TL;DR (3-minute read): We leased a 2026 Jetta, modified it, raced it in the Bump N' Rub demolition derby in Oakley, Idaho, and won three heats before getting disqualified when the car locked our seatbelts and called the SOS hotline mid-race. Then we tried to return it. The dealer said no. Thank goodness we can purchase it through Lease End and keep it for next year's race ;).
When Josh pitched this idea, my response was pretty much immediate: "That's freaking sick. I love it."
The plan: lease a brand new car, modify it, race it in a demolition derby, and then try to return it to the dealership. Simple enough.
The Pitch
We leased a 2026 Volkswagen Jetta straight off the lot, entered it in a dirt track race called the Bump N' Rub in Oakley, Idaho, and figured we'd see what happened.
My role was co-driver and navigator. Which in practice meant I sat shotgun and called out things like "He's on your butt, he's on your butt!" while Dalton did the actual driving.
What We Did to the Jetta
Before the race, we spent a couple days in Dalton's garage getting the car ready. We pulled out the back seats, removed the glass (not as straightforward as it sounds — do not attack a car window with a pry bar while wearing sandals), straight-piped the exhaust, had a custom bumper welded and painted in Lease End blue, and fitted bigger tires.
The tires turned out to be the wrong ply rating. We found that out at the driver's meeting the night before the race.
At some point the car also started throwing a warning that said SOS. We noted it and moved on. That becomes relevant later.
Race Day
The other competitors showed up with 15- and 20-year-old Chevy Cavaliers. We showed up in a 2026 Jetta. They thought it was pretty funny. The announcer called Dalton "old Wallace" and told him to get out of granny gear, which was fair.
Then we started winning.
Race 1: win. Race 2: win. Race 3: win — even after blowing a tire, ripping off the bumper, and bending the steering rack. Josh zip-tied the bumper back on at 6 a.m. and we got back in line. Going into the triple elimination finals, we were undefeated, which genuinely surprised all of us.
The Part Where the Car Called 911
In the final race, we took a big hit and the Jetta's emergency system kicked in — the car thought it was in an actual accident, which, to be fair, it sort of was. Engine cut off. Both seatbelts locked. Dalton could barely breathe and I couldn't get mine to re-latch.
And then the car called 911. Automatically, using the SOS system we'd noticed on day one and promptly forgotten about.
So I spent part of that last lap on the phone with a dispatcher explaining that we were fine, we were in a race, no one needed to come out. Meanwhile Dalton restarted the car and we finished the lap without seatbelts.
We got disqualified for the seatbelt. The other guy drove about 20 yards further — his car was also on fire at the time — and took the championship. We got second. It stings a little.
Returning the Car
We pulled the Jetta back into the lot where this started. Brian came out.
"We can't take it back like that. That's not normal wear and tear. Where's the glass?"
We knew going in that this was how it was going to go. So we called Lease End, bought out the lease on the spot, and kept the car. That's the whole point of what we built — buying out your lease should be easy, no matter what's going on with the car.
Why Did We Do This?
Honestly, we thought it would be fun. But there's also a real reason.
A lot of people feel stressed at the end of a lease — worried about wear and tear fees, not sure what their options are, dreading the return process. Lease End exists to make that easier. You can buy out virtually any car lease through our platform, keep the car you love, and skip the dealership negotiation entirely.
We just thought the best way to show that was to test it on a car that had been through a demolition derby first.
If your lease is up and you want to keep your car — no demolition derby required — just fill out the form below and we'll hook you up.
