Lease Return - penalties

[Joe]

Hi All,
This is the 1st vehicle I have ever leased and I'm seeking input on the MB lease return process and potential penalties, specifically for tire wear. Has anyone been charged for tires upon turning in their lease?

My lease is for 36 mos, 45k miles. At that time, I assume the Michelin MOE (run flats) will be ~25% tread left. If I am going to be charged several hundred dollars, I might as well put on 4 new tires now. I really hate the ride noise and ride quality of the Michelin MOE, it is my biggest complaint with the car.

My other general lease return questions are:
Who does the inspection or determines if there are any penalties (is it a corporate MB guy, someone from the specific dealership, or some 3rd party guy)?
Does it matter which dealership I return to? (Is there variability? Or will I get less hassle and less penalty from certain dealership?)
Is the inspection very rigorous, or are they looking for obvious damage and neglect?

Thx,
Joe

 

[sendler2112]

You will never make it to 45,000 miles on the original tires. You might get just past 30,000 before they are bald so you will need to plan on changing the tires once anyway. My salesman told me that any tire over 2/32 tread remaining and no cords showing would be acceptable for turn in as Mercedes plans on fitting new rubber before re-lease.

 

[wtzouris]

The OEM tires may last as little as 20-25k miles. I am considering Nokian WR A3 All-weather RunFlat tires for the middle part of my lease, then I will put the OEM tires back on for lease return. Those tires are $264 each.

On lease return, they expect to detail the car, and change the floor mats and tires. I think the brake pads will last the three years. Other than that, look out for body dings and front rear bumper scratches.

 

[sendler2112]

The brake pads may not last 30,000 miles but if the light is not on I would just turn the car in and not try to "prevent" them from charging you by replacing things which they may or may not charge you for anyway. But a good set of snows for cars in the North East is a no brainer.

 

[tomt]

It is extremely rare on a Hybrid or EV for the brakes to not last 100K due to regen...

The brake pads may not last 30,000 miles but if the light is not on I would just turn the car in and not try to "prevent" them from charging you by replacing things which they may or may not charge you for anyway. But a good set of snows for cars in the North East is a no brainer.

 

[Joe]

Thx all for the input. I guess realistically I will need to buy 1 set of tires, so I might as well get them early so I can enjoy them...

I have some other thoughts and ideas about tire selection, so I'll post that under another thread...

 

[Ferdball]

I'm getting new fronts at 15k miles. MB never rotated them in any of my service appointments. Fronts are bald, rears are fresh.

 

[JeffRay]

Joe, based on others recommendation, I replaced the OEMs with only 3K miles on it for Michelin snow tires (not run flats). Man, the ride is so much softer. It is going to be 75 degrees today and while you are not supposed to drive snow tires in warm weather, not sure I want to put OEMs back on. Plan is to return OEMs in December 2017 and pass the acceptable wear test.

I do drive in urban area so not having a spare is okay as I have AAA and a battery powered air pump. Get one nail puncture a year but I can deal with it.

 

[bono]

Just rotate the tires. I just replaced original 4 tires on BMW X5 which is much heavier, huge torque... original tires lasted 50k miles. I rotated them.