You can’t just live for the future. Do you put off your dreams and passions, promising yourself that you will revive them at some vague point in the future after you’ve done all the “sensible” things? Plans that either come to nought or half a page of scribbled lines? Some dreams have a time limit, and you have to work with that. Will there be any petrol in 15 years’ time? We’ve hit peak oil, and I believe Bass Strait is due to run out in about 2015. Will global warming change what you can or can’t do? Will you start a family in five years’ time, and need a “sensible” car?
When I was about 24, I had to make a decision between two of my passions – music and motor racing – as there wasn’t enough time in the day to properly pursue both of them. I chose to go for motor racing on the basis that it’s a (relatively) young person’s sport, and that I could come back to the music later. From that time, I spent most of my income on the motor racing. I spent enough to more than pay out my home loan, and I missed out on nearly 10 years of property investment opportunities while I did it. If I’d invested instead of going racing, I could be retired now.
Do I regret spending my money on fast machinery instead of soberly investing in growth and income-producing assets? No. Absolutely not. There’s a joy in drifting an open wheeler though McPhillamy Park, and then engaging in a four-way slipstreaming battle down Conrod at 260km/h, that simply cannot be found in a tidy balance sheet. Not by me, anyway. The buzz of more than quadrupling the speed limit between the concrete barriers down Dequetteville Terrace in Adelaide can’t be matched by a few grand of profit in the PM statement.
I test drove a 996 Carrera and GT2 a few years ago, and I fell in love with them. They are sublime cars to drive, and I imagine the Cayman inherits a lot of their character, so I can understand and respect your desire. Some posters in this thread have suggested that expensive cars is all about being a w**ker. If your motivation is indeed to show off, then so be it – do it anyway and to hell with the criticism! But if you’re anything like me, it’s more about a sense of personal achievement, and the intense personal enjoyment of the harmony between man and a beautiful machine than what some other joker thinks. I agree with some of the comments that you should buy a car you’re comfortable parking at the supermarket. Personally, I’d park the Porsche there and tolerate the scratches; I can’t see the point in having a car I can’t use every day or have to treat with kid gloves.
Life is for living. It’s not just about making money. The trick is to find the balance. Do the numbers. A few years ago, Porsche 996 Carrera leases were around $3000 per month, plus income tax of course if you can’t find a way to write it off in a business. That might gross up to say $60,000 per year. How does that fit with your priorities (and remember they are your priorities, your choices, and your responsibility, no one else’s). Does it leave you enough to live, put some money away for the future, and buy your folks a second hand Boxster so they don’t feel left out
?
With your question there’s no right or wrong, only consequences. Good luck deciding!
