Accuracy of Payment Estimator on Audi Site
03-15-2018, 09:42 PM
#41
AudiWorld Super User
Have you ever noticed sales people that sell cars for a living 99% of the time lease the cars they personally have? I'd like to think someone that makes it his/her business to sell cars as an occupation has "run the numbers" endless times and sees the value in leasing. A car salesman sees every scenario under the sun and I'm pretty confident they don't waste their own money on their own personal car...and they almost always lease. I worked in the industry for a long time and sold cars part of it...I've leased every car since then except for one (which was a specific model that was discontinued, so I had no choice but to buy it a CPO as a new order was impossible).
Nearly the only way a lease doesn't make sense is if you keep your cars for a long time (10 years), you always pay cash for the entire purchase, or you do not absolutely go crazy with excitement every time you get a new car. Nearly every other scenarios pans out that a lease is nearly the same cost as owning, simply having more/newer cars all the time. As an enthusiast, that's a win-win for me. If I thought buying was cheaper I'd be buying, and so would your salesman. The TDI scandal is the perfect example of why leasing can be so beneficial. Besides, if you want to own the car at lease end, buy it and own it...you have options. Leasing isn't for everyone....but it sure is for a lot of folks, and it would work beautifully for a whole lot of "anti-leasers" if they could ditch the misconceptions about leasing. I have friends that never lease they always own....and yet they trade every time before their even have their loan payed off...they never owned their car because it was never paid for. Sales tax savings alone has a huge benefit to leasing.
Lease for the win the majority of time, and the numbers prove it, not emotion.
Nearly the only way a lease doesn't make sense is if you keep your cars for a long time (10 years), you always pay cash for the entire purchase, or you do not absolutely go crazy with excitement every time you get a new car. Nearly every other scenarios pans out that a lease is nearly the same cost as owning, simply having more/newer cars all the time. As an enthusiast, that's a win-win for me. If I thought buying was cheaper I'd be buying, and so would your salesman. The TDI scandal is the perfect example of why leasing can be so beneficial. Besides, if you want to own the car at lease end, buy it and own it...you have options. Leasing isn't for everyone....but it sure is for a lot of folks, and it would work beautifully for a whole lot of "anti-leasers" if they could ditch the misconceptions about leasing. I have friends that never lease they always own....and yet they trade every time before their even have their loan payed off...they never owned their car because it was never paid for. Sales tax savings alone has a huge benefit to leasing.
Lease for the win the majority of time, and the numbers prove it, not emotion.
03-16-2018, 05:58 AM
#42
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One drawback to leasing...you can't really modify the car, and if you do, you need to remove all modifications and restore to stock before you return it. That can take the wind out of your sails when you see all the beautifully tweaked cars in the forum....grills, exhaust, performance tune, drop, etc.
Also I'm sure sales people get massive discounts on the cars they rep so I don't know if that's the best example.
Also I'm sure sales people get massive discounts on the cars they rep so I don't know if that's the best example.
03-16-2018, 07:48 AM
#43
AudiWorld Senior Member
Where I worked at employees paid $1,000 OVER invoice on any new car. So that meant many customers got better dealers than employees. Add to that leasing residuals and money factors are set by the factory and can not be altered, so in my first-hand experience your assumption is false. The store justified this by saying we would use the car wash, loaner cars, service techs, etc more frequently than the normal customer and this is how they offset those expenses.
03-16-2018, 08:55 AM
#44
AudiWorld Senior Member
I was in the business for 20 years + and there are no other "deals" for employees other than what's available to the general public.
I leased many cars during that period because they were super cheap to do so and am currently leasing my car, not because I couldn't afford to purchase it, I'm just not sure if I want to be left holding the bag after three years...and I do like getting the lastest,greatest thing.
I leased many cars during that period because they were super cheap to do so and am currently leasing my car, not because I couldn't afford to purchase it, I'm just not sure if I want to be left holding the bag after three years...and I do like getting the lastest,greatest thing.
03-16-2018, 09:36 AM
#45
AudiWorld Super User
I don't think of a sales guy as a financial expert. Quite frankly they are seldom even an expert on the product they sell. I know more about the cars I'm ready to purchase than any sales guy I've ever met. They are simply transaction facilitators to me. To be frank and I'm not saying the folks here who lease fall into this category, but most people lease because they can afford more car that way. Most people and I would include sales guys in this shop monthly payments.
03-16-2018, 09:38 AM
#46
AudiWorld Super User
One drawback to leasing...you can't really modify the car, and if you do, you need to remove all modifications and restore to stock before you return it. That can take the wind out of your sails when you see all the beautifully tweaked cars in the forum....grills, exhaust, performance tune, drop, etc.
Also I'm sure sales people get massive discounts on the cars they rep so I don't know if that's the best example.
Also I'm sure sales people get massive discounts on the cars they rep so I don't know if that's the best example.
Some people have car allowances, etc., so it becomes situational.As for the modding thing, you're right. Some people care about modding. The typical Audi customer, or luxury customer for that matter, does not. They simply want a nice car
03-16-2018, 03:09 PM
#47
AudiWorld Senior Member
Sounds like you have some crappy dealerships and crappy sales people, and that's a shame. Sounds like you don't respect your salesperson much. You know there are many salespeople that are product gurus and know the financials like the back of their hand. You don't value what your salesperson drives, really???? When they drive the car I'm looking for or the brand I'm buying that says a lot. I had a personal car with the rare manual transmission and we used it for test-drives all the time and ordered a tone of cars using my own personal car as a sales tool. Seems pretty foolish to ignore financial advise from your salesperson.....I'd like to think he is an expert about it and knows a lot more than you ever will from experience. My friends still call me up for car finance advice today....because I understand the numbers. If you can't trust your salesman to give you good financial advise you need a new salesman or a new dealership.
03-19-2018, 07:30 AM
#48
AudiWorld Super User
Sounds like you have some crappy dealerships and crappy sales people, and that's a shame. Sounds like you don't respect your salesperson much. You know there are many salespeople that are product gurus and know the financials like the back of their hand. You don't value what your salesperson drives, really???? When they drive the car I'm looking for or the brand I'm buying that says a lot. I had a personal car with the rare manual transmission and we used it for test-drives all the time and ordered a tone of cars using my own personal car as a sales tool. Seems pretty foolish to ignore financial advise from your salesperson.....I'd like to think he is an expert about it and knows a lot more than you ever will from experience. My friends still call me up for car finance advice today....because I understand the numbers. If you can't trust your salesman to give you good financial advise you need a new salesman or a new dealership.
What I said was, that I do not care if sales staff buy or lease their cars. Their financials are not mine. I presume any salesperson does what works best for them, like anyone else. Which is how it should be. You may have missed it, but I happen to work for the brand...I do not impose my personal views on how a client chooses to acquire the car, that is not my job. If a client wants to pay cash, great....if they want to lease, terrific. If they want to finance it, done. These are not first time car buyers, or first time luxury goods buyers by and large, and at least in my market, they are quite savvy enough to decide what works best for them as far as acquiring it goes. I can show them options of one vs. another if they like, and I can explain the pro's and con's of each, having done it and lived with it before. I did not once comment or even suggest to mention what car the salesperson (myself included) drives. FWIW, I have an Audi...and have had at least 1 new in the household since 2000.
I do know the financials, like the back of my hand. Which started long before I worked for them. I've had more new cars than most of my clients, and it was through those transactions, that I came to a conclusion as to what worked best for me. What works best for me has nothing to do with how someone else chooses to finalize their transaction.
Last edited by SCarGuy; 03-19-2018 at 07:34 AM.
03-19-2018, 08:43 AM
#49
AudiWorld Senior Member
Well we can agree to disagree then. Not using your personal ownership experience of an Audi seems pretty crazy to me and a missed opportunity. As well as not using your vast first-hand ownership financial decisions that could be a big help to others not nearly as sure of their lease or purchase dilemma. Sounds like your market is not typical, as it certainly doesn't align with my sales experience...and that's fine. Just sharing my personal experience and sentiments share by many people.
FYI a good friend of mine just sold his Porsche to buy a car of the brand he sells....he felt he was loosing sales because he drove another brand when people asked what he drove. I had the same experience.
FYI a good friend of mine just sold his Porsche to buy a car of the brand he sells....he felt he was loosing sales because he drove another brand when people asked what he drove. I had the same experience.
03-19-2018, 08:47 AM
#50
AudiWorld Super User
Well we can agree to disagree then. Not using your personal ownership experience of an Audi seems pretty crazy to me and a missed opportunity. As well as not using your vast first-hand ownership financial decisions that could be a big help to others not nearly as sure of their lease or purchase dilemma. Sounds like your market is not typical, as it certainly doesn't align with my sales experience...and that's fine. Just sharing my personal experience and sentiments share by many people.
FYI a good friend of mine just sold his Porsche to buy a car of the brand he sells....he felt he was loosing sales because he drove another brand when people asked what he drove. I had the same experience.
FYI a good friend of mine just sold his Porsche to buy a car of the brand he sells....he felt he was loosing sales because he drove another brand when people asked what he drove. I had the same experience.
My personal Audi ownership history, and lineage goes into every transaction I do. The financial part of it does not, unless I am asked.