I'm just about to go into a lease for the first time. I know many folks lease and wanted some adivce:

1) Can leases be negotiated? (was told no by a Porsche dealer.. said they all follow the same formula besides down pay/miles/months)

2)If #1 is Yes then what can be negotiated

3)Can I lease out of state if #1 is Yes and they offer better deal?

4)If after 1 or 2 years I want to go from a 991C2 to a used 991C2S (assuming a 48month lease), can the dealer simply allow me to turn in early so that I can purchase a 2 year old C2S at their dealership?

Thanks in advance
Ed-

 

A couple of thoughts to consider:

- The only thing to be negotiated at a car dealer is out the door price, entirely independent of sale vs. lease. Once the price is settled, then and only then do you discuss the method of payment, if necessary.

- If you're going to lease, you may do better on terms by utilizing an independent leasing firm, rather than running the lease through the manufacturer's finance arm.

I believe that it's always better to separate one's financing, in any deal, from the vendor. The vendor should only be aware of a straight deal for cash - the source of that cash, and on what terms, is none of their business. Much better that way.

Ken

 

You can search for previous posts on the 997 GT3 forum (by me and others) for recent discussions of what's possible. In bullets:

1. all time lowest interest rates now, great time to borrow if your income is rock solid and you have no debt burden other than mortgage, which you should refi to 3.5% or below, 20 or 30 year fixed.

2. lease products are negotiable, but only if you have top tier credit rating, otherwise, they might be willing to bump you up one tier if your score is around 700's.

3. check with speciality leasors for better deals, but PFS right now, in some states of the US (it will vary from state to state) are very good (high residuals, competitive money factor.)

4. negotiate in terms of purchase price, I'd start around $10K off msrp (whether it's inventory or inbound or order to spec

5. begin now (early month) and expect to take 3 or 5 iterations and close a deal at month-end (it really does matter to their numbers, don't be dissuaded.)

6. we're going into winter, and the dead season (except maybe nov/dec year-end stuff for SUVs and the popular cars, hybrids, etc.) so every month you wait is money in your pocket.

7. lease companies don't tend to write new business across borders. I believe there may be some state-by-state tax laws that make this tricky since they own the asset and you're a lessee with the option to purchase outright and pay the remaining sales tax.

8. sometimes, a lease vendor (lessor) will allow what's called an "asset substitution) where they allow a car of higher residual value to be used and the ongoing lease to continue unchanged give or take maybe $500 for the privilege. This can be great, but it can be a bad idea if rates are even lower or the two residual depreciation profiles don't go in your favor -- that's harder to explain briefly, but yes, if you plan ahead and use a vendor like Putnam and you decide you want another newer 911, it can be done. Nothing's free and any time you think things are getting to be convenient, you're paying for the convenience, so run the numbers, otherwise, don't take convenient over cost-effective unless you're sure of all factors.

9. generally speaking, it's wise to sell privately (at almost any price) rather than have the dealer take a trade-in at the same time as the new purchase or lease.

10. compare leases between 997 and 991 unless you're dead set on the 991 ... I'd say a lease on something like a 997 GTS will be better than a 991 ... keep in mind the currently "new" 991 will be old news by 2015 and losing 50% on a new $100K car in the space of 2-3 years is no fun, so you might not like your options to do something like updates to the C2S at a delta that could be twice the difference today.

11. whatever lease numbers and residuals you see from Porsche -- that's going to be the practical reality at 2 years, 3, 4 or even 5. Be careful about comparing prices and mileage, the products don't get much cheaper when you start to skimp on mileage allowance.

Bottom line, if the sticker is $100K, I'd be pushing below $90K and looking for a 12K mile, 48 month lease. You can check out swapalease or leasecompare to get some ballpark numbers, but I expect PFS will be a tad cheaper. I have a mix of vendors at the moment and PFS is the best on the 991S dollar for dollar msrp.

 

Truly appreciate the replies..

How possible is it to get a 2013 C4 or C4S (in Feb) for $5K+ off the MSRP?

When I build my 2013 C4 now it end up at $101K. Would I be able to get it for $95K??

Thanks

 

$5K should be easy enough, depends on the dealer and your relationship there. Another easy way to keep $5K on your side of the deal is to sell your car privately to avoid letting the dealer have your car at wholsale.