Should I buy a used Taycan before the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve collapses?

[snstevens]

Buying a Taycan before the strategic reserve collapses would be what any Patriotic American would do.

Refine this a bit - "Buying an expensive German car before the strategic reserve collapse would be what any Patriotic American would do."

But seriously - You don't buy a Porsche of any kind based on a financial analysis. You buy it for the joy it gives you to drive it, and in my personal case, to glance at it over my shoulder when I've parked it.

Overall its the best car I've ever owned ...

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[Dee]

Because I get a newer car after that.

And still pay for depreciation...
And you don't own that car, you're hiring it.
If your contract ends you've lost money and still don't have a car.
That's not Porsche ownership, that's driving something you can't afford.

 

[69Mach390]

ROFLMAO at topic title!

Right? Is everyone going to ignore the premise?

Quick internet search:

“Based on current U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) data, the U.S. holds about 46 billion barrels of proven crude oil reserves. At the current rate of domestic consumption—about 8 billion barrels per year—these proven reserves will last roughly 5 to 6 years if production and imports completely stopped.[1, 2]”

And on a related note- the US gets most of its imported oil from Mexico and Canada.

 

[Balthezor]

I love the 2021 CPO Taycan 4S I just bought 3 months ago. I needed a daily driver. I was going to order a new Model 3 Performance. For almost the same price for my CPO 15k miles, I rolled the dice. I've never purchased a used car before. Or driven a Porsche before. And yes, I had some quirks with it. Previous owner didn't give it the same love and care I would have. Not sure how this person scratched the windshield to hell! (Got it replaced yesterday). I love it. I love driving it. My other vehicle is a 2025 G63. I drive that maybe once a week now, sometimes less. I've never owned a vehicle that gets the most attention as well.

Now, I am hoping there are enough 2025s in 3 years for me to buy used once the HRV warranty runs out... Or I'll just keep this and get an extended warranty that hopefully covers the HRV? I do want a black one though. I can't think of any other car I would rather drive as a daily. This drives so well and it looks so great!!!

Also, I can't believe I waited this long to get a Taycan. I saw one at my kid's day care like 3 or 4 years ago. I always loved how they look. But I never knew what I was missing.

 

[erictayf]

This is still not enough info to provide feedback. We need a copy of the full sticker and miles so we can chime in to establish a baseline for you so you can compare to other examples. You can redact all other info if concerned such as location, VIN, etc.

For example, 22kW option is failure prone so I would skip all those, but 150kW 400V option is highly desirable to charge fast at Tesla chargers.

Oh you meant the sticker, the dealer’s kinda slow sending me the full spec sticker of that car so I’ll post it when it comes to it, but since you’re saying establishing a baseline, should I instead be posting a vehicle that has 100% of what I want and go down from there?

 

[erictayf]

Right? Is everyone going to ignore the premise?

Quick internet search:

“Based on current U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) data, the U.S. holds about 46 billion barrels of proven crude oil reserves. At the current rate of domestic consumption—about 8 billion barrels per year—these proven reserves will last roughly 5 to 6 years if production and imports completely stopped.[1, 2]”

And on a related note- the US gets most of its imported oil from Mexico and Canada.

That’s proven reserves not the strategic stockpile…

 

[SergeyIndy]

Oh you meant the sticker, the dealer’s kinda slow sending me the full spec sticker of that car so I’ll post it when it comes to it, but since you’re saying establishing a baseline, should I instead be posting a vehicle that has 100% of what I want and go down from there?

Yes, it can be ideal spec or a real car spec (window sticker) so we can point out pros/cons so you can dial in your search to match it.

 

[69Mach390]

That’s proven reserves not the strategic stockpile…

Gotcha, and what makes you think it’s going to collapse and even if it did that it would impact the prices of used Taycans?

If you’re trying to make a connection between gas/oil prices and the prices of used EVs, I see what you’re getting at, but those two things haven’t seemed to have an impact on one another in recent history.

Especially for the luxury used EVs. Probably because this isn’t 2008 when people literally couldn’t afford to fill up their cars with high gas prices and the US had to do a “cash for clunkers” campaign.

People who can afford used $70k EVs may complain about high fuel prices, but won’t exactly pay higher prices for a used EV because of them. Even at $10/gallon would likely be cheaper to keep their old gas car than buy an expensive Porsche EV.

 

[erictayf]

Gotcha, and what makes you think it’s going to collapse and even if it did that it would impact the prices of used Taycans?

If you’re trying to make a connection between gas/oil prices and the prices of used EVs, I see what you’re getting at, but those two things haven’t seemed to have an impact on one another in recent history.

Especially for the luxury used EVs. Probably because this isn’t 2008 when people literally couldn’t afford to fill up their cars with high gas prices and the US had to do a “cash for clunkers” campaign.

People who can afford used $70k EVs may complain about high fuel prices, but won’t exactly pay higher prices for a used EV because of them. Even at $10/gallon would likely be cheaper to keep their old gas car than buy an expensive Porsche EV.

These are used Taycan prices in the last few months. This’ll be small potatoes compared to what’s to come in the following months. We have:

- GCC finding out their oil infrastructure will take years to repair to get production up to pre-war levels. Current export levels are inflated by months of production that got held up in the strait.

- US finding out that you can’t just draw the strategic reserve down to zero or you’ll collapse the caverns. Which effectively halves the useable reserves, that are already at the lowest they’ve been since their creation.

- China halving their total oil imports, keeping prices down. What if they start buying again?

- US deciding that Iran’s gonna be the next forever war, despite Iran’s ability to control the strait.

giving us the perfect oil 9/11 which will probably lead to the next global recession. Come to think of it maybe that’ll push luxury EV prices down when rich people decide they need liquidity to snap up peoples’ homes at fire sale prices?

 

[Flying ace]

If you're looking at used, that makes the most sense. In December 2024 I purchased CT non-CPO with 8,000 miles on it. I effectively got a new car for half off. 18 months later it has nearly 30,000 mi on it. I absolutely love this car!!

I wanted an EV station wagon and this was my only option. I did look around at other cars but this car had everything I wanted. I'm a skier and near the national parks of Utah, so the off-road capabilities were amazing. The capabilities in Winter are amazing. And driving in mountain passes or on highways is amazing. No other car could do that.

I purchased it from a well-respected dealer that specialized in second hand luxury cars. They took it to the local Porsche dealership and effectively got my CPO without paying for it.

When I first bought it, my insurance was surprisingly low. Only slightly more than my 20-year-old car. The next year it doubled!!

I decided to save the ~$5,000 On the extended warranty and put that money in savings and roll the dice. I'm almost a year off warranty (So 25% of the time that the extended warranty would have been) So far I've had no issues that weren't covered by an extended warranty. I also decided to get PPF as I take it all off-road.

As for your justification. I made a bet a long time ago that electricity was going to go up and continue to go up. It happened a little faster than I expected with the Iran war. Regardless, I'm certainly not saving any money, but the time saving is immense. I don't have to take my car to the gas station every week. I charge it at home, I don't have to take it in for maintenance things like oil changes ,etc.

I will likely run her in the ground like I've done with every other car I've had.

glad to have you as part of the forums! It'll be great to get a long term report periodically. I'm interested to hear what you were able to get covered under the long term warranty. I'm likely going the same direction for my MY 2023 car with no CPO, so this time next year, I have decisions to make.

 

[Flying ace]

OP - i also happened across this video. It's a fairly comprehensive summary of known issues across model years. This is worth a scan and research as it appears you're looking at an older higher mileage car

 

[Loe]

If you want to get a used one, do one of those "payment saver" loans that ride the estimated residual curve. You can walk away at the end (like a lease), or buyout the balloon (like a lease).

Less risky, and some who offer this option through AFG have decent rates, usually through a few select credit unions.

 

[MoniqueDenver]

glad to have you as part of the forums! It'll be great to get a long term report periodically. I'm interested to hear what you were able to get covered under the long term warranty. I'm likely going the same direction for my MY 2023 car with no CPO, so this time next year, I have decisions to make.

Why thank you!!

September 30th, 2025 my warranty ran out. Prior to that time a friend had lowered the sun visor and it completely snapped. At that point the card 10,000 mi on it, after me complaining about it. It I got it covered even though it was considered wear and tear. (That would have been at least $900 for just the part I think plus labor .) I also had some weird software error (yellow) And took it into the dealership. They did a massive software download and the car was fine after that. That would have cost $1,000 if it had not been covered.

Then after September 30th, my heater went out last winter. Turns out that's covered under extended warranty!

If you're in the US and you want the cheapest rates, I put a recommendation somewhere in the forum of a Porsche dealership that offered excellent rates. I want to say she was in Austin, tx or maybe San Antonio. I want to say that the quote I was considering was about $4,800 for 4 years. Keep in mind I already have the extended battery warranty. Also wear and tear is not covered, so I figure, my main concern is a software issue. So I rolled the dice. I'm a lucky woman.

 

[Fish Fingers]

My personal view is the OP may have a very valid argument.

Appreciate its different in the US.
But in the EU/UK, the Iran war has had a positive impact on used EV and PHEV prices in general.
Or at least its halted the downward trend.
Demand for used EV/PHEV is sharply up, with a similar decline for ICE cars.

If the latest developments continue (Red Sea) there could be a very sharp increase in oil prices in a very short space of time, as global reserves have already been drawn down in recent months.

 

[tycanmt]

Remember however that in the US the cost of public charging is pretty high (around $0.50/kWh) which is probably not cheaper than gas for road trips. So you need to be charging at home to see the fuel cost benefit of an EV.

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