[BMW F22]

Originally Posted by Alfisti

Those of you chasing Caymans, considered a well sorted 997 series 911 for about $50K?

911s are too big for me, and I prefer mid engine.

[tturedraider]

Originally Posted by tom2021

Any 0% financing for new cars?

Mazda has some 0%. I think even up to 60 months.

[dradernh]

Originally Posted by tturedraider

Mazda has some 0%. I think even up to 60 months.

Thanks! Maybe it's time for me to look. Even after 88K on it, for DD driving I flat love the wife's 2015 FWD MT 2.5l Mazda 3. In town, I choose it over my M240i every time.

[c1pher]

Originally Posted by Alfisti

Those of you chasing Caymans, considered a well sorted 997 series 911 for about $50K?

Mostly likely would be a 997.1 convertible with high mileage under $50k.

[tturedraider]

Originally Posted by dradernh

Thanks! Maybe it's time for me to look. Even after 88K on it, for DD driving I flat love the wife's 2015 FWD MT 2.5l Mazda 3. In town, I choose it over my M240i every time.

Way, way back in the day I had a ‘91 Mazda Protege. I’ve always liked Mazdas and that was a fun little car!! It was my first four door sedan and that’s all I’ve had since. I found out those back doors are pretty handy! I always tell people Mazda is the sporty Japanese brand.

[LDT]

If the market craters it’ll be EV's which have been showing signs of weakness for some time. Ppl who wanted electric vehicles bought them. The rest of us want nothing to do with them.

[allinon72]

Originally Posted by LDT

If the market craters it’ll be EV's which have been showing signs of weakness for some time. Ppl who wanted electric vehicles bought them. The rest of us want nothing to do with them.

In the last few weeks I've gotten bombarded with emails, mail, etc. from my local BMW dealer about "year end specials." Which isn't all that out of the ordinary in normal times 2020 and earlier, the difference is all the specials are on EVs. A quick look at their new inventory....almost all EVs.

This seems to be a theme amongst all manufacturers who went all in on EVs and loaded up dealers. I don't see how dealers get out of this...EVs are different in that a large group of people won't be interested in them, at any price, due to external factors. So it's more than just a price issue to move them off their lots. We are going to see some major pain in the auto industry in 2024.

[ezaircon4jc]

Originally Posted by LDT

If the market craters it’ll be EV's which have been showing signs of weakness for some time. Ppl who wanted electric vehicles bought them. The rest of us want nothing to do with them.

When the EV owners sell, the majority buy gas cars.

[XutvJet]

Originally Posted by vreihen16

Definitely in price for what I've been tracking. No more 5+ year old used cars selling for more than new ones.....

Truth. We loaned our 19 y/o son some cash to buy a 2020 Mazda 3 Premium AWD hatchback a few weeks back. He and I had been watching the market for about a year now. He wanted the newest generation Mazda 3 hatchback (2019+), Premium package (loaded), and red/black interior. He was open to AWD, but no turbos (too expensive, some reliability concerns). His budget was $26K. Last December, these cars were going for around $30K and within $1500-2000 of what they were selling new. I told him to be patient. The market really started to soften around September this year. He ended up finding a late year 2020 Polymetal Mazda 3 AWD Premium with 20K miles with brand new Conti performance tires for $25.5K at Carmax in early December. I know you spend 5%-7% more buying at Carmax, but the cars tend to be higher quality and there is absolutely no dealer BS to contend with. We test drove the car and were done in a crack over 1 hour. A new Mazda 3 with the same options is around $32K.

I will note that the sub $30K, more popular car market is still relatively high. The bigger drops are happening in the $40K+ market, especially trucks, SUVs, and higher end makes.

[XutvJet]

Originally Posted by BMW F22

Agreed on the last part. It will take time, and I know better than to rush into buying a highly priced used vehicle right now. Makes no sense that a 2015/2016 Cayman GTS goes for $80-90K, and a 2016 GT4 goes for $110-120K. People can buy if they can afford it. I’ll wait as I don’t think they’re worth that much. $100K+ for a Cayman? It’s just silly.

Have you driven a base model Cayman? Take it from a guy that owns one and also has a much more powerful M235, don't write the base model flat 6s off. My 265hp 2011 Cayman base 6MT can do lower 5 second 0-60s and maybe a 13.4 on a good day where as my M235 is a deep 12 second car, but the Cayman is just so much more fun. You can use all the power on the street, it hooks hard off the line, sticks to curves like nothing I've experienced, and it sounds so damn good and I'm still on the stock exhaust. By the seat of the pants, it feels and sounds faster than it is and for me, that's fine. The car turns heads everywhere and I'm constantly asked about it at the store, gas station, etc. I paid $33K for the car in October 2022 and can't stop driving it. It's a scalpel. My M235, though I love it greatly, feels like a wet noodle in comparison.

You can save a ton on a base model or S model and go to town on it, making it your own. To me that's far more enjoyable than paying way more for a halo model where you'll feel guilty doing any mods to it.

[Ric in RVA]

Originally Posted by XutvJet

Have you driven a base model Cayman? Take it from a guy that owns one and also has a much more powerful M235, don't write the base model flat 6s off. My 265hp 2011 Cayman base 6MT can do lower 5 second 0-60s and maybe a 13.4 on a good day where as my M235 is a deep 12 second car, but the Cayman is just so much more fun. You can use all the power on the street, it hooks hard off the line, sticks to curves like nothing I've experienced, and it sounds so damn good and I'm still on the stock exhaust. By the seat of the pants, it feels and sounds faster than it is and for me, that's fine. The car turns heads everywhere and I'm constantly asked about it at the store, gas station, etc. I paid $33K for the car in October 2022 and can't stop driving it. It's a scalpel. My M235, though I love it greatly, feels like a wet noodle in comparison.

You can save a ton on a base model or S model and go to town on it, making it your own. To me that's far more enjoyable than paying way more for a halo model where you'll feel guilty doing any mods to it.

I just bought an 09 987.2 base cayman. 107K for about 11k less. Super clean and well maintained. (You want a 2009 + car!)

It is a much better built and more visceral car to drive than my 128i sport even after lots of fine tuning on the 128i. (bilsteins m12, Front sway, 3sim, tune, f30 brembo fronts)

I LOVE my 128i and will never sell it and the 128i is arguably a better day to day car...but it is a very good car built out of the simplest of BMW models of the era. It is a 2+2 and while its weight and balance is good....its mass centralization is terrible compared to the Cayman. You can almost feel the mass of the engine being pulled into the corner...this is not the case with the cayman. You feel like the mass of the car is in your right rear pocket.

Everything's mass centralization is terrible compared to the cayman except for a few mid engined cars..

The 128 is great from 0 to 75% and the cayman is superb from 50 to 100%.

And at 260 hp and sub 3100 pounds you won't ever feel cheated....but you aren't beating many modern off the line between the torque curve and gearing...the gearing is ridiculously long.

But it isn't about that...it is about corner balance and entry and handling....it is amazing.

I started a page for the 987.2 2.9 manuals just a few days ago...if you have one come join up.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/3067345886735326

[BMW F22]

Originally Posted by XutvJet

Have you driven a base model Cayman? Take it from a guy that owns one and also has a much more powerful M235, don't write the base model flat 6s off. My 265hp 2011 Cayman base 6MT can do lower 5 second 0-60s and maybe a 13.4 on a good day where as my M235 is a deep 12 second car, but the Cayman is just so much more fun. You can use all the power on the street, it hooks hard off the line, sticks to curves like nothing I've experienced, and it sounds so damn good and I'm still on the stock exhaust. By the seat of the pants, it feels and sounds faster than it is and for me, that's fine. The car turns heads everywhere and I'm constantly asked about it at the store, gas station, etc. I paid $33K for the car in October 2022 and can't stop driving it. It's a scalpel. My M235, though I love it greatly, feels like a wet noodle in comparison.

You can save a ton on a base model or S model and go to town on it, making it your own. To me that's far more enjoyable than paying way more for a halo model where you'll feel guilty doing any mods to it.

I briefly considered a base Cayman but lust after a GTS. I have a Macan S now and told myself the next Porsche will be a GTS. I might settle for an S but want to buy the best I can afford at a reasonable price. Highly considering a 2.5L GTS but would prefer the flat 6; they are $25-30K more though…

[Alfisti]

Originally Posted by XutvJet

We loaned our 19 y/o son some cash to buy a 2020 Mazda 3 Premium AWD hatchback a few weeks back. He and I had been watching the market for about a year now. He wanted the newest generation Mazda 3 hatchback (2019+), Premium package (loaded), and red/black interior. He was open to AWD, but no turbos (too expensive, some reliability concerns). His budget was $26K. Last December, these cars were going for around $30K and within $1500-2000 of what they were selling new. I told him to be patient. The market really started to soften around September this year. He ended up finding a late year 2020 Polymetal Mazda 3 AWD Premium with 20K miles with brand new Conti performance tires for $25.5K at Carmax in early December. I know you spend 5%-7% more buying at Carmax, but the cars tend to be higher quality and there is absolutely no dealer BS to contend with. We test drove the car and were done in a crack over 1 hour. A new Mazda 3 with the same options is around $32K.
.

Only 6K more for brand spanking new? I'd be tempted to go new TBH.

[Ric in RVA]

Originally Posted by BMW F22

I briefly considered a base Cayman but lust after a GTS. I have a Macan S now and told myself the next Porsche will be a GTS. I might settle for an S but want to buy the best I can afford at a reasonable price. Highly considering a 2.5L GTS but would prefer the flat 6; they are $25-30K more though…

I win the lottery tomorrow a 4.0 cayman gts manual will be in my driveway.

And a Taycan.

[BMW F22]

Originally Posted by Ric in RVA

I win the lottery tomorrow a 4.0 cayman gts manual will be in my driveway.

And a Taycan.

I’m with you on both counts.

[spazzyfry123]

Originally Posted by tturedraider

Mazda has some 0%. I think even up to 60 months.

They also have 0.9% for 36 months on their MX-5s if you're looking for something more fun.

[XutvJet]

Originally Posted by Alfisti

Only 6K more for brand spanking new? I'd be tempted to go new TBH.

$6K is a pretty big jump when you're talking $26K budget. Registration on a brand new car in Kansas is rather eye watering. Getting a brand new Mazda 3 would have added another $1700 in new car registration (paid $300 in registration for a 3.5 y/o Mazda 3) on TOP of the 9.5% tax we pay on ANY vehicle purchase, new or used. Taxes and new car registration are brutal in my state.

[XutvJet]

Originally Posted by Ric in RVA

I win the lottery tomorrow a 4.0 cayman gts manual will be in my driveway.

Me too.

[Alfisti]

Originally Posted by XutvJet

$6K is a pretty big jump when you're talking $26K budget. Registration on a brand new car in Kansas is rather eye watering. Getting a brand new Mazda 3 would have added another $1700 in new car registration (paid $300 in registration for a 3.5 y/o Mazda 3) on TOP of the 9.5% tax we pay on ANY vehicle purchase, new or used. Taxes and new car registration are brutal in my state.

Your state is an amateur, you'd lose your mind with what we pay here. You make a good point re. hidden new car costs, here it's freight and PDI and it can quickly add $3k to the price.

[XutvJet]

Originally Posted by Alfisti

You make a good point re. hidden new car costs, here it's freight and PDI and it can quickly add $3k to the price.

Even though I prepared him, it was eye-opening for him to see the total cost with fees, tax, and registration. He even said "It's hard to fathom how so many people just throw extra thousands around when buying a car like it's nothing because they got a loan for most of it.". I told to never get comfortable with that, no matter how much money you have.

He's a good kid. Goes to college for computer science/cyber security, has a paying videography job at the school, works at a grocery store during breaks, and has his own videography business. We didn't hesitate to loan him $22K with no interest to get the car. He's never expected anything from us. I look forward to working for him in the future

[freakystyly]

Most people see a monthly fee and don't care that it's actually for the rest of their life.

[gilberjj]

Originally Posted by freakystyly

Most people see a monthly fee and don't care that it's actually for the rest of their life.

100%

My good friend just bought a brand new Tundra on lease. I asked him why he leased and he said it's because the payment was too high if he tried to purchase because the interest rates are high right now....

I'll never have another car payment for the rest of my life... In the words of Randy Moss, "straight cash, homie!"