Carrera GT

Just be careful about nonsense like capital reduction -- that can cut into residuals. Better to get the cash in your pocket and keep the lease values unaltered so that there's a higher residual value, less paid out in the total payment structure, then use the cash in hand to make the payments on time or earlier if you wanted to reduce the total interest burden versus tax or deductible depreciation. At that point, you'd want an accountant, not someone from the dealership, advising on how to proceed.

I think the up to date information on percentages (interest rates and discounting) is your most valuable ally ... your worst enemy now is your desire to be driving! : )

carsrmyvice

Thank you for the information. You have been helpful, enabling even I was under the assumption that residual value was a percentage of msrp, not of cap cost? Am I wrong there?

Lucky for me we have 6 inches of snow on the ground up here in upstate ny.

lemonade

The residual value is based upon MSRP. If you put down $10k on a lease it does not change the sticker price of the car, just the capitalized cost. With money factors reasonable and residuals grossly inflated through PFS, it looks like a good time to grab a 2013 lease before the 4-1 bulletin change on residuals. Personally, I did a 12 month lease on an ordered 2013 cab for the mandated 15k miles.

D

Carrera GT

I think there's a grain of truth to the "codependant" aspect of enthusiast forum sites. : )

As I understand it, the residuals are depreciation models off msrp including options to a specific vehicle build, not selling price, but that's part of the chicanery when a dealer tries to do things like sell a car off the payment per month or push the highest dollar amount into the lease by selling the new car at a higher price and the trade-in at a seemingly appealingly higher price, but it just goes to inflating the cost of the lease. I think that's one reason why I like the PFS leases and the dealer sales process -- I'd like to think it limits the shenanigans.

carsrmyvice

Ain't it the truth! This wouldn't be the first time for me. I wonder how many people find rennlist thinking hmm I like porsche, maybe il get a cayman. Two weeks in you are ordering a carrera PTS and want a gt3 for the track haha I'm not crazy you think to yourself, I know several people on rennlist who are just as like me.

gota911

A few years back there was a guy on the Turbo Forum that had purchased a red C4S. After a few months thought he needed more speed. He ordered a Turbo with the same interior and exterior colors, so his wife wouldn't know he had swapped cars. She didn't notice the change.

carsrmyvice

That is genius! Dangerous though if he got caught he would get the whole "why would you lie to me" blah blah blah

Carrera GT

I think a blatant lie would be about as useful as self-immolation.
But I went from a 996 GT3 to a 997.1 GT3 to a 997.2 GT3 RS and when quizzed on the topic, I faithfully observed that I had "added a wing."

fast1

One bit of advice if you are leasing: do your homework and read the fine print carefully. A few years ago I considered a lease on a BMW until I read the fine print. The monthly payment was superficially attractive but when you look at all of the fees they hit you with like capital reduction fee, vehicle aquisition fee, returning your car fee, scratching your butt fee, etc, etc., it loses its luster. Also, with leasing you are trapped into a cycle of always being hit with maximum depreciation since most leases are 3 years in duration.

One last point. If your car is legitimately a business expense, you can depreciate assets that you own as well as ones that you lease. Some of the posts that I read here suggest that depreciation is limited to leasing.

Anyone who wants to minimize their car expenditures should carefully shop for the car they really want, buy it, and then keep it for at least six years and longer if possible.

nanybunny

I feel your pain on the luxury tax. It's definitely a bummer. It's not fair to have to pay an extra 20% on top of the already expensive price tag for a luxury vehicle. I can only imagine how stressful it must be to have your dream car delivery date slipping into the time frame of the tax coming into effect. I totally get why you're worried, but let's hope the delivery date stays within August. Fingers crossed! If not, at least you've been monitoring your taxes and income closely with the help of pay stubs. And if you need to, you can always create paystubs with ease to keep track of everything.