jwoznica

I'm sure it's been discussed before, but is it a bad idea to put a leveling kit on a leased truck? It's about as extensive as I plan on going with mods because I do love this truck, I just miss the stance of my 09' leveled one. Thoughts? Am I breaching contract? Would I be okay as long as I were to remove it before trading my lease back in? (if that's the route I choose to go, but there's a good chance of me buying it out anyways)

djfllmn

iTrader: (1)

you should be fine, i've turned trucks in with modified exhaust systems and its been ok

jwoznica

That’s good to know. Although I don’t see myself getting that involved with this truck. I have the 5.0 V8 and that sounds good stock. I do wish it had a little more sound in the lower RPM’s though.

Scott2373

I think a more pertinent question is, why would you invest money in a truck you don't own? Unless you absolutely plan on purchasing one or leasing the same truck when your current lease is up.

jwoznica

How many people buy these trucks outright? I'm gonna guess not that many. So to be fair, all of you that make loan payments on your trucks don't own them yet either, the bank does.

jonrjen

If you want to level it, just do it. If you later choose to buy out of your lease, then well good for you. If you choose to turn it in at the end of the lease be prepared to return it to stock if required to do so.

It would be a darn right shame to not like driving a vehicle that you would other wise like for the next number of years over a simple leveling kit.

ReaperHWK

Agree 100%

redranger04g

The difference is for those of us that make loan payments is we will own our trucks at the end of our payments and you will have to turn it in (if you don’t buy it). Investing money into something you don’t and won’t own isn’t smart IMO. Having said that, if you’re mechanically inclined enough to install your own leveling kit, it’s a cheap enough modification that I think you should go for it if you want to. Just know that mods typically lead to more mods. Once you have that leveling kit, those tires are going to start to look small...

jwoznica

Not to take this thread away from the main focus but since we're on the topic, yes correct, at the end of your typical 5,6, even 7 year loan, you finally own your truck, which now is out of warranty and probably has at least 60k on the dash, and its not worth anywhere near what you paid for it. It doesn't matter if you lease or buy, the vehicle still depreciates.

I have never been for leasing. I bought my last two trucks used with around 30k on the dash and by then end of my loan they'd have over 100k and honestly, I'm getting tired of doing repairs. Routine maintenance is cool with me I do all my own, but then having your 4x4 go out in a snowstorm because of a bad IWE or having to throw 900$ worth of tires on it, and then god forbid anything happens to the motor, in those 100k miles you drive (don't forget rust too if you're in the northeast like I am) now you've sunk all this money into a truck that you "own" but isn't even worth 20k. Whether you lease or buy, you're still gonna put extra money into it if you want mods.

What convinced me to switch over to leasing was the fact that I wouldn't have to worry about those things,and I would have more money to spend on accessories. I'm driving a brand new truck, with more options than I would have gotten on a used one for the same monthly payment, and I'll know how every mile of that truck has been driven, AND its under warranty the whole time I'll have it if i decide to turn it in after 3 years. If I'm going to have a monthly payment either way, I pretty much want that to be the only cost of ownership other than gas and mods. I don't want to have to sink a ton of money into a motor when I could use that money for other things.

I sound like a cheerleader for leasing now, and lets come back in 3 years and see if I still feel the same way, but for my needs it seemed like the logical choice. Time will tell I guess.

riptide88

Were talking about a leveling kit FFS, $300 installed? Sure thats technically throwing money(not an investment) into the truck but if you cant take a hit on $300 over the span of 3 years you shouldn't be in a new f150


There probably isnt that much of a difference if you sit down and crunch the numbers, you're no better off whether you lease or finance in the first 3 years. Everyone thinks you're throwing away money on a lease and that is true but if you're financing you're doing the same thing too because the first 3 years of any new vehicle is the worst for depreciation. If you're financing a new truck with a small dp and with a term of 5 years or more(6-7 years is probably more the norm i bet) you will have little to no equity in it if you decided to sell it within 3 years. I do agree with your last part though, our tires are already on the smaller side so leveling your truck with stock tires could look a bit odd imo