Porsche ownership and runabout second car

[Lumply]

Am enjoying ownership of my 996 c4 acquired in August as a daily driver. IMS, RMS and clutch plus major maintenance sorted at Nelson Porsche Stockton, so ready to go with confidence.

Having done about 2000 miles half of which was countryroads/local driving I’m thinking of getting an economical runabout for daily shorter journey use, a £3500 45mpg jobby, principally using the 996 for the cruising stuff (retired now so no office journeys).

I would be interested to know if this is generally a sensible idea and how other people mitigate higher fuel costs etc. resulting from short distance Porsche use.

[NelsonM3]

If you’re only doing 8000 miles a year and don’t need extra space then don’t bother. It will bid the car more harm than good to use it less.

[Dannythemusicman]

As above if the miles are short then just run the Porsche as a daily. Age of the Porsche can be a factor though.
I do 30k plus each year so for me it makes much more sense to have a 2nd as overall it works out as a saving. 20k in the 2nd car and no more than 10k in the Porsche.

[gwsinc]

I do exactly this. I have a 2005 Mini Cooper for commuting and running around in, and my 993 for evenings and weekends. I got the mini while I had a Cayman S and didn’t want to ‘waste’ rubbish commuting miles.

It works well for me. This era of Mini costs very little to maintain, especially if you have a semi-decent tool kit.

Edited by gwsinc on Saturday 2nd November 08:55

[Porsche911R]

Drive the Porsche.

[finmac]

When I was younger I used to leave my “nice” cars off road in winter and run a cheaper car. However as I’ve got older I think it’s actually a daft idea. My logic is simple and two fold:

1. Life is short and I want to enjoy every mile I drive not end up ancient and having regrets about not using my cars properly
2. Doesn’t do the car any good lying around unused

[SV_WDC]

Gonna have to make a lot of journeys to offset the cost + maintenance of running a second car.

Even a vehicle at 45mpg won't give these results on a short journey. Guess a lot depends on how short the journeys are & whether you can get the engine up to a good operating temp in time.

[ianwayne]

I think it depends on what your second car is used for. With one person most of the time, it may not make economic sense but many people don't like using their pride and joy in all weathers.

I have a little car (Suzuki Swift) for more frequent use, and it is a 5 door, so I can pick up large items shopping, or take friends / family plus luggage to the airport occasionally. Not possible in many other cars!

[Godlysmasko]

I only do around 7,000 miles a year (work from home, so no commuting mileage) but yet have both a new 718 Cayman and a 2010 Vauxhall Corsa. With my low yearly mileage, it probably doesn’t make sense on paper to have a runaround, but it has become a lifesaver to me.

I use the Corsa, essentially, for anything that would make me nervous using the Cayman for. Parking overnight in train stations, driving in torrential rain/snow, driving along particularly bad roads full of potholes.. It’s also nice to have the option of carrying more than one passenger.

There’s nothing better than zipping around in the runaround without a care in the world and then hopping back into the Cayman for a nice drive, but I still do most of my mileage in the Porsche and consider it my daily driver. The Corsa is just a last-resort backup, but it gives me peace of mind having it as an option - and so far it has been relatively cheap to run and maintain.

Runarounds are the way to go.

[davidc1]

2nd car every time.
981 spyder and SEAT Mii- 55mpg£ 20 a year to tax £140 to insure. Leave it anywhere and good fun to drive.teaches good habits as well . keeping momentum , planning ahead etc and using every 1 of the 60hp pedal to the metal!

[T1547]

Personally have two cars with Porsche as weekend/holidays car but then I do around 25k miles a year, client meetings, leave car at station regularly, drive in central London etc. If you don’t do much mileage and retired I’d just use the porker all the time.

[RATATTAK]

You'll find it difficult to walk past the Porsche and get in the daily. I'm retired also and do about 3k in the Porsche, 2k in the Fiat, and 1k in the Abarth (which has taken over the garage). Neither the Porsche nor the Abarth go out when the roads are wet.

[Lumply]

Thanks for all your views. I failed to mention that my wife would also benefit from having a ‘spare’ car. She will not drive the Porsche and is a 12-15K pa user at the moment in her 4 yo Corsa. Food for thought, so I will probably wait until the NY before making a decision

[Stay in Bed Instead]

A 911 and a Range Rover works well for me.

[roca1976]

I currently have a lease car as my daily however when it goes back next year I will save the £200p.m and add it to the pork-bork fund and run my 996 as my only car. A second set of wheels with winter tyres will probably be bought however it won't go out in snow or ice. Bus stop at the end of my road!

[RDMcG]

I live in a city centre and have some Porsches. I also have a 2005 Smart ForTwo for all sorts of city errands. Would not be without it.

[UpTheIron]

I started down the slippery slope of second car ownership when I had my second TVR. A £1500 runabout for the mundane trips soon became an Audi S3. Then a 996 Turbo. Then I sold the TVR and bought an R8. Now I'm considering a cheap third car, knowing full well it will play out into something expensive in a few years :-)

If you need to park somewhere less than desirable (e.g. station) get a snotter, otherwise drive the Porsche.

[BertBert]

Stay in Bed Instead said:

A 911 and a Range Rover works well for me.

A 911 and a Rover 25 works well for me

[churchie2856]

My two car pair, each 2.0L flat-4 turbo powered. Both in constant use and rarely washed. That’s all bases covered.

[jakesmith]

I bought a Porsche as my runabout! Had a Maserati GT and wanted a nippy little economical manual so got a 987S!
Needless to say it didn't save me any money

I'm more sensible now & have an R8 and a 2016 Smart ForTwo as my work / runabout car