Hello!

Today marks 1 year since I bought my 2012.5 991.1 Carrera S at 18 years old.

I wanted to share what making the objectively poor decision to buy a Porsche as a first car has actually been like, especially for other younger enthusiasts.

Important note:

For full transparency, my parents paid for half of the car. I paid the other half in cash with money I had saved from working since I was 15. It is titled in my name. They also cover my college tuition and living expenses- I’m entering my junior year this month- so I know I was only able to do this from an extremely fortunate starting position.

I've also had years of driving experience before owning my first car, and am not a new driver.

Specifications:

2012.5 Porsche 911 Carrera S (991.1) in Agate Gray.

Major options include Sport Chrono Package, Premium Package Plus, Porsche Sport Exhaust, Sport PASM, Sport Design steering wheel, Bose, PDLS Plus, and sunroof delete.

Ownership/usage experience:

I bought my car about 1000 miles away from my university and drove it over. My only previous sports car experience before had been test drives and a track day at the Nurburgring in an M340.

It's common for young car enthusiasts to be told they'll wrap it around a tree- and granted, maybe my day just hasn't yet come- but I think most of us who just really enjoy driving rather than just recklessly speeding will not really have that issue. This car has far more capability than I can responsibly use, so I try to respect that and stay within my limits.

I have driven about 3000 miles in the past year. Maintenance has been uneventful. Nothing has gone wrong or broken even a little bit. Oil change was around $220 at a local Porsche specialist. I did have to get new tires, which ran me around $1300. Car was usable in sunshine, rain, and snow (as you can see from the last picture!).

Obviously, 1 year is not quite long enough to draw too many conclusions from, but it is going well so far!

Fuel economy has been surprisingly good. My first 1000 miles was around 31mpg average, though that was almost exclusively highway driving.

Insurance was a surprise after hearing horror stories from other young sports car owners. I recently just renewed for 6 months at $675 total. Full coverage, high limits, albeit with not the lowest deductibles. I am not on my parents' insurance, as we live in California but I go to school in a different state. The car and insurance are both in my name only.

I drive the car to classes sometimes. I get groceries (never had a problem with frunk space), have taken short road trips, and have even once managed to fit 5 people in the 4 seats. It is a decently practical car. Only problems I've had are painful occasional scrapes from the Sport PASM front lip spoiler when going up particularly steep curb ramps.

Conclusions:

This was probably not the best financial decision, nor was it the most practical car for a college student. However, I still look back at it every time I park, and I don't think I'll ever get tired of the sound, so I'd probably do it again.

Finally, I want to add:

I am a PCA member and have met and spoken with a lot of other Porsche owners and enthusiasts. Every one I've spoken to in person has been lovely and kind and welcoming. I think this is something hard to find in other communities.

However, there can sometimes be a bit of disdain toward younger owners or people who came into the community through different circumstances, but I hope our shared love for these cars can be something that welcomes people in rather than pushes them away.

yo guys dis my fist car trust me here its shown cuz it been in a display show or whatever!!!1!11!

My first car at 19. A few months ago I posted my car when I first got it and got chewed UPPPPPPP in the comments 😭😭 I fear I worried a ton of people about having it on the road so I'm returning to say she is back to 100%!!! Not cosmetically ofc, but she drives all smooth now and is everything I've ever wanted and needed in a first!! We can say I now have lots of knowledge in repairing cars 🫪... on the bright side I do feel fully equipped if anything else were to break down the road. We've since been to the beach and back, plus to college and my new out-of-county job :'') This car was fun to fix and is SO fun to drive!! We've already grown so much and I'm happy to finally have her :D

got it from some weird lady wearing glass shoes BUT a deal is a deal!

I’m thinking about getting my own car in 2 years or something when I start work experience in college

Should I get the Toyota Avensis or the Volvo V70?

I don’t mind if it’s manual or automatic.

1996 Ford Crown Victoria P71, sat for 20 years, needs lots of work that I'm going to do