When Husband and Wife See Porsche Ownership Differently

Online, I often come across posts like these: “I told my wife I wanted to buy a Porsche, and she said no,” or “My wife wouldn’t approve of a Porsche, so we ended up with a family car instead.”

I don’t know the details of each situation, but it’s hardly surprising that a wife might say no if her husband suddenly announces, “I want to buy a Porsche!” In sales terms, it’s like asking a customer with zero interest to buy on the spot—and getting rejected.

The Benefits of Buying a Porsche

I think there are two kinds of products: those that take you from negative to zero, and those that take you from zero to positive. Products in the first category solve an existing problem or concern, so their benefits are relatively easy to see. When it comes to cars, that might mean replacing your current car with one that offers:

・Better fuel economy
・More room for luggage
・Seating for seven instead of five
・A lower price—or a discount

A Porsche, on the other hand, is clearly a “zero to positive” purchase. In other words, it’s something you can live without, but that can make life richer when you have it. That can make the benefits harder to explain. And then there’s the fact that a Porsche may:

・Get worse fuel economy (compared with today’s fuel-efficient cars)
・Have limited cargo space
・Seat only two people, depending on the model
・Cost a lot, with little room for discounts

When you look at it that way, it’s easy to see the downsides and miss the benefits altogether. There may also be other drawbacks to consider, such as:

・If your husband goes for a weekend drive, you’re left to look after the kids.
・It becomes harder to use the car for a quick trip to the local shops.
・You end up having to fill the tank more often.

With all those potential downsides, it’s no wonder a wife might not say yes when her husband announces, “I want a Porsche!”

How to Get Your Wife on Board with Buying a Porsche

So, how can you avoid having your wife oppose the idea of buying a Porsche?

・Have you built a trusting relationship?
・Whose money will pay for it?
・How many years will you need to save before buying?
・Where are you both willing to compromise?

There are plenty of factors to think through (I may write about these in a future post), but to me, the most important thing is to let your wife experience driving a Porsche herself.

You can explain what makes a Porsche special, show her photos from every angle in magazines, or have her watch presenters Tanabe and Matsunoya discuss the cars on Car Graphic TV. But none of that can fully convey what makes a Porsche so good. She has to get behind the wheel and drive one for herself. Once she does, she’ll understand the appeal.

Whether it’s an SUV like the Cayenne or Macan, a sedan like the Panamera, or a 911, Cayman, or Boxster, every Porsche shares the same underlying spirit. So any Porsche is a good place to start.

Once she’s driven one, she should be able to appreciate how exceptionally well-built a Porsche is compared with other cars, how naturally it responds when you press the accelerator, and how precisely it follows your steering inputs. She’ll also get a real sense of the value behind the Porsche name.

Take the First Step

I think you can only sit down and have a real conversation once your wife has experienced the appeal of a Porsche for herself—not just heard the arguments. There’s a world of difference between “A Porsche is out of the question!” and “I’m not ready to say yes to buying a Porsche, but I understand why you want one—it really is a great car.”

Start by visiting a Porsche dealership together and letting her take one for a drive. The conversation begins there. (Though maybe getting her to the dealership together is the hard part.)

This post has gotten a little long, so in a future article I’ll share how I went from thinking “Cars are a pointless luxury—you don’t need one in life” to being completely in favor of my husband buying a Porsche.