Just an exploratory question. Local Porsche dealer is offering 25 month lease for a 2015 991.1 base (at least on their website). $7k down, and $999 due per month for 15,000 mile lease. Total cost: $32k and one walks away in 25 months with nothing physically (except for the driving enjoyment ).

Compare that to 991.1 which are now just coming off leases. I've seen some 2012 for sale from $65k-$70k, which had a MSRP of $110k.

From a pure financial point of view, biggest cost of ownership seems to be depreciation. If one buys a used 2012/13 991.1 for say 3 years at ~$65k, how much can one expect to sell it for in 3 years?

I guess to consider the expected value of a 991.1 in 3 years, one needs to consider the value of 997.2, and that the 991.2 are coming out soon and each iteration of the 911 have gone up in price considerably. Looking at the mean selling prices of 996tt and 997tt, they have been pretty stable in the past couple of years, at say $45k and $73k respectively. 997.2 S/4S are currently in the $50k-60k range.

Thoughts?

 

Im asking myself the same questions. never leased before but now that math is compelling. buy - 3 yr old car - for 75k (remember the tax too) and sell it in 3 years (6 yr old car) - prob for 45k - thus 30k - and thus close to the lease program yet the lease is so easy and you get a new car.

Lease wins

 

It depends.

For leasing, I try to go in with as little $$$ -down as possible. In this connection, $7K seems a lot to me. If you're the kind of person that generally wants to drive something different every 2-3 years, then leasing makes sense.

I'm also a proponent of purchasing pre-owned because in most cases, you're getting a low mileage, relatively new vehicle that is still under warranty and not taken that huge depreciation hit. Under the right circumstance leasing or purchasing can make sense.

 

This. Putting aside all of the calculations and arguments, that single sentence is one of the main factors. If you want to swap into another car in two to three years, then you'll have less of a headache with leases. People also take advantage of tax write offs if they can do so.

 

I am not sure about current situation in US but I frequently hear that people get socked with excess wear charges at end of lease. So it may not be as easy as it sounds with leasing.

CF

 

$7k down IS a lot. I haven't gone to the dealership to see how low they are willing to go.

My wife is advocating I lease b/c I get bored driving the same car after a while, and I wouldn't have to deal with maintenance. I've been going back and forth between 996C4S/996tt/997tt but couldn't decide as I couldn't get over the maintenance issues of the turbo engines (ie. expensive spark plug replacement, 2nd gear pop out, coolant pipe issues, etc) and the potential for the M96 engine to grenade itself from scored cylinders.

So now I'm thinking about 997.2 (which seems quite reliable and has depreciated to $50-$60k) and 991.1 (which also seems quite reliable, and currently at $65k-$75k).

Question is how much more will the 997.2 and 991.1 depreciate, and how bored will I be in 2-3 years. FWIW I have never leased a car, always bought. And yes, I'm pretty bored with my current car (Acura TL), which I've had for nearly 6 years.

Then there's always the question what's after a 911? F car is nice, but too much $$ for me. I'm thinking I would be satisfied driving a 911 the rest of my life.

 

Call your salesman or go down there and get numbers to work off of. The down payment can definitely be reduced to $1.5-2k driveoff.

But, you definitely want to get the MF rate, a comparison of the residuals for 24 vs 30 vs 36 month lease terms, and negotiate a discount off of the MSRP, not the final monthly payment. You'd be surprised how much a lease payment can vary based on these.

 

Leasing makes sense in 2 circumstances: 1. If you can write off part of it for your business or 2. If you plan to keep the car for 3 years or less. If these don't apply the best way financially is to buy a used car or find a leftover at a deep discount. Just keep in mind that buying a Porsche is not done for practical reasons so don't look for practical answers.

 

True. Part of me is too dam analytical and rational. Good for work, not good for fun.

For those who have leased, it would be great if one could post what lease terms they got to compare.

I just did a quick check of P car dealers in the entire state and adjacent state; leasing "specials" are all ~$7k down; 2 dealers have monthly payments of $999, one at $749, one doesn't have any advertised. Lease mileage also varies as well, ranging from 12,500 to 22,500 total miles to 15,000 miles per year.

 

I always see these 12 month "pull ahead" deals that Porsche has done. Get into a new car 12 months early. Maybe someone can chime in. In that case, would be best to have a higher payment and put zero down I assume?

 

In 2013, you could have leased a base Carrera with the same exact special you're quoting. It was $999 + tax, so your actual payment will be higher. In CA, the final payment and driveoff was ~ $7500 down, $1150 a month.

These specials you're seeing won't be your final price. Hence, you have to walk into the dealership, make it known that you're ready to close a deal TODAY, and that you know everything about the numbers game. Otherwise, they'll screw you over on the MF, fees, and only work on the "lower monthly payment" to make it seem like a better deal for you.

Yes and no. If you use the "pull ahead" program, you're not responsible for the remaining payments (as you know). But, if your down payment was high, the remaining monthly lease payments are much lower and balance out the end result. It all depends on the timing of your pull ahead program and the new lease numbers.

 

I see leasing as a 2-3 year rental with limited miles and additional charges for wear and tear.
Personally it's not my cup of tea given that I tend to keep my cars for a while and prefer having some equity when it comes to selling it.

If it's a business write-off, then it's worth considering.

 

I did that with our cayenne. Had a 39 month 48750 mile lease and traded it in at 29 months with 48450 miles on it. The beauty of the pullahead is that the miles are not prorated, so we paid zero excess mileage. In fact, I just got a check back from Porsche for $3750 because I was paying extra each month to cover the excess miles at the end.

The less down the better if you don't mind the higher payments. If you put 7k down and total the car 3 months later, you are going to be out that 7k.


The way I see leasing, is that the manufacturer is taking the depreciation risk. They guess what the residual will be. At the end of the lease, if they guessed too low and its worth more, you can purchase it, or even trade it in on a different car if you can get more than the residual in trade in value. (I once traded in a leased Infiniti G35 one year into the lease and got 1k more than the payoff for it). Also, if the cars value plummets, like a Saab I leased, you just give it back and walk away. That one was worth less than the residual 12 months into a 3 year lease. But, it was a no money down, 299 per month lease, so it was a no brainer.

 

If you are self employed there is a considerable benefit if you can write off most if not all of your payment.

As for the math of it all, leasing a new car is always a bit more expensive than buying/financing if you keep the car off lease. For the relatively small additional expense you get the opportunity to get out of the car much more easily when the lease is up, which is handy if you don't like the car, love it and want a nicer version or got a lemon. Of course you can always trade in a purchase/finance - just be ready for a pasting on the trade in.

I find that older generations put a negative stigma on leasing and even use it interchangeably with the term renting. I think this is fortunately changing since that's not fair. If I were buying an Aston Martin or Maserati - I would first consider leasing as an option even if I were able to pay cash since they depreciate heavily and quickly.

Porsche sports cars have rather high resale values (not trade in values - there the dealers whack you). So in theory the residuals should be strong which make leasing more attractive - in theory.

I haven't heard of a situation where leasing was clearly the wrong choice - unless you wan't to modify the car or put on excess miles.

I heard PCA guys at the track who thought that you couldn't track a leased car. This is rubbish of course. A lessee has the same privilege of use as an owner.

Good luck

 

Now throw this into the equation: Your new 911 GTS gets bumped in the rear in stop and go traffic. Minor damage. A new bumper cover and some assorted bits. Go to sell or trade your three year old car, and now you get offered $10-15K less because there has been paint and body work done to the car and the CarFax shows evidence of an accident. With a lease, you just return the car and drive out with a new one. No extra $$ loss.