$199 Lease Deals for February 2018

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The automotive industry settles into the core of the leasing year in February. The previous model year’s inventory is pretty much all cleared away, the gift-giving holidays are a couple of months behind us, and the President’s Day long weekend provides a bonus shopping opportunity. And if you’re one of those industrious types who files your income taxes right away, you might have tax-refund money burning a hole in your pocket.

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This isn’t meant to be a comprehensive database. Instead it’s a survey of the deals around the $199 price point offered on manufacturer websites. They beckon you into a world where you always drive a newish vehicle and maybe a nicer vehicle than what you could pay for outright. Still, these are commodity cars and trucks, the new vehicles that hit the road in huge numbers. That doesn’t mean there’s nothing here for enthusiasts, but don’t expect six-figure profilers.

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Getting the absolute best deal means putting in work beyond reading this story. It means researching not only what vehicle to lease but also doing some smart shopping for the financial products that support your acquisition. A lease is a contract, and the elements of that contract are negotiable at some level. And it may be that working with a bank, a leasing company, or a credit union could yield an even better deal than what the manufacturers offer; it never hurts to shop around. Keep in mind that these offers generally require a stellar credit rating. Those of us with lousier financial reputations can expect to pay more.

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Use our survey as a baseline for your research. Then make some calls, be honest about your financial situation and credit rating, and be prepared to shop for everything from purchase price of the new vehicle, the residual value contracted at the end of the lease, mileage allowances, and the interest rate of the money used to support the transaction.

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The $199 target price here is a loose one—some regions can offer the same vehicle at lower or higher rates. The charts include calculations for the total cost of each lease: money due at signing, total monthly payments, and additional costs like lease-end disposition fees. Then we divide that total by the number of allotted miles in the lease to calculate a cost-per-mile charge assuming full use of the agreed-upon miles. If a manufacturer offers a $199 deal in one region, we’ll include that vehicle for all four ZIP codes from which we’re harvesting—in Southern California, Chicago, Ann Arbor, and New York City—even if the deal carries a nominal price higher or lower than $199 per month.

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Every month the deals change. And this month, here are the highlights.

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Deals of the Month

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There’s no more competitive segment of the vehicle market than that for full-size pickup trucks. And this month, for the first time in recent memory, Chevrolet, Ram, and Ford are all offering their mainstream trucks with come-hither leases in some regions. Both General Motors and Ram have already shown their upcoming next-generation pickups, but they’re still churning out their old ones in massive numbers, and that metal has to be moved. Meanwhile, Ford is aggressively countering that with deals on the F-150 structured around incentives on the smaller, 2.7-liter version of the twin-turbocharged EcoBoost V-6.

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Many of these deals need a big chunk of cash at signing, so don’t leap at any of them without careful consideration.

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Acura Is Back

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The ILX has been around a while and doesn’t sell in vast numbers. And that’s the recipe for a good deal. A near-luxury small sedan with a sophisticated eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission for only $199 per month after $2499 at signing. The lease runs three years and 30,000 miles, with additional miles at a reasonable 15 cents each.

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Two Doors Down

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This month’s $199 deal list runs to 242 different deals. Only eight of them are on two-door coupes. That’s two regional deals on the V-6–powered 2018 Dodge Challenger SXT (both of which require coming out of existing FCA leases), two different deals on leftover 2017 Honda Accord coupes (there is no 2018 Accord coupe), and four on versions of the Honda Civic coupe—including two on the delectable Si.

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Yes, It’s a Real Thing

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Ford has been almost clandestine in the launch of its new smaller-than-the-Escape, made-in-India EcoSport crossover. The company even sold 500 of them in January, Ford’s Mike Levine told C/D in a phone conversation. Who knew? There are four EcoSport deals listed this month, with monthly payments starting as low as $169 per month.

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Not Cheap Enough

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Mitsubishi Mirage. Enough said.

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No Money, No Problem

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Not all of us get thick tax-refund checks. But Subaru, Toyota, and Kia all offer deals near this price point that don’t require any money at signing. They’re not available in all regions, so shop around. The electric version of Kia’s Soul, for instance, can be had for zero down and only $179 per month in the New York City metro area. It’s the cheapest way to adopt an all-zap lifestyle.

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Driver’s Choice, Now More Expensive

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Honda still offers the sublime 205-hp, six-speed-manual-only 2018 Civic Si in both coupe and sedan versions near this price point. But the prices have risen this month to either $209 or $229 per month. So, you should have gotten the killer deals last month.

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Passat?

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Volkswagen roars back onto the list this month with solid offers on the mid-size Passat sedan. That is, if a Passat can roar at all. In the New York City area, a 2018 Passat can be had for $179 per month after $2999 at signing. But keep in mind that the 36-month lease includes only 30,000 miles of use with additional miles at 20 cents apiece.

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