Go into the showroom pretending to buy, and (important!) negotiate the purchase price first. This way you'll have a firm assessment of the car's value from the start; only then should you ask about leasing.

Once you've got the car's selling price, get the residual value of the car after the lease expires. Ask for a residual value estimate in dollars, not at "market price." That will protect you if the car's value is lower than expected at the end of the lease.

Here are some sample prices: let's say the selling price is $17,300, but you negotiate it down to $16,000. Then you make a $1000 down payment to keep your monthly payments down and thus arrive at $15,000, which is your net lease price.

For a three year lease:

• The residual value is set at 57%, or $8,550. The car's total depreciation is $6,450, which is divided by 36 months: this sets the monthly depreciation fee at $179.
• The monthly payment combines the depreciation fee with the lease fee. This is calculated as: (net lease price ($15,000) + residual price ($8,550)) x money factor (.0035) = monthly payment ($82.43).

  Thus, the monthly payment in this situation would be $261.43.