[PushingMyLuck]

A friend wants to buy a new Porsche as a weekend car, but he was having a hard time justifying the $800/mo lease for a car that might get driven 3000 miles a year. Of course, I advised him to just buy the car outright and keep it for 20 years. Isn't that how people do it? That got me to thinking about total cost of ownership of an exotic. I was thinking more about people who lease exotics (rappers) vs. enthusiasts who buy/own the car for many years. What is the best way to calculate this?

How about an example? 1993 Porsche 911 MSRP was $55k. 20 years later, trade in value today is about $20k. Netting out the sale price, you’re out $35k to own the car for 20 years. That’s about $100/month. Is that right?

Today, a late model Porsche 911 with 20k miles can be had for $50k. Basically a new car. Assuming you have the money, what is the cost of owning this car for 20 years? $50k "self-financed” over 20 years comes out to $275/mo. But, you’d still have a residual value of $15k-$20k.

Numbers might be off, but can you net that residual right off the top? So, you only take a $30k loan for 20 years at 3% = $166/mo. (The main flaw here is that I am ignoring the time value of money)

The general premise holds, regardless. Owning an exotic for 20 years is a fraction of the cost of leasing a new $800 exotic every few years.... The key to this analysis is that the 3rd weekend car barely gets driven. Many people own these cars for 20 years, since they are often the 3rd car, and see little use. Most 20 year old 911’s are lucky to have 100k miles on them.

If the desire is to enjoy a true driver’s car, it appear that it can be done very affordably. But, if the goal is conspicuous consumption to impress others with the latest/greatest, then this analysis doesn't apply.

Anyone done this type of analysis and have anything to add?