BoxsterG

Spokane that was very good of you to help out with those Manheim prices and recommendations.

Spokane5150

My pleasure....

wbgordon

Hope you don't mind me jumping in as this is just the discussion I was looking for. I'm interested in buying my 2011 Spyder off lease and am considering paying for CPO at the same time. What I can't seem to figure out is the minimum additional time I need to drive the car to make the purchase of the CPO worthwhile. The care presently has 24k miles.

Thanks fellas.

Dutchie in NC

Spokane,

Interesting info... just so I understand, are these companies trying to sell these cars, while they simultaneous have them listed on Manheim?

Spokane5150

Yes...you'll notice that they have the cars $500 to $2k higher price on their web site than what they want on Manheim; this is Retail versus Wholesale prices. When a dealer trades your car they quote you a price based on what the car will bring at Auction not what they can retail the car so this price is usually $2k less than wholesale prices because they want to make money at Auction. That's why Kelley Blue Book doesn't mean anything when trading your car. You need black book or MMR which tells you average wholesale that week not two months ago. Wholesale prices fluctuate. When GM announces $6500 cash allowance on a new car...guess what happens to that same used car price at auction. You got to know MMR if you plan to trade your car. Otherwise, you will get hosed when trading your car.

It is always better to trade your car to a dealer that plans to retail it instead of taking it to auction. That way you can get more for your trade. Trade BMW's at BMW dealers and Porsche's at Porsche dealers. Better yet...sell it yourself but this depends on the tax situation. Some States provide you tax credit on your trade at a dealer so retailing your car yourself can be a diminishing return. Either way the dealer wants to make money. They want to make at least $1000 to $2000 at auction and at least $5000 or more if they retail the car. Our job, as the buyers, is to get the best value on our trade and our purchase as possible.

The Manheim prices I gave you help you because now you know their bottom line. When I bought my C2S I knew what the dealer in Chicago wanted at auction so I was able to actually talk them down another $1k below what they wanted on Manheim which was pretty good for me. If the dealer has the car on Manheim it usually means they are having a difficult time Retailing the car. Free Cash Flow is everything to a dealer. If they have $50k tied up in a vehicle for over 30 Days that means they cannot buy more cars with that $50k.

Porsche dealers don't usually take their Porsche's to auction because that is their bread and butter. So if you see a Porsche dealer taking a car to auction this could mean the car has problems so you have to be careful. The cars are graded on Manheim and the dealers are required to divulge any known problems with the car. The "Grade" system tells how the car looks so if the paint is thrashed and faded then the grade will be low. (All the cars I gave you had a good grade.) Dealers have reputations to maintain so they don't want to sell cars to other dealers trying to hide a problem because they'll get a bad reputation. The secondary market are the outfits pedaling these damaged "problem" cars so you have to do your due diligence when buying from non-Porsche dealers. Porsche dealers don't get all the good cars so don't worry. Check CarFax and look at the car closely.

A good pre-purchase inspection will tell you all the bad news if there is any. You can also educate yourself on what to look for as far as body damage and new paint. Some damage you can live with and some damage you may not be able to live with. I don't worry about windshields or if the fascia/bumpers were damaged and repainted because this stuff is minor and so long as the paint is perfect then all is good. Minor damage is easy to explain and repairs usually turn out well. Worry' about major body damage and frame damage. Keep in mind, No car with mileage is perfect. If you are supper **** like me then you need to buy a new car or find a super pristine beauty like I did. Even new cars get damaged during shipping. Mine has a couple bruises but nothing I can't live with.

Good Luck!

Dutchie in NC

Spokane, great explanation... thx

Marlon Targa 86

Spokane, thank you! That was very insightful.

I'm leaning more and more towards getting a CPO car from a dealership or go with Carmax and get their 6 year warranty.

Spokane5150

You're welcome.

You may be better to go this route because $50K buys you a beautiful Porsche but no warranty. So the CPO would be worth some peace of mind. However, keep in mind that these Porsche's have the best customer satisfaction and quality year after year. They are very dependable daily drivers and very high quality cars. With that said, maybe an extended warranty is overkill; only you can decide. Seventy Percent of every Porsche ever sold is still running which is incredible if you think about it. Mine will be out of warranty in August and I probably won't get an extended warranty. Porsche didn't build its amazing reputation building cars that break. Some of the guys on this Forum track their cars and actually run these babies the way they were designed to run (On the Gas or On the Brake...no in between.)

http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/...jd-power_x.htm

http://blog.gaudinmotorcompany.com/2...-satisfaction/

http://www.forbes.com/2010/06/24/hig...-jd-power.html