I am about to receive my ordered 991S Cab. I currently have a cherished 1997 993 Cab. It was hit from behind while stopped. Light damage (rear fender was replaced but nothing more). My dealer is telling me it is worth 30% less because of this (it is on the Carfax). I was intending to buy the 991 but now I think I will do a prepayed lease to avoid this risk on my 991. Insurance, of course, pays for collision damage but not the ensuing depreciation. Thoughts?

 

Isn't there something in the lease that says they could charge you for the damage when you turned in the car at the end of the lease? Personally, I think the reason to lease the car is in case the new systems turn out to be maintenance intensive- and there are a lot of new systems. To name a few:
Managed warm-up with many switches and circuits
Start-stop
Coast
Dissimilar metal corrosion from joining aluminum to steel
New injectors with a totally different spray strategy
PDCC with it's electronics and hydraulics
Electric steering
Etc.

ChuckJ

 

Yes you have to repair the damage which is covered by insurance. The depreciation caused by damage gets shifted to the leasing company.

 

Yes - But be sure to have any damage repaired by a reputable, Porsche-certified body shop using OEM parts Upon lease end, the finance company will try and charge you for any substandard body repairs.

Also bear in mind that the lease residuals used by Porsche Financial for their lease calculations are fairly low and the interest rates fairly high resulting in monthly lease payments that are often not very attractive. Recent 991S coupe quotes that I've seen for 36 month 10k/year lease were in the $1,500 to $2,000/month range and that is with very light equipment and a decent dealer discount. Absent the ability to right off some portion of your monthly payment, leasing one of these doesn't seem like such a great deal.

 

Get diminished value insurance.You can also sue who ever hit you for the value lost.

 

You get a lower interest rate if you prepay the lease. I do think this is a serious issue with ownership. Losing 30% is a lot of money on this size MSRP.

 

That's exactly what I did. Prepaid 3-year, 36,000 mile lease. Much less risk, even fewer worries. Time to take a spin!

 

The OP is right in his thought. I leased my 2009 C2S and when I went to sell it back to the dealer 8 months before the lease was up, they initially offered me 67k. Then when they inspected the car they used a paint meter and noticed that the doors were painted, and said they could not CPO the car now and that they could now only offer me 62k. The doors were keyed by some asswipe when I first got the car and had to be resprayed when repaired, so no body damage at all and 5k loss. The payoff was only 63k so I got them up to that price and walked away.
As the OP mentioned, if your car has any paint damage or worse body damage, you will get much less at resale then otherwise. Unless your a tool and hide the repairs from a private party without a paint meter.

 

With a prepaid lease if the car gets totaled during the lease, aren't you out everything? I've always heard not to put money down on a lease. Some leasing companies allow you to place multiple "security deposits" to reduce interest rate, but you get that money back at the end of the lease. I would check on this.

 

What the majority of folks out there don't realize is, when you buy/finance a car, you pay for damage TWICE:

1. Your insurance deductible

2. The hit you take during your future sale

When you lease, you pay just once: Your deductible. As long as the lease company's rep signs off on your bodyshop's paperwork, regardless of who you fix it with, you're all set.

Sure, you can end up in a situation where you're offered less money if u wanna "sell" it prior to lease end if it had damage, but that is no different from scenario one. In that case you can just keep enjoying the car till your lease contract ends. Or I guess u can do the easy math and see what the best offer you have is vs how much outlay in payments/insurance you will have if u stick with however remaining months you got.

It doesn't matter much if the manufacturer underestimates the residual (hence increases your monthly payment); at the future point in time that u are getting rid of the car, be it at lease contract end, or prior to it, the market value will show, and could in this case most likely be to your advantage. As for interest rates, yes, different banks during different times of the year can offer superior or inferior rates for a lease vs a financing.

But do the math. If you buy, you're definitely paying more interest, no way around it with such an expensive car like a 911. Your amount being borrowed will be way bigger than the 50-60% (just to use nice even numbers for illustration here) required of the car's value when you lease.

For a brand new car, leasing is superior 99% of the time. Period.

 

May I just add that when I say 99% of the time, it's because let's face it: Regardless of claims on this forum and elsewhere, the reality is VERY few people keep their cars more than 3-4 years. Especially I'd say in the last decade. Sure - you can be the "not me!" guy, but yeah like i said, 99%. You're 1 out of a 100. Seems like such a minority but there are millions of cars being sold out there each year

 

You have a 2007 993 Cab?

 

Nizzoc4s, do you stand by your preference for leasing, even at a 7.9 percent lease rate? That's the current rate for Porsche Canada. I'm taking delivery in august and need to decide. I have always preferred leasing but this rate is ridiculous. Thx.

 

I agree with your statement, although 99% may be a bit strong. There are a few situations where leasing may not work as well as buying. In cases of very high annual usage, or in instances where the driver wants to make modifications, leasing may not be practical. I own a diesel Jetta wagon which I use for work and will drive it into the ground. On the other hand, I lease my wife's SL550. The previous SL was involved in a $40,000 collision. I was told that car had a $30,000 diminished value at lease end when sold at the auction. Dodged a bullet on that one in more ways than one.

Leasing usually involves termination fees and nitpicking for blems at the end of the term, but I consider that cheap insurance for risk of accident loss. Personally, I consider interest rates of approximately 6% or less perfectly acceptable as I lay the whole disposition process squarely on the shoulders of the leasing company.

 

So dlchasen, what is your view on a 7.9 percent lease rate and driving 25000 kms per year? What would you do? I like to switch cars every 3 to 4 years but am currently leaning towards purchasing. Btw, this is for a diesel cayenne, not a 991. All views appreciated.