Nissan Leaf - early lease termination

[MarkBrokeIt]

Wasn't sure if this should be here or in off topic, first post, sorry if I got it wrong.

I'm surprised that I can't find other forum posts on this topic, since I would think that a lot of M3 buyers would be previous Leaf owners. My Leaf lease runs through November, but I'm hoping to get my M3 before the end of May.

Has anyone else here looked into early lease termination offers? Didn't find any specifics on the NMAC website. There's the $395 "disposition fee" at lease end, not sure if there are other penalties.

Has anyone had any experience with this, or with potentially transferring a lease?

Thanks.

 

[cwerdna]

I'm surprised that I can't find other forum posts on this topic, since I would think that a lot of M3 buyers would be previous Leaf owners. My Leaf lease runs through November, but I'm hoping to get my M3 before the end of May.

Has anyone else here looked into early lease termination offers? Didn't find any specifics on the NMAC website. There's the $395 "disposition fee" at lease end, not sure if there are other penalties.

Has anyone had any experience with this, or with potentially transferring a lease?

Your best bet is asking on mynissanleaf.com. (I did lease a '13 Leaf for 2 years.) You can also ask on Seattle Nissan LEAF Owners.

In the past, the anecdotal reports I've seen about early lease termination is that they were TERRIBLE deals (e.g. IIRC, needing to buy out the car at residual and then selling at a loss from that).

As for lease transfer, NMAC had this crappy policy where the original lessee was still responsible and cannot be removed. So, if you transfer to a deadbeat or someone who refuses to pay up at lease end (after say a bunch of damage), you'll be on the hook. NMAC Finance Account Manager seems to indicate this crap policy is still in effect.

$395 disposition fee is in the contract and happens even on normal lease end if you don't buy out the car. Memory foggy but it might be waived if you lease or buy another Nissan/Infiniti.

Fortunately, I never needed to transfer nor end early. I returned my Leaf at normal lease end and bought a replacement used '13 Leaf for cheap, which I still drive today.

 

[MarkBrokeIt]

I searched on the MNL forum first before posting here, was surprised it wasn't a common topic there either

 

[MarkBrokeIt]

Don't see how to edit previous post. Maybe limited because I'm new?

Anyway, $395 fee still exists. And they also appear to still have that crappy policy for transfer.

Went & read older posts on MNL, saw several from cwerdna over there. Most of those threads seem to involve people wanting to buy at the end though. No reference there to a penalty for early return, but those posts are 2+yrs old.

 

[cwerdna]

Try Googling for stuff like this:
site:mynissanleaf.com early lease end
site:mynissanleaf.com return lease early
site:mynissanleaf.com early lease termination

But yeah, the posts tend to be on the older side. You should call NMAC on a weekday to see what your choices are.

 

[ewoodrick]

I just turned in my 2015 Leaf and got a 2018 Leaf. They waived the fee.
(It's the Subaru that the M3 will replace)

 

[mhan00]

I just turned in my 2015 Leaf and got a 2018 Leaf. They waived the fee.
(It's the Subaru that the M3 will replace)

Dealers may waive early termination fees if you lease another car from them. Chances are very low they’d waive the fees if the OP is replacing the Leaf with a 3.

 

[ewoodrick]

Dealers may waive early termination fees if you lease another car from them. Chances are very low they’d waive the fees if the OP is replacing the Leaf with a 3.

It's not a dealer thing, it's the leasing company, but yes, that can happen based on comment from dealer.

 

[GabeX]

Wasn't sure if this should be here or in off topic, first post, sorry if I got it wrong.

I'm surprised that I can't find other forum posts on this topic, since I would think that a lot of M3 buyers would be previous Leaf owners. My Leaf lease runs through November, but I'm hoping to get my M3 before the end of May.

Has anyone else here looked into early lease termination offers? Didn't find any specifics on the NMAC website. There's the $395 "disposition fee" at lease end, not sure if there are other penalties.

Has anyone had any experience with this, or with potentially transferring a lease?

Thanks.

You can try to send out some lease buy out request to dealerships in your area and try to see if it makes sense for you to buy the lease out and resale it privately.

I purchased my 2015 Leaf S with QC 8 months before end of lease 2 months ago and I am turning around and selling it to Carvana for almost $3k profit.

 

[Boourns]

I turned in my Leaf early without getting another one. The "solutions" the dealer offered were so bad I just paid the last 2-3 months' payments all at once and gave it back.