many people notice/comment on my indecisiveness (ADHD) w/ car's... but honestly considering my occupation and vast down time I thoroughly enjoy the "game" of cars... the most fun is the hunt of course and then the negotiation...

i've been down this road (with better results) a few times.. and encourage others to do the same (but I understand to some their time is more valuable than the money saved/thrill of the hunt).

The 997.1 was my first attempt with a small loss, 997.2 i broke even after 18 months, both my new 958 cayenne's were big profits (probably still could be bought/sold @ profit with their high demand(i think the diesel would be the way to go)).. but the 991 was surely a risk because of it being brand new and the 911's lately have been depreciating quickly because of the market being somewhat flooded with vehicles... luckily for me I noticed all the dealer cars were 111k/115k and higher and Base models still above 100k... so i was very picky on the options and ordered a 88k sticker vehicle and ended up paying 82k OTD for it after TTT... the downside was the base 991 not even starting production until late march and deliveries starting early May... (thought they would be out same time as 991S)

@ inception:



Upon delivery I loved the looks of the vehicle but here and there there were some irritants.. I planned on keeping the vehicle 6 months like usual but sadly my ADHD kicked in sooner than I had hoped...

@ Delivery:



After 3 months I ended up selling the vehicle to a big dealer for the same 82k (and made sure to mention the changes i made to said vehicle)

ironically they chose not to list any of the "modifications" or "flaws" that I made note to them of..(H&R sport springs, Sport PASM front lip, Gundo Hack Exhaust (only add's burbles and pops, car needs center bypass+Gundo hack like 997.2 for real sound change,wheel sapcers, dented headers).. and it's for sale again:

@ it's departure:



Porsche : 911 Carrera Coupe 2-Door in Porsche | eBay Motors



two notes about the 2012 991:


A: when selling a 2012 carrera 991... every system classifies it as 997 (autotrader/cars.com/OVE auction site/etc)... this really bothered me as it was difficult to show off the cheap price because it blended in with the 1000 2012 997.2's on the market... and didn't show up as the cheapest 991 on the market.

B: when plugging the vin into the computer for the dealer to do the paperwork it comes up as a 997.2 "Black Edition"... which suggests why the above car sites put it in with the 997.2 but I still dont get how the vin decodes as a 997.2 (still dont understand why 991 was ever 2012/2013, when it should have just been a 2013 from the get go like the new 2011 cayenne when it came out (january 2010).

showing the 997.2 decode on the vin, their system put up 997.2 pics:
2012 Nissan 911 Coupe - Nissan dealer in Outer Banks NC




I understand that most do not have the time to over analyze car purchases like I do.. but if i had to make some suggestions to get in and out of cars with the least amount of loss.. I would say:

A: don't trade in previous vehicle (sell your car privately and have the dealer you have negotiated new purchase with broker the sale for a fee (get extra on your car and still get sales tax savings (in applicable states))

B: don't let extra badges on the back sell you on a more expensive model (end of the day the car is the car... unless you feel the 50hp/other extra's are personally worth it)

C: don't let a dealer tell you what options are "must haves", they get a higher profit margin on options and will sell you on the moon (options do not add to resale regardless what they say), yes some options will add to desirability but a lower price will be admired by more. choose the options you "NEED" and order the car for YOU.

D: dont worry about miles, DRIVE THE CAR!... biggest pet peeve of mine are people that leave the car in the garage because "i dont want to add miles to it".... even in the case of ferrari's and other exotics.. DRIVE EM... my car had almost 7k miles in 3 months and i found a buyer at exactly what i paid.... the Cayenne's had more miles and sold for profits... at the end of the day, all of the dealer cars are >100k and as long as your car is cheaper than theirs, it will sell because people won't want to wait 6 months for a car to arrive when they can buy yours now.

E: dont buy the add on packages/warranties/services/maintenance/etc.

F: hopefully that helps someone... my biggest pet peeve in the world are car dealers and I will do whatever it takes to not have someone taken advantage of... I once sat down and took the "trade in numbers" i was told at local dealers and calculated it against what I got for each car sold privately and the number was astronomical!... astronomical as in it would have fully paid for the 991!!!!.. these dealers are getting away with murder simply because we are lazy/spontaneous/impatient.


-Riley

btw: I thoroughly enjoy this forum and the members here, will definitely stay around in the mean time (and be back in the 991 world when the PDK GT3 comes out!!! (Cant wait for PDK+GT Car... I have a feeling the PDK programming will be amazing!)

 

Very good post. I can relate to that a lot, i just dont do it as much!!!
Do you ever trade lightly used cars? I started another thread recently on the subject. Do you think there's a good trade on a 2010 GT3s even if the 991 is coming up fast with a PDK? If they only offer PDKs on 991 gt3s, i think 997.2 will catch a bid and dont lose much more value from here.

 

they would never only allow PDK on GT3, not going to happen anytime soon..

GT models never lose much value, but the 991GT coming out in march w/ tons of HP... lighter (standard 991 is 100kilo's lighter.. imagine how much lighter the GT version will be!).. we're talking 465hp in a 3000lb car!!!!...

wait for the 991GT.. cause imo the 997.2 GT will be old news when the 991 comes out.. remember 997 is a 8 year old design right now.

i do dibble/dabble w/ used cars.. i always say get the latest body style and get rid of it before the new one comes out.

 

I have accepted the fact that I always lose money on cars. It's a hobby for me not a business

 

def not a business for me... but if i can apply some effort and break even, then why not.....

the amount i have saved over the last 4 years basically paid for my 991.... i used the word saved as opposed to what i would have lost buying/selling like average buyer.

 

all depends what state you're in. In CA it's very tough because you have to pay 8.25% sales tax on the purchase price of the car no matter if there's a trade or anything. So you start pretty deep in the hole.

 

Thanks for the post and thoughts. Great story.

Taxes can kill most of these trades, but if you can get a tax credit and sell through your dealer for a set profit that would be best. It seems like if you are rotating between brands that could further complicate things?

Thinking of buying a new M5 to bridge between the Panamera body styles.

 

Some good thoughts Riley as always, you have more time then most and thats a luxury and allows you to maximize the input/output factors and it has been a great success for you. And you are correct here- when buying car you only opt for must have options as the other stuff brings no $ at resale and doesn't change the driving experience, I have been the victim of those needless upgrades many times LOL and have tried to change that habit. Cars like my TTS come basically done so no need to do much.

 

Interesting post, thanks for sharing.

 

Yes, very interesting..