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BMW ActiveE leasing priced at $499 a month, $2,250 down payment

Filed under: Car Buying, Coupe, BMW, Electric

BMW Active E

BMW Active E – Click above for high-res image gallery

BMW has released official pricing for its latest foray into the world of electric vehicles, and compared to the rest of your EV options, the Active E is a screaming deal.

Lease pricing for the 1 Series-based Active E is set at $499 a month for 24 months, with a downpayment of $2,250 due at signing. BMW isn’t citing exact output figures yet (we’re hearing something around 190 hp), but it’s quoting a 0-60 time of under nine seconds and a range of 100 miles with its specially developed, liquid-cooled lithium ion battery pack. Reservations will begin this summer and you can get in on the action at BMWActivateTheFuture.com. Full details in the press blast after the jump.

Gallery: BMW ActiveE: Geneva 2011

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BMW ActiveE leasing priced at $499 a month, $2,250 down payment originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 18 Apr 2011 13:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: Auto leasing surges to highest level since 2005

Filed under: Car Buying, Etc., Marketing/Advertising

car shopper reading window sticker

Leasing is back in a big way, says The Detroit News. After virtually disappearing, lease packages with monthly payments below $199 and no money down are popping up everywhere lately, and those deals are finding consumers. Take it as a sign of economic improvement, but the reemergence could come back to bite automakers in a few years, too. With leases accounting for more than twenty percent of new car sales in February and March, a whole bunch of returned vehicles could flood the used market in just a few years, cratering the resale values that make automakers and lenders so enthusiastic to offer good lease terms right now.

If irrational exuberance takes hold again and artificially low, unsustainable lease rates are used to pump up sales figures, it’s hard to see how we’re not in for an eventual crash. Attractive lease deals on brand-new models like the Chevrolet Cruze are cause for concern to some analysts. Leasing is more often used to move luxury vehicles and aging models, so coming out of the gate with a sharp lease deal smacks of a grab at market share. General Motors counters that it has merely brought leasing back to 15-20 percent of sales, a healthy level, and it’s being careful.

Dealers are happy to see the increased showroom traffic the new surge in leasing has brought. Many stores saw sales implode as the recession was busy taking everyone off a cliff. Being able to offer a popular car with an affordable payment again is an effective sheepdog to direct people into dealerships, and besides, the used car market has been depleted for months thanks to measures like Cash For Clunkers and people holding on to their cars longer, keeping them out of circulation.

[Source: The Detroit News]

Report: Auto leasing surges to highest level since 2005 originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 07 Apr 2011 17:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PSA: Lamborghini offering new Gallardo leasing program

Filed under: Car Buying, Convertible, Coupe, Performance, Lamborghini

2011 Lamborghini Gallardo LP570-4

2011 Lamborghini LP570-4 – Click above for high-res image gallery

Lamborghini has finally bitten the bullet and started a leasing program for the Gallardo. According to the DuPont Registry, there was enough demand for an alternative ownership program that leasing Lamborghini’s smallest offering made sense.

Gallardos eligible for lease include the 2010-2011 LP560-4 Spyders, 2011 Gallardo LP560-4 Coupe, 2011 LP570-4 Superleggera, and the brand-new LP550-2. The leases are on a 27-month term, and customers are limited to 3,500 miles a year. The program began in January and stops at the end of this month, so you’d better hurry.

Gallery: First Drive: 2010 Lamborghini Gallardo LP570-4 Superleggera

[Source: DuPont Registry]

PSA: Lamborghini offering new Gallardo leasing program originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 10 Mar 2011 10:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: Auto leasing making a strong comeback

Filed under: Car Buying

Back in 1999, about one in four new vehicles purchased were leases. That number dropped throughout the last decade until the Great Recession put leasing on the endangered species list. Automakers were losing money due to poorer-than-expected residual rates. At the same time, customers weren’t in the mood to spend money on a new car or truck. As a result, Chrysler stopped leasing altogether in 2008, and General Motors limited leasing to its most popular models.

Wards Automotive reports that while leasing has taken a considerable beating, the two- and three-year vehicle rental is now on the comeback trail. GM and Chrysler are back in the leasing business, and according to Wards, Volkswagen, Hyundai and Kia are pushing hard to increase lease transactions. Are automakers rolling the dice in an effort to move more metal? Maybe not.

With vehicle inventories in check, there’s less chance residuals will take a dive, and at the same time the certified used car programs get a shot in the arm with low-mile, warranty-equipped cars and trucks. We probably won’t see 25-percent lease rates anytime soon, but Automotive Lease Guide Inc sees the practice jumping to a 20-percent take rate by 2015.

[Source: Wards Automotive sub. req. | Image: Caitlin Regan / Flickr via CC BY 2.0 ]

Report: Auto leasing making a strong comeback originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 08 Jan 2011 18:43:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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