Porsche 997 C2S vs. Honda Accord cost of ownership? (Financial and Mental)
07-20-2010, 11:32 AM
#61
Rennlist Member
The attitude that "I'll just stretch my budget to the breaking point in order to buy XYZ" is preciesly what has gotten us into the real estate meltdown in the first place.
And, historically, stretching to buy a home has always (until recently) been a good investment. At least compared to buying a car.
The fact is a great many people have no business buying a Porsche or even anything close to its price range. You should spend no more (on average) than 4 months income on a car.
And, historically, stretching to buy a home has always (until recently) been a good investment. At least compared to buying a car.
The fact is a great many people have no business buying a Porsche or even anything close to its price range. You should spend no more (on average) than 4 months income on a car.
Yes, I agree and that was my point with the Rolex example, though some have taken it the wrong way. It was not an analogy between a watch and a car. It was an analogy with two examples in which someone shouldn't buy something because even though they can make the payments, it doesn't necessarily mean they really can "afford" it. These are luxuries that one shouldn't have to stretch to own.
07-20-2010, 11:33 AM
#62
Burning Brakes
07-20-2010, 11:41 AM
#63
Drifting
When I was ready to buy, I was still living in an inner city condo with one parking space. Since I walked to work, and my wife drove, that parking space was clearly for her. I could have rented a spot in an underground garage about a 15-20 minute walk away, but honestly the act of carrying my crap with me to the garage, going down steps, getting in the car, driving to the gate, waiting for the gate to open, etc., all seemed like it would have dampened the impulsive spirit of "hey let's go for a drive!". I waited until the following year when we bought a house with a two-car garage. Sometimes the dominant factor is not financial but practicality, especially for a "quality of life" purchase like this.
Regarding the airport- I either take a cab or the subway, unless I am lucky and my wife drops me off / picks me up.
Lots of hot air here as usual. DC is DC. The weather is also hot. 
Lookin' forward to those pix! Thanks!!!
07-20-2010, 12:10 PM
#64
Race Director
The attitude that "I'll just stretch my budget to the breaking point in order to buy XYZ" is preciesly what has gotten us into the real estate meltdown in the first place.
And, historically, stretching to buy a home has always (until recently) been a good investment. At least compared to buying a car.
The fact is a great many people have no business buying a Porsche or even anything close to its price range. You should spend no more (on average) than 4 months income on a car.
And, historically, stretching to buy a home has always (until recently) been a good investment. At least compared to buying a car.
The fact is a great many people have no business buying a Porsche or even anything close to its price range. You should spend no more (on average) than 4 months income on a car.
That completely ignores many important financial factors that affect your ability to afford a vehicle.
07-20-2010, 12:54 PM
#65
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The primary comparison is in relation to cost, a point that I'd thought was reasonably obvious... The cost of a well-optioned 550 is broadly comparable to the cost of a base Carrera, and the cost of an base M5 is broadly comparable to a base Carrera S.
Last edited by swajames; 07-20-2010 at 01:37 PM.
07-20-2010, 01:12 PM
#66
To those who say, "It's impossible to compare cars."
I compare them all the time. I ask myself, "Should I drive the SUV, Bimmer or the Porsche this morning?"
Point: Carrera should NOT be your only car. Unless of course you are a single playboy bachelor who lives in a condo and is getting some every night. Why? Because the hormonal imbalance makes the tight fit, excitement and specialty of a 997 as a daily driver seem normal.
I compare them all the time. I ask myself, "Should I drive the SUV, Bimmer or the Porsche this morning?"
Point: Carrera should NOT be your only car. Unless of course you are a single playboy bachelor who lives in a condo and is getting some every night. Why? Because the hormonal imbalance makes the tight fit, excitement and specialty of a 997 as a daily driver seem normal.
07-20-2010, 02:04 PM
#67
Burning Brakes
To those who say, "It's impossible to compare cars."
I compare them all the time. I ask myself, "Should I drive the SUV, Bimmer or the Porsche this morning?"
Point: Carrera should NOT be your only car. Unless of course you are a single playboy bachelor who lives in a condo and is getting some every night. Why? Because the hormonal imbalance makes the tight fit, excitement and specialty of a 997 as a daily driver seem normal.
I compare them all the time. I ask myself, "Should I drive the SUV, Bimmer or the Porsche this morning?"
Point: Carrera should NOT be your only car. Unless of course you are a single playboy bachelor who lives in a condo and is getting some every night. Why? Because the hormonal imbalance makes the tight fit, excitement and specialty of a 997 as a daily driver seem normal.
just wouldn't work. Sometimes you have to haul and tow, and as it
turns out, the 911 is worthless for this.
07-20-2010, 02:10 PM
#68
Burning Brakes
base Carrera.
My window sticker on my 2006 Carrera was approximately $86,000.00
(with PASM, PSE, 19"s, etc.).
You can find 550i's with window's at $60,000-$65,000 all day long.
The window sticker for an M5 is closer to that of a well-optioned base Carrera.
07-20-2010, 02:31 PM
#69
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I've never seen the price of a 550i come close to the price of a
base Carrera.
My window sticker on my 2006 Carrera was approximately $86,000.00
(with PASM, PSE, 19"s, etc.).
You can find 550i's with window's at $60,000-$65,000 all day long.
The window sticker for an M5 is closer to that of a well-optioned base Carrera.
base Carrera.
My window sticker on my 2006 Carrera was approximately $86,000.00
(with PASM, PSE, 19"s, etc.).
You can find 550i's with window's at $60,000-$65,000 all day long.
The window sticker for an M5 is closer to that of a well-optioned base Carrera.
Like it or like it not, it is only when we get into the GT and Turbo models that any arguments about exclusivity really hold any water.
07-20-2010, 02:31 PM
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Actually most people who live in LA (and own a Porsche) have a house with a 2-3 car garage. It sounds like you live in an apartment with a communal parking lot underneath. I personally would not want to own a nice new Porsche if I lived in Hollywood. And I sure as hell wouldn't park it on the street. And if the crappy streets don't trash the car, then the "neighbors" probably will. At least a much less expensive used CPO 997 might deaden the anxiety a bit.
From reading your post to the responses, it seems to me maybe now's not the right time to get one. Because it doesn't seem like you're really sure yourself. I think you perhaps should think a bit more about why you want to buy a Porsche. I'm not certain a "30-day test drive" will even do the trick. In my experience, usually when someone buys one, they know why and don't need to ask so many "scenario" questions.
From reading your post to the responses, it seems to me maybe now's not the right time to get one. Because it doesn't seem like you're really sure yourself. I think you perhaps should think a bit more about why you want to buy a Porsche. I'm not certain a "30-day test drive" will even do the trick. In my experience, usually when someone buys one, they know why and don't need to ask so many "scenario" questions.
Where do you get your stats? I do live in a condo and there must be at least 5 Porsches the best one being a 911 TT. We also have one Lambo, a Bentley, and a salesman that brings home a new exotic every night. With your logic San Francisco would have almost zero Porsches.
As for asking scenario questions, where do you get this experience? And I question why not ask? It's a fun topic as you can see by the number of posts. Not everything in life needs to be taken so seriously. Luckily, I don't spend a penny on psychotherapy, I get all of my cross-analysis done here for free. But the "Why" is because I enjoy cars and want one that provides great feedback and driving satisfaction. I have no one to impress and this car isn't to turn heads or attract shallow gold digging women. There are much better cars to do that then a Porsche.
Who do you judge who should own a Porsche? Is this the typical feelings of a Porsche owner/driver. What are your qualifications to be an exclusive Porsche owner? Do you decide based on Race? Income? Where they golf? Who there daddy is? What type of clothes they buy? What watch they wear? No matter how you slice it, that is a very prejudiced comment.
The attitude that "I'll just stretch my budget to the breaking point in order to buy XYZ" is preciesly what has gotten us into the real estate meltdown in the first place.
And, historically, stretching to buy a home has always (until recently) been a good investment. At least compared to buying a car.
The fact is a great many people have no business buying a Porsche or even anything close to its price range. You should spend no more (on average) than 4 months income on a car.
And, historically, stretching to buy a home has always (until recently) been a good investment. At least compared to buying a car.
The fact is a great many people have no business buying a Porsche or even anything close to its price range. You should spend no more (on average) than 4 months income on a car.
Would you expand on your 4 month rule?
Are you saying that someone should spend no more then 4 months income on a car each year? If that's the case, 1/3 of your income on a car seems VERY high to me. My personal rule is normally around 6 months of income every 5-6 years. That equates to about 1 month of income per year. And I buy my vehicles with cash from savings from the previous 5 years, I do not finance over the future 5 years.
That's what makes this decision a little harder, this would be the biggest check I have written for a car.
07-20-2010, 03:14 PM
#71
07-20-2010, 03:40 PM
#72
Canyon56:
Where do you get your stats? I do live in a condo and there must be at least 5 Porsches the best one being a 911 TT. We also have one Lambo, a Bentley, and a salesman that brings home a new exotic every night. With your logic San Francisco would have almost zero Porsches.
Where do you get your stats? I do live in a condo and there must be at least 5 Porsches the best one being a 911 TT. We also have one Lambo, a Bentley, and a salesman that brings home a new exotic every night. With your logic San Francisco would have almost zero Porsches.
There are lots of ballers in Hollywood (the real money doesn't live there, except in the Hills) with fancy cars (e.g., Russian mafia types, etc.) so, sure you see a lot of expensive cars (hey, you even see them in Compton and ELA
) But to answer your concerns (that you posted about), I would be concerned about a brand new car parked in an apartment garage and driving the thing around Hollywood in general. After all, it's you who is concerned about the cost of the car and its upkeep. That seems to be the biggest reason why you are asking all these questions.I was simply replying to your big concern about parking.
San Francisco is the densest city in CA. Not much you can do about that. Although a lot of people live across the Bay or in Marin or down south and commute with their Porsches to the city.
As for asking scenario questions, where do you get this experience? And I question why not ask? It's a fun topic as you can see by the number of posts. Not everything in life needs to be taken so seriously. Luckily, I don't spend a penny on psychotherapy, I get all of my cross-analysis done here for free. But the "Why" is because I enjoy cars and want one that provides great feedback and driving satisfaction. I have no one to impress and this car isn't to turn heads or attract shallow gold digging women. There are much better cars to do that then a Porsche.
Anyway, good luck. In another thread of yours you listed the options and final MSRP of the car you want. You got responses there, too. I think you need to just go out and buy it if you really want one.....
07-20-2010, 04:15 PM
#73
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I'll guarantee you that there are more Porsches on the west side of town and in Santa Monica than there are in Hollywood. With the exception of the Hollywood Hills, Hollywood is a dump, sorry.
...
You've ask very little (if anything) about chassis characteristics, differences between PDK and MT, RWD versus AWD, etc..
Anyway, good luck. In another thread of yours you listed the options and final MSRP of the car you want. You got responses there, too. I think you need to just go out and buy it if you really want one.....
...
You've ask very little (if anything) about chassis characteristics, differences between PDK and MT, RWD versus AWD, etc..
Anyway, good luck. In another thread of yours you listed the options and final MSRP of the car you want. You got responses there, too. I think you need to just go out and buy it if you really want one.....
As for chassis characteristics - I have most of that down. I grew up around Porsche and Audi's. I don't know the codes and key words for Porsche specific technology, but I have a strong understanding of the mechanical components of a car. I picked PDK because of the technology, it gets shifting perfect making it faster in almost all real life applications. (And LA traffic is rough.) I would like to see the 6 speed get rev-matching like the 370Z manual. As for AWD of RWD; I don't want the added expense of AWD in a dry flat environment. Although the AWD adds weight, it does help balance the cars poor weight distribution; still not enough to make it worth while in CA. If it rained a lot, I would buy a AWD one.
Last edited by SeanInLA; 07-20-2010 at 04:23 PM. Reason: typo
07-20-2010, 04:21 PM
#74
Race Director
At Law:
Who do you judge who should own a Porsche? Is this the typical feelings of a Porsche owner/driver. What are your qualifications to be an exclusive Porsche owner? Do you decide based on Race? Income? Where they golf? Who there daddy is? What type of clothes they buy? What watch they wear? No matter how you slice it, that is a very prejudiced comment.
Who do you judge who should own a Porsche? Is this the typical feelings of a Porsche owner/driver. What are your qualifications to be an exclusive Porsche owner? Do you decide based on Race? Income? Where they golf? Who there daddy is? What type of clothes they buy? What watch they wear? No matter how you slice it, that is a very prejudiced comment.