.
Will you be driving less than you did with the Honda? A major advantage of the lease is for the deduction if you own a business.
Consider a newer used car.
leasing allows you to drive new car every couple years, and if you continue to drive so little, you will likely get a good rate.
Downside - you'll always have a car payment. Yes, you are liable for the full contract - e.g., you lease for 4 years, you're obligated for those years. There are "lease trade" sites, but transferring a lease isn't guaranteed.
It's nearly always cheaper to buy a car than lease it, albeit often with higher deposit and higher monthly payment than a lease - but when the loan payments are done it's your free and clear.
Tip - should you decide to lease, get a car which is subvented by the manufacturer- (specially incented- you can google for a list of those .
I leased once, and have gone back to buying. Leasing terms are harder to negotiate, and you are on the hook for any damage, etc. Need additional gap insurance negotiated into the contract, or the above scenario occurs of paying for the car if totalled.
I think you can get a better deal on a new car if you have financing from outside the dealership, and eventually sell it, than you would get on a lease.
Why are you replacing the low mileage car that you have if you drive so little? Financially, the best decision is probably to keep the current vehicle.
eta: if you want and can afford a new car, that is likely your best option. Otherwise, a gently used, late model vehicle would be the next best option (in my opinion).
Excellent question! Our son has the same car a year younger, but he has 120+K miles. He parks his in a public garage in NYC and it shows! The topic of a new and safer car for me and he takes my car, gratis. That gratis part was my idea. 
Steve said:
Why are you replacing the low mileage car that you have if you drive so little? Financially, the best decision is probably to keep the current vehicle.
eta: if you want and can afford a new car, that is likely your best option. Otherwise, a gently used, late model vehicle would be the next best option (in my opinion).
If you are driving so little I imagine leasing is a losing proposition....We've leased ~6 times, and to my knowledge leases are for either 12k or 15k miles per year....Looks like you are driving 3-4k miles / year...So I am guessing you'd be paying for a lot of anticipated mileage that you won't end up using.
THANKS ALL! I think my putting the question "on paper" helped me to see all the issues. I will not go the lease route.
Although buying a new car is daunting because all the technical changes I would have to learn, it still appeals to me. I may just keep my old buggy 
That car you have is a great one, that will go many more years with minimal maintenance. If you are comfortable driving it I suggest keeping it. Helping your son is a kind idea, but looking out for yourself this time might be better.
We tend to keep our cars forever so I can understand your dilemma. Here's what I'm thinking about when I consider my next car. Even though a used car only a couple of years old can be a good deal, I'm thinking that just about all the new cars offer lots of safety features that you should seriously consider--things like (sorry for my non-technical descriptions) features that brake the car in an emergency, beep if a vehicle is in your blind spot, and lane-departure warnings that seem like good features to me. While I would go with a navigation feature, unfortunately, so many new cars also come with goo-ga's that are just excessive and included if you want the safety features (ways to read email or talk on the phone; moon roofs, etc.). Good luck with your decision.
agbarganza said:
If you are driving so little I imagine leasing is a losing proposition....We've leased ~6 times, and to my knowledge leases are for either 12k or 15k miles per year....Looks like you are driving 3-4k miles / year...So I am guessing you'd be paying for a lot of anticipated mileage that you won't end up using.
Really 10k and 12k with a premium for 15k in my experience, but still overpaying. You can negotiate a lower cap, though I'm not sure how/if the Hondas and Toyotas of the world do it.
Quite a few years ago I listened to a radio story about a suburban senior couple who sold their car specifically to pay for taxis. That was before Uber and Lyft which must make this route a bit easier. Maybe you don't need a car at all.
If the safety features are the consideration, investigate Hyundai Sonata Limited. When I bought mine last year, it was the least expensive car with the most safety features, including automatic breaking. Automatic breaking ONLY WHEN CRUISE CONTROL IS ACTIVATED.
OK Guys, a couple things:
In NJ gap insurance is required by law, and included in all standard LEASE contracts. Purchasing gap for a FINANCE contract is optional, and a very good idea, but that's another discussion.
The annual mileage on a lease varies by manufacturer. I have personally seen leases for as little as 7500 miles/year. Leasing makes sense for people that don't do a lot of driving...If you stay under your miles, strictly on a monthly payment basis, leasing is a much more affordable alternative to financing, since your payments are based on the "portion of the car you are using". Miles are also much cheaper if you buy them in the beginning, than if you have to pay extra for them in the end. Every mile you take in your lease at the beginning, relates to roughly a cost of 10 cents. If you have to pay for them at the end, they will cost 20 or 25 cents, depending on the manufacturer. So if you're not sure, go for the higher option.
On that note, PeteGlider gave excellent advice...Manufacturers will subsidize the leases to make them more attractive payment-wise. The banks use an algorithm to calculate the value of a car after a certain period of time. This is called the "residual value". It is a percentage of the MSRP. To stimulate sales of a certain vehicle, a manufacturer will add a couple points to this residual value. If a car's residual value is 55%, The lease payments are calculated on the balance of the car, or in this case 45%. If the residual is artificially raised to 60%, then payments are calculated on a smaller percentage of the car's price, in this case 40%, and therefore lower.
This brings us to the down-side of leasing...You are basically locked into that contract for the full term. If you need to get out of a lease early, it will most certainly cost you money. The banks calculate a lease payoff by adding together the residual value, which is stated in the contract, and the total of the remaining payments. It is virtually impossible to be in an equity position under this formula. On the other hand, leases are generally 36 months, whereas most finance contracts are 60 (or 72!) months now. Your commitment is less time-wise, and you can walk away from a lease at the end of the term with no further obligation. (Lease disposition fees are still around in some cases, but are no longer commonplace.) Also, you can lease a car with little or no money out of pocket. It is best to put as little down as possible when leasing. While we are on the subject, when you see a commercial on TV advertising a "no money down", or "sign and drive" lease, what they really mean is around $1200-$1500 down. The fine print always states that taxes and fees are not included. You can roll these back into the payment, which will add $30-40 bucks per month. Conventional wisdom is every $1000 in sale price is equivalent to $27 in monthly payment in a lease situation.
Other advantages to leasing have already been noted above...keeping up with current technology is a big one, especially with all the new safety features and improvements in gas mileage.
Another disadvantage was also noted above...Lessees are responsible for excessive wear and tear. All manufacturers have different definitions of what qualifies as excessive. Generally you have to mess up a car pretty bad to incur charges for this. Previous collision repair, as long as it is done to acceptable standards, is considered normal wear and tear. You can also purchase wear and tear protection for your lease...It would add something nominal to your monthly payment, and give peace of mind.
I am a former auto industry executive, and I currently am leasing one car, and financing another. It really depends on how you use it. One of the best investments you can make is to finance/purchase a car and keep it for 10 years.
As you can see, I don't have a lot on my plate work-wise today, I'm happy to answer any questions!
let me add one more thing about down payment -- you want as little to no down payment when leasing, because if the car is totalled or its stolen -- you've in essence lost the down payment.
maplewoodlax2020 said:
In NJ gap insurance is required by law, and included in all standard LEASE contracts. Purchasing gap for a FINANCE contract is optional, and a very good idea, but that's another discussion.
When I negotiated my lease, in NJ (at Planet Honda... which was the worst experience as they made us wait 4 hours before we even got into the finance office), the gap insurance was not in the lease contract.
I negotiated it in, and they reprinted the contract with gap insurance. If it's required, maybe it can be pushed onto the auto insurance of the person leasing the car? I only knew to check the contract for it from some online checklist on leasing.
Note if buying: NJ dealership processing fees seem to be ~$400 on top of the final price. We tried to negotiate it off our last purchase, but the dealership in NJ wouldn't budge on their extra $499. We purchased in Staten Island instead since NY has a cap of $75 max for dealership processing fees. The Staten Island dealership offered both a lower price for the same new car, in addition to having lower dealership fees, so it saved us a bunch. The downside was driving to Staten Island (which actually wasn't bad at 10:30am on a weekday).
I am so impressed by MOL!
Every time I have an issue or question and ask for help here, I get quick response-- always thorough and very informative.
Who knew we had an auto exec in our midst?
Only my shrink or pastor might know if I could learn the new bells and whistles in autos. I most likely would buy a new car rather than a lease or loan -- the leases and loans may very well outlast me!
Thanks all!
jerseyjack said:
If the safety features are the consideration, investigate Hyundai Sonata Limited. When I bought mine last year, it was the least expensive car with the most safety features, including automatic breaking. Automatic breaking ONLY WHEN CRUISE CONTROL IS ACTIVATED.
I just couldn't let this go by. Sorry. If you want a car with automatic breaking buy a Fiat. Otherwise look for automatic braking.
My sister has a car that beeps to tell you if you are traveling outside of your lane. However, it can't tell the difference between painted lines on the road and tar repairs in cracks, so on any street where they repaired cracks the damned thing beeps nearly constantly which is just begging you to ignore it altogether, kind of defeats the purpose.
Glad I wasn't the only one.
FilmCarp said:
jerseyjack said:
If the safety features are the consideration, investigate Hyundai Sonata Limited. When I bought mine last year, it was the least expensive car with the most safety features, including automatic breaking. Automatic breaking ONLY WHEN CRUISE CONTROL IS ACTIVATED.
I just couldn't let this go by. Sorry. If you want a car with automatic breaking buy a Fiat. Otherwise look for automatic braking.
FilmCarp said:
I just couldn't let this go by. Sorry. If you want a car with automatic breaking buy a Fiat. Otherwise look for automatic braking.
I was gonna let it go by, but your post actually had me choking some, on my chocolate-chip cookie.
Thanks for the chuckle.
Fix It Again Tony.
TomR
The complications of leasing in my particular circumstances have put me off the idea.
I am now looking to buy a new Honda CRV.
Really appreciated all the advice!
Before you sign the dotted line, and after you get a feel for real pricing; check with truecar.com.
TomR
TomR. I am a simple soul and have resolved to not sign up to anything which requires a password.
A car I had not been aware of caught my attention in a parking lot -- the Honda Fit. It is smaller than the CRV I have been driving the past 15 years, but it might "fit" my new reality.
Also thinking about the Honda HRV.
If spring decides to stay around, I will take a look
I understand your reticence. I can only suggest that you create an easily remembered alternate e-mail address and use that for truecar. If the truecar quote doesn't work for you, never look at the e-mail account again.
If the truecar quote saves you some $$$, never look at the e-mail account again.
Wadagottalose. Truecar saved me about 9 from list and 3.5 - 4 from typical negotiated price.
Whatever route you choose; good luck in your shopping experience, and with your new vehicle.
TomR
my sister-in-law recently saved $1400 off a Toyota Rav -- by getting a quote from a dealer and going to Costco!! They actually work together. SIL told us the dealership has one guy who works just on Costco deals.
And of course, the rebate on purchases sweetens the transaction even more.
Background: Senior, senior citizen, husband no longer able to drive,current car is a 2002 Honda CRV with under 50,000 miles.
Thinking about giving car to relative but I would still need a car, so I wonder whether leasing would be a good alternative to shelling out the cost of a new car?
Is owning a new car, free and clear, a better choice?
Heard a horror story recently about a man who died two weeks after taking possession of a leased car. Only his name was on the contract as his wife is handicapped and didn't drive.
The family fought Toyota for months and finally had to pay the full cost of the car!