you get when you turn it in.

[bentrod]

I've leased four G35's since 2003. I get the 15,000 mile allowance. I try to take real good care of my cars anyways, but I have not had one problem upon termination. Albeit, I've been buying new G's so the leniancy factor is better from the dealers as Infiniti gives you a "free pass" for a few hundred dollars anyways. I love leasing as the payments are $200 - $300 less per month and I get a new one every 39 months. One issue I did have, however, was when we purchased my wifes current 2003 off of lease and an unscupulous Infiniti dealer in CT tried to rip us off with inspection fees and paying unwarranted interest till the cashier's check cleared (NOT). After a call to the CT MVD they changed their tune real fast, but imagine how many people they ripped off that didn't know better.

[rn79870]

Charging you interest while they waited for your cashier check to clear? If that's what you meant, then that's about as low as it gets. I hope you never visit them again. Infiniti really doesn't need dealers like that ruining the name of the product.

[bentrod]

I hear you loud and clear, however, the next closest dealer is owned by the same banditos. I can go to Rhode Island, but that's a little too much to bear. Having been in the insurance claims appraisal business for 30 years, I can handle the shenanigans of this outfit in Hartford. I just feel bad for the poor unsuspecting folks who don't question these illegal tactics. My wifes G35 had a lease with 15k/yr and it only had 30k after 39 months, plus my buyout was only $17k, which was well under the car's ACV at the time. The dealer was upset that I was buying it versus giving them a low mileage, extra clean car for their used car lot. The first trick was to tell me that there was a mandatory "Safety Inspection" on amy car they sold as a used car and since I was buying my car off lease, it was considered a used car. I explained that they were nothing more than a conduit between IFS and myself. I refused to pay for the $100+ for the inspection so they said turn the car in someplace else. Next call was to MVD who promptly explained that this was illegal and to stop. Then at the time of transfer, their "Financial Wizard" tried to hold me up for almost a whole months interest because they had to wait for the check to clear through Infiniti Financial and they would have to carry the interest. Can you believe these knuckleheads? Needless to say, I called the Regional Manager for Infiniti and the owner of the dealership and put this matter to rest. As bad as this dealership is with service, they gave me a great price on my 2007. Also, the other three I leased in Rhode Island were with a fantastic dealership. Moral of the story is that a great car does not always makea great dealer ...