Originally Posted by Perfectlap (Post 465434)

That's funny because the 996 was a progression (modern) while the 997 was regression (classic) to the original VW'esque round headlight. No question that the high fenders and round lights are the preference for many if not most, but the 996 is not cheap because of its looks. It's cheap because they sold so many of them. When the last round headlight 993 rolled off the assembly line Porsche could only muster ~1,600 sales in all of North America (!!!). That's just mind-boggling if you consider that was in the midst of the greatest bull market in anyone's life time. High rollers were buying two of everything except Carreras. The 996 shows up and sales literally blow the roof off the factory. The era of the mass produced Porsche had begun and ironically, mass produced Porsches simply hold no value no matter what they look like, modern or classic. The exception are those with limited production engines like the GT3/2. Put it this way, had the 996 been exactly like the 993 on the outside but with a water-cooled engine inside, it would still be selling cheap. And had that been the case I'm not so sure that 993 resale was be nearly what it is today because many first time buyers are simply after the look which would not be so limited in the market had the 993 gone into mass production with a water-cooled engine. But one has to ask would a 993 air-cooled or water-cooled sold as well as the 996's number in the early 2000's? I think its doubtful, beyond the niche traditionalist (the same ones pumping of air-cooled prices today) the broader market wanted something all new with a modern flair like the Boxster Concept car and the simultaneously developed 996. Either way today there simply are not enough first time buyers for used, out-of-warranty Porsches that require overpriced parts and specialized labor to soak up all that supply of a very successful 996 production run. Once they hear about "routine" $4k Clutch/IMS/RMS quotes they run :chicken:

P.S.
I'll take the fried egg headlights over round lights all day long. I just wish Porsche would have combined both fried egg headlights and high bulging fenders like on the GT1 LMP. That would have been a very exotic looking Carrera. One you could park next to any McLaren or Ferrari.

http://allcarcentral.com/porsche/Por..._Seca_2009.jpg

Originally Posted by RandallNeighbour (Post 465724)

In Houston, we spend 15% more on average for cars than other big cities in America according to sales report that came out a while back. No idea why!

I work in the posh Galleria area and it's all very expensive German coupes and sedans down here. What kills me is the 20-35 year old clerical ladies in my building who make $60k a year (max, some a lot lower according to my buddy in management at their company) at an oil company driving a new 5 series BMW (or a German SUV) on a 3 year lease, wearing $500 high heels and carrying a $1000 handbag. She looks rich and all she has is debt. But she looks rich to her friends and co-workers. It's the short-sighted stupidity of youth that isn't easily shaken off as people get older.

Conversely, the men and women in my building who drive Pcars (there's at least a dozen) do not seems to be posers. A few fellow Pcar drivers are my friends and they have a robust balance sheets and they are not pissing away their retirement to look rich. They do not turn over vehicles every couple of years either like the rich posers.

Our entire society is moving from ownership to renting personal use items as if they were a temporary service. Software is now sold as subscription based through the cloud. Cell phone "purchases" are now paid by the month so they can be upgraded frequently. We pay for TV reception. Call me an old fart, but all I see is a culture determined to live for today with few avoiding the trap of the ongoing monthly payment for most everything.

Originally Posted by RandallNeighbour (Post 465724)

In Houston, we spend 15% more on average for cars than other big cities in America according to sales report that came out a while back. No idea why!

I work in the posh Galleria area and it's all very expensive German coupes and sedans down here. What kills me is the 20-35 year old clerical ladies in my building who make $60k a year (max, some a lot lower according to my buddy in management at their company) at an oil company driving a new 5 series BMW (or a German SUV) on a 3 year lease, wearing $500 high heels and carrying a $1000 handbag. She looks rich and all she has is debt. But she looks rich to her friends and co-workers. It's the short-sighted stupidity of youth that isn't easily shaken off as people get older.

Conversely, the men and women in my building who drive Pcars (there's at least a dozen) do not seems to be posers. A few fellow Pcar drivers are my friends and they have a robust balance sheets and they are not pissing away their retirement to look rich. They do not turn over vehicles every couple of years either like the rich posers.

Our entire society is moving from ownership to renting personal use items as if they were a temporary service. Software is now sold as subscription based through the cloud. Cell phone "purchases" are now paid by the month so they can be upgraded frequently. We pay for TV reception. Call me an old fart, but all I see is a culture determined to live for today with few avoiding the trap of the ongoing monthly payment for most everything.

Originally Posted by jacabean (Post 465737)

sounds like a bunch of fake ass people i wouldn't bother to associate with .

Originally Posted by RandallNeighbour (Post 465724)

Our entire society is moving from ownership to renting personal use items as if they were a temporary service. Software is now sold as subscription based through the cloud. Cell phone "purchases" are now paid by the month so they can be upgraded frequently. We pay for TV reception. Call me an old fart, but all I see is a culture determined to live for today with few avoiding the trap of the ongoing monthly payment for most everything.

Originally Posted by EJ-Fresno (Post 465728)

Totally agree!
Doesn't matter anymore "who" you are, but rather "what" you are :barf:

Originally Posted by Perfectlap (Post 465753)

AHNC...(All hat no cattle).

The interesting thing to me about your statement here is that the one thing they ought to be renting...namely their residence, in order to to have an adequate portion of their income left over each month to secure retirement income, is often the only debt they're serving towards eventual ownership 30 years later. The rationale for this is often the belief that its a great investment...but only if you are oblivious to all the other investments that could have been made with the delta between the rent these AHNC's were paying and the full costs of carrying a home for the lender. See the chart below where the bar for house prices fall..to the right...way right.
And since the only investment the average home owner makes is their home, that red bar becomes easy to understand.
Me personally, I'm leaning hard on the bars on the extreme left while avoiding any interest carrying debt...be it credit card, auto or mortgage.

Originally Posted by Perfectlap (Post 465786)

I picked up a distressed income property during the recent housing collapse (there will be other meltdowns...such is the nature of the securitization chain) but it has not come close to matching the performance of the left side of the table, particularly in IT in the same period of time. I've come to the conclusion that between hitching your car to the tail of U.S. corporate wealth and property whether income or primary residence, it's no contest for me. Corporations always finish first and more so going forward.