djskimo

Hello,

Wanted to get the advice of fellow owners as I am relatively new to the P car market. I am highly considering buying my current least out. Its a 2012 4 GTS PDK, heavily loaded with 12K miles on it. Car is in great condition that's why I am more inclined to keep it rather than try to get into another one.

I did some research and the buy-out price seems to be at a fair market value. However, my situation forces me to buy it out full cash as there is a slight chance I might move the car to Dubai. In which case it can't be financed.

A few questions:
1) Generally how easy is it to sell a 2012 4 GTS if I do decide to sell it a year down the line? Not familiar with the used P-car market. Looking at forum sales it seems like they move within a couple weeks, but then I only saw a data sample of 2 cars.

2) I am concerned about the new 2015 991 GTS coming out soon. Will the new GTS greatly depreciate the resale of my current 2012 4 GTS? Or is that already factored into the current market price?

3) Has anyone purchased a car at lease end? Is there room for haggling on the price for cash deal? Is this a dealer thing or a Porsche Financial Services thing?

The matter is a bit time sensitive. Thank you very much for your input!

TommyV44

I did the same thing with my 2010 C4S Cab last year and it was worth more than I paid for it. For me there were a few things that swung me in that direction as I'd never done that before.

I ordered a PTS car in a color I love with an interior I also love. The 997 is also a model I'm crazy about and I wound up putting very little miles on the car as I live in Florida part time (30,000 miles in 4 years of ownership).

I'd inquired about the residual and negotiating a better buyout and Porsche Financial would never budge on that for me so if they'll do it for you…..great!

About the 2015 GTS I really can't see that impacting the value of your car as they are 2 very different cars with the 991 for me anyway being not desirable at all. I believe if anything that the 991 might have made the 997s hold their value a little more but that could just be my jaded view of the 991 compared to a 997.

Good Luck to you!!

Tom

Tarkers

Hi djskimo,

I would factor out the possibility of shipping the car over here to Dubai, you'd lose too much. Generally US imports carry a significantly lower resale value here and are not loved by the market, simply because of the change in spec that GCC models get. Our temps here mid summer hit 50+ deg.C. AC units are generally upgraded as a result alternators are larger amongst other things.
Theres a very healthy market for pcars here, mostly because the rich locals (of which there are many) who buy them new, spec them heavily and change them often.

With regard to your spec however, 997 GTS models are very rare even here, so I would be surprised if you could find a direct model replacement without months of looking. If you do import your 4GTS, it will be very popular and so could maintain US market value if you decide to sell it here.

Cheers
Tarkers

iii911ooo

I have done this with a BMW lease. One advantage is that the car is eligible to have the CPO warranty included as part of the purchase. Of course, that increases the price to cover the cost of the CPO program. That said, if you are planning to take the car overseas, then you would need to verify that the CPO coverage would follow the car to the new market.

Your car is a depreciating asset. Many factors influence the value of the car and the availability of the next model is one factor. However, the most influential factor is the condition of the car.

CamsPorsche

I too echo the hard time you may have trying to sell your U.S. spec 997 in Dubai as I have been there done that. In order to sell my 997 that I imported from Florida it took a price drop and the right buyer to come along (U.S. citizen).

Secondly, I believe you will still be forced to pay the 5% importation fee even if its your personal vehicle...check into that first.

JayRace

On your question about negotiating a better lease buy out price- My experience has been this. If the current market value is below your buyout price the lender will normally work with you to get close to that value. I just went through this with BMW financial and they offered $7500 off the buyout price to match market value at their dealers.
They either have to take the loss from you or when it goes through auction so most lenders would rather not take a chance at auction.

BIG smoke

My two thoughts.
Can you extend your lease another year? Then you can make a decision when you may go off to Dubai.

On buying out at the end of the lease. From my experience, my lease buy out's, there is a contracted price on your lease contract. That is non-negotiable, as it is a contract. If you return the car, go in the next day to see your old car. It is not yours, there is no agreed upon price. You may bid whatever you feel is fair. BUT, it is now the dealers car. They can sell it, or ask for whatever amount they like. And they do not have to sell it to you. With your low millage, you know they are going to ask a great deal of money for it. Well, optioned, it would sell pretty fast. The dealership would like to have it on their lot and would would qualify as a CERTIFIED PORSCHE APPROVED used car.
My sister returned her Chrysler Town and Country, went in two weeks later, saw her really nice van, bought it for $14ooo less than lease buyout price. She also got extended warranty. It was worth the two week pokerstars wait. But there were 100 of similar vans on the lot. A van is not your car.
If you do buy it off your lease, you should be able to purchase extended warranty before you take ownership. On my BMW, I was also able to negotiate the cost of extended warranty, but not the contracted buy out price.

Tcc1999

It is all about how much you ask for it. There is a direct correlation between time on the market and breaking even / profit on resale. For example, when I sold by 08 C2S off lease I simply wanted the buyout price (for lots of reasons that are not relevant) and it sold in the blink of an eye. Compare that to another poster that market priced (fairly) his GTS. His car sat for a long time, then the right buyer happened upon and it sold very quickly.

So, the short answer would be that your car is an easy sell on the low end and a harder sell on the top end. The thing is you'll never recoup the cost of all those great options you have because people just won't pay a premium for them.


Hard to say because they are two different cars. Your car has the benefit of being rare. There was a post a while ago that put production numbers for the GTS 4 at 1,321 units world-wide. And it was an end of model offering that took advantage of the evolution of the 997 platform. PAG/VAG will make as many 991 GTSs as they can sell. What this means is that for the casual Porsche buyer the new 991 GTS will hurt resale value of the 997 GTS but for the enthusiast who may appreciate the 997 GTS 4 for what it is, the resale market will be just fine. The problem is, and this goes to your first question, there a lot fewer enthusiasts than casual buyers (who may want the latest, greatest or are in the used market looking for a steal/value purchase).

It is my experience that Porsche Financial Services will not negotiate, period. They have no incentive to do so. If you turn your car in they will offer it to dealer (to buy, and maybe the dealer will get a price break depending on their status with PCNA, but this possible discount is just a guess). If the dealer does not want the car it will go to auction. PFS has this system down and, while they may, on occasion, lose money on an individual car, overall the opposite is true and it (leasing/financing) is a cash cow.


Sorry to not provide any definitive answers but I suppose the Invisible Hand of the market is aptly named. Best of luck with your decision.

Linnm

Suggest you make sure that your US warranty covers your car in Dubai

djskimo

thanks for all the feedback!

Warranty not covered in Dubai from initial research. I will have to talk to the dealers there to find out a process. Its also true that this car will be very rare in Dubai.


I have been looking around for other cars in the same class in the low $90K's range, but I just can't find anything that beats a Porsche 911 in terms of overall package.

I looked at Aston, Masserati, Used R8 etc. They are either going to be slower, much older (no warranty) or in the case of the r8 you lose the back seats.