Ok here is my situation, I recently sold my Lotus and intend on selling my Mini S to buy a 997. My wife needs to be able to drive the car so it has to be either a Tip or PDK. My wife has also requested that I keep the car for longer than 2 years, and the more money I spend the longer I have to keep it, ie if I spend 50k I only have to keep it for 2 years opposed to spending 65k and keeping it for 4 years. (BTW, keeping the Mini for her to drive isn't an option because I don't want 3 cars, she already has a Lexus).

Initially when I saw articles I wanted a PDK, when I started to look at pricing, I was shocked to see how much depreciation the 06-08's have had. Pacific Porsche had an 08 C2S that had 5k miles which they recently sold for 70k. 06's are in the high 50's and 07's in the low 60's. When I go to the dealerships, I see a lot of 08 inventory and they've already told me that it's hard for them to deal on 09's until the 08's are gone. Although I could lease an 09S to bring my costs down, philosophically I don't want to spend more than 75k on a car. Personally I think that used PDK's will be on the market for mid 70's sometime in the late summer or fall. I've driven both and I'd have to say that the PDK is a huge improvement.

Another reason that I am inclined to get a 997.1 S is cost. I'm concerned that the market will continue to be very weak and so the less I spend now, the less I lose later in depreciation. So what I really am asking is

1. Do others think that 997.1 S PDKs will hit 75k later this year?
2. Do you think that the market for Porsche will continue to deteriorate? I know that cars are a depreciating asset but this has been excessive. 95k cars 2 years old unable to sell at 65k. This is as bad as the Lotus!

Thanks!

 

>1. Do others think that 997.1 S PDKs will hit 75k later this year?

You mean lightly-used 997.2 PDKs, I assume?

Let me throw in another variable for you. I understand that, within in two years, the 998 successor to the 997 will be available. You don't even want to know what that will do to the prices on the 997.1 in particular, and also to the 997.2.

So paying near list for a 997.2 now will be the fastest way to lose money - although a great time for the next two years.

Honestly, I would try to get a 2008 997.1S for as little as possible (within your options) and then plan to sell it when the 998 is here and get a new 998.

Will S-PDK cars be available for $75k later this year? I would venture that lightly optioned ones will be. But an S-car with an MSRP of $105k won't be there this year, I don't think.

 

You obviously have reviewed the situation, and know the pros and cons.

Either car will be a blast to drive, the PDK 997.2 is going to quicker then the 997.1 Tiptronic (no PDK available). The PDK will be more fun to drive (based on other peoples feedback). However I think that a tiptronic 997.1 will be a steal, as most people bought the 6mt and the tips were not too popular, resale on them should be lower. Ultimately all cars depreciate, I think that the 997.1 is worth less then what it should be due to the weak economy. If you don't want to spend the big bucks, buy the 997.1, they are excellent cars and a lot of fun to drive. Unless you are street racing or taking it to the track, you may not see or feel the $40K in additional purchase price. I would also suggest if you do buy a used 997.1 get one with a CPO for piece of mind.

 

But if he gets a 2008 car, does he really need the CPO? If the car was in-service in May 2008 (let's just say), he's good until May 2012 anyway. That's a pretty darn long time away to me.

Looks like OP would be selling it around the time original warranty expired anyway (assuming he gets an 08). I'll bet most people end up selling cars back to the dealer in trade just because it's easier, you can't get a bogus check, you aren't test driving with wackjobs, etc. If you are trading to the dealer, they don't care whether you are CPO or not, unless your mileage is outside of the CPO limit and it couldn't be re-certified, right?

 

no doubt that the 998 will cause accelerated depreciation but I think that is somewhat unpredictable. 993's have held up quite well as opposed to the 996's which have tanked. I thinking, or perhaps hoping that the 997.1 will hold its value better than the 996.

why an 08?? aren't the differences between the 06-08 minimal??

the asking price for the launch car is already 77-80k so it's not unreasonable to assume that 09 S PDK go for that price in 6-8 months??

Thanks for your response!

 

There are already a few 09 PDK cars out there in the mid to high 70's. They are the Porsche demos, mostly in green,blue and white. Look at autotrader. Also, with the HP increase for 09, the standard Carrera has almost as much HP as the 08 Carrera S. So there are a couple good options.

 

It's the continuing conundrum: if you wait another 6 mos., there will be always more...for less.

Hey, I'd be remiss if I didn't point out that the price for 997 turbo cars appears to be falling ever faster than any other body type at the moment. Many many of them are coming onto the market now. I think you are probably still looking at $85k - minimum - to get into a good one. (Others here have more to say about the turbo pricing.) $85k is a lot of money...but it's a turbo!

But that's today. In three months, maybe a low mileage turbo is a $79k car - who knows.

 

You are going to have to spend the money to get the right car and this way you will never second guess the decision . It's expensive but this is the price of owning the toy . We all want to drive them for free .

Whether you pay 60K foir a used car or 90K for a new one they both both depreciate .

Usually I discuss discounts with those who are making the stretch to get the 60K car but if you are already considering the 997.2 then the only thing standing in your way is the cost to own and future speculation (998) and even at 70K it's not worth it to drive around holding thse doubts.

I live by my own words . I have owned 8 Porsches and I can;t think of even one time that it didn't bend my wallet but I never felt like I missed out buying the better car and I did feel very badly when I tried to save money EVERY time .

Conclusion -Get the 997.2 .

 

A 79K Turbo will not be the same as a 105K Turbo . I have seen a lot of numbers thrown about with Turbo pricing so when I called out two posters on it they did not reply . The low cost Turbo is usually a car at auction which may have miles . paint damage , and other issues . It's not anew car .

Since he asked only about the normally aspirated cars I did not mention the Turbo . Even the 997tt I feel the Tiptronic is dated . If his discussion was about a manual then hands down I would say get the Turbo . But those weren't his two choices . The Gt1 engine is incredible.

 

Right! I forgot that OP needed an auto/PDK car. I would never get a car a traditional auto.

If you have to get auto, then you should try to get a deal on a 09 and plan to keep for 4 years. By the end of that, there will be used 998s around, so you can decided what to do then.

 

I have a TIP (06 S) and love it. To me, there is no performance loss from having the TIP and, much like the OP, I satisfied the wife factor.

Is PDK better, arguably yes, but not at a potential 30-40k spread between the 997.1 and 997.2.

As another poster stated, EVERYTHING will be cheaper if you wait long enough, but this decision is a matter of WANT over NEED so the decision should be made "in the moment" versus the "what ifs" of what will happen 3-6-9-12 mos from now.

My .02.

GL!

 

sorry
deleting the post 'cuz I already know the answer

 

this is such a great quote.

anyway - if you are looking at an auto i don't think you can put a gen 1 on the same level as the gen 2, the tranny is a completely new technology and with the sport plus not comparable to the old tip.

the manuals are a very different story imo, as i am just about to go for a gen 1 C4s cab.

 

3.6 PDK is faster than a 3.8 Tip. Easy choice IMO

 

I think you have to see what best suits your needs.

Unless you need a 997 as your daily driver, I would keep the Mini S and get a nice 997.1 for the weekends. When the 997.1 is paid, make it the daily driver and get the next gen 911 for the weekends.

Cheers