With much regret I'll be leaving the owners group in July. I've got to have a 4 seater replace the S when the lease matures in July. It looks like I'll be ordering a Mazda RX-8 next month (April). I really wanted either an Evo or Sti but the residual on the Evo @ 36 mos. is 38%, I told the dealer that was a GM type number. The dealers just arent dealing on the STi's and the residual is only 52% on a 36 month. If the Mazda deal doesn't work out my secondary plan is for an Accord Cpe. V-6 6 sp. with the HFP pkg. or an Acura TSX A Spec if there's a pkg. available at that time. The S has been great fun & probably the first & last true sportscar I'll own. The only thing I didn't like was being on egg shells when my 2 year old rides with me. I had an airbag switch installed but if we got into it with a Navigator or something it wouldn't be good. This is a friendly and very informative forum and I appreciate all of it from my lurking days prior to getting her in Aug 01 up till I hand the keys over to whomever takes her from me.

 

TSX! You'll love it

 

I agree. The TSX sounds the most appealing to me of your listed choices. The reason the residual is so low on the EVO is because it's a Mitsu. There's usually not much left after three years

 

What's up with the leases? Why don't you just buy a car?

 

I've not bought a car in 7 years. I like to have a new one every 3 years thats always warranted and don't like dealing with the negative equity or loballing by stealers in a trade. Leasing suits my needs better. I would agree that leasing is not for everyone.

 

I don't keep my cars very long either, but I always buy. Selling them on my own has helped me break even or lose only a small amount of money.

Like you said, leasing fits some people better than others.

Oh yeah, keep test driving cars. I wasn't impressed with the RX-8, and one reason I wanted it was because of the extra room. After driving it (and reading the RX-8 forum), I was not impressed.

The new V6 accord would be a good choice, as well as the TSX.

I love the EVO, and would buy one, but I'm still not sure if Mitsu will hold up past three years. Of course, all 2004 EVO's come with a 10 year, 100K mile powertrain warranty....something to think about.

 

JTS2K2001:

Just my two cents for what they are worth, but before you sign anything, look at the Infinity G35 coupe. Better power and gas mileage than the RX 8, and the back seat is about as big (and niether really are). Resale is looking good so far, so you might get a residual you could live with.

Thanks,
Richard

 

Buy Buy Buy. You just have to get over having the same car for 5 years instead of 3 or 4. But in the long run... it's better. I almost leased my 1994 Civic back in 1994. Needless to say... she's still with me after 230,000 miles. I haven't made a payment since 1999 on her. And I am still reaping the benefits day after day. Having my civic saves me money on gas and also it keeps the miles lower and the value higher on my S2000.

 

Well, whether we buy on payments, pay cash, or lease all depends on our individual circumstances. Me? I've always paid cash. And sometimes in my life, that meant buying some real "beaters." But common guys, there is no right answer for everyone.

Just hope JTS2K2001 checks out that Infinity G 35 Coupe before he gets anything --- regardless of how he pays for it.

Thanks,
Richard

 

That would be my first choice too One of the auto shows (C&D I think) recently had shootout of the sport sedans in that range and the G35 came out on top. I think the coupe would be sweet.

ron