Hi 991 owners and wannabes, first post here.
As some of you have in the past, I’m considering 991. I test drove 991 S back with all the bells and whistles (PDK, PSE SC, etc) and was amazed. I don’t think I even put it in sport mode, but still what a car. I currently drive Benz GLK350 (small SUV). Test drive was back in April. The decision was, I will certainly get one, it’s just matter of when. Since it seems that there are quite a few older and hopefully wiser folks on this forum, I would appreciate some input and some perspective.
Here is my dilemma:
Me and my wife are pretty young (27), and have been fortunate to have pretty good jobs. So I could swing a 991, but don’t know if I should. It is 20k per year for next 5 years that will have to come out of somewhere else (potential savings, vacation, etc), and at my age it’s not an insignificant amount of money. Also at my age I don’t have any other financial commitments. Additional complication is that we rent, and probably should buy in near future with low rates and depressed real estate prices, but I’m not really sold on real estate ownership in my area (high taxes and condo fees). We are also happy where we rent and our building is on the road where Formula 1 is coming to in 2014 (I’m pissed they delayed it by a year).
So right not I’m thinking base 991 with just a few options keeping it under 90k to test the waters (I don’t want older 997 model). Options would be PDK so my wife can drive, sunroof, heated seats and sport steering wheel. Where I live and drive, for the most part my GLK is fast enough, so I think base 991 will be more than adequate. I would also prefer 19 inch wheels as roads are not the best in NJ/NY. But I haven’t driven base 991 yet. I hope that I won’t notice lack of power/torque that much worse compared to S. Even in 991 S I noticed lack of torque off the line compared to my GLK, but I understand that torque curves are very different.
So here are few questions:
1) Should I get 991 now or should I wait a few years for my financial situation to crystalize a bit more? I know you are all biased here, but I’m sure many of you went through similar situation, and maybe some of you did delay you purchase. Also maybe if I wait, I will be able to get better optioned 991 S.
2) Given my driving situation, input on decision to get base vs 1-2 year old S would also be appreciated (I read all S vs base discussions, and seems that base is 99% of S for 85% of the price, but if not for the price everybody would get S).
3) How much dealers are willing to discount their cars in December? I know for example Benz discounts unsold AMG cars by 10-20k at the end of the year.
4) Should I get premium package? My main concern is difference in the seats. How are the standard seats?
5) What haven’t I considered? Although I loved PSE and I’m sure SC makes a difference, 991 is sporty enough for me as my first 911.
Thanks in advance and sorry for the long post and typos. It’s great spending time on 991 forums, much more mature discussions than on M3, C63AMG and GLK forums where I used spend some time.

 

Welcome NYC911,

In my uninformed opinion, if I were you I would wait.
5 years is a long time to commit and a lot of things can change - we all tend to think that our earning trajectory will continue unabated.

Why sacrifice having a life (vacations, savings etc).
A home is the more important and will mean far more to you than any car.
You're quite young and have the time to get this toy. Yes, that is all it is - A toy!

That $20k per year can go towards your future home, while keeping your Credit score healthy for your future home purchase.
If you chose to revisit this dream in a couple of years, then you can always pickup a used one with a few miles.

I would not make this "toy" a priority. And the fact that you're asking, means that you have a sensible head on your shoulders.

Regarding the car, the bells and whistles are just that. The base car is fine and will balloon very quickly depending on options.
Depending on your size you'll have to determine the most appropriate seat.
Discounts range from 3 - 10%. (Depends on where and when the cars are purchased).
Almost all with PDK swear by SC, followed by PSE. If you're not going to track then you're be good with those two and the standard interior..

All the best and chose wisely.

 

Your financial situation and earning trajectory is something you will have to figure out, my advice is to wait until you know for sure you are not making an "unreasonable" decision.
As for the 991-base, I bought mine 10 days ago - and it is quite a handful. Since I don't plan to track it, and since I cannot even push the base to it limits, I think the S for me would be overkill. FYI, I came off a 2010 E550-sport (new shape) and the way the 991 handles, accelerates, corners and responds is truly amazing - no comparison. My car has PDK, sports steering, Bose, Premium Plus package, and entry-and-drive.
One more thing, after driving MB for over 11 years, the 991 is loud-enough, any louder (w/ PSE) would be too much for me.
Good luck.

 

First off, you will likely not be able to lease or get a loan for the car at your age anyway if you don't have an established credit history, or you put a ton of money down. So you will be immediately taking a $30K hit or more on the car. My advice would be not to look at a $100k-ish car until you have a house with equity, or at least enough in the bank that you could pay cash for the car if one of you loses your job.

Personally, I didn't get my first Porsche till I had my house paid off and over $1 million in liquid assets.

 

Regardless of your earning trajectory....you are young and have plenty of time to buy a new 911. I am about 10 years older than you and I can tell you that a lot happens in the next 10 years....

This is what I did..start with a used 911 that you can pay for quickly....once you know you love the Porsche experience then I bought a new Cayman....then once my life balanced out...had the house, had the savings, had the kids, had the college funds well under way....then splurge for the new 911.

So buy a used 911 or Cayman now if you can spend 20k per year find the best one you can and get it paid for in 2 years. It will give you the experience you are after and if you buy right you should not lose much money later when you sell it or trade it in. I would bet that a year or two later you won't regret it and you will know you really are not sacrificing anything.

The reality is that Porsche is always designing the next 911 so at some point those of us that just bought new 911's will have last generation used 911's.....don't put your future a risk....be responsible now and you will be more than able to buy the latest and best 10 years from now,

My .02

 

I totally agree with dux. +1

 

Yep, this is it. Well put.

 

I am going to disagree with the folks on this thread but again its an opinion and it will ultimately be your choice. So my thinking would be that if you can afford it (maintenance, insurance, etc. as well) and your credit history is sufficient - go for it!

It is really all dependent on how you choose to live your live and how you choose to spend your money. Planning is good but you can never be sure of what is going to happen and you don't know what is round the corner. What I am trying to say is that some decisions are not necessarily age dependent. One thing I might do, however, is wait until a decision has been made on Capital Hill regarding the "fiscal cliff" (hate to call it that).

Looking back in my life I have made decisions not too dissimilar to yours and enjoyed every minute of it because I have gone for it.

As for a choice of car 991 C2 should be adequate for your requirements.

I hope that doesn't confuse you but you asked

 

Buy a house first.

RE base Carrera, here's what evo magazine says in their latest issue 177 (Car of the Year 2012 issue) about the 991 Carrera:

"The 3.4-liter flat-six is a masterpiece, howling smooth and savage like a GT3 motor, and although the seven-speed manual can't match the lovely mechanical feel of the Boxster's six-speed 'box, it's still so satisfying to use. And without trick dampers and PDCC you can feel where the engine is located and enjoy that timeless 911 dance as it flows over bumps and wiggles its hips out of corners. It might not be £25k better than a Boxster S but it has even better turn-in, superior traction and the pure energy of the engine makes it feel more special. Harry proclaims: 'For me it's more exciting than the Boxster - and it's all in that amazing engine.'"

"... we've had a rocky relationship with Porsche's new 911, but over the past months we've driven all manner of specifications, eventually finding the sweet spot in this, the most basic 991 on the planet. With no PDCC, PASM or PDK to worry about, the only button I need to push is that which disables the stability control."

"...the 3.4-liter flat-six-in a hotter state of tune than in the Boxster S (345bhp versus 311) - is truly one of the all-time great engines."

"There was a lot of talk about options too, because although we all loved this bum-basic 991, as Meaden said: 'I don't think anyone is actually going to buy a car in that spec, and if you did it would probably be suicide financially.'"

 

I'd wait or go used. If your main purpose is to have an awesome toy wait it out and pay your house down. Since you are a renter you should consider buying a house and paying it off. I fall under the 911 wannabe category. I have a nice house and decided to pay it down, and get practical cars like cayenne and panemera that fit my family. I hope to get a 911 within a couple of years, but I will be sure my family is well off first.

You also mentioned you have had good jobs: what does that mean? How long do you last at each of your good jobs? Is your job recession proof?

Do you have, or have considered having children? If kids are in your future I'd consider waiting even longer. No kids in the future then a bad decision can only affect you. Without kids the worst that can happen is that you can't make the note and the bank takes your car back, and your credit is ruined for several years. It isn't the end of the world. If you lost your good job, losing your 2nd car isn't going to be your biggest problem.

Will you be trading your small suv in? If you have a lot of equity on your trade that reduces your risk significantly.

 

It's wise of you to be asking this question. I commend you for this. I've always been a car nut and think that only in USA you can realize those dreams. I've also been a single earner with wife and kids so I focused on getting nice cars (not going crazy) by building up my equity over the period of time, putting 110% at job, climbing upwards thru the corporate ladder and turning savings in to real estate properties where it made sense. My wife has been instrumental in this area. Now I'm 10 years older than you and am finally able to afford a car of my dreams..not lease or finance but with cash. I'm doing this because I know I can..after family needs and kids future needs are met, then comes my extravagant toys. Now think about what you really want to accomplish in next few years and when it'd make financial sense to pull a trigger on a six figures toy. Test drive other sportier cars like BMW 135, Subaru brz etc to address the need for a sporty toy with much less of financial impact. Good luck!

 

Very good points,keep them coming. Surprised not hear "just go for it" from all of you.
As far as financing, Im not too worried, I got a loan from Benz at 2% 4 years ago when I was 23, just had to put 10k down.
Getting 3-4 year old 911 for 40-50k is something I considered, just afraid I'll spend another 30-40k for repairs. Am I over exaggerating?


Thanks for sharing your financial situation when you bought 911, obviously I'm no where near that. Waiting is a logical choice. But the same could have been said when I bought Benz 4 years ago during full-on recession. Sometimes, I feel like if I don't buy 911 now, I won't do it until I'm in my 40s, unless I get real lucky.

Also, spending more money motivates you to make more. And I can always cut my losses by selling the car.

Thanks for input.

 

It's so true...and worked for me every time !

 

2013 could be a difficult year for A LOT of americans......my advice would be to wait at least 6-8 months before spending any cash or making additional financial commitments....I know I am.

 

you republicans are aways so negative.

Sent from free Obama phone.