How can a 2 y car old have had 3 + owners

[mutske]

Looking at Porsche's second hand cars, 2015 car with 5 owners and a 2019 with 3 owners.

Question is why and are there people on here who have owned a car less than a year?

[PH User]

It probably started as a dealer car as it's 1st owner for a few months.

[Cheib]

Very common with GT cars and pretty much every Porsche when it’s a new model. There are an awful lot of people who buy cars when they are a new model and sell them after a few months whilst there is still a healthy order book. I am extraordinarily bad at selling cars.....

[gizlaroc]

It is more the norm than the exception with performance cars like this.

Many have 2 owners in the first 12-18 month and then a new owner every 12 months.



I reckon I have owned the majority of my cars for 12 months or less. Nice to try new things.

I'm 47 and have owned around 60 odd cars between myself and my wife. Longest I have ever owned a car is 2.5 years. When you do 30k miles a year by 12 months you're ready for a change.

[jackliebling]

These cars are generally bought by well of people. If you can afford the little depreciation then it's fun to cool and change. They will not be the only car in the household most of the time either. I usually had itch feet at 12-18 months

[superlightr]

mutske said:

Looking at Porsche's second hand cars, 2015 car with 5 owners and a 2019 with 3 owners.

Question is why and are there people on here who have owned a car less than a year?

puts me off when looking to buy. perhaps shouldnt but it does. plenty others are around with 1 or 2 owners from new. Just wait for one of those.

[kbf1981]

mutske said:

Looking at Porsche's second hand cars, 2015 car with 5 owners and a 2019 with 3 owners.

Question is why and are there people on here who have owned a car less than a year?

Because they can afford to change, and fancy a change. The average 911 is owned for 12 months - so if that's average, think what the range is? Many owning them 6 months and moving on.

[OhThatHurtAbit]

There is a train of thought y some is that a car that has had a few owners has been cherished by each new owner who polishes it and fixes things that need doing, whereas one owner may lose interest over time and not bother so much in its upkeep.

[easywelsh]

OhThatHurtAbit said:

There is a train of thought y some is that a car that has had a few owners has been cherished by each new owner who polishes it and fixes things that need doing, whereas one owner may lose interest over time and not bother so much in its upkeep.

This is so true... When I was looking for a 996 C4s all the low mileage low owners I looked at needed around £3k-£5k of work just to bring them up to a good standard... looking through the history there was very little miles or maintenance (other than a service stamp) going on for the previous 5 years on most of them...

If you are buying from a Porsche Indy they sort all the bits before selling on. So a 15 year old car with 6/7 owners should have had many PPIs and bits sorted every couple of years...

[gizlaroc]

OhThatHurtAbit said:

There is a train of thought y some is that a car that has had a few owners has been cherished by each new owner who polishes it and fixes things that need doing, whereas one owner may lose interest over time and not bother so much in its upkeep.

Absolutely.

Cars that have had the same owner for many years I always find are the worst. Many just lose interest towards the end, they don't notice the suspension getting sloppy, the trim rattle they have just got used to, etc. etc.

I much prefer a car that the last owner has had for a year or so.

2 months and they are probably offloading a problem, a year and they are probably just wanting to try another toy.

[anonymous-user]

A one owner car will be pretty obvious whether it’s been looked after or not based on the service record + other documentation.

Problem cars can be passed around.

Porsches do change ownership often however.

[Qwerty911]

Our 997.2 2s cab had 7 owners and 21k miles when we bought it 3yrs ago at 8yrs old. It was and still is in mint condition having clearly lived all its life in garages. It’s now on 33k but did almost nothing last year.

[Chubbyross]

I bought a 987 Boxster five years ago on 11 owners. It was in fantastic condition and needed no work doing to it. I kept it for a year and sold it on.

I never worry about number of owners of these cars. I always buy on condition.

[Hereward]

I am the 11th owner of a 2003 996 turbo that I acquired a few weeks ago, purchased on a whim without a professional inspection. I like to live dangerously.

Bodywork, interior and underside behind the under-trays are remarkably good but I am waiting for the call from 9E regarding engine / turbos / exhaust / aircon bits that need doing

[sociopath]

I bought my ex demo 2019 cayman S in january 2020 with 4k miles on it. Sold it back to porsche in january this year after I'd only done 3k miles, so assuming its now sold it will be on its 3rd owner with 7k miles on it.

Still immaculate and no issues when I sold it

[Fat hippo]

My 993 had, I think, 7 owners when I bought it in 2008.
So on average just under 2 years each which is not unreasonable.
I’ve now owned it for the past 13 years, so half the car’s life.

The number of previous owners has not caused it any problems during my tenure or looking through the previous records.

My 2015 C63 was bought at 3 years old. First owner was the dealer who registered it. Second owner was apparantly an older gentleman who kept it for 3 years and I’m now the third. I wouldn’t say the car is a lemon because of that.

Some wealthier people just want the top of the range model regardless of how suitable it is for them.
The previous owner of my car had not used the AMG track experience day at MB world, and technically I wasn’t entitled to it being the third owner, but I called MB and they confirmed the experience day allocated to my car hadn’t been used so I could use it.

Likewise, I was looking at a2014 F10 M5 in 2018 at a BMW dealer. It was £33k and had just 4k miles. Again previous owner came from a 7 series, was a director at a localish premiership football club and found it too powerfull/not comfortable enough.
Traded it in for another 7 series.

[gizlaroc]

My 996 had 8 owners between 2001 and 2010, then the same owner for 10 years till I bought it.

[joinery80]

Just sold my 991.1 gt3 with 9 owners. Didn't bother me and the car was pristine. It doesn't bother porsche centres buying them either

[Koln-RS]

Whether we like it or not, and rightly or wrongly, there is a perceived stigma attached to high numbers of previous owners, relative to the car’s age. So, a ‘high owner’ car can be worth less than an identical ‘low owner’ car.

Even most of the checking agencies, such as V-Check, alert buyers of the risk of high numbers of past owners.

And, if you buy a car with, say, 5 owners, so you become the 6th, then, when you come to sell it, the next owner has to be happy with being the 7th - and that may put some people off.

On a 25 year old 993, fair enough, there was a time when these cars fell into the doldrums. But on newer models it raises questions - is the car a lemon, why has the novelty worn off so quickly......?

Concerns may be unfounded, but that’s why it raises some eyebrows

[Grantstown]

I would agree that a high owner car may well be as good a mechanical bet as any, if due diligence done.

What I wonder though is whether the car isn’t worthy enough to become a keeper. There are many who have gone for a GT3 and then found that actually they don’t go to track days, they don’t tour Europe and so the car either doesn’t get driven or it functions as an uncomfortable commuting car. Not the car’s fault.
Another example would be the cars that get the big media thumbs up and turn out to be far more mundane in reality.