The darling of luxury car owners in the 21st century isn't a fancy $100,000 battery-powered Tesla, or a $400,000 screamingly fast McLaren 650S Spider, or any sort of Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Audi, Jaguar or Aston Martin.
No, today's luxury buyer is most likely to drive a truck, not a car -- usually full-size pickup from one of the Detroit-based automakers. Something along the lines of a $45,000 Ram pickup, a $44,000 Ford F-150 or a $43,000 Chevrolet Silverado. And it's possible to keep the monthly payments for any of them in the $500-range.
But first, let's define a luxury vehicle. The average transaction price for a new passenger car in 2014 was $27,563, notes DesRosiers Automotive Consultants. For trucks, the average was $40,001. We at Deals would argue that any vehicle more than $27,563 is a premium ride. The average truck goes for nearly 50 per cent more than the average car. Pickups are luxury items.
Canadians are buying their ritzy trucks like never before, too. Through the first quarter of this year, large and small pickups out-sold pure luxury vehicles more than three to one – 96,502 to 30,948, adds DesRosiers. Canada's best-selling luxury ride in 2014 was the F-Series, by a wide margin.
Typical of what's popular today is Ford's 2015 F-150 XLT 4x4 SuperCrew ($43,949). If you finance it, the monthly payment is a luxurious $912 (over 48 months using Ford's 1.99 per cent lease rate), notes Unhaggle.com.
But if you lease that Ford, the payment is cut almost in half, to $491 a month (48 months, 3.29 per cent rate).
Ford is not alone. General Motors, Toyota and Nissan are jumping on the leasing bandwagon to drive down monthly payments on pickups. For instance, if you want a Chevrolet Silverado or GMC Sierra, the lease payment sinks to as low as $527 a month for 60 months (a 2.9 per cent rate).
Ford and GM can do these lease deals because they have finance arms with clout and residual values for pickups have remained strong and predictable for years, even as pickup sales have soared. Typically, the four-year residual on a full-size rig is about 52 per cent, according to Canadian Black Book. No surprise, then, to see the lease payment on that F-150 come in at about half the financed monthly payment.
Toyota and Nissan also offer great lease deals on the Tundra and Titan, respectively. Take a Tundra priced like the Silverado and F-150. With a 0.99 per cent lease rate for 48 months, the lease payment is $524. The best Titan lease payment comes in at $525 (5.59 per cent for 48 or 60 months).
All these deals suggest that the monthly payment sweet spot for a luxury ride – a full-size pickup - is about $500 a month. Lo and behold, J.D. Power and Associates reports the average monthly lease payment in Canada is $490.
The lease deals on pickups make it possible for you to buy a premium ride for an average payment. You were wondering why pickup sales have soared? At least part of the answer is the $500 lease payment
Deals of the Week consulted with www.unhaggle.com, Car Help Canada, www.carcostcanada.com, and other sources on these offers. As usual, pricing information here is subject to change and dealer discounts vary, so consult your dealer for all the final details, including expiry dates for all offers.
2015 Ford F-150 XLT 4x4 SuperCrew 157 in
- MSRP: $43,949
- Freight, dealer prep, air conditioning tax: $1,835
- Dealer discount (estimated): $4,059
- Factory discount: $4,500 (manufacturer incentive)
- Taxable subtotal: $37,225
- Total price with 13 per cent HST: $42,064.25
- All incentives are available with a 1.99 per cent finance rate for 48 or 60 months, 3.49 per cent for 84 months. A $6,000 factory incentive, a $500 loyalty incentive and dealer incentives are available for those who lease at a 3.49 per cent rate for 48 months, at a monthly payment of $491.
2015 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 1LT 4x4 Crew Cab SWB
- MSRP: $43,100
- Freight, dealer prep, fees and air conditioning tax: $1,830
- Dealer discount (estimated): $3,697
- Factory discount: $5,500 (manufacturer incentive)
- Taxable subtotal: $35,733
- Total price with 13 per cent HST: $40,378.29
- A $3,500 factory incentive is available with zero per cent financing for 48, 1.99 per cent for 60 months, 2.99 per cent for 84 months. A $3,500 factory incentive is available with a 1.9 per cent lease rate for 48 months, 2.9 per cent for 60 months, with the lowest monthly payment at $527.
2015 Toyota Tundra 4x4 CrewMax SR5 Plus 5.7
- MSRP: $43,100
- Freight, dealer prep, air conditioning tax: $1,865
- Dealer discount (estimated): $2,784
- Factory discount: $3,540 (manufacturer incentive)
- Taxable subtotal: $38,641
- Total price with 13 per cent HST: $43,664.33
- The factory incentives cannot be combined with a 0.99 per cent finance rate for 48 months or 60 months, 2.49 per cent for 84 months. A $442 factory incentive can be combined with or a 0.99 per cent lease rate for 48 months or a 1.99 per cent rate for 60 months, with the lowest monthly payment at $524.
2015 Ram 1500 SLT Crew Cab 4x4
- MSRP: $44,795
- Freight, dealer prep, fees and air conditioning tax: $1,830
- Dealer discount (estimated): $3,164
- Factory discount: $8,500 (manufacturer incentive)
- Loyalty rebate: $1,327
- Taxable subtotal: $33,634
- Total price with 13 per cent HST: $38,006.42
- All incentives are available with a zero per cent finance rate for 48 months or 60 months, or a 2.99 per cent rate for 84 months, with the lowest payment coming in at $502.
and
. Calculations based on Ontario customers. Please note that while the information above is accurate at the time of publication, incentives are given at the discretion of individual dealers, and may be changed or discontinued at any time. Where noted, "dealer discounts" are negotiated with the customer on a case-by-case basis. Unhaggle Savings are actual discounts received by Unhaggle customers.
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