Luxury Sports Sedans Lose Favor in Secondary Lease Market
Swapalease.com’s Q1 latest report finds only 11.2% of lease-exchange customers favored luxury sports sedans in the first quarter, down from 17.7% in Q1 2018.

Interest in SUVs such as the Dodge Durango rose sharply at the expense of sports cars and luxury sedans in Swapalease.com’s Q1 report.
Photo courtesy Fiat Chrysler Automobiles
CINCINNATI — New data from Swapalease.com’s survey-based Q1 lease trends report shows the decades-long domination of the lease market by sports cars and luxury sedans may be over. When asked what type of lease they would most likely get into next, only 11.2% of consumers listed luxury sports sedans, down significantly from 17.7% a year earlier, while 37.7% listed SUVs, up sharply from 29.9% a year ago.
Among the reasons cited for exiting a lease early range from “change in income” (38.3%, up from 34.8% a year ago) to “change in family size” (13%, up from 8.1%). Fifteen percent of respondents said they are driving an average of 7,500 miles a year on their vehicle lease, up from only 10.4% of people indicating this level a year earlier. This is a possible indication that more people are utilizing ride sharing and food delivery services, and driving less for work, recreation and everyday household tasks, analysts said.
The Dodge, Honda, and Volkswagen brands saw a noticeable year-over-year increase. Ford and Nissan were among those seeing a decline. Searches for Ram vehicles increased by 93%.
“I don’t think many people will be surprised to see that SUVs are becoming more popular as a lease option,” said Scot Hall, executive vice president of Swapalease.com. “However, the luxury sports sedan has been a staple of leasing for decades, and it is yet another indication that the American appetite for vehicles continues to march toward SUVs and crossovers of all sizes.”
To read the report in its entirety, click here.
More Auto Finance

Mastering Credit Friction
In this video, Josh Krach explains how to turn credit friction into an advantage.
Read More →
April Less Affordable
Based on prices, reduced incentives and slower household income growth, consumers found it more challenging to buy new last month, Cox Automotive reported.
Read More →
Auto Lenders, Consumers on a Tightrope
April borrowing data shows that more consumers are bending over backward to buy vehicles, though subprime lending cooled off for the month.
Read More →
Toyota Financial Services President Replaced
Scott Cooke has served in various roles with Toyota Financial Services for over 20 years, including president and CEO, which he retires from on June 30.
Read More →
Permission or Approval: When to Notify Finance Sources
Credit card down payments, multiple vehicle purchases and even straw purchases can be completed without committing bank fraud, as long as you tell the bank first.
Read More →
At-Risk Auto Borrowers Drive Looser Credit Access
Cox Automotive’s index shows the subprime segment, long loan terms, negative-equity borrowers and down payment amounts all grew in February despite ever-higher vehicle prices.
Read More →
Auto Loan Forecast Bucks Market Trend
Auto loan originations rose over 6% year-over-year in the third quarter of 2025, but TransUnion predicts a slight decline in auto loan growth this year, making it an outlier in the company's overall lending forecast.
Read More →
Auto Credit More Plentiful
Growing access shows greater lender appetite for risk as consumers take on heavier debt burden in an inflated market.
Read More →
Auto Loans Long as Stretch Limos
More consumers, faced with ever-rising car prices, are adapting by agreeing to longer loan terms despite the cost of added interest payments.
Read More →
AutoPayPlus Launches RePayPlus
The reinsured biweekly payment program offers auto dealers with customer retention and reinsurance structure.
Read More →