[Marky Mark]

You CAN negotiate the buyout price with the dealer... Being told "a contract is a contract" or anything else is just a negotiating tactic. It depends on how many lease returns/used cars they have in their inventory and how badly they want to sell them.

Usually dealers do not want to play ball because they are not interested in giving you a "deal" on your old car, they want to sell/lease you a NEW one and then sell your old car to someone else.

Dealers are in the business of selling/leasing new cars. Used cars usually get sold through a different firm, that is legally not the same entity as the new car dealership, even though the car may be located on their property. The new car dealer is one business, and the used car dealer is another business.

As for plates, you are located in NYC, so the plates and registration are yours. I live near you and when I returned a lease vehicle in NY, they gave me my plates to return to dmv or transfer them. I also returned a car in NJ and had the same scenario happen. Other states may be different, but as far as NY and NJ are concerned, the registration is yours, no matter who owns the car.