> Porsche is looking for a way to reach younger consumers whose shopping and transportation habits have been shaped by Silicon Valley giants like Uber Technologies...
Apparently no one told them that these new consumers are broke as a joke also.
You could easily lease two including insurance, registration, and maintenance.
I don't think the added flexibility of being able to swap your 718 for a Cayenne when you need to haul furniture (or have more than two people) is worth it.
It’s not clear that’s true. Leases don’t typically cover other costs like insurance. Also this seems like it might not have the 2 to 3 year long commitments, which can really really drive down the apparent, if not actual cost of a lease.
The linked page puts leasing a 718 Boxster at ~$1400 a month on a 24 month lease. There is no way that the additional taxes, title, license, insurance and maintenance will cost more than $600 a month.
Yes, there is a long-term commitment, but you can get a a lot of car for $2000 a month, all-in.
So it would be cheaper to lease a boxster as the primary vehicle, and, when you need one, just rent a truck over a weekend or whatever.
The commitment makes a big difference in the price. Want a 718 with a 30 year lease? If it existed the payment could be quite low.
Porsche maintenance is also much more expensive than Toyota maintenance, to say the least. Even stuff you don’t do at the dealer, like tires, most people don’t want cheap tires on those cars.
I can’t say for sure how good of a deal it is or not, it would take some calculation and research, I just know it can’t be dismissed without a closer look. There is value in short term, all inclusive subscription plans, it’s just a question of what the real premium nets out to be, and the market demand to pay that premium.
Is the target market people with newly disposable income but destroyed/nonexistent credit? Could explain the "millenial" target, if you ran up a bunch of credit cards in college but have a software job now, go ahead and "subscribe" to a car for 2x the price of a lease! Then when it gets repo'd for nonpayment you're not defaulting on your lease, you're just lapsing your subscription!
Insurance on these cars would cost a small fortune as well, as would replacing the tires, also maintenance because it has that special, not a v6 or inline-6, but flat 6 engine design, so gotta go to a special shop.
I pay just under $100/mo to insure a 1 of 724 (in the US) Boxster Spyder for 7,000 miles a year. For comparison, my 10-year old Mazda Miata ran me $62/mo with identical coverage, and was worth about 10% as much. However, unlike the Miata, I have declared value insurance because the car is worth 15% more than when it was new. Miata had typical depreciation insurance.
Tires more expensive? Yes, because they're bigger. ~$1500/set versus $1000/set (shipped, mounted and balanced) for the Miata, and the rears wear out about twice as fast.
Maintenance? If I went to a dealer for service, labor rate is 24% higher compared to a local Mazda dealer. I instead go to one of the best Porsche independents in the US and he's about 12% more than a local Mazda dealership, and he has way cooler stuff in his garage (last time I went, three 959s, a one-of-17 TechArt CTR3, and other craziness). Though still lots I can do myself.
Parts? I did a full brake job recently, and it cost ~10% more than something like a Subaru WRX STi. I actually used uprated brake fluid (which was +$20 over OEM), though everything else was OEM.
The only major long-term expense is engine rebuilds. Figure 25-30% more than rebuilding a mainstream V8 like a Toyota 1UR/3UR, Ford Coyote or Chevy small block. Though that's usually every 15-25 years (depending on engine hours at high RPM), so that's something you just sock money away for well in advance.
Insurance can be weird. For a while I was paying less for insurance on my 2008 Dodge Viper than I was on my 2001 Ford Mustang GT. It's all risk tables.
Insurance rates are all determined categorically. Mustangs have a higher “accident rate” because they’re cheap and fast and young people with lower incomes, who are also most likely irresponsible, buy them and crash them.
Vipers aren’t exactly in the same group. It’s not performance based, just statistics.
Have you priced out a Porsche? Not the "stock" model, the one you would really buy/lease. For every starting pricing on a Porsche in the configurator add 30K-50K by the time you are done. I own 2. Love them. Best cars every. Fun to drive and they do not try to kill you (well most of them). I cannot wait for the Mission-E to hit. Its my next car.
Don’t forget this includes insurance, mechanical work, registration, detailing when switching between cars. It also lets you use an SUV for a trip, a sports car for a date, or the sedan as needed. Flexibility always costs more. Hard-coded (single car) vs Configurable (multi-car)… what’s easier?
Some people might be willing to burn money today, but unwilling to commit to payments a year ahead. I think anything between moderate success and exactly zero customers is a possible outcome.
Wouldn't it be possible to lease at least two Porches permanently for that amount from an existing car-lease firm?