Rambler_13

OP, I say go for it if you're comfortable doing it. Not having kids makes a world of a difference at any income level. I have friends and co-workers who spend over $30k a year on day care alone! Then add the cost of their kids’ daily living expenses, extracurricular activities, savings for college, time invested, etc. and suddenly a P-car is a bargain!

Airandwater

Remember that a lot of people who make $390k a year are stretched. Kids in private school, huge mortgage, fancy vacations. So just 'cos they make that much doesn't mean they won't lease or take a loan. Self emplyed people do have a financial incentive to lease as well as some of that can be a tax write-off.

Rich people aren't necessarily as rich as they seem. Most Americans (and Canadians) have massive household debt. You don't. That changes the playing field.

Gus_Smedstad

Here's that digression I talked about earlier. I'd really rather talk about whether anyone else gets qualms about the expense of these cars, but that doesn't seem to be happening.

So. Why remove the financial information? Do you feel I'm being rude? I get that it can be rude to talk about finances if you're significantly wealthier than your audience, but that doesn't seem to be the case. The consensus seems to be that I'm rather less well off than most of the people speaking here.

Talking in vague generalities makes it difficult to talk about subjects like this. People make all sorts of assumptions one way or another. Some of which we see in this thread, even with as much information as I've provided.

I've been retired for 13 years. I mentioned that upthread. I spent considerable time before retirement analyzing the margins of safety for cash flow in retirement, and of course I have some practical experience with it now.

As for why not finance, taking on debt would make me uncomfortable, regardless of the terms. I'm aware that this is a recreational expense, and financing a recreational expense when I don't have to seems like an unwise practice to enter.

triplekg

im paying 230k canadian for a turbo that I don't need. I own a brand new 2017 Z06 which I LOVE and it's been the best car I've ever owned.

But I have many friends who own a 911 and every one says the same thing, Just order the fricken car it's amazing. So lets hope trading in my 100k Z06 for a 230K turbo isn't a mistake....

It's only money! F it.

texasviany

I always looked at the "cost" as = opportunity of investing that cash in a risk-free investment + depreciation + running costs...assuming that the car was paid for in cash.

So $155k @ 3%(risk free) for 5 years is about $24.6k
Depreciation = value in 5 years is about $73k (using the 20%, 10%, 10% etc. formula)
Costs = insurance, fuel, maintenance, etc...$12k a year or $60k for 6k miles a year.

Oddly enough its about $157k in this case...unless you drive it more or God forbid, the value is impaired for some reason.

When the elders are asked what their biggest regret was, they usually say "not taking more risks". Enjoy it!!

triplekg

OP just read - no kids, retired and have a great steady income... Are you kidding me! Get the car and enjoy it!

If I were in your shoes I probably would have ordered a Ferrari 812 Superfast lol

Gus_Smedstad

I've heard that, but I don't really understand at a gut level how that happens. Yes, kids cost money, but the delta doesn't seem to be so large that it'd swallow that much income. For that matter, plenty of people manage to raise kids on $70k or so of household income without slipping into poverty.

One way you can spend a lot of money, of course, is cars. Which is part of what makes me uncomfortable about the spending, regardless of my financial analysis. I don't want to acquire the spending habits of the people who are running up debt on $390k a year.

Airandwater

On this some might disagree. If you can service the debt and get higher returns (after tax) than the interest rate on your loan, you'd be finanically unwise to squander the opportunity cost. Being retired, your investments are probably conservative and geared towards preserving capital. In that case it makes sense not to take a loan as your investment return after tax may not be higher than your loan interest.

Anyways, this is all moot. We all experience some buyers remorse at this kind of "frivolous" expenditures. It will pass!

Dennis C

I completely understand the feelings buying an expensive car. Personal finances and tolerance for risk are indeed personal decisions, as noted above. When I bought my 991 Turbo S cabriolet I had the same thoughts. It wasn't that I couldn't afford it, it was just more than I had ever spent on a car. It was more than I spent on my first house. And it was for a third car; one primarily for fun and not for transportation. It's not a feeling you get because you can't afford it, it's one that you get because you wonder if you should spend that much money on a car. You've gotten through the hard part, now just enjoy the car!

Airandwater

Now that's just unAmerican

Gus_Smedstad

There are times I think I'm an idiot for not going the Z06 route. Lots of performance for much less money. I've never even test driven one! Makes me wonder what's wrong with me.

I hope you enjoy your Turbo. I think a Turbo is probably more car than I could really enjoy, even if I have the typical knee-jerk "more HP is always better!" reaction. Which I'm sure people here know about.

Plus, I want a manual transmission, which isn't possible with a Turbo.

That's a valid point. When I take this into account, actually, I generally use 4% when considering the future value of a large current outlay, but usually I'm just looking at present cash flow.

Actual mileage tends to be around 2k a year, but expect depreciation will still be around what you're saying. I should drive more.

Part of my impulse to go GTS 4 instead of 4S was depreciation, actually. I've noticed that it's meaningfully less on GTS models due to the badge. I don't really need more than a 4S to be happy, though a base 4 proved to be not enough in test drives. Good, of course, but not enough for me.

Gus_Smedstad

Absolutely. I understand this intellectually, but I can't do it for emotional reasons. I imagine it would be a hassle, too; banks like to see a salary as a guarantee against payments, not investment returns.

Thanks, this is exactly the sort of feedback I was hoping for when I started this thread. While this is my daily driver, uh, ok, weekly driver since I don't drive that much, the parallels are still there. It's more than I paid for my first house as well.

EDIT: Just noticed you're from Evergreen. I used to live in Bailey, I know the area. Not that anyone actually lives "in" Bailey, since there's not much to the town itself.

mikeearly

FWIW, I'll agree that I often wonder (get qualms in your terms) about having so much money tied up in a car. In fact I was wondering today if I really "need" a 2013 Carrera S Cab and a 2017 Cayenne S. I decided that I am not hurting the way that my wife and I are living, both my kids are better off financially than we are so they certainly don't need the money, and that I enjoy the *^&%( out of driving each one of them. Oh and by the way -- I revisit this topic every time I take one of the cars in for service and get the shop bill

There were tons of cars that I lusted after growing up - 289 Cobra, 427 Cobra, 930 Turbo, 'Vette, etc. Now that I can swing a "nice" car I'm going for it. Of course now I lust after cars that are still outside my comfort level - Ford GT, Turbo Carrera, McLaren, Lambo etc. So yes my Carrera S Cab cost way more than a Camary but it is a %$$ lot less than a McLaren.

And, as long as I am rambling here --- I'm not sure that I would ever have posted this question here as I really and truly don't care what others think about what I am doing to live my life. But since you did --- I wanted to tell you that your concerns were not way out of line from my viewpoint.

Archimedes

My comment on removing financial data was not inferring you were rude. It was to protect you. If you knew anything about Big Data, you'd limit how much personal info you share online.

GTSMeister

This is the real meat of this thread. Having given up your current ride on the promise that an allocation "will appear" is the riskier move.

Dealers always say they can get you an allocation. If that were the case, Porsche's model wouldn't use an allocation system. They would instead operate like Tesla. Order whatever you want and we'll build it.

But that's not how it works. The allocation system is designed to preserve rarity and reward dealer volume. I waited 4 months on the promise of an allocation for a 4 GTS and then found out where the allocations actually were and bought the car from the closest dealer to me that had one. If you're spending ~$150k on a car you can afford a trip to go get it.

If your dealer is high enough volume and they come through then that's a good situation you found yourself in. But I'd think more likely you'll wait longer than you'd like.

But then your $80k cash can make you a little more money while it stays invested.