I am leaning towards leasing..

But i think a highway car will get a lot of chips and dings.

Does anybody have any stories or comments on returning a lease?


Also what if they vehicle gets wrecked.. a Mini Dealer repairs and then it is returned to the same dealer... I am afraid they will say oh its been wrecked here and here.. and I will say " yes that is the repiar you refused to a do a better job on" etc....

 

I only have experience with this regards to chipping and other road wear. This is to be expected and I have never had a issue when returning a car at the end of the lease . The term is " normal wear and tear " and as long as it isn't actual dents or worse you will be OK . A cheap detail on your part the day before you turn it in wouldn't hurt either

 

I was offered a lease insurance policy by MINI finance person when I leased mine this past October. Cost about $700 for my 3 year lease. it will cover up to $5000 in repairs that might be needed at turn in time including tires. I figure i have 3 years/30000 miles on my lease and this way I may not have to buy any tires which would cost about that much. And a set of run flats would be twice that. It covers dings, dents, paint. Basically anything they might ding you on when turning car in up to $5000. It allows me peace of mind during my lease.

 

i returned a lease... honda finance.. not mini.. but it was a great experience.. i am sure mini finance .. like honda.. sets forth guide lines 'in advance'
you are allowed so much damage.. 'normal' wear and tear.. honda even spelled out how many chips..scrapes..glass dings.. smaller than a dime..etc.
i was allowed 1500 in exterior repairs.. after 3years.. pretty good.. not to exceed 500 per panel. that makes sense

the guy came to my office..took pix.. put an inventory control sticker in the door jam.. check tire tread depth.. photo of each panel .. under hood.. interior.. dash seats.. side.. etc..
printed out a little paper..

$ 0 due..
i had 30 days to buy it or turn it in..

dropped her off at the dealership 29 days later.. 'done.'

i did get a bill several months later for property taxes.. it was real.. paid it..

good experience for me.
i have heard nightmares from others..
high mileage.. excess wear and tear.. but a honda s2000 like a mini holds the value

 

I haven't leased from MINI, but I hear that they make the return process reasonably smooth. As long as you don't turn it in with primer on the body or anything crazy like that.

 

I'm on my third lease (first Mini) and haven't had any problems when returning a vehicle at the end of the term...

 

I have leased a couple of Ford vehicles before and haven't had any problems with returning them after the lease term was over.

This is from the miniusa.com website regarding lease returns.

miniusa.com > Mini Financial Services > Lease Programs > Lease Return Checklist.Then click the Launch The Lease Return Checklist to list what is and what isn't acceptable when you return your Mini.

Link: http://www.miniusa.com/#/financialSe...easeCheclist-i

 

I've returned a couple of leases (not mini). usually, if the damage is minor and normal, like chips in the front bumper, minor door dings, and light scratches, its usually not a problem. As far as 700 for insurance, doesnt sound like a good deal to me. 3 years/30000 miles, you shouldnt need new tires. My last car had 3 years/45000 miles and i never changed the tires or the brakes and I didnt have any problems.

As far as getting repair work done, from an accident or something like that, your regular collision insurance should cover that, as long as it is an authorized repair center from your insurance company, is not a problem.

I had a 2003 Infiniti G35, at the end of the lease it was 17000 to buy it out and it was 30K over the allowed mileage, so it was cheaper to buy it out and not have to pay for the overage of the miles so I bought it out and ended up selling it privately for 18,300. I think mini's have good resale value, so that may also be an option.

 

Done a bunch of BMW leases and never had a turn in problem. In the BMW world any nick or scratch < 3" is ok and I'd assume MINI would be the same. You need to have 4 good same type tires - no rips in seats etc. no real cracks in glass.
Again I've never had a problem with that type of item.

You do need to make sure you don't exceed mileage because those charges can build up fast.

 

Do a search on the forum and you will see most don't get that many miles on the run flats. They tend to wear a lot faster. I don't intend to switch to non run flats as I am satisfied with the ride. This will also cover those dings that are small enough your deductible does not cover it but is big enough MINI will ding (pun intended) you for it. Was peace of mind for me.

 

My wife has leased two Audi's. Not MINI's but leased. When they were returned they had what I'd call normal wear & tear. I take good care of our cars, but they both had the odd chip & scratch. When they were returned we were charged zero $.

One thing I would be careful of is not going over your mileage limits. That can get expensive.