Viewed differently, there are some pretty sweet deals out there for those who buy at the 3-4 year/coming off lease point. My '01 listed for $51 and some change, I bought it 3 1/2 years old for $28 with 13,000 miles on it, essentially a new car, carefully broken in by a meticulous first owner. A 45% discount off of MSRP without having to haggle with a saleman.
Having said that, my next one will be P-certified. The extra few grand on front end price to get dealer coverage seems to be a good investment, as opposed to the aftermarket extended warranties that have an air of uncertainty around them. Some of them work fine, as posters have stated, but others don't and my luck is generally bad.
I'm really looking forward to a 2003-2004 S in a couple of years. It's sitting, lightly used, in someone's garage right now. I just hope it's yellow
