Hi All --- I've been out of the 997 loop for over 2 years, but ready to get back. In October 2009 I was fortunate enough to find a new '09 997.2 Carrera S Cabrio that my dealer was willing to sell for $20,000 off MSRP + tax credits, so I leased it for 36 months (self-employed, better tax benefits). A friend of a friend took over the lease after about 8 months because I wasn't driving the car enough to justify keeping it, and Porsche Financial keeps the original lessee on the account for the duration. Now we're at the end, the couple that currently has it is not going to buy it, and PFS has offered me the car at the payoff value since I'm still on the account.

It's an '09 C2S Cabrio, Arctic Silver/Black. 6-speed. Lightly optioned with heated seats, ventilated seats, Bose sound, power comfort seats, and a few other random things. Original MSRP was $106,925. They let me borrow the car for the weekend and was shocked to see it only has 12,600 miles. Perfect CARFAX, no accidents, no body issues other than a few minor dings without paint damage. 1 full year is left on the factory warranty, and they just put on a fresh set of Michelin PS2s about 1000 miles ago.

The Porsche Financial payoff is just over $56,000. I thought it was a mistake, but based on the ridiculous deal I got and the amount of principal paid down over 3 years, the figure is correct. After glancing at eBay and AutoTrader to gauge current asking prices (knowing most have plenty of negotiating room), it still seems like a deal that's too good to pass up. Am I right in assuming that $56K is about $10-15K under market value? I honestly don't need a 3rd car, but I'd be crazy to pass on basically free use of a 997 for 1-2 years (or however long it takes to depreciate down to my purchase price). I've had 29 cars, many of which I've purchased, but I've always walked away at the end from the ones I have leased. Before I pull the trigger, I thought I'd make sure from the experts here that my thoughts on this car's value are in the ballpark. Thanks in advance for any input!

 

I'll buy it if you don't.

 

I would flip it.

 

i'm thinking about 8-10k under market or so. not a bad deal i think, depending on what you put down on the car originally i guess.

 

Very nice, great price for a lease buy out. And such low miles. I'd be tempted to take it off your hands and have two Arctic Silver 997's ... ! AND since you know the current owners/subletters - you know that they've taken good care of the car - what a huge advantage compared to looking for a used car you know nothing about - private or dealer sale.

 

Thank you for the responses! I put $0 down on the lease and credits took care of the sales tax, so the only thing I have in it are the 8 payments I made when I first got it and enjoyed it. My thought is to keep it and trade it on something else down the road, as Texas has a fantastic tax credit where you only pay sales tax on the difference between your purchase and your trade. As long as the trade-in value is decent at that point, I'd recover most (if not all) of my sales tax money on the $56K purchase. I love the car and it seems like a no-brainer at this point unless values drop by 20% in the next 2 weeks.

 

after 29 cars you don't consider yourself an expert?

 

Great price, especially if you like the car.

 

That's a great price. Can you have the title place in someone else's name to avoid sales tax?

If that's what lease returns are going for, I might be interested in upgrading to a 997.2. Anybody know how to tap into the Porsche lease return program?

 

Thanks...I've now decided to buy it for sure. PFS told me that the sales tax will have to be paid no matter what since the current 'owner' on title is Porsche Financial Services. I may research further in case there is some loophole. I haven't looked in a while, but there was a 2009 or 2010 on either Swapalease or LeaseTrader that had a similarly low residual value that was an incredible deal. It might be gone, but worth checking. With those lease takeovers you can either get qualified through PFS and assume the remainder of the lease (usually just a year or so on a 2009/2010) and then buy, or buy it out of the lease now at what still would be an excellent price. The current leaseholder wouldn't care either way since it gets him/her out of the lease contract.

 

Good decision to buy it. That is a great deal.

 

Sounds like a good deal.

You should also connect w/ your local dealer and see if they will run the title thru at your payoff plus a couple $ and CPO it for you (plus the cost of CPO of course).

Good luck