I have been BMW guy for past 10 years and my lease is coming to an end soon. Panamera is the car I like and looking forward to joining Porsche family.

as I did a lot of research on new Panamera lease, it appears this car is not leasing friendly. Nicely equiped 4S would be in range of $1500-1800 - simply too expensive based on car price and it does not include any maintenance as BMW. hence might as well just buy pre-owned year or two old.

looking at pre-owned cars, with budget of $75k, it looks like I can get 2014 4S or 2013 GTS with under 25k miles.

What version of these two Panamera would you recommend? what are the pros/cons of each?

I have not driven Panamera yet nor to know how they differ between version.

Everyone's feedback is appricated to help me make decision.

 

Porsche is not lease friendly. They do not subsidize their leases like BMW does. Recently I bought a CPO 2014 Panamera GTS with 14k miles for $81,000z. It is superior to the 4S by a lot. More power and much better looks. More standard equipment. If you do your research here you will find a lot of posts concerning how good the GTS is. Great sporty suspension. 440 naturally aspirated horsepower. Sport exhaust which sounds incredible when you open the valves. Height adjustable suspension. Fit and finish are tops as is driving position.

CPO Panny GTS cars are hard to find because they sell in a day or two. Seriously you will see. I lost out on several because they sold so fast. I got mine from my dealer before they put it up on the web. They sell so fast because are truly an amazing car. The fit and finish, driving position and refinement and the incredible handling for a big car make my 2015 E63 S AMG look like an economy car (AMG is superior only in its mega engine power especially when tuned).

 

I think it depends on your driving style, and what you are looking for in car like the Panamera. I have a 4S (with the sport design kit and AWE exhaust), and my car was a CPO, and had many options(including ride height adjustment), and it suits my needs for the car (it replaced a S class). I have other cars that are more performance oriented. I see you live in NYC, so unless your travels take you out of the city, you are not likely to be able to use a lot of what makes the GTS the GTS. My 4S is a 2010 so it still has the V8 in it, the 2014 cars are turbo charged (which helps if you want to mod it, I'm sure some makes a ECU upgrade which would get past the GTS HP &TQ wise) and I think that was the first year of the tweaks they did to the car. You will not get the sound of the V8 rumbling though. The GTS is a better sports sedan than the 4S, there is not doubt about that. Is it a better car for your needs, that only you can answer. My advise, go do some test drives. Good luck and Happy New Year

 

Drive both. My advice..... GTS all day. Life is short.

 

GTS or better yet, a 2012 Turbo

 

Test drive both. I far preferred the drive of the GTS to the Turbo and I got the GTS -- better sound and instant power. Turbo is quiet and more geared to a luxury feel IMHO and , unless tuned, not that much faster than the GTS. And the GTS has a sportier body kit.

 

I agree. since this would be my leisure car and living in NYC I won't much opportunity to fully experience the GTS performance (nevermind Turbo as some members suggested), 4S might be a far better fit.

would you recommend getting it from dealer certified or private party?

4S that would fit my budget would be 2014-15 with under 20k mileage depending on options. its fairly new car so would extra $ dealer would charge vs. private party be worth it?

 

Please test drive both. It would be an injustice to rule out the GTS without a test drive, especially if it's within your budget.

 

+1. Drives and sounds so good

 

4S is no slouch but the GTS is more emotional, and probably more entertaining over the long haul.

 

Over the last 40+ years I have owned 40 Porsche's (39 is my cab, 40 is the Panamera), and for most of those years I always had to have the best handling, fastest (and I always made them faster) model they made at the time. I am a lot older (and a littler wiser now), and I came to realize (this happened when I was offered a great deal on another Ferrari), that most of my driving is done between 25 and 50mph (there are those rare opportunities when the traffic allows for 75mph for a couple minutes), and I cant even wind out my modified Abarth let alone the cab (which has over 130K worth of stuff done to it) in my photo. I came to realize it was all about ego and not the ability (and as I got older the skill) to use what I had. You will likely not notice the difference between a GTS and a 4S going 25mph through the city, but you will notice a car that is newer with less mileage and more updated features. I'd find a dealer and get a CPO'd car. funny my girlfriend (who is younger but a lot more grown up than I will ever be) picked a BMW 650 convertible over a Ferrari California as her birthday present a little over a year ago. When I asked her why she told me she needed a car for the way her life is not one for the way she wishes it was. Good luck.