By Rich Erlich
I bought my 2009 Cayman when my restoration of my 1993 Nissan Skyline seemed to hit a wall, and I wanted a car I could really enjoy driving. While the saga of the Skyline is for another time, both the Skyline and the Cayman have the same purpose; to drive. When I initially joined PCA, my primary reason was to have people to go on drives with. Needless to say, my reasons have expanded beyond that.
While I am fortunate enough to have a “company car” that relives my personal cars from the daily grind of commuting duties, this does not mean I treat the Cayman as a garage queen. I take it to go shopping, out to eat, and occasionally even to drop the kids at school. Like many of us, I even drive ridiculous places to accomplish simple tasks. For example, on more than one occasion that we have needed stamps, I have driven to the Post Office in Gettysburg, PA, which is a two hour round trip, to purchase the stamps. Of course, I also took a quick tour of the battlefield.
When I picked up my 2009 Cayman in 2019, I was constantly worried that something was going to go horribly wrong with it, since I got such a great deal when I bought it. I soon realized that there was nothing wrong with the car and I actually got a great deal from the dealership. Then the pandemic came and the market dropped for a moment before steadily climbing.
I was recently looking at various cars for sale, and came across a 2010 Cayman that is very similar to mine. The price? Close to twice what I paid for mine. As we all know, car prices as a whole are way up. The media is reporting that 80% of new car buyers paid more than sticker price, and that used cars are up more than 40% in value. Many people report selling their used cars for more than they paid when buying them new. The collector’s car market has gone even higher as collectors seem more interested in buying than selling.
While there are numerous reasons for why prices are so high, at some point prices will stabilize and probably even drop a bit. I do not see manufactures going back to the “old” way of hundreds of vehicles sitting on the lot waiting to be sold at a discount. According to the latest reports they won’t have enough microchips to do that until 2023 and since they are showing record profits by selling less cars at full price…the price discount wars maybe behind us.
What does that mean to us Porsche owners? Well, when the car you paid $25k for a few years ago is now worth $50k, it makes you think twice about that mundane trip to the store or even for dinner. A car similar to one owned by a PCA member recently sold for $96k on Bring A Trailer, when it was purchased for $17k in 2008. While that increase is not as dramatic as some, it illustrates the point. As a point of reference, when I was shopping for a Porsche in 2019, I looked at comparable car, and it was around $40k. It also means that we might want to review our “declared value” insurance policies.
I know many of us own truly collectable cars, and I am grateful when I get to see those cars at PCA events. And I know that many people are concerned that the increased value of the car makes using it for day to day activities risky, especially because of issues with getting parts for repairs. However, like Mr. Ferdinand Porsche said, “Our cars are meant to be driven. Not polished. I wanted to build cars that were not something to everyone but meant everything to some.” In the spirit of this, I’ll see you on the road, because you can’t take a car with you!