(SoCal) $1k/mo Budget, Sporty 2 Door - What Cars Should I Consider?

c63 probably best of both worlds and will fit exactly what he’s looking for, my biggest problem with the amg’s are that they usually fly under the radar and thats a good or bad thing depending on how you look at it, again depends on what op is looking for but the c63 looks like it covers what he wants, convertible, “fast and fun.” (this would be one of those rare cases but the car literally looks no different than a c300 cabriolet without paying real close attention)

If you’re into the C63, consider a purchase. From the right dealer, you can get 7% off MSRP on a 2019 ordered car and more if you’re taking a 2018 off the lot. Combine that with a moderate sized down payment (10K) and penfed financing over 72 months and you’re right at your 1K/monthly payment.

Or even better, as others have mentioned, grab a CPO. You can get a CPO 718 GT4 or 911 for ~85-90K and it’ll depreciate much less than that over 3 years. If you need to keep payments low, you could do balloon financing as Porsche’s tend to hold resale pretty well.

It’s going to be really really really hard to get good value on a lease.

Hey all - been dealing with work stuff the last couple days -

Found a c63 AMG lease swap @ 1100/mo but got denied due to credit… not sure if it’s a mistake because my Transunion is 748 which I’d think would be sufficient.

Jaguar says 1500/mo on a F Type V8. Said in January maybe they’ll have better deals.

Can’t do a purchase because then I’m basically just shifting money from liquid to asset with little tax benefit - if I do a lease I can write off 80% on a 1k lease, so as much as I think it’s a dumb idea to lease this class of car, it’d be dumber to purchase one.

I guess the plan for now is to keep watching lease trader and apply for others in the hopes of locking one in…

Just go with an Audi s5 cabriolet. Although it isn’t a true sports car like a Porsche, it’s not a land yacht like the Benz SL63.

Pricing will be much better than on a C63, although it won’t have the insane engine. However, the interior is better.

Ya but the S5 looks like a land yacht. I think I’m kind of screwed here - plenty of money to play with but the stuff I really want is 50% more expensive than I can spend

You think so? I think the exterior is pretty comparable to the c class cabriolet. It’s the same size. Definitely not a land yacht like the SL, bmw 6 series, etc.

Feel sorry for you.:sob:

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You know you can deduct depreciation on a purchase as well right. With the new TCJA, it’s going to make any difference immaterial.

It’s like saying I’m going to light $100 on fire so I can have a $35 tax benefit.

If you’re worried about capital allocation, just get a good deal and put minimal down with balloon financing. Your capital allocation and interest rates are going to be worse with a lease. Close to 5% with acquisition fee on a lease, 3% on a purchase. Payments of 1100+ on a lease whereas you can get 950 on a deferred finance purchase.

If you were my client, I’d show you the difference in cash flows under both scenarios and pro forma your tax benefits in both scenerios and it would show purchase being significantly better than a lease.

Maybe you should have a talk with your CPA or get a new one since he’s giving you outdated advice.

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Whats the end game on the balloon payment?

You exit the car before then because you never planned on keeping it through term. As long as you’re negotiating vehicle price prior to executing, your amort table will be reasonable enough so 3 years in, your loan value will likely be close to the market value of the car.

This is going to be the last AMG V8 accessible under 100K so I’d happily bet they will hold value. Take a look at 2016 C63S with ~30K miles and you’ll find most are listed at 60K+ on a car that MSRP’d at 80-90. A lot more than the 54% residual per the lease.

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and how many of those 2016s are privately owned? it’s not about holding value but also being able to sell it, a dealer is gonna have a lot easier time selling his 60k amg than you. The c63 holds it’s value better than the e or s for some reason though. Amg v8s will be here for a little bit longer dont start panicking they are going to optimize fuel mileage until they get to a point where they have to use twin turbo 6’s. Their turbo v8s aren’t that loud tbh, their 6.2 N/A is hands down the best german muscle car sound.

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Absolutely, the point wasn’t that you would be able to sell for 60K, it was that it holds its value in a way that some performance cars do not. You’re not likely to get burned with 60% depreciation in 3 years was the point.

The head AMG guys have indicated the 205 will be the last C that does not have some element of hybrid tech a la the E53. Once this next 4/5 year run is done, we’ll have to step to the E63, or AMG GT to get this V8 biturbo. Both of which are well into the 6 figure range.

The overall point being that the OP wants the car, the usual benefits of leasing don’t apply to this specific vehicle, so he should purchase.

  1. interest rates lower on purchase
  2. low risk of residual value lower than lease
  3. balloon financing offsetting cash flow impact
  4. minimal tax impact

My C63 coupe just got its order # and should be here in March, so I just did this entire analysis for myself.

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Would it be better to do a trade-in or a private sale? Suppose its something that holds its value well like a Porsche 911.

If you have records and put in the time, you can move it on mbworld or 6speedonline for a higher price.

In some states, it may be better to trade in to mitigate sales tax impact.

The 991.2 has resale value that can’t be touched but I’ll be interested to see what happens when the 992 comes out. When the 718 GT4 comes out offering PDK, that could also hurt that market.

What about a Panamera? Would something like that work well on a Balloon?

This makes sense - especially with having my CPA provide cash flow/ tax estimate scenarios. Actually seems flat out lazy now that she didn’t. I take it you’re a CPA? Do you handle ecomm/ affiliate businesses?

“It’s like saying I’m going to light $100 on fire so I can have a $35 tax benefit.”

My understanding from what my CPA told me is that it’s like lighting a $200 bill on fire to save $800, but that when you light that $200 on fire you also get a nice car for it.

If going with financing a 80k car with a ballon structure then my options really open up… The c63 AMG is great but like you said, could also get a 911 or even an AMG GT!

Like I said I agree with you but the sales prices on those cars is probably 6-7k more than the trade in value, it still holds value well. I was looking at e55 amg’s the other day a 14 year old e55 amg was selling for like 30k, it lost 70% value in a decade and a half that’s amazing value.

edit: Also low mileage helps a ton.

I can get you a Cayman or Boxster no problem for under $1000.

Any civilian can walk into any Porsche dealer and score a Cayman or Boxster under a dime a month, no?

They should be able to, but I’m getting 15% off 18s in MA. Cayman and Boxster S included.