From Wheels to Lease: The Secrets Dealers Never Tell You

Welcome back to the Clafy and Frank Show, episode number 19. Today we have a world famous celebrity, the one and only Schwei Herskup, owner CEO of Wheels to Leise. >> Not Not to be confused with the Crown Heights hair. >> I think they're cousins. >> We are cousins. Yeah, we don't run away from >> I've never seen a hersup in a suit. Not the Crown Heights ones. >> Not only in a suit. He's so not Labavich. I asked him the last few days, "What time are we going to meet?" He says, "Why can't we do the recording at 6:00 a.m.?" I almost fainted. Guys, it's right now 10:07 a.m. >> And I'll be honest with you, the reason I wanted to be so early because I know you guys couldn't do it. So that that's why I asked for that. But I gave in pretty quickly to the 10:00. >> I was telling my the last couple of weeks there's so much noise and buzz about the car leasing business that I had to find somebody that's in the business that's reputable. Everybody says the most reputable, honest guy in the industry is Shammy Hersk. Thank you. >> I never heard of I never heard of you. Wheels to I heard the name the last 40 years. You said you started in 1998. >> 1988. >> 1988. So I reached out to you and you were not interested. So of course I had to arrest you and beg you to come on the show. Tell me a little bit about your background and upbringing. How a nice Jewish boy gets into the scar business. >> Actually, it's um it's funny the way it happened. Uh I went to Turo to become an accountant like a good Jewish boy. And during the summer break, I was looking for work cuz I always as a kid would work in bakeries and bagel shops and, you know, do whatever I can to make a few dollars. I even put up sookas that would fall down the first night. Um, >> is that a lost art? Today's kids, summer jobs don't look like that. >> You have a lot of kids that still do it. The right the right parenting teaches kids to to do that. All my kids were always hustlers, always trying to make a buck. Um, I'm at I'm at this place and I'm working for Aava Milk and um I'm doing it for a month, waking up 3 four o'clock in the morning, which for a 17-year-old kid is not normal. And I'm doing the work. And one of the arts delivering you >> delivering the milk to camps in up in the country uh in the Catskills. And I'm one of the arts of delivering milk is when you put down these containers, these seven, eight containers that are piled up upon each other. If you put it down a little too quickly, it all falls down. And it happened one time too many and I got fired and I quit the same moment. It was one of those situations. And I'm at my sister's bungalow colony and I'm like, what am I going to do? I can't sit around doing nothing all day. And this guy goes to me, uh, a labature guy. He says, "Hey, I need a guy to run around for me. I'm in the car business." >> Who was that? >> Um, some some guy some some some uh some guy from Crown Heights. And um I say, "Great, I'll do And I I show up to work was on 13th Avenue, 38th Street and you know doing running around doing all the work that he doesn't want to do and he had a partner at a time and his partner wanted out and um I hear them talk. I say, you know, my brother-in-law is looking for a business. My father would put them, you know, in touch and uh this guy says, "Hey, I'll sell you my my half." And uh my father goes ahead puts up puts up the money for it. My father was not a wealthy man. He just he put together the money for it was I think like 50 grand or something >> and and we put it in the name of the company then was wheels to go and I was still the schleer and it's this is for my uh for my uh brother-in-law and things weren't working out and they needed more help. So now I'm I'm pushing off already college. I did my first uh year in in Turo. Now I'm pushing that off to help him out. And then um one morning we come into the place and the place is empty. All the cars are missing. Okay, now you know why I didn't mention the guy's name. Um, and the guy said, "If you want everything back now, you got to buy me out." So, we bought out everybody. Okay. My father, I mean, I don't know how he did it. He did it for us. Um, >> what did he do for a living? >> He he was a painter. Hardworking guy. I worked with his hands. He was a talented man. >> Artistic painter. >> Yeah, he was an artist. He did murals. He did paint houses. He He was He was a special person. Um and he always told us he says whatever you need to be successful I am there for you and that I think was one of the pivotal moments for me as we're like I can do this because I always have somebody to fall back on which we never had to baram and um my brother-in-law we started with the used cars and not enjoyable business and this guy comes over to me a Syrian guy it just it's a rough business especially you know 30 years ago you could it was tough to make an honest living, put it that way, in the used car business. And uh >> so the the stereotypical used car salesman title is correct. >> Yeah, I I would say that. And we're we're go we're going ahead and um this guy comes over to me. It's actually a Syrian boy. He says, "Hey, can you get me this type of new car?" And I'm like, "Of course." I say, "Yes." And I don't know what I'm doing. And I'm making calls. And I'm actually I closed the deal. I got him the car. This guy was happy. It was a Saab convertible. I forgot the name of the I think his last name was Dean and um he was so happy and I I go to my brother-in-law, hey, let's do this. My brother-in-law said, "Ah, that's not the business for us. We were doing used cars and I said, "No, let's give it a shot." And then I started advertising in um Fortune, what was it? It was a Jewish magazine. I think Fortune magazine was um Fortune magazine was um Country Yasi. >> I remember you from Country Yasi. >> Yeah. And we had an ad. We basically put took all the uh logos from all the manufacturers. Now I know that's uh infringement of their patents but I did it then and we wrote guaranteed lowest prices do what you know whatever it is to take a deal and we were doing business and it was clean business is buy sell no games and slowly but surely >> and were you just call up dealerships and try to haggle what was your process >> again I didn't know what I was doing in the beginning >> but had your first deal >> so it's calling up dealers and just doing the negotiating it was I I don't know how I did it I'll be honest with I just went forward just pick up the phone, start calling every dealer. >> I had no fair. >> I had no fair and there was no internet then. So we actually went through a phone book and then I would um I I don't remember how I actually would go out of state because the out of state dealers were a little easier and I would get it from the manufact I think they had pamphlets of all the dealers. It was it was it was unique. And I was the I think the second guy in the in in the uh in this business doing it. second from religious guy in Brooklyn. >> Second brokering business in in New York. I I don't know of anybody else who did this at the time. >> You're saying in 1988 there wasn't it wasn't like every Tom Dick and Harry was sell advertising as they lease people cars. >> No. Over here now. See then you couldn't do it in basement. Today everybody does it in a basement, you know. But um and it just it it snowballed from there. My brother-in-law stuck with the used cars. I stuck with the new cars and um the rest is history. When I came to your office last week um on Mil Avenue, it was Strickland Avenue. >> On Mill Avenue off the Mill and Strickland, huge parking lot. Very >> I thought I thought we got into a phone company with all those uh >> Yeah. >> All those what's it called? The boom trucks. No, the boom trucks. >> Oh, yeah. Yeah. Had those like cherry picker trucks. Um you had a lot of used cars. You had a lot of new cars. You had guys fixing up cars. You had a lot going on. So even though you said that the used car business is not like the you know like the most easiest business but you're now 40 years later it looks like you do a a compilation of new used boom truck. >> Yeah. No. So what happened was up to co the only used cars I would do is wholesale. So these cars are coming off lease. I would uh try to buy them out to save the customers money. Uh because what happened was when you would the typical Brooklyn customer gives back their cars, they they would, you know, it would look like they went through Beirut or Gaza. And uh so we'd buy the car, wholesale it out, save the customer some money. So CO comes and new cars are very difficult to get. Uh you got to pay top dollar. So we couldn't make money selling new cars. Yet, we needed to sell the new cars in order to get the used cars, the trade-ins, the lease returns. Not only that, we would have to give back the customer equity in their you in their in their used cars. So, it it really it we had to pivot and now we're selling new cars and used cars and it we're doing retail, which you know, I I try to stay away from the used car retail. And then um you know, that that didn't last forever. And then we're starting to sell used cars, retail, and uh you know, now we're doing new cars, used cars. Uh we're doing a lot of commercial business. Um it's it's it's a niche only because most of the most of the local dealerships don't touch the commercial business. >> That's where all those boom trucks. >> Yeah. So that's where we got the boom trucks, we got the cargo vans, the um 14-footers, 16footers, we got the bakeries buying from us, um moving companies, um HVAC companies, everybody. Everybody needs these trucks whether it's new or used. So we got to we have dedicated guys just for commercial new new commercial use. We get them lines of credit uh with the bank so that they they don't need to start each truck or each car. They they got to get okay now let's get an approval. We have you okay we got you $500,000. You can draw down from those car you know 20,000 30,000. Some of these trucks are 150 grand you know. So they already have it set. So they're not they're not starting from scratch every time they need a >> So using all your existing relationships and maneuvering and switching around. >> Of course. Yeah. It's uh you know constant pivoting. It's uh in order to stay you know to stay relevant. >> Show me I want to ask you a question. Dave Ramsey is considered one of the biggest gurus in the financial market. Half the from world a lot of our reviewers are the from world. They don't know anything he says but seems like one mikvah wine he said is like everywhere you go. It's not a car lease, it's a car fleece. And now every kosher money show or every show in the market or every I'm not picking on any particular show, everybody always they have on all these rabbishas saying, "How could a guy lease a car for $300 to $700 a month? My vager bought a Toyota Camry that was 23 years old and he paid $8,000 and when he gave it back 21 years later, it still had equity in the car." and they sit there with these with these with these shows and these graphs on how it's $12 a month. I grew up with used cars. The noises were so loud. I knew my father was coming home at night and you always thought the car is about to explode. The muffler, the the cylinders, the oils would never change properly. I had such anxiety of car lights going to the country saying to him that we should get there that I grew up like used cars are just sus. Yeah, there's the guy that got the Honda and the Toyota that he took it for steamings and oil changes, but I'm like I'll pay a million dollars a month to have a brand new car and after three years just dump it back >> and he's an accountant background. So, >> numbers, yeah, that works for me. But the the first first way you have to look at it is you have your new car and your used car. Okay, both items are a depreciating item. That means you buy it for $10,000. You're never getting $10,000 for that vehicle again unless CO comes. But otherwise, a car is the depreciating item. Now, when you go ahead and say a random statement, it doesn't pay to buy new or it doesn't pay to lease new or it only pays to buy used, it makes no sense because it really depends on the time that you're ready to get the car. So, for example, um when you buy a brand new car, there are three ways to purchase that new car. You can purchase the vehicle, you write a check, cash next, >> and today's cars are 50, $60,000. It's a lot of money. >> People save up for it. It's a big purchase. They pay for whether it's uh 20,000, 30,000, 50,000, doesn't the option is to purchase it by cash. The next option is financing. So, sometimes you'll have special financing as low as 1.9, 2.9. uh regular rates today uh for we're doing this in uh 2026 January. It's interest rates are like uh on the low end 4.9 5.5 you know right around there. And then you have leasing. Leasing is just another form of financing. So when somebody tells you it doesn't pay to lease and it doesn't do a sidebyside comparison, it's ridiculous. I don't understand. These guys are real guys and these guys mean it and they and they they believe it. I believe that you cannot make a statement like that unless you look at the numbers. >> So lease is really lease to own. >> That's the way you need to look at it. So when you buy the car cash and you buy and you compare it to financing. So after 5 years, 6 years, 7 years, the difference would be one car you paid finance charges whether it's $1,500, $3,000, whatever that finance charge. So, if you paid $30,000 for the new car and you paid $34,000 in financing, that $4,000 difference is the finance charge, right? It's no big deal. Leasing is the same way. So, leasing is basically a balloon at the end of the lease where you have an option to purchase the vehicle. So, you >> always a lease always comes with that option. >> Always. >> Not always. >> Not always. Tesla does not allow it. >> But, uh there are some companies that don't allow it. Most companies would allow it. uh most companies you want a fixed uh resale residual it's called uh it's a balloon and by having a fixed number you're able to really now compare buying financing and leasing. So you take your monthly payments you multiply by the term you add the residual which is whatever that cost to purchase at the end of the lease and then you add any other fees that are unique to leasing not the DMV fees because across the board that'll be the same. We're talking about the bank fee and if there's disposition fees. We do leases without disposition fees most of the time. But you take you add the bank fee and then you look at that number. You say, "Okay, luxury is a lease." Is leasing is a luxury, right? Simple. You get a new car every 3 years. How phenomenal is that? Right? But let's lease this vehicle and then with in mind to purchase this vehicle at the end of the lease. And remember, when you purchase it at the end of the lease, you still need to finance it. Typically, if you compare it to financing, you take all those numbers and you average out the rate. Yes, it's more money. The question is how much more money? So now, if you're the type of person who says, I cannot deal with a car breaking down every once in a while. I don't want to be out of warranty. So, somebody doesn't want to be out of warranty, the the Dave Ramsey will say, then buy a warranty on their that new car when you buy it brand new. Yeah, but now you're adding $2,500, $3,000 to the cost of the vehicle. So, now it starts evening out that dollar amount. And not to say leasing it'll be cheaper. Sometimes it can be cheaper. Sometimes the manufacturer wants you to lease the vehicle because statistically people who lease a car will stay with the same manufacturer time and time again. U so someone who gets a Camry every 3 years you'll see him typically with a Camry or he'll upgrade to the Avalon if they don't even make that anymore. But uh so the manufacturers sometimes will push the leasing for that. Um, so to just to say randomly it doesn't pay to do one, it doesn't make sense. >> Just another financing option. >> Again, somebody who pays cash, you know, again, if he's only making a half a percent in the bank, yeah, use the cash because you're only making half a percent, why pay 5%. But now, if you can put it into a CD or a money market or, you know, anything that makes 3 4%. Right? And that money now is compounding, you know, it starts to it meets up at a certain point. So cash doesn't make sense a lot of old also. So again the answer is never pays to buy it by cash. It never pays to buy used. Never it doesn't make sense. You really got to look at the numbers. New versus used. Used is a different type of buyer. Somebody who wants new wants new. You understand? And if the guy owns it for five, six years. Yeah. But at least he had a brand new. He knows his his car. He know he knows he took care of it. So it's not the wrong decision to buy new. And and that's why I'll lease brand new, sell brand new, finance brand new, sell used car, finance used cars, even lease used cars. So all that's available, but just to say a blanket statement, n it doesn't make sense. >> Well, when people say today's car companies are are really banks, what does that statement mean? >> When you say banks, >> like they're just they they're really just banks financing cars. >> No. So e every manufacturer has what they call typically a captive bank. So >> I have a Mazda two times in a row. It's called I pay my bills to Mazda Financial Services. Is that their bank? >> So that's a captive bank. So a captive bank. So you have the auto business, the manufacturer, right? And you have the you have the distributors which are the dealers. Um and then you have now the dealer needs help selling their cars. So you know I remember this was about seven eight years ago. Seven, eight years ago, Nissan couldn't get rid of the Nissan Centras and they needed to push their centuries out there. So, together the captive bank, which was Nissan Credit, and the and the manufacturer put together a program where anybody can get that car at a ridiculously low payment. So, you had a guy who had two repossessions, he still got a car. You understand? They were that desperate to move those vehicles. So, a captive bank is what it sounds like. They're captive to the manufacturer. >> So it's owned by the manufacturer. It's separate company. >> It's not owned. It's a separate company, but it's owned. It's backed by the ca by the manufacturer. So they technically will never lose money. You understand? The risk. The risk is really on the manufacturer, but they're there as a separate business entity. So like Honda and Toyota really don't have a tough time. They don't need any help from uh from the own from from the manufacturer. But you know a lot of times you'll have um you know whether it's Mazda, whether it's Subaru, these guys, you know, they need a little bit of push. The manufacturer will go subsidize their their uh interest rates. So now the the dealers are more competitive to the to the other, you know. >> Would you say Maza and Subaru if you have bad credit, you're you're more likely to get approved? >> No, it it it depends. You know, there's uh today I would say Mitsubishi and Ford would be the the go-to if you give bad credit. >> Yeah. But not bad credit. Not as good. >> I had a friend that tried to lease a car years ago and everybody was denying him and he was able to get a Ford. It It's very interesting, >> right? It's it it depends. It's timing. It's >> Why is Ford willing to forgive people's credit issues? >> It's, you know, they want to push those vehicles. It's they're c they're not desperate. They're just they're a captive, you know. you know, they they I guess statistically they'll think that they're not going to lose as much money, you know, to then the next guy and they'll go ahead. They'll get big down payments from these guys that, you know, they make these guys work for their approval. You look very young for your age. I'm not going to based on how many years you're in business, you're not a youngster. I find that the car business is a well, every business has a lot of stress. I find that the car business has millions of details. So, for example, when my car lease is up, I have to figure out how to call the company and arrange and end the lease inspection and the DMV. And if you're transferring the plates, when is it how many months? You get the car, it has to get inspection. If the dealership took care of it, in which state, could you, can't you? Then they have to get you the car, get back the old car, sign 45 documents. In New York, they make you sign more documents. Now, when you get the car, this thing, that thing, there's so much red tape. Didn't Carvana have like these one of these startup had a huge issues they couldn't get titles or something? >> We'll get to that in a minute. >> That was on the >> But when people call you, when people call you, it's like you have to like do credit checks, find out when their car is up, the new months, the new rates don't come out till a certain date of the month, getting back their old car, setting up the inspection, getting them the new car, DMV. I feel I feel like the leasing car companies are doing so much so much so much work. You're literally holding the car by the hand and then they fight with you over in every nickel and dime. How do you deal with the stress? >> It's again it's retail so retail is not always the most friendly uh environment. Uh we're doing this for a long time. So most of our customers are repeat customers. Um uh you know they they trust us. They know we're not uh we have fair pricing. They'll if somebody comes to us and says they got it for $5 less, we're not going to fight for $5. uh our prices are right the first time and they know it and most of when we quote cars we typically assume that someone's making two or three phone calls or two or three email inquiries. So it the mar the the competitive we can't be competitive if we're trying to make a million bucks on a car. We don't pay our mortgages with one car. Um it's repeat customers. They know the process. If you set the sale up to begin with three years beforehand, if you set it up properly, um all these things are not are non-issues. Uh if the customer is typically, uh if this type of customer is getting really a lot of bills for damages, we sell him a damage waiver. Um before we go ahead and do the inspections for him, he'll send us pictures and we'll say, "Listen, that's an accident. That's not excess wear and tear. We need to fix that one item before we have the inspection." This way we get everything covered under the excess wear and interior uh damage waiver. Not everybody needs a waiver. Not not everybody needs 15,000 miles a year. Um sometimes things happen, but that's the beauty about leasing. You you're able to pivot in middle of the lease. If the guy uh there are a lot of banks now that guy took 5,000 m lease and he needed 10,000 because somebody was sick in the family and he's going to Maryland all the time. you're able to purchase miles in the middle of lease and you know not lose anything because the penalty is usually like 15 cents more than if you would have purchased it up front. But now you know in order everybody's trying to outdo each other with these banks. So they're all like okay you want to change the miles here just okay you can buy the extra miles now it's just you can't finance it but you know you write a check and this way you don't lose for doing the extra mile. all these problems that you say these these situations that you need to do if you properly sell the vehicle all these things at the end it just flows nicely you know we have the the customers done do the application all online for and it's all on a secure website so we don't have to worry about uh hacking and stuff like that it's um it it's it's a it's an easy process when it comes to pricing you know yes it does change monthly we have uh two three guys in my office sitting just working all the cars getting getting to all the price. Even when we do the pricing, we do pricing sheets everybody can work off. We still individually price out each and every car. You know, people think they call up what's a Toyota Camry, what it's not like that. We got to figure out based on the mileage, based where you live, based on um if you need a waiver, if you need gap insurance, you all these things that you what you need. It takes time to to quote out a cut. So, one of the things I find interesting is that if we're discussing this pair of boots that I'm wearing, you know, they're usually about $160. So, if a guy says he got it for 120 and it's the same color and size, he actually got a $40 discount. I find that whenever I'm at a Shabas meal or sitting in a Suka Sima space and guys are discussing, oh, the Mazda CX90, I'm paying five. The other guys like I'm paying eight. I think it's the same model. I feel like 99% of the time they have no idea what they're talking about. Most of the time you'll see where guys are like here, one guy's here, one guy's here is simply because one guy is paying based on lower mileage, higher uh upfront cost. You know, one guy will pay the sales tax up front, the next guy says, "No, I got to put the sales tax in the payment, the next guy's in Florida, which the sales tax is half." Usually, two guys are talking over each other. They don't know what they're talking about. >> Anytime you're talking about a new commodity, there's not much difference in anything. Everything's very transparent. There's no you can't again if you know how to lease read a lease agreement there's nothing to hide you know it's all >> trade commodity this engine this this model blah blah blah when you look at a used car if anyone looks used car how much could you know that someone else doesn't know like and what can you look for listen you like like you give us some tips the engine looking at the miles >> on a used car whenever I sell a used car I'll always tell >> so when you buy forget when you sell >> when I sell a used car okay I'll always go to the client I'll say please take it to your mechanic Now again, we're doing mostly local. It's a little bit more difficult when the guy is in Pennsylvania, but locally, I will always say, "Take it to your mechanic." And if you deal with most cars, car dealers, they'll always tell you, "I check the car out for you." And I don't do that because when you're dealing with a mechanical thing, all right? Something breaks in 3 months from now, all I can tell you is my mechanic checked it out and your mechanic checked it out. Nobody saw anything. Stuff happens, right? We can say that here, right? Stuff happens. Um, so when I buy a car, it's, you know, you can tell a car based on the way it looks. If the guy took care of it, you know, typically with every fender is hit, you can you can probably assume the guy skipped every other oil change. Uh, you'll you'll take a look at the guy's tires. Uh, he probably never rotated his tires, you know, but, you know, those are easy things to overcome. Um, but you typically, you know, you you buy a car that listen to the engine, check the transmission. And those are the two big things. And everything else, >> listen to the engine and check the transmission. >> Yeah. >> And and what what are you listening for? >> You you want to make sure it's nice and no knocking noises. That wakes this guy up in the middle of the night. >> And the transmission, how do you check? >> You you make sure that it's shifting properly when you know each interval. >> So if you should drive, whatever it is, >> when you go drive, you go 10 miles, 50 m, 20 m, 30 m, you make sure it's shifting. Yeah. >> Interesting. And brakes. Well, that's >> brakes that you got to look at, you know. >> Look at the brakes. >> Yeah. But even these things you're mentioning like the average guy that sat on Kwell and now he's works in finance. He's not going to know. He's not going to know. You have to go to a mechanic that you trust and that's it. >> So Jewish people are not really known for maintaining their vehicles properly. So that's why they're a good candidate for leasing their vehicles. Uh the shorter the better. The problem is the shorter the lease, the more expensive it is. uh in the long run I don't really see that a that a growing Jewish family should buy cars simply because of the constant change in Barashem and their needs whether it's a small car to a bigger car and then once they have a big they have more kids they meet once they're done with the minivan uh they want to get the SUV and all these different constant changes when you buy a car or finance a car and then you want to give back you know you want to trade in the are. That's a whole new aspect that they have to now negotiate. And it's it's difficult. People don't always get top dollar for the trades or they had an accident. They'll say, "Yeah, what's the big deal? I I ran over somebody's bicycle, they made a police reports, but the car is worth $1,500 less if the Carfax says minor accident, right? You ran over a bicycle. Nobody knows that. Who cares? You have When I sell a car, I don't give a copy of the police report." You know what I mean? So it's again used cars are for people who like to who know their cars, take care of their cars and thema there is to know when to get out because that's when they start putting their money, you know. >> So when what's what's the sign? Would you give some some tips? >> They you got to have a pulse on it. You got to really pay attention to it. You know, I know when I get certain cars, I will not retail them. I'll only wholesale them. I'll take less money because I don't want to sell that car because I know that car's coming back >> with headaches. >> Headaches. Coming back means you usually don't come back to to eat herring with me. H >> how do you know if someone rolled back the miles? >> There's a few ways you can tell. Um you know, first of all, you have uh every vehicle has its own credit report. It's called Carfax. Uh the Carfax or auto check will tell you if there's an accident reported. It'll tell you what the mileage was reported uh at certain intervals like every time you do an inspection in New York State or in you know other states every time you uh go to an oil change sometimes a lot of these companies will uh >> register >> register it on the >> it's a massive crime no to roll back miles product it's a federal crime >> it's a federal crime yeah um but there's you know if the guy is really good you can he you he can get around it because you know if if he never goes for an oil change he does his own oil changes who knows what he does But you can tell again by the way a car looks. Uh you look at the undercarriage, you look at the >> Someone once told me that in an undisclosed location there were 40 cars lined up with some guy rolling back miles for return leases. >> It's going to be a real It's going to be a real some big scandal. They're going to catch us. >> He said I thought I would be the only one there. He tells me he said no there are 40 people. I'm like, >> I know. I thought this was like a thing from the 80s, but I guess >> there are people who would do that. It's silly. I mean, it's it's dangerous. It's a dangerous game. It's serious. A serious company wouldn't offer something like that. A serious person would >> not a company. He said there some he thought some guy his friend told him, "Oh, I this guy and there was a full Anyway, >> right. It's came into the office." I'm I'm saying more to make people aware that if they buy a used car or something, >> I'm not telling you to do this, God forbid, but when you buy a used car, having a mechanic, like you said, look it over. Someone could see if if the car says the miles, >> right? If the wear and tear matches the miles, that's what you got to do. Yeah. >> So, you need someone to really >> mechanic, that's what you got to do. >> You said that Jewish people are not good. It's fine. Every time I have an issue with my car, I in a rest stop, I just ask any person besides an Azure, they usually know, oh yeah, just do this, this, and that. I'm like, no, that that's if you're going to be hands-on, I'm talking about just maintaining it. It says 10% less. Ah, I got 20% left to go, you know? They they they they don't they just what's the big deal? You know, I don't really do that many miles. And sometimes when the car sits and you do less miles, it's that much more important to do the oil changes, you know, to rotate the tires because otherwise the tires, you know, the way they sit, it puts more wear on them. >> So, what are the basic things people should do to keep their car lasting long as possible? >> Yeah. You want to do your oil changes. You want to rotate your tires. By just rotating your tires, you want to do it every oil change in my opinion. Uh the manu the manufacturer in the book will tell you how much to do it. But if you rotate your tires every oil change because the intervals between oil changes is longer now, you'll double the life of your tires. Literally d means if you rotate it typically a typical person on a lease would not need to switch their tires. >> Gas quality makes a difference or not. >> Um the answer to that is basically go by what the book says. So if your book tells you 87, don't put it in 89. there's it's just a waste of money. The engines are engineered a certain way. And most of the time, even the ones that say to use the better one, they'll tell you you could you could use the lower one, and if you hear like pinging, it's like a little u a little noise, then you should switch back to the higher. >> My friend had a Volvo and it said in the lease agreement that if he doesn't use the most expensive gas, they could like penalize him. >> I doubt it says it like that, but um I I've never seen that. But um the manufact selling you this this expensive synthetic oils and the reality is when when you open the book cuz this is the the engineers write the books. These are the guys who put the engine together. They tell you what oil to use. You don't go lift services. You don't go above. >> So you shouldn't do the synthetic. >> Whatever the book tells you. That's what it's >> talking about the gas in the Volvo. >> I'm talking about the oil and the gas. If the book tells you 87, that's what you use. The book tells you 89. You use 89. If you want to be a little cheap, you do it every other one. You'll be okay. >> So, oil change, rotation, and you're good to go. >> Oil change, rotation. You want to make sure the fluids, the brakes, uh, you know, you got to it >> the brakes. >> Yeah, you got to do brakes. Even on the electric cars, you got to do brakes. >> One of the things I found interesting is I I I didn't know who you were, but I knew Izzy Herman, one of your one of your salesman, Izzy Herman. He comes across as a real Erian. A good boy. Nice guy. So, I asked him, I got I said, I got to meet your boss. I want to do this interview about caring cars and car leasing. I came into the office. You know, you have this idea of a car dealerships, a bunch of like rough tough rednecks. I came in, I felt like I was in Kylo, a bunch of young guys, modern orthodox guys. I got a very very good vibe. The reason why I'm mentioning is if people are on the fence about leasing cars or how who to deal with for cars, you go to some dealership 3 hours away, you're never going to see the guy away. He wants to make a quick buck. You're dealing with a company that's around 40 years. Yeah. I see who they are. >> Speaking of 40 years, I don't know how many retail from brands exist for as long as you guys. What is the secret? >> Like like in my head like think of stores cuz he's a retail brand. How many from brands you know from as a little kid that are still around today? Like real >> like literally I don't want to say on my hands. >> No, I I'll even say names. Growing up we always shopped at Freedman and Bar Park. Amazing nicest people. No, they went out. >> Kosher Plaza went away. saying >> Jean Son's disappeared. >> Where did they all go? >> What's running J? What's what's my favorite restaurant? The the fried chicken that exists. Kosher life. All these legacy are all gone. And here he is. >> So what what why do they all the secret? What's the secret? >> The first secret is own the real estate you're on so you never get kicked out. That's the first secret. Yeah. >> The 18th Avenue. >> That's my father when he set us up. >> You own 18th Avenue. The little triangle >> everywhere. Every every point where I moved from I sold. I bought >> What's on the 18th Avenue? There's a building now. Some guy bought and made a nice triangle building. So, always own the land. >> I don't know how we put a building there. I mean, I was barely able to put uh 10 cars in there. >> That was your iconic little triangle there. >> Yeah. But again, made us >> men's pizza stood the test of time. There you go. >> Yeah. Yeah. >> That means a little masle in that little area. >> A couple of fires you had helped you out. >> Yeah. And then the next thing is um it's the repeat business. So, the business model from the beginning was you take a guy, you sell him a car every 3 years. The only way you're going to get him back is be straightforward with the guy. It doesn't mean I have to tell him, "Don't worry about your damages. We'll take care of it." That's not what it means. It means, "Don't worry about your damages. I'll help you with your damages." You know, always straightforward. Don't overpromise, overd deliver. Uh, every 3 years, the same guy is coming back. Now, the same guy then his wife needs a car, then his kids needs a car, then his cousins, his co-workers, his boss or his workers. whatever it is is we grow the business that way and that's what's been working for us and it's generational. uh where these it's just I I know the parents I know the grandparents already at this point you know and and it's even the people who move to Lakewood people who go to uh Baltimore >> and you could service national right >> we could go national but we go we go to Florida we'd go all the way down to Florida a lot we do a lot of uh Lakewood and a lot of >> because if you're brokering you can broker a dealership anywhere in America and am I wrong >> again it's uh yes and no but a lot of times the out ofstate dealers even make it easier for us to make a living so the first question is >> I moved to Cincinnati. Can you get me a car? >> Yeah, for sure. >> All right. You just work with a local dealer. >> You call you you call your office, you do all the negotiations, all the paperwork, and then you just have a dealership in Cincinnati drive it to his driveway. >> No, we do we do everything ourselves. Uh where we get we'll pick up the car. In this case, if it's in Cincinnati, we'll we'll ship it on a truck. >> Oh, so you won't get a local Cincinnati? That's what I was thinking. Typically not because the concept of guys like me is you need to have a relationship where I'm buying these vehicles at basic debt cost from at at dead cost and these guys are just say hey Schlimey take the cars please just take them. Uh the guys in Ohio are not going to do that. It's it you know they're more relaxed. They don't have the intense competition that is over here. Uh they you know they have their dock fees are like $7 $800. uh you can't you just can't they can't compete with us >> being in business this long. How many of your former salespeople open their own company and how do you feel about that? >> So only only one time did it happen to me that two of my guys went out. Um they did it in a dirty way. Um when somebody works for me, they're not my slaves. What's mine is is my sales my customer my my database my customers they're my customers. Uh if a customer follows them, that's okay. Uh you know, I don't own the customer, but if they're calling the customer because they're going into my database, that's not straight. Uh that's the only time it happened to me and it and it happened in a dirty way. But >> only once. >> Only once. >> After over 40 years. >> Yeah. >> Wow. >> 37 years. >> In general, what do you think someone's attitude should be if their employee leaves and open their own company? What it's it seems to me like a free market thing. If you can't keep the guy there and the guy needs to move on, you got to let him go. You again, you don't own the person. >> So, why does it it seem to me there's a weird relationship that bosses have that they I don't it's I think it's delusional. You tell me otherwise. If you have an employee who wants to grow further, you kept him here. He's going to open his own company. Why is there all this anger and hate and I taught him and what do they expect? What they should expect? Where's the line? >> Hold on. Hold on. Last guest we had a couple of days ago said that in the from world you put in $50,000 training the guy because he's not doing anything the first few months. Then you pay a salary for 6 months. You just put in he said 100 grand and when he's competent after that 100 grand the next day he goes and opens on himself. So he says it's 100 grand straight into he said your competition. >> He pays for your competition. >> It's a very sarcastic but what what's your opinion the real >> he seems to very weird delusional on all sides. Tell me what you think. Again, the only time I I feel anger should come in is if the uh if the guy really just does it in a dirty way and he steals. >> What's considered dirty? What's considered clean? >> Clean way is the guy says, "I'm leaving. I'm going to I'm going to put on my own ads. I'm going to earn my own customers and he's going to start the business from scratch." That's that's legit. If the guy says, "Hey, this book of business that's here, they belong to me," which they don't belong to him. They belong to Wheels to Lease. um and they take that and that's the that's the book of business that they're going to call off of. That's stealing. That's black and white. It >> you're saying that the the the different differentiation is if they call him the new your former employee versus he calls them >> for sure. >> That's the main distinction. So if he goes >> you make your does that mean now you make your employees sign non-competes or you don't do it? >> I don't do non-competes because they're worthless in New York State and and and re realistically you know if someone wants to leave they can leave. you know, I I don't hold them back. Again, just don't call my clients. That's all, you know, and I've had guys leave and uh they went into the business. They didn't start on their own. They went into an adjacent business uh car related. All nice. You know, we still talk. We still invite each other to each other. There's no reason for to be nasty. And again, if you believe in God, you don't need to steal. I would say you're also one of the if I can think of the most forefront companies on the marketing, it's definitely you your company. What's your opinion and where's your best dollar spent for a business and it comes to marketing >> marketing? >> I see you evolved like 50 times. >> It's you need it's changed tremendously. I mean where it used to be all print you do you know all the new in the uh countryies and the fortune magazines and you get everybody on Shabas that's what they're opening up and that's what they're reading. Um then you did email marketing which is still you know a strong um >> email to your existing or random. >> We we build up our email uh our customer base and you know constantly send out our specials. Uh we're doing our SEOs where we're um trying to organically build up when people search car leasing Brooklyn or Long Island or Lakewood, you know, our name should come up. >> Paper ad paper click. We don't do paper clicks because you're chasing something there. It's difficult because it's it's a highly competitive market >> and the the quality of those leads tend not to be great. So the the organic leads seem to be uh much you know much fuller leads. And then uh right now we got to start working on uh AI as we're >> What's your favorite minivan? >> Favorite minivan? That's a good one. Depends what's the cheapest, right? >> Cheapest. >> How much difference is a Chrysler specifically than a Sienna? I know the price. >> So, I mean, the Chryslers used to be $200 cheaper. They couldn't get rid of them, so they would be $200 cheaper. Right now, the Odysseies are right the best deal. This is again January 2026. >> No, but Chrysler Pacifica does not make a car anymore, do they? >> They do. >> They still I heard they just rented in Florida. >> Somebody told me they're stopping to make it. >> It's possible. >> The stopping you had a hybrid. It was great. The electric and the gas. >> The the rumor is that Toyotas and Hondas are the best cars in the world. that if you buy them used, they would be the best car to get. And if you buy it used, it's also the best because it will have most resale value. >> True or false? >> Toyotas, Hondas, you can't say an investment when you buy a car because cars depreciate, but it'll Toyotas and Hondas do retain their value. I would say Toyotas a little bit better than Hondas and that's why they lease so well because they retain their values. So you're saying if a Mazda is going to lease the exact same car for for $500 a month and a Toyota's for $700 a month >> and financing would be similar. If somebody might buy out the car and then want to flip it one day, it would be a much better investment. Again, not an investment. >> It wouldn't be like that. So on on a lease, the if we're talking about the same car, a lot of times the Mazda needs to subsidize highly in order to compete with the Toyota. So the Toyota, which let's say the Toyota will sell at MSRP because there's a demand for that car and the Mazda will sell it at a,000 under invoice, let's say, you'll still have it, it'll have a difficult time competing with the resale value of a Toyota and it still needs to be subsidized. So a lot of times the Mazda would be the better deal because in the long run it's cheaper. But to, you know, when you're when you're a fan, someone's a fan of a Subaru, someone's a fan of a Honda, Toyota, you pay extra for that. That's what they want. >> Being that today's show is more about business, not more hashkafa. I mean, we're getting a lot of hashkuff. We're doing that, but a lot of it is about financing, money, business, making a decision. 99% of people in the world work for somebody. You have an employer. You come 9 to5, 9 to6, 10 to 4, whatever. I just left the company after a gazillion years. Now I'm on my own. >> Actually, Clappy's only past work history is electronics company and a leasing company. >> I I don't want to talk about caring. >> Okay. You don't want to talk about Carly. >> Short. It was a short. >> What are we talking about? >> Short career. Short. No, no. About me personally. It was a a very short thing for >> short stint. >> My my question is that a lot of people are watching the show and they're saying, "Oh, I work for a I work for a car company or I work for this company, electronic company. Why is the boss making all the money? I could also I could also, but when I came into your company and I saw all the overhead and the property, I didn't even know you owned the property and a million workers and you're you know, everything going on every single day. >> Taking the risk. I want to say what do you tell young people that work for people and they think they're just going to get up and start on their own. What's your general advice? >> So my own let's say my own salespeople which they're commission based and I tell them you know you can sell a car for nothing. You can make $10. It's all it's all in their hands cuz the reality is we're partners. They don't work for me. I'm giving them the tools. I'm paying for all the overhead but we're partners. We we're building the the customer base together. Um >> it definitely got that vibe in office. Yeah. Know that that's that's the only way it can work and that's why these guys are with me, you know, 15 20 years. >> Um, >> that says everything. >> Yeah. The to to to think you can just go out there. I I don't think anybody really thinks they can just go out there and start a business and have no overhead. Uh, you'll have a guy who does car service and also leasing. I heard already like while they're talk while they're doing their Uber ride, they're they're calling up dealerships or other places trying to get pricing for the guy in the back seat. Like he's he's trying to get himself out of business. >> But that's creative. That's creative. >> That's creative. But I respect that. >> You But you know, can you do it? Yeah, you can do it. You can't do it in volume. But you you'll have a guy who works in a warehouse. He tries to do a little bit of leasing. I have guys who come to me all the time. Hey, can you give me a commission? I'll bring you sales. The answer is always yes. Why not? you know, bring me some business uh and it works out. They're talking to the customer doing they're doing all the work. I'm doing all the backend work. They're doing the front-end work. You know, you can be a part-time salesman by me. No, it's no difference. >> Any suggestions on car insurance? >> Car insurance is difficult. Um it's it's not like it used to be. Um Brooklyn, it's become difficult. Uh the for a new driver, you people are, you know, going on their parents' policy and then when they get to a certain age, they're able to get off their policies. But uh it's a challenge right now. Insurance. >> First time I got a car, I was in my 30s already. So Geico gave me a really cheap rate. And then I got into a small accident sadly within a very short period of time. And they like went up a gazillion dollars. And then I was just getting ripped off for many months. And then a friend of mine worked for All State. He said, "Did you ever price out All State?" I said, "No." A few weeks after that, I called a bunch of companies and they were all crazy. This was about 11 12 a year later. Then let me price it. Then All State came in at $150 cheaper. >> Now they're slowly going up every month. Right. How often should people be getting quotes on car insurance? >> So, the funny thing is, you know, people make you crazy when in the on the retail side $5 less, $6 less, and they don't shop their insurance. It makes zero sense to them. It's every 6 months to a year, you should be at least going online, checking your insurance out. We're talking I've seen differences, and Geico is a great company. I hope they're going to be paying for this advertising, but Geico is a good customer serviceoriented company, but they're not the cheapest. Uh, and you have other companies. We recommend a couple of different brokers. They didn't pay so I'm not going to say their names. Um, but you have other companies and there could be a difference like like All State $3 $400 a year cheaper. Now, All State's not the best customer service when it comes to a car because we have our own shop and we deal with them when they get into action. They're not the greatest, but in the end of the day, they cover. They're a real They're a real insurance company and they're cheaper. You know >> who's the greatest? >> Geico. I would say Gecko is a good service. Yeah, they're a good company. I just had a claim with them on a rental car. I rented a car. My car was in the shop. I was so impressed. I felt like there was a luxury service. They on top of it. >> They didn't respond. >> You didn't go against your credit card. >> My credit card didn't cover it. I had one of these cheap credit cards. >> Got to think that through. >> People rent cards dozens of times a year, especially in the from community. Pesaks and sukus and hamoy trips and they need a bigger car to go to the country. Every time people rent cars, they're so confused. my my American Express covers bumper to bumper doesn't. I had a relative that said, "I don't mind getting ripped off 20 bucks a day. I need bumper to bumper." And I say, "What do you mean bumper to bumper?" And he says, he told the guy at the desk, he's like, "I'm going to take the car now and I'm going to smash it right against the wall. You're just going to give me another set of keys to another car and I'm never going to get build for a dollar." And the guy behind the desk said, "That's what bumperto- bumper is going to cover." Should people get bumper to bumper? >> I don't know the nuances if the credit card company covers it. I know in New York State they're not allowed to charge more than I think for $100 worth of damages. So, I don't know. I I don't know. I'll be honest with you. I don't know who takes the risk. >> What's your favorite luxury brand? Do you have a favorite for you with all just numbers? Do you have any cure about cars at all at your point in life? >> So, my wife always gets a new car every few years. Uh I got my first new car just recently. Uh they I got an electric car because it was for free. I got it and I say free. It was like under under 200 bucks a month >> promo >> and it's a $75,000 car and I I kind I'm enjoying it. >> Rivian, >> no, it was a Jeep Wagon Ear S. And um it's >> Is it 200 for everyone or just for you? >> It was at that time 200. So if it would have been for somebody else would have been 2011 cuz I make a dollar a month on everybody. >> Oh, the wagon right now is I'm just curious. It's not It's not a promo now. I I don't know what Rivian and Tesla uh only sell directly to the consumer. >> You have something to drink. >> Are you the first electric car ever? >> For me, it was the first. I mean, I I've had golf carts, you know. I sold golf carts. >> I sold golf. >> I wanted to talk about golfart. No, I wanted to talk about this. You said in the office that you have a dealership upstate, >> right? And I think upstate it's 300,000 from a year then go every summer. And you said that you have these like off-terrain vehicles. So I want you to plug that. Tell us about that business. >> What we have is we have >> Was that a midlife crisis project? >> Uh it was a project. I was trying to get something else and I ended up with that. That's again all from Minamay. I I sell Bobcat. The Bobcats are the lawn maintenance division, which is mini tractors, ride-on lawnmowers, um, excavators, and stuff like that. >> Not snowmobiles, ATVs. >> And then I sell Polaris. >> I do not sell the snowmobile, uh, line, but I do sell ATVs, UTVs. Uh, we also sell um, Slingshot, those >> How about the golf carts? All the all the fancy bungavo colonies. Every yent that drives around in an expensive golf cart. >> We do sell We do sell the Bentellis. Uh uh golf carts or lithium batteries, backup cameras, Bluetooth >> backup. >> I want to know about the golf carts because I go out I go out to the country in the summer and I also want to fit in with the cool people with the golf cart with the kids hanging on in the back with the Bluetooth speaker. >> I want to feel Tell me about the golf carts. >> What do you need to know? You have four passengers, six passengers. >> What do they retail? >> Uh I think they're like 112,000. >> Can I can I take a lease on one? >> No, you can't take a lease, but uh you can trade it in trade it in every year. You could trade it in every year? >> Yeah, we'll buy it back from you. >> Pay 13 grand and sell it back to you. >> I'm not paying 13 grand. >> Sounds like a lot of paperwork. What's the easier way to get these fancy golf cards? >> You buy it and you and the only thing you need to do is store it, which we do store for people. Uh the unit >> you need you need insurance on them. >> So, usually your homeowners will actually cover that. >> If you want to drive it on the street, you would need to get plates, which those things are street legal. When people say that a new car you drive off a lot, it goes down value, I don't know, 20%. Is that true or false? >> I don't know about the percentage, but it does take a nice hit. >> How much? What would you guesstimate? >> 20%. >> I heard it somewhere. 20%. >> So, when it goes off, it means that after a certain amount of miles, it drops 20%. Or the fact that it was once sold. >> Once the title changes from new to used, that's the that that is what it uh goes down. So, in other words, if I take a brand new car and I'll sell it with the birth certificate is called an MSO. If I sell a car with an MSO, that's a brand new vehicle. You can sell it as brand new. Once I have to sell it as used, even with one mile, you're going to get a lot less money. Now, again, most people would still pay top dollar for a onem car because the story is pretty self-evident. It's a brand new car, but um yeah, but once it's a used car, it takes a hit. What is this? My mother always says, "As long as it's all-wheel drive." I'm in New York. I need all-wheel drive. I mean, it does snow maybe every winter two, three times, an inch before. >> Do you need all-wheel drive in New York? >> I mean, frontwheel drive should be enough. Um, >> but what's backwheel drive? Sports cars. >> Rear wheel drive is the old Lincoln Town cars. >> Good cars. Um, cargo vans are rear wheel drive. So, rear wheel drive since the weight is in the front by the engine. Uh, so when the wheels don't have weight on it, so it spins when it's on snow or ice. When you have frontwheel drive, the engine's there right on top of the wheels. So it typically will have better traction. Now, the one thing I could tell you about all-wheel or four-wheel drive, uh, if you don't have good tires, it's not going to help. >> What's the reason all four-wheel? >> Um, four-wheel is it's all the time on four-wheel. All-wheel is typically electronic where it'll switch between wheels depending on its need. >> Interesting. The typical consumer like my wife and I, the first time we were getting a car, we only had one kid. Should we get a sedan? Should we get a crossover? Should we get a minivan because in 5 years from now we might need it? Should we get a minivan because he could put down the third row and have cargo? These are the conversations going on in millions of people's homes right now. So, if the father-in-law is paying and he wants a lot of grandchildren, should get him a 15 passenger, skip the minivan. All right, that's if the father-in-law is paying. Um, re realistically, this that's one of the reasons I would say take a a two or three year depending on what the planning of the family is on a smaller car. Um, it's cheaper. It's it's easier to move to get around. You want to uh factor factor in at least every year and a half another kid. So, you know, if there's if they already have two kids, a small car is not going to make sense. You want to get a an SUV where you can at least put the carriages in the back easily and have two, three child seats in there. Uh, there's nothing like the practicality of a minivan. A lot of people don't like it because it's not cool. >> Could they make a minivan that's classy? >> Um, I I would love them to make a minivan that actually a regular door, not a sliding door. I think that'll make a big difference, but nobody's nobody's asking me. regular like a open >> like a regular door like a long It'll look like just a a big station wagon. A tall station wagon. >> Why don't they Why don't they >> Yeah. >> What's the relationship? >> You can start a campaign right now. >> What's the relationship between dealers leasing people? What's that like? I see these like these petitions that come in every few years >> between dealers. You have dealers who are, you know, actively trying to uh close down that industry, the market of the brokering. Uh, I I'm kind of grandfathered in and I have a license since I'm doing this so long that I'm allowed to sell new and used cars, any make, any model, while the dealers can only sell their brand that they their their franchise. I cannot do warranty work. But, uh, other than that, I can do everything they can do. But, they're trying to put an end to the basement guys working in a basement, the guys who, you know, get just a storefront and three guys working. uh because to them it looks like it's unfair competition. Uh to that >> they don't like free market. >> They don't like the free market. To that I say they kind of created this industry because people hate going to dealers and it's not like it changed. I mean I get stories all the time. They say, "Well, I got a quote from the dealer in writing because now everything's done in email and the dealer doesn't deliver. They they'll just try every >> just to get you in the door and then they screw you >> to get you in correct. And if you're not willing to go down there and they're doing everything over the email, you know, that's when things start to unravel for them. You know, by me, it's like, I'm going to give you the number, get it, let's get it done. >> They created the inefficiency. >> They created the the animosity with the dealers are not liked. You know, you can make a fancy showroom, you can put a suit on a monkey, but it's still a monkey, right? It's just they get these fancy showrooms and they don't really they don't treat people right. I mean, it's all about how much can we get out of this guy. >> So, whose issue is it, the manufacturer or the dealer or all the other? >> I mean, the manufacturer has to deal with the reputational issue, but people still need cars. >> Would you say the luxury brands also have that same problem that they're not so ethical or it runs across? the luxury brands. I I would I would say no. They're they'll be a little bit more ethical, but um they're a little bit uh definitely I would say a little bit more straight. >> Slightly more. >> Yeah. >> How when you service a car in a dealer versus an independent mechanic, what's the price difference? >> So, when you go to a dealer, it's if it's under warranty, you're in good shape, >> right? But if you're not, >> what you need to be careful about going to the dealer is >> um >> all I know is that the free food is by the by the repair shop, not when you buy a car. >> By No, by you you can go. >> So I'm guessing the waiting room. You can go there. >> I had a waste car. I had a waste car. >> Hold on. Sorry. Go on. >> What's it What's the You're going to bring your car to a >> So you you don't want to go to a dealer if you're going to just do maintenance unless it's for free. Unless it's a special. Now, if they give you a special like a $29 oil change, uh you want to make sure that they don't upsell you on things you don't need. So, if they give you a $29 oil change and they charge you 100 bucks to rotate the tires, it was no mitia cuz your guy is going to do everything for 50 bucks. Um the the issue of going to a new car dealer for for the warranty work, that's where you got to go because if you go to a regular mechanic, he's going to charge you, right? And he's not he's not doing it for free. when you go to the new car dealer, the manufacturer will pay. The problem is some dealers have a reputation of things not being on the warranty and they start making things up. And that's when you need to be careful. So depending on what the problem is, I'll generally tell a customer, say, "Hey, you got a a knocking noise every time you're when you're making a left turn, go to your go to your regular mechanic, check out the tire." you know, maybe you have a rock stuck in the tire, maybe you have a nail stuck in the tire because you go to a dealer, they find that, they'll plug it for a hundred bucks, and then they'll tell you another $150 to diagnose it all for something that you could take care of yourself. So, you got to be careful of what you're going to go to the new car dealer for on the warranty works side. Uh, but typically for warranty work, you want to go to a dealer. >> My car, I had a car a few years ago, a brand new Mazda, and every time I was turning the wheel, there was like a something was getting stuck. So, I brought it into the dealership, like an hour drive. They gave me a loaner for a day and then they sent me a video that there was a bolt that went loose in the actual wheel, whatever. And they said, "Everything is perfect. It's ready for pickup." And then a guy calls me up 20 minutes later. By the way, we could do this and we could filter this and we could do this and we could for $300. I said, "Don't do anything." >> You can't you can't blame them for upselling because that's they're there to make a living. Um the problem is if they sell you things you don't need. That's the problem. >> What are typical things they try to sell you don't need? It really depends on the how many miles you have and stuff like that. And and again, if you go by the book, uh when I say the book, by the manufacturers, you know, by the manual, and if they're telling you you need to change a timing chain by a certain amount of miles, and you didn't reach that plateau, you don't do it. It's as simple as that. And even if the dealer says, "Well, till the next time you get here," you don't you don't do it unless, you know, the book recommends it. And and if it's not under warranty, you typically will be cheaper anyways to to get it done by an independent mechanic. But you just got to make sure you know, you know, cars are more complicated today. And you need to make sure you got a guy who knows what he's doing. >> Today's cars, there's so many digital things going on. You we you like you like you turn the car. It says, "Are you tired? Maybe pull over." Just because he made a sharp turn. And there's it says this the mileage on the window. There's digital things. When you were a kid, there was nothing. It was a radio maybe if it worked sometimes for some radio stations. How many times are people getting into major issues with their car that are not really like the muffler or the brakes, but because there's a digital sensor that are off and are those are those issues easier or cheaper to fix than mechanical problems? >> So, the easiest problems to fix are generally things that constantly happening. So, when you go to the dealer and it's not happening, that's a difficult thing. Uh, if the check engine light goes on and goes off, there is a history in the computer of what it was, so they can check it. But if the battery dies in between, sometimes it doesn't save that information. But that's one of the more problematic issues when something electronic goes bad. Um, and if it's not happening all the time, like uh you when your car go when you close your car, the mirrors are supposed to close in, but it doesn't always close. It's probably user error anyways, and you probably have have to change a setting. But, uh, that's one of those things. And and to be honest, most dealers, they don't even know their own products. Then when you when you call them up, you know, when I have a question, I'll have to sit and I'll read the manual for the customer sometimes to figure out some of these problems. >> Third party. >> Okay. >> A guy wants to lease a car and he says, "I can lease it under my name, you know, just here's my name, my legal name, my social, run my chatter, or he has 25 different corporations and entities and LLC's and nonforprofits." What? No. Everybody today has a Shaw, a moist, a yeshiva PTA club. What's the best way to lease the car? I I I'm thinking about it myself. >> You have to reverse engineer from the insurance. The insurance, you're right. The insurance is is one of is pretty much the more expensive part of the transaction. That's why I say shop your insurance once a year minimum. Uh this way you can save some money that way. Um sometimes you're stuck in insurance because you had an accident and for the next 5 years you can't check because anybody nobody else will take you uh at a reasonable number. So the first thing is shop the insurance. If you're going to do it on a on a a uh a taxexempt entity, yeah, you saved your 3040 40 bucks a month on the sales tax, but what about now you're paying $100 more than on the insurance? >> Why would the insurance be $100? >> Because a corpor because you it it's a corporation. So, it's a commercial policy and now you got to register it on the corporation. So, you you you can't register the car in your name and say you're tax exempt. You know what I mean? So, it has to be on the on the corporation and the insurance is much higher typically. Not all the time. Sometimes somebody's license is so bad their corporation is cheaper than the >> So it's an individual case by case, >> right? So, but the best way to reverse engineer is doing it through the insurance company. >> Third party aftermarket warranties. What's your opinion? Are they any of them legit? >> I actually deal with a company uh I I had a company I dealt with when all the companies it was one time where everybody went out of business. Uh I didn't get too hurt by that. The law with those situations are um if a company goes out of business, a warranty company. >> Oh, so that's their trick. They just go out of business. >> No, they right. If it's >> is that their business model? >> So they have to be they have to be underwritten by an insurance company. >> So there was one company I dealt with way in the beginning. I learn, you know, I learned the hard way where it went out of business and they had nobody. The underlying insurance company also went out. >> Could you recommend any legit ones that exist today and is it worth it? >> Yeah. Yes. So you have to make sure the that the insurance companies who are behind it >> are legit >> are A-rated and stuff like that. >> Typical case happens. >> So hold on. Are there legit aftermarket is it worth it for used car owners? Yes. And which one would you recommend? >> The person who's you have to rely on the person who's selling to you the reputation that that's the that's what you need to rely on because there's no way a person off the street is going to be able to trust some random aftermarket warranties. What's >> aftermarket warranties? You're getting a phone call from a random person, a cold call about your warranty. How do you know that company? You understand? >> So, could you recommend anyone on on here on camera? >> Well, we sell We sell warranties. >> You sell warranties, >> but we only sell warranties on the vehicles we sell. >> Oh, not randoms, >> right? So, >> so I have my car currently that I bought another dealer, used car dealer. I can't call you to get a warranty. >> Not unless we inspect the vehicles. So what happens is we we >> every insurance policy goes into our pool >> and that pool we get rated on that pool. If our pool is a highly claims pool that's a problem and then our rates go up and we got to keep rates low for everybody. So I'm not going to bring in some third some guy went to the auction and just wants to cover a car with a transmission. >> So when would you recommend it to your clients? >> When they buy a used car we give them an option. >> Okay. So, I'll bring my car with >> somebody gets a 36-month lease and then after the 36 months, he still likes his car and he's looking around them. It happened to me. You're looking around new cars and the prices are very expensive and you think if I wait a month, if I wait another month, another month, and you're calling up the the bank, you know, their internal bank, and they they're letting you extend it month by month by month by month. They just changed the tax a little bit. They said the tax rate changed a little bit. What are now I have a friend that's telling me he was doing it once like on a car for like a year, year and a half, past the lease. Are there any risks? >> So, sometimes the banks will allow you to take that long. A lot of times they'll make you do an extension, not a month by month. Um, not all banks allow monthto-month, but you'll have to do an extension. When you do the extensions, the risk is basically the mechanical risk. So, most, let's say, Nissan, when you do that, they have a 5-year engine transmission. So, you're really just now risking the water pump, the uh condensers, and stuff like that. All right? It's not the end of the world if if you're really just looking to push it off. If you're looking to purchase the vehicle at that point, you may as well just purchase it at the end of the lease, do a a finance, which of course we can handle for the co for the client, and you can purchase a warranty to mitigate any risks of the car breaking down because the bumper-to-bumper part is typically off after 36 months. >> About the damage waiver we discussed probably 45 minutes ago, damage waivers, people have like a $5,000 damage waiver if the shopping cart and bingo bumps into your car, >> right? So, it's a little misleading $5,000 damage waiver. Um, first of all, some banks have ex it's called an excess wear and tear waiver, not a damage waiver. And the the nuance there is damages can be from if it's if it's an accident, it's not you got to go through your insurance company. >> Never covered a real accident not covered. >> It's not covered. So, if someone is driving down, you know, Route 17, get hits a deer and he he gets an estimate of $7,000 and he says, "You know what? $5,000 waiver. I'll pay write a $2,000 check. It doesn't work. They, you know, that's an extreme case. Um, but typically if if uh one damage itself is $1,000, it usually won't be covered. So, what that means is, let's assume you have a scratch from the back all the way to the front. When I say a scratch, I'm talking a scrape where it goes into the car and it's obvious that it was the same garbage truck that took that say same incident. That would not be covered. So we have to fix certain parts of that to make sure that the other parts get covered. That's where we we step in. >> So it's a gray area of what they'll cover, how much is each damage, what type of damage. >> It's not a gray area. It's just they don't cover collision. So we just have to make sure things are covered by non-colision items. Um so that's why I say if a car has $5,000 in damage, I don't know how it can't be collision. You know, how can you have $5,000 in damages? But it does cover up to $5,000 of damages. >> Excess wear and tear on excess wear and tear on a typical whis is what like $600. >> So is is there a typical right in Crown Heights? It's a little >> regular your average W that you do every day. >> So the typical wear and TLC is about 7800 bucks. >> So you throw it into 36 months, it's an extra $28 a month, >> right? the the waiver cost if we were to sell the waiver. You're talking about I'm saying $7,800 is typical damages that that we see. >> Oh, the actual waiver the actual how much does that cost? >> $5.95. >> 5.95 >> today. January 2026 >> plus tax. Plus tax plus tax. Yeah. >> It's about $650 bucks. So that averages another $25, let's say, into your lease. Do you tell people not push it, do you tell people to take it? The way I sell it is basically is most people are leasing time and time again and I ask them how much damage did you have on your previous vehicle and if they had two three vehicles so they have a they have an average of what they come back with in damages. So if you have an average damage damages of 78 $800 bucks you're going to spend 600 bucks now I don't know if it really pays you know if you have 13 $1,400 damages it does pay a lot of times the reason I would say it doesn't pay $700 even though it's only $600 is because most manufacturers you go if you stay with them they give you $500 right off the top. So that means you need to have $1,100 worth of damages just to start paying forward. So, it really depends on the on the person and and again, not all damages are covered by these waivers, but that's where we're there to to hold your hand. >> The answer to many questions is is that it's really a case by case basis. When to buy, when to get used, when to lease, when to get a longer lease, more mileage, access, wear, interior. So, you it's not just a one time, you know, buy a TV, who's $20 cheaper, Costco versus another retailer. >> It's not about the payment by itself. by having a relationship with wheels to lease, >> right? So, again, I train my the people who work with me. I I tell them all the time, ask the questions. Uh people say, "I don't know how many miles I do. I need 10,000 miles a year." So, I I'll right away I'll get their pl I'll get their uh VIN number. I'll check Carfax. I see every year what it was for the mileage. And I say, "You're averaging 6,000 mi a year. Why do you need 12?" >> You know, so then they'll tell me a story. Well, I didn't work for two of those uh three years. Okay. You know, that's a different story. So, now you doctor checkup. >> Yeah. >> Also, with the finance and a lease, another extra hidden fee is you need full coverage versus if you buy a car, you don't need full coverage. >> Again, you you're buying a $50,000 car, no coverage. It's it's uh >> if you finance a used car, I'm saying coverage. >> You need on anytime you're touching with a bank, you need full coverage. Your liabilities can be different if you own versus leasing. >> But how much more a year full coverage costs in New York? 2 3,000. >> I I I would I would add 1,500 2,000 max. >> Guy's driving down McDonald Avenue and he slightly, you know, spaces out and he bumps into a car in front of him and he gets a little hit is that you don't know if that damage is going to be $200 or $800 or it's going to be a new bumper and the screaming yelling match goes on and a lot of the times the two drivers say, "You know what? Well, here's your cell phone number. Call me. We change each other. Take pictures of of each other's driver's license and insurance. Let's see if we could work this out on our own." Mhm. So, >> I one time was driving a company van, a 15 passenger van for a company. I was very young. I was very Your father-in-law. >> Whose company's van was I driving? I don't want to say. >> What type of business? >> No, I worked for a company. We we we were at their event last night. >> Okay. >> I was driving their 50 passenger van. I smashed into on Kingston Avenue. I smashed into some nice guy um um mirror and I said, "I take full responsibility. I don't know. I mis misaligned it or whatever." I sent them to a um a car dealership. It was $250. I gave the guy $250 cash. We shook hands. We were best friends. And the guy actually said, "I never dreamt you were going to be so honest." Cuz I didn't want insurance making a whole story. Are there a lot of people that it ends up working well where you should always just say, "Call my insurance. Have a good day." >> So the insurance again, if they touch your insurance, it's not a good thing. >> Uh some some guys will try to take advantage of you. >> They'll try to double dip. >> They'll No, not double dip. They'll try to take advantage of you. So you have you have to be careful. What I recommend if uh you get into any type of fender bender, I recommend taking a video and a video of the conversation you're having with the guy. Mo most people at the scene are typically honest and they'll say what happened and that'll kind of cover you. You know, later assuming it's always the other person's fault. You know what I mean? Um >> I don't want I'm going to get to that in a minute. >> Yeah, it's too early to be flash. Right. >> That's probably talking about what are we doing now? Now, we're going to be talking about last week at the microphone. We want to talk a little bit about our corporate sponsors, Roskins. I don't only advertise it and eat it on the show, but Shabas, we brought home the grav. We brought home the gapilta fish, the tuna salad with scallions. I had two bagels and tuna yesterday. Delicious. Their egg salad was also very good. And uh we brought a whole bunch of stuff today from Roskins. They have a custommade pickle that's flat that when you put your herring on it, you don't have to take a big thick bite. >> That was close. Oh man, >> you said you don't want fish. You don't want >> You got to keep his good luck. >> Yeah. You see, you got to go to the gym. For me, it's natural. Just don't eat. >> Ready to eat half cure tuna. This is the highest grade of tuna. >> This >> the highest grade. >> Like the ones the Japanese uh sell them for a million dollars. Climbing. >> Take it. Oh, the little the black pepper. S what's your favorite favorite restaurant? >> Favorite restaurant? >> Are you a restaurant guy or no? >> Not a restaurant guy. My favorite food. >> Favorite food? >> Chalant. You know I got good ch What's your favorite chalant? >> Take out favorite take only >> my wife. My wife custom made. Custom made >> the right the right meat. Ashley. >> She's ashkaz girl. >> The eggs in the ch. No eggs in the >> ch. The butcher, CH Butcher. They have a beautiful, beautiful, gorgeous five-star restaurant on Troy Avenue. And then they have a gorgeous deli meat shop on Albany Avenue. CH Butcher. They keep trying new flavors for that beef jerky. This is teriyak. I'm not going to get fake at 10 in the morning. Is it 10? What time is it now? >> 112. >> Wow. >> Smell this. Smell >> like five minutes already. Smells good. >> Thank you. >> We're all So, thank you to our sponsors, uh, Roskins and CH Butcher, both Crowney local businesses. >> 32 flavors. 32 flavors of herring. The >> tuna is really good. >> Herring Tuscana. We'll have that in the car. And we have red pepper haring clapp I parked on the street and we get a ticket. What's your guess? >> It happened 50/50 if you get a ticket. >> Give a guess. >> Well, who cares? What do you >> say? Yes or no? Why don't just find what do we care? >> Let me ask you, do you guys have any merch? >> We have to get merch. We have to get merch. >> Not yet. >> Kirkland. What is it called? >> Kickan. Kicker. >> Kicker. >> All right. >> Anyways, I want to thank Harris for coming on to the show. >> I learned a lot. Well, I >> I learned a lot as well. >> You're an old old Lucent guy. So, how much did you learn? >> I would definitely recommend if anybody wants to have the Hisha experience. You mind if I give a plug for Izzy? You know, he's a great >> Izzy Herman. One of my top guys there. >> Top guy. Izzy Herman and you're dealing with the top guys. Show me and the team coming with 40 years experience. There's nothing >> 37 years. See, I always used I was I'm always a cheerleader for the new guy in the block, but as I got older, I just want to deal with the guy who did it for 40 years. Secret secretly, I want to go to the OGI. >> There's not an issue that didn't go through your any issue that could come up which went through your desk. >> That's what I do all day. Put out those fires. Make sure people are happy. >> All right. Thank you so much. Thank you so