Scott Lewis: The DPD Is Paying $600 a Month for 2004 Dodge Intrepid

Scott Lewis asks: "What would you think if you saw a deal like this in the want ads? For lease: a 2004 Dodge Intrepid, just $608 a month, plus 15 cents per mile."

That is what the Detroit Police Department is paying for the Intrepid. But the cops are also paying huge sums for other cars, Lewis found. His report will air today at 6 p.m., but he has posted a story at wxyz.com.  

Through the Michigan Freedom of Information Act, he obtained leases on 110 identical two-year contracts on 2004 through 2007 models. All of the leases ar expired, and the cars remain on the road. The city is still making the full lease payments ranging from $400 to $600 per month to Trader Ray Leasing.
Alan Reinstein, George Husband Professor of Accounting at Wayne State University, said if true, this lease arrangement is a huge waste of taxpayer’s money.

“The difference between buying a car and leasing a car for 110 cars is over $4 million,” Reinstein told Lewis.