Tapeworm

I recently turned in my 2yr lease for a C4S. I thought the guide Porsche sends 90 days before the end of a lease was good, BUT it felt like they were altering the terms of the lease right at the end. I doubt this would hold up legally if anyone called them on it. Basically, Porsche should give you this turn-in guide BEFORE you sign for the lease.

I had a nasty rock chip on my windshield at ~90 days before my lease return, so got it replaced with my insurance (the cost was about $1,400 - but my deductible was a lot, lot less than this) - however, I was unlucky and got ANOTHER rock chip about a month before my lease return.....dammit, so had to pay the deductible again and get another windshield.... basically, the morale of the story is if you are going to get any repairs done before turn-in, get them done as late as possible, say the week before..

I would lease again with Porsche, I especially appreciated the 2 yr leases as well as the option of up to 12m 'pull ahead' if you want to move into another Porsche after 12-24m. Btw - the pull ahead option is another good reason to ALWAYS put ZERO cash down on a lease. If you do a pull ahead, you basically lose any of the value of the money you put down at the start of the lease.

Magnus357

I'm sure the wheels can be fixed. I had some Mercedes AMG wheels with polished and curved features similar to those wheels. They'll probably have to come off the car if the machined sections are scrapped up, but if you call around for wheel repair, someone will be able to do it.

Try calling a Porsche or Mercedes approved body shop and ask for a recommendation.

Magnus357

Firstly, you have good credit. All those other leases you see advertised are bad deals. That's why their advertising them. The "down" amount is capital cost reduction, which as discussed here is a bad idea. Those deals "require" that down to achieve the monthly payment they want to advertise. It sounds like you're not terribly familiar with the details of the mechanisms of a lease. They are a more complicated financing form than a traditional loan.

In 2014 my "cash" returned over 20%. Averaged with 2015 it's about 10%. Over double the interest paid on the "rental" portion of the lease payment. The depreciation is a wash because you get that if you pay cash, finance or lease. Do you own a new model Porsche?

I wrote off my taxes ~75% of my lease payment. You're missing all sorts of aspects of the financial deal you can make with a lease.

I 100% agree that my 991 lease was a luxury buy not a utilitarian buy, but you gotta live in life. I'm an early 30s high net worth individual who plans to retire in my 50s. You don't have to worry about my finances, I got them covered. I was working a two year project that provided guaranteed income. The lease was brilliant, as the bottom has fallen out of the oil market and I can now get something cheap while I have to survive on my savings.

Pretending that any Porsche purchase for daily use (i.e. not collecting, I'm no car collector I'm a car driver) is an investment is laughable. My only goal was to attempt to minimize the cost of my purchase where I could and limit my risk. Leasing can, in some circumstances, be the best tool for that.

mrgreenjeans

You are correct in assuming I do not own a new Porsche. But I not only collect vintage Porsches, I drive them, compete with 2 of them, and have an interest in all the social aspects of sharing that passion with like minded enthusiasts.

Those I own, I paid cash for. They are all ( 11 ) vintage cars now, all except one was purchased used, with depreciation having adjusted their dollar value to make them attractive to me financially. The only new Porsche I purchased I did so in 1984 and paid cash. 28,000 and change. I still own it today. My heir has possession of it when I die.

My gains reflected similar to yours...... a bit higher in '13 and '14, but last year trading was sideways and a 5 % was earned.

I have no new Porsche but did purchase a new vehicle, each in the last 3 years. Of competitive quality and competitive luxury (1). Those were purchased in cash as well.

You are right about my understanding the complexities of leasing; I don't. The reason why I am reading these comments and trying to understand the attraction it has for some folks. It just has not had any appeal to me in the past, and it seems if a person can afford to purchase and own 100%, the merits to do so outweigh the complexities involved in the hassles of a lease.

I have always detested renting anything; even the brand new rental car I received at the airport with 28 miles on it in Vancouver. It seemed wonderful, but it still wasn't mine ( a Mustang GT Convertible ); it's costs were unrecoverable altho not really expensive. I got around that in my mind by deciding it was great entertainment..... /-; and gave it the proper thrashing thru the valleys and around the ocean curves it deserved. Would never consider owning one in comparing what they are to what a Porsche is.

You are right about life and driving. You just have to sit back and enjoy the ride every now and then, allowing one's tolerance level to be left on the coat hooks in the entry way of life. It comes down to what a person's tolerance level is at 'coat check' time when the bill is paid.

Chris C.

+ 1 on this

I have "owned" and leased more than 15 cars ... its a pay me now or pay me later scenario if you know how to negotiate the financing options to meet your needs. In the end there are clear pros/cons but either can make sense.

You can for example avoid paying full sales tax on a car when leasing ...you only pay on the monthly rent. On a 100K+ that you only plan to keep 3 years this is a nice savings and counters some of the expense of having to finance the whole car but only paying for part of it. In some states you can actually trade the car in and offset the full value of that trade in sales tax on the new vehicle - even if it was lease.

As others have mentioned you also have a "put" on the car with leasing which insulates you on the downside -

I've also tried buying new or 1-year used cars and trading out after 4 years - there was not benefit to that really especially in CA where you have to pay sales tax on private buy/sale of used cars and don't get the tax shelter on the value of a trade.

With all due respect to say "leasing is a way of buying something you can't afford" is a very dated and uninformed perspective and ignores the value of years of financial innovations designed to meet different customer needs.

Chris C.

I'll have to look into this, could be a nice option - well if I ever want a turbo car again

mdkrp

I sent you a PM; thx

holgum

Responded.

Flowmacks

Cool. Thanks!

fast1

With all due respect to say "leasing is a way of buying something you can't afford" is a very dated and uninformed perspective and ignores the value of years of financial innovations designed to meet different customer needs.

Leasing is a good option for some buyers, but it certainly is an expensive option. In my case I keep my Porsches for 6 - 7 years. My last 911 was a 997S which I purchased in 2007 for a negotiated price of a little over $90K. I sold my 997 in 2013 in a private sale for $54K. So my costs were a tad over $36K for six years. Moreover, I keep reading that leasing provides a significant tax advantage, but you can also write off the depreciation for a car that you own which is used for business purposes.

holgum

True, but the depreciation limits are ridiculously low, so that it doesn't work well for expensive cars: see here

shaytun

One big plus of a lease is if you get in an accident you don't get stuck with that depreciation. That happened to me and I'm happy I leased, at least I'm this scenario. Pluses and minuses to both for sure.

Chris C.

If you're staying in the car for 6-7 years buying *generally* becomes more attractive, but it depends on the specifics of the buy/lease options at the time of purchase and a number of other factors.

Your purchase analysis above isn't complete. It doesn't include time value of the money you committed for 6+ years, and opportunity costs of not investing that cash including the extra cost of paying sales taxes up front (among other things like the extra risk of downside loss if your car was hit and repaired and you sill had to sell it). What would the lease have cost you? What could you have made investing that 90K for 6 years in a market that's been up since 2009? etc etc.

You did get a great deal on that ownership experience though!

Leasing in my experience, admittedly for 3 year stints, has been cheaper than buying and selling the full value of the car.

stevebmd

i recently (october) was at my lease end. Porsche Financial NEVER mailed me anything regarding my lease end process. It was strange. I had to call PFS to ask them in september what i was supposed to do when my lease ended on October 1. They gave me the number of a local car evaluator. He came by my office and looked the car over. I had road rash on one rim, and A/S tires on my 19 inch wheels. He passed the car with flying colors. He even missed the rocker panel ding and the usual hood chips. So It seems like i was the exception not the rule. Then i traded the car instead of lease turn in due to the fact my residual was less then my trade value. scored again.

chiffonade

this conversation is hilarious. these cars are six figure toys for rich guys or petite bourgeois guys who own small businesses. i think i saw someone say 'frugality' with a straight face in this thread. are you serious???

the benefits of leasing are clear: very little money out of pocket, a tax deductible payment, a guaranteed depreciation, warranty and dealership service, and an option to buy a car that is proven.

why would anyone fork over 100-200k of liquid capital when you can pay the good people at porsche to drive germany's finest around worry-free?