I've been shopping (albeit ahead of time - won't need the replacement until February) for a replacement for the E500 and need a new lease vehicle. Like most of us here, I find myself spending more than I really should on such a vehicle. I only need a freeway cruiser, one that serves as an occassional client driver and for my comfortable drives up to LA, plus a family substitute car when my wife and I have to switch vehicles. The Boxster S serves as the fun car, and the one I toot around town in.

Of course, all I need is a nice Accord LX with leather, but how much fun is that?

I was looking at the A8L (love it), the M45, and the GS430, but now consider the Cayenne because I remember how damn fast it was around the autocross course at PDE in the Spring, and that it is also quite comfortable for road trips. I MAY need its towing capabilities if I decide to go in with some buddies on a spec Boxster or spec 944 in the coming years, but that's not for sure yet. My wife's GX470 can do it, of course, as well.

Anyway, I'm ticked that Porsche doesn't have Bluetooth, as I want a car that has lots of toys, and all the cars I'm considering have great toys such as ventilated seats and Bluetooth. It would be a kick to bring the Cayenne to the track on a POC event and take it around for a spin, however, and I'd appreciate the great handling of the Cayenne, second only (in my choices) to perhaps the A8L.

Cost is also an issue - Porsche sells the **** out of these things, so lease incentives are not exactly highly likely, so the lease cost is probably in excess of what I will want to pay, which is no more than $850/month with tax, 12k miles, 36 or 39 months.

Too bad the SUV writeff is gone - we took advantage of it with the GX, but can't do it anymore with the Cayenne as the rule has changed. Oh well.

Anyone else experience the same scenario I did?

 

Actually the write off is not completely gone. I believe you can still do 25k plus the standard 1st year depreciation, not sure the implication though of putting the vehicle into service for the 2nd half of the year. I'm not an accountant, I just know what mine told me.

They have been cutting it in half each year for the past 2 years. At one point it was like 100k. Next year I think it's gone completely.

So there may still be an advantage to buying a CS, not a CT with the tax issue.

for leasing I think the CT's are around 1100 to 1200 bucks a month.

I bought my CS so I'm not sure the lease rates on them.

Good luck with whatever you decide, but if you do want to take the Cayenne on the track, get the air suspension....

Cheers,
Corey

 

Air suspension is a given no matter what.

The CTT does not qualify for the tax exemption?

 

Corey,

Now you got me thinking!

So you know for sure the exemption will be gone completely next year? Dang it! I could just get an '04 TT or '05 S for pretty darn cheap and use the exemption/writeoff angle instead of the lease...

The depreciation on these monsters is incredible! As long as I can't get the bluetooth anyway, and there are no significant improvements from year to year, might as well buy it used. Maybe I can get a CTT on the cheap.

 

no one know for sure if the write off will be gone next year, but it seems like the trend is to remove it.

Still you get to take 25K plus standard depreciation for 1st year and then you take the standard depreciation for the next 4 years vs. deducting the lease and having to deduct some of the amount for the "excessive" price of the cayenne lease vs the a standard lease price.

 

An '04 CTT would be about $68k (perhaps $60k by the time I get in), so a writeoff of $25k is a great start, plus standard depreciation - might be a winner...

Just have to be sure I get a CPO version.