SANTA MONICA, Calif. -

Despite the volume of consumers who can obtain zero-percent financing as automakers compete to move new metal, the analyst team at Edmunds.com doesn’t expect leasing volume to diminish.

In an extended analysis about the rise of zero-percent APR volume, site analysts still maintain that leasing is a growing trend among buyers, pointing toward volume of 27 percent of new-vehicle sales this year being a lease.

“However, shoppers that elect to finance are fundamentally different from shoppers that lease,” Edmunds said in an analysis, adding that, “Zero-percent APR offers appeal to buy-and-hold shoppers committed to long-term ownership.

“For many shoppers, though, leasing brings an economical, non-committal and no-hassle approach to vehicle ownership,” analysts continued. “Leasing has surged in recent years, and that momentum will likely hold strong despite cheaper car loans.”

Edmunds indicated that about 10 percent of buyers who financed a new vehicle through a dealer or manufacturer program so far this year received a zero-percent APR loan. Analysts computed that APR means buyers save $3,554 during an average loan term of 67 months.

Not surprisingly, most zero-percent APR contracts are not connected with high-line units. Edmunds determined that 3 percent of financed purchases of luxury cars carried a zero-percent APR, compared with 11 percent of non-luxury vehicles.

While the penetration of zero-percent APR deals now stands at double digits, the level is less than half of what Edmunds designated as recent highs.

Analysts mentioned the level soared above 20 percent back in the summer of 2006 when domestic automakers started to offer employee pricing. Edmunds pointed out the level appear again in the first half of 2010 when Toyota emerged from its major recall campaigns.

The company also mentioned that the level of zero-percent financing hasn’t been below 5 percent for more than a month or two since the second half of 2005. As a result, analysts cautioned about the long-term ramifications of zero-percent APR financing.

“For automakers, zero percent APR offers have been an effective method for increasing market share, but the boost is generally short lived,” analysts said. “Once shoppers are accustomed to zero percent offers, it loses its appeal to drive shoppers into dealerships.”

Those scenarios likely mean the value of leasing is enhanced for both dealers and OEMs, especially for their certified pre-owned prospects. For example, Manheim chief economist Tom Webb shared a post on his blog that highlighted Ford’s off-lease volume, which nearly doubled from the fourth quarter of last year (34,000 units) to the first quarter of this year (60,000). As the year is winding down, Ford’s volume is down (44,000 units) but is still 17,000 units higher than the year-ago level.

And dealers are able to find those vehicles for lower prices in the auction lanes. Ford said auction values for units coming out of a 36-month lease dipped below $18,000 during the third quarter, the first time that has happened this year. The Q3 reading of $17,660 was $735 lower on a sequential basis.

Third-quarter auction values for Blue Oval units coming off of a 24-month lease didn’t drop below $18,000, but they still softened by $575 sequentially and $945 on a year-over-year basis.