Quadcammer

This forum does not disappoint. The thread quality in here is outstanding (1000 thread count perhaps).

Oh, while we're at it, I have a question.


I'm wondering if you guys can give me a cost breakdown between flying coach and owning a Gulfstream G550?

Just want to know what I'm getting into.

Alfaguy2

There was a time when I could have analyzed every penny I spent on cars and anything else on my computer and manipulated the figures to show any kind of breakdown imaginable but after a while I simply stopped doing this.

I found it was causing me to make very short term decisions based on immediate cost rather than long term benefit.

Until you can reach a similar viewpoint as regards motoring expenses I doubt that owning a 997 would be an enjoyable experience.

That said though the running costs of a 997 are much better than say a Ferrari of the same age.

gray911

To the OP,

If you pay $1200 a year for your Honda, expect that to double with a Porsche. That alone will discourage you from owning one. Wait for the time when you don't worry about maintenance costs, then you know you can afford one.

Zipgun

I wouldn't know I've never owned a Honda..

Though I do own a 05 350z roadster, a 08 BMW Z4 (wife) and my 03 C4s does cost a bit more for parts etc than both of those cars... I do most of my own minor or basic maintenance on all of our vehicles. But if your talking about parts and service from a dealership? Forget it.. The prices are guaranteed to be significantly higher.



+1 It's actually not about snob appeal at all. Agreed.. It's a simple fact that when you buy a car which costs more (msrp) usually everything that comes along with ownership will cost more. Be it maintenance, fuel, insurance, parts etc.

EG: Even though both are Honda's an NSX would cost noticeably more to maintain than a Civic.

Nothing personal but I have to agree with the other posters. By the tone of the questions in all (not only talking about this post) the threads and posts you made? You sound like you're on a fairly strict budget and perhaps should be looking at a more affordable alternative.

Kuhan

SeanInLA, please ignore all the jack-asses on this thread who apparently have so much money that Porsche ownership is no problem for them.

Some of us real people do have budgets and have to live within them and I totally understand your question and position. I went from 3 years riding a bicycle to 997 ownership - perhaps I should have posted a thread here asking for the comparison in cost of ownership so that I could get a whole load of abuse!

To help you out a little:

Gas - figure 1.5x what you're paying now. I get 11mpg local and 20+ highway.
Tyres - $1.2k evey 20k miles. Yes, you can get cheaper and have them last longer but they won't because the car will make you drive it like it's meant to be driven. Get puncture insurance - it's worth it for these tyres.
Insurance - here in Texas the the bulk of the premium is uninsured driver coverage so mine wasn't that much different - figure 1.5x to 2x the price.
Warranty - this is important; make sure you get the CPO warranty when you buy the car. This will cover you for 6yrs, 100k miles in total (4 years new car + 2 additional). It will probably cost you $2k on top of the buying price.
Maintenance - for a new car, it shouldn't cost you too much. Figure $500-$100o every 20k miles at a dealer. Clutch at 60k - $2-3k? Brakes at 40k - $600 if you do it yourself.

With your car payment, I would figure the total cost of ownership is about $20k per year. Not cheap but you don't need to be the Paris Hilton of Rennlist to afford one.

The smile on my face every time I get into my boyhood dream car - priceless!

At Law

Owning a Porsche 997 is like any other luxury item, it is much more expensive to own and operate than 99.9% of the other vehicles on the market.

Nobody needs a 997 for transportation. It's a pure luxury in life.

Do not buy one if you have even thought about putting a pencil to the
cost of ownership.

It can be compared to homes, watches, etc.

Anyone can comfortably live in a 1,200 square foot two story for $150k (Midwest/Southern prices) and have shelter and all the conveniences required to exist in life. However, owning a much larger and more expensive home
has many benefits as well, albeit, pure luxury benefits.

A $100 Timex/Seiko watch will tell perfect time for many years, however,
the Rolex, Breitling, Pateks, etc. provide additional luxury and are justified
in the minds of the owners.

RF5BPilot

Figure that anything you spend beyond the Honda amounts to entertainment dollars.

Are you comfortable spending that much on entertainment? You could keep driving the Honda and take trips to Europe, Australia, and possibly more for what you will spend on maintenance and depreciation. What would you prefer?

You can temper the costs by doing some/most maintenance yourself or finding a cost-effective indy -- as well as finding a car that has already gone through significant depreciation. The double-edged sword is that the older the car, the less the depreciation -- but the higher the maintenance costs.

Yet, it's better to walk into it wide-eyed and pay for what you enjoy than some people on the forum who buy one then whine until they sell it.

utkinpol

why t compare 911 car to an Accord? Let`s do one more step forward and compare accord costs to pagani zonda.

our family DD are 10 year old lexus es300 and 2007 accord lx. both have quite remarkable history so far, on lexus i changed shocks at 60K, spark plugs at 100K, timing belt at 120K, replaced front calipers at 140K miles and this is all so far. accord runs great with no work so far.

after i got my 997 i had to replace its water pump and 2 weeks ago an amplifier died so i will get new one by warranty.

Porsche makes quite reliable cars. but you can expect issues. if money is the concern - make sure your car has CPO warranty on it. most expensive are powertrain issues so make sure you are covered. for street use expect 15mpg ratio, for tires with correct alignment it will last more or less long enough - 2-3 seasons at least so if you will not mod your ca too much you will be fine financially. i suspect my mods list plus tires plus wheels is already more altogether than i had to pay for my wife`s accord. just keep your spending under control and establish strict budget and do not exceed it.

LlBr

IMO? From your concerns expressed in your post? Do the smart thing. Drive the Honda. Owning nice stuff that's expensive might become too much of what's involved for you. A large aspect of new Porsche ownership is about spending money with ease. That's why they have such potent symbolic value to people. BTW, it should always be cash-money. If it involves a loan (for luxury items) there's a weak link in the chain of thinking. Just my opinion. Do what makes sense to you. Do what's smart and easy. If it's expensive do less of it.

BTW, parking these cars always has nightmare potential. Of course office parking garage and country club is not a problem. Everywhere else the public has free run of things comes with the constant possibility of terrorism-by-vandal.

RollingArt

+1

I never park my car anywhere in the normal "DD" type of situation. I'd be a nervous wreck the whole time, and I'm quite sure it would be vandalized fairly soon if I did.

You're quoting new car prices in your post. (op's) As has been said, the depreciation will be the biggest and hardest hit. In three years the Honda will dep. $8k, the 911 dep. will be more like $50k. Are you comfortable with those #'s?



Phil

CamsPorsche

For the first time in my life I'm saying stick with the Honda. Although the 997 is expensive by admission price alone you'll also find insurance, gas, and regular maintenance to be quite expensive. I went from the Acura NSX to the 997 and found it a shock as to maint. price.

The 911 is a pure luxury.

alexb76

+1. How can even one compare these two cars?!?! If one tried to compare an Audi RS4 to it, maybe? or BMW M3... Accord! Just don't get it!

Edgy01

If you are truly serious about this comparative analysis then you need to be thorough. A friend of mine (an economist) would calculate his cost per mile on his Porsches and he included all costs, not just insurance, maintenance, consumables--he also included registration and licensing. If you're in California, that will be a large chunk of change compared to any Honda.

What would be more useful herein is a listing of all real and potential costs of ownership so that you can begin to acquire valid numbers to use for your analysis.

Many years ago I finally bought a used VW bus. I had been driving Porsches for many years. I took the bus in for a new fuel pump. The bill (total) was something like $35! I was so used to paying a fortune for Porsche maintenance that I thought the VW bill was incomplete--did they leave the actual pump off the bill, and that was simply labor?

Keep in mind that expensive cars with a lot of features in them will be expensive down the road to maintain. Many buy used cars that were once $100K cars, and expect them to be inexpensive to maintain. That is faulty logic. Since these cars provide so much more than an inexpensive car, you can expect higher maintenance costs.

A very simple and obvious comparison is with the costs of replacing the air bags in a 997 in 20 years. Since there are many air bags in the car for protection one would think that you want to replace them per the maintenance schedule, e.g., in 20 years. Are you prepared to shell out a couple thousand dollars for something on the car that doesn't make it go? Probably not. The Honda may have half the number of airbags and that expense may be less than 50% that of a 997. Are you going to defer that maintenance? Do you have a formula for computing the safety value of a vehicle? Why not?

utkinpol

C`mon, ' a shock'? What did shock you so much, especially compared to NSX?

alexb76

Maybe in Dubai!

One year ownership of 2007 C4S for me:
- Oil change: $150
- Brake Fluid flush: $100
- Insurance: $2000 ($170*12)

That's it, and insurance in Canada usually costs a lot more than US (although I got the best discount rate due to good driving recrod).

That oil change was at my local shop, at dealer I would have paid a few hundres more.