I'm in the market for a 550 Maranello. Anyone know this car, or know much about Don L Leasing? Your thoughts would be appreciated. http://www.dupontregistry.com/autos/Search/DRauSearchDetails.aspx?itemid=513940
if you do some research youll find plenty of information about don l leasing and their reputation.... i would STRONGLY recommend doing the research!!!!!
Just called over there, and he spent 15 min telling me why having books and records is a meaningless endeavor..... Hmmmm. Nice looking car though. If I could get it at the right price and with a full PPI........ (Who does PPI in that area?) Thanks, as always Fchat buddies! -Rob
good never buy from them... I drove by and saw they had a red 328 in the show room, so I went inside and asked about it... "No body work, very clean" I told them, its only clean cause it was washed... it had painted over tape. new fenders... one new rim.... I asked how much thinking at most $20K (yea it was that bad) THEY WANTED 68K for it.. I have an eye for body work, but this I know a 5year old could point out...
Don L has been around for a long time. Originally started and owned by Donny Loyderstein (hence the name Don L. who had to get out of the business as he was caught turning back odometers back in the 80's) and was taken over by his uncle Izzi. Izzi's son Max has run the business since the early 90's since. One has to understand that Don L is a leasing company and "not" a used car dealer per se'. Sure they sell used cars but these cars started out new and have since come off lease. The customer profile is an individual that has been turned down for credit by the captive lender or a bank. Don L. maintains recourse lines of credit with various lenders that will allow the lease of a car to someone that has marginal credit as they (the Lessee and Lessor) are both on the hook. If the Lessee fails to make the payments then Don L. is responsible to the bank. Interest rates are higher than the captives or banks but history has always proven that people with crappy credit generally don't repect what they have so they are generally hard on the cars. Based on the residual value that Don L. originally placed on the vehicle (exotics or highlines are usually set at no more than 85% of the published value in Galves depending on the term or length of the lease) no matter what the condition of the car is when it comes off, they will try their hardest to recover as much as they can at retail sale to minimize their losses. Unfortunetely for the leasing company they get cars back in a variety of conditions with some being perfect and others are just pigs with lipstick on them. Its the nature of the business and it sometimes gives the Lessor a bad name when they are forced to unload the cars in the condition that they are in. A majority of these marginal cars are wholesaled out to dealers all over the country and the leasing company usually keeps the cream of the crop to either retail or re-lease to another customer. The objective is to try to get as close or over the booked residual value no matter what the condition is. Just because Don L. has a car with no books or records and perhaps may have had body damage doesn't make them a bad dealer. They are just dealing with the card that they were dealt which is completely different than a dealer who goes out and buys a car and has the choice to either put it into inventory or not. Those are the dealers that you have to watch out for. If you are going to buy from a leasing company or a dealer, then be sure to get the PPI.
So what you're saying is to lease a car from these guys, drive the snot out of it, and turn it in as a complete wreck and they have to eat it? I like the idea....
Not so fast there Cubby......there is what is called "closed-end and open-end leases". 99.9% of exotic and highline leases are open-ended which means that the Lessee is responsible for the difference in what the residual value is to what the car sells at unless it is re-leased. Regardless of the two, the Lessee is responsible for any damages over and above the damage limit which is usually between $300 and $500 in addition to excess mileage. So in theory, no one can drive the snot out of any car without being subject to having to pay at the end of the day. The point that I was trying to make is leasing companies create used cars to sell rather than buying trashed cars from leasing companies, other dealers, or private owners like used car dealers do. Used car dealers have a choice as to what they inventory and sell.....leasing companies don't.
I'm not sticking up for Don L., but rather agreeing on what was said. I bought a Lotus Esprit in the early 90's from Irv David at Prestige Imports and had Don L. finance or lease me. A kid only in his 20's, what the hell did I know. Regardless, I am a dealer now, and I can respect what is being said here. Any car has to be researched well. Just because the books are missing, does not mean you have to run away from the car. It should only be reflected in the price!
call don l and ask for Bobby Lloyd he has been there for years and is a no nonsense guy .... if you want the car checked out as well i have a place in pompano that can tell you everything the car will need , tell him Roger from Karrera Motorsports sent you i just bought 2 ferraris from him in the last month and sold them to some european buyers .... good people there at the dealership....
