another lease question
 

What about going to a class 8 truck dealer and leasing just a power unit to pull your own trailer instead of buying the truck. Anyone have any success with that? I have all the loads I want, id just like to have a newer ride under warranty but dont want to shell out 125 grand for the priveledge. Is a truck lease in that fashion reasonable for a one man operation, or is it just feasable for larger fleets? I guess Im comparing it to my personal vehicles [ 06 pontiac g6 and an 06 ford f-150] both leased, the payments were alot cheaper than buying them on a 4 or 5 year loan.

I used to rent a truck from penske or Ryder during the summer to pull my agent's trailer for HHG. It works great in the event of a breakdown, having the permits/plates paid, and maintenance. It is costly, however.

PacLease (division of Kenworth) offers this too. I own now, because you save in the longrun, but in the short term, its a good deal if you aren't pulling for $1.20/mi or less.

You made reference to having two leased vehicles. The payments are cheaper, so if you can't afford to buy a new vehicle, I guess that helps out some. But, something you have to think about is that you are throwing that money away on "payments"...basically to borrow someones car, and throw thousands of dollars away, only to turn around and give the vehicle back again down the road and be out of pocket on that money. Or, I guess you could always turn around 5 years later and finance that $25k balloon payment on a vehicle that cost only $32k brand new. Leasing is a waste of time and money, if you're too broke dick to afford payments on a cheaper older truck, then you don't need to be in this business at all..it's only going to spell disaster.

who said I was too broke to afford payments? Im doing just fine thank you, im actually paying 3 times what my loan is on the pete each month. On a personal vehicle, how can you say your throwing thousands away on a lease, when your doing the exact same thing if you buy the vehicle on a 5 year loan, because the depreciation will devalue that vehicle to practically nothing if you ever do get it payed off. Ive leased all my personal vehicles for several years and love it. I figure if your always going to be making a payment on a vehicle and want to keep it fairly new and under warranty, then have as cheap a payment as you can get, run it till the warranty is about out, then toss it back to the dealer and grab another one. I was always taught to buy what appreciates in value, lease what depreciates. My opinion. And I hope you didnt call me a dick in that last response...lol

The difference is you get to write off you depreciation when you buy, and you don't when you lease. So, while the payments are comparable, the lease company takes the depreciation to the bank while you pay a prime amount for the equipment.

I didn't call you a dick.


What's the difference between leasing for 5 years, vs. financing? Well....after 5 years with a purchase y ou OWN the vehicle....if you lease, you turn the vehicle over...or you have a HUGE balloon payment...you're lmited to mileage, you pay for any scratches, burns on interior etc.

And, please...don't try to tell me how high and mighty you're living...I don't want to hear your channel 19 story about how much shit you've got.

It doesn't make good business sense to lease a big truck. Frankly, I don't think it makes sense to lease a personal vehicle either. You are basically throwing money away and will have nothing to show for it at the end of the lease. My niece just turned a leased car back in and a few months later got a bill for $6,000. I believe they settled for about 1/4 of that amount, but it was a waste of money. Had she made payments she would have had equity in a vehicle that she could have traded in on a new car, or had a vehicle that was paid off, if that is what she wanted. There are a number of things which can be included in a lease that costs big bucks at the end if you are not careful. I have looked at leasing and ownership. It is rare that leasing makes sense to the small operator.

I leased/rented because I was in it for the short term. Key words- SHORT TERM of 3 months per summer.

Gman and Teal are 200% right! Its throwing money away. And as i mentioned, the tax benefits aren't there if you lease. the lease is tax deductible, but the depreciation factor isn't. Its a great way to get into a clean, dependable truck, but its not the ideal setup for a long term trucking operation :lol:

And, please...don't try to tell me how high and mighty you're living...I don't want to hear your channel 19 story about how much $&!+ you've got.

Wow....why the attitude? Im not trying to give a song and dance about my financial situation, you were the one who referenced about me being too broke to afford payments. I guess my question really boils down to whether you can put a price on peace of mind, having a vehicle under warranty all the time, if you take pride in your ride and dont destroy the vehicle..[scratches, burns, excess mileage, etc.], the money you save on the payments over time can be off earning interest or doing something else you need it to do. As far as a commercial vehicle, I see your point as far as a strictly monetary sense. My life doesnt revolve around how much money I can make, its more about being happy, secure, safe, and doing the things I like to do without worrying about unexpected pitfalls, Not everything in life comes down to $$$$.

Excess mileage? That's a good one. I seriously doubt that T95 is worried about excess mileage. :roll:

You don't have to lease a truck to have a warranty. You can either buy a new or used truck with a warranty, just as easily as you could if you leased. Something to keep in mind is that those who lease these trucks to drivers and carriers finance them and the price you pay is in addition to that cost. Just because you have a warranty doesn't mean that everything will be covered. If you want to take all the risk out of life and this business, you are looking at the wrong business. In fact, every business has risk attached. That is why the failure rate is so high. If you want security and not having to worry about things, perhaps you will probably be much happier and safer if you drive for a carrier who can take care of all of the headaches of running a truck and paying all the bills. You may not want to think about the monetary aspect of trucking, but unless you look at the money you are doomed for failure from the beginning. This is a business. Unless you treat it like a business, which includes thinks like money and profits and losses, you are not going to be happy for very long. If you want to do this as a hobby, there are other ways to experience the road. You can rent an RV and see the country. It will be less expensive and you will probably be much more comfortable. I can guarantee you that you will pay more for leasing or renting than you would if you bought a truck. But, you seemed pretty determined to do it your own way. Perhaps you should go ahead and lease a truck and report back to us after a few months. It would be an interesting read.

Life isn't all about money....you're partly right there. But, if my bank account didn't reflect my time and hard work out here, then you'd be able to find me in the drive-thru of your local mc donalds. I'm 25, not married, no kids, but I have a VERY expensive car/racing hobby so I'm all abou tmaking as much money as I can, and being in positive financial situation when I do get married. Being "happy" or "content" isn't going to cut it, for 100 hour weeks, sweating my butt off, carrying dressers up and down stairs etc. And, then to top it all off, knowing that $2,500-$3,000 a month of my HARD EARNED money was going to be pissed away on a truck I would never own, or have any sort of equity in....that doesn't make any sense....

And, as Rev. said...excess mileage is the furthest thing from my mind...it's taken me almost 2 years to put 103k miles on my truck in the first place....which, btw...is paid for as well. :roll:

I'll bet Rev. Vassago is wanting to know how you log all of this???
Sorry just had to ask. It's all in good clean fun Rev.

The lease is a fleece. If you want to drive a new truck every 4 years, purchase, figure what the residual will be and put that as a balloon on the back end of the loan and you have a smaller payment and get to write off the depreciation too. There are risks when doing this, the residual better be pretty conservative or you will end up having to pay to trade in the old truck, plus you have no equity built up to put down on the new one unless you have saved outside of the payment.

What one should really worry about is cost per mile. How much is that truck costing you per revenue mile.

I know a guy who buys an old CFI truck, runs it 24 months then trades it in on another used one. Even with maintenance his cost per mile is lower than buying new.

You really need to set you up an excel spreadsheet and run the numbers.
There are too many variables like your revenue per mile, how many miles you drive and estimated fuel economy on the trucks you are looking at, maintenance etc. to give a qualified answer.

Buying is the way to go for the long haul, but you have alot of options on how and what you buy that will make a big difference.

It really sounds like you just want to cruise around in a new ride all the time and that is fine too if you are willing to pay for the privilege.

KIPS-I'm a bedbugger as well, so I'm sure Rev. knows what I'm talking about. It's not all driving, it's loading, un-loading, time spent folding pads, doing paperwork, running around faxing weight tickets, BOL's etc. off. Running around checking out orig, dest. for access issues, pre-inventorying a day or two before loading etc. If I go to a house a day or so before and do a packjob...I don't log that, b/c I will take my personal vehicle to the house, do the packjob, etc. I can make it all work on logs, and have yet to ever have logs kicked back by the safety department b/c of HOS violations, speeding etc. 8)

No comment.

haha...i knew that would get hm to speak up :lol:

All very interesting replys. Im not dead set on leasing, buying or anything else, thats why I asked the question to begin with, to see what the responses would be. I do know however, that with what ive spent on my truck since I bought it I could have bought a much newer model and probably had less down time, allthough thats not a given either. Its frustrating to have problems all the time, even though I am lucky inthe sense that Ive always gotten home with it. I know your taking a risk whenever you buy a used truck, especially if your unaware of the trucks 'true' history. I like the way the Pete rides, runs great....now...and I think ive finally got it back in shape where I hope it wont need alot of repairs for a while, at least major ones. I just saw a new international with "idealease" on the door and wonderedif it would be something worth looking into, but I guess not.

What also needs to be considered in this discussion is how long are you planning to keep the unit you are leasing. A lease will allow 100 per cent write off for a business vehicle, when you buy you on the IRS schedule and only allowed so much write off each year. Also some folks like having new all the time and with a purchase you can come up with negative equity if you trade or sell to soon. The best answer involves long term planning and is different in each situation. Also many times a lease will cost less to get started then a purchase. Just my 2 cents/ Bill

Depreciation works for you. If you can't make it work, fire the accountant. Lots of my Dad's friends buy new trucks every 2 years 8)

No comment as well.

Damn....tough crowd today...apparently nobody could pickup on the smart-ass ness of my comment. How am I going to have my personal vehicle if I'm in another state...and throw a bunch of boxes, paper etc. into the bed of my pickup??? Or, maybe the hatch of my Mustang would keep it out of the elements...c'mon guys :roll:

I would pack loads by my home terminal that my agent booked.

Calm down. All that warm weather in TX got you all ornery, partner :wink:

You mean you don't haul your car around in your trailer? Guess it's just me.............

Nah, can't say that I do...although one of my shippers Jag made a cozy ride to the grocery store ;)









Disclaimer: The above comment was intended for entertainment, and entertainment only, I do not condone driving a customers Jaguar to the store...be smart and take it to pick up ladies, or for beer runs on layovers at the truck stop.