Advice on ultra high mileage 996 turbo

My neighbor is selling his 996 turbo with 220k miles. My question is would any of you consider buying at 17-18k? My thought is if I budget 15k to rebuild the engine among a few other things I would be in it around 30k with a fresh motor. But even so the resale value will always reflect the mileage. Anyway just wondering what you guys would have to say. Thanks a bunch.

Just curious have you done much research on the 996 TT? Presume you know it is not a M96 but the Mezger. I don't know the cost of a rebuild but wonder if 15k is light. The good news is it's a special motor- true dry sump, motorsports heritage, etc. ALso, what maintenance and repairs have been done along the way? If minimal then suspension components may need attention. Also interior items like windows, switches etc.

I have done a bit of reading and have seen people claiming 300k miles out of these engines which is great but it's hard to say for sure how this specimen has been treated so my strategy is to assume it's going to need to be freshened up. I have not seen it yet and just trying to see if the numbers make sense before I get involved. Most used prices for sub 100k miles looks to be in the 40-50k range. Blue book for 220k miles shows around 18k.

Crapshoot. I had a very modifed 996 turbo and it was a huge money pit. The engine was sound, but everything else needed work during my ownership....and nothing is cheap...nothing. Unless you have a local inexpensive shop, I'd skip - better ways to spend your car money IMO. Although, sometimes you just have to get it out of your system or else you will always be lusting after one. It should be a spare car for you - not a primary driver. Some repairs took weeks/months to complete with my shop. Good luck with your decision.

That's kind of what I'm afraid of. I'm not opposed to having a project car as long as it makes sense for money invested vs value. This would be a third car, I have my 2010 tundra for winter, back up, as well as hauling, and my wife has a very sensible Mazda 3.

I would recommend going with as stock as possible with as many maintenance records as possible / less owner = better.

Well I just found out there are no service records. At this point I have to assume it will need the engine freshened up. I'm thinking of offering 15k assuming an inspection from a mechanic does not show that the entire car needs to be freshened as well. Certainly a risk but might be a good way to get into a 996 with a low entry fee

Unless you're dead set on a turbo, you might want to look around at 996 Carreras too. I would think you can get a lower mileage example at the same price point. Of course then you're into the M96 IMSB quandary but there are upgrades available (LN Engr). Have you test driven a 996? The interior, especially the materials are not the best. Still pretty good value for a 911 vs earlier and later models.

I figured if I was going to get a 996 then it would have to be the turbo for two reasons.. 1 the ims bearing , and 2 the 400 plus horsepower should be a lot of fun. I've pretty much decided on either the 996 turbo, or a 987.1 S or 987.2 S.

I'd characterize a 220k mile 996TT with no service records as a lottery ticket rather than a crap shoot. Yep...you might get super lucky and snag a well-cared for example, but the odds are pretty low: people that fastidiously maintain vehicles keep records and receipts. Even if a PPI doesn't reveal any major problems, you'll have no idea where maintenance items and failure-prone components are in the their life cycle. If you can do most work yourself, aren't relying on it in any way as a transportation tool and wouldn't be put out by repair bills - excluding an engine rebuild - potentially exceeding the purchase cost over a couple of tears of ownership, then have at 'er.

I think you'll find more 'normal' maintenance items vs an engine rebuild. See if your neighbor would be willing to get a Blackstone oil test during an oil change. $25 for a full report on the engine health via the oil analysis. Just collect some oil in the free Blackstone containers and mail it to them. Normal items may include, brakes+rotors ($600), coolant hoses and flush ($800-$1,500), Replace vac lines, check valves, check for vac leaks ($800), Replace MAF ($400), Suspension, up to replacement ($5,000), CV boots, joints ($600-$1,500), Replace coilpacks and sparks ($800-$1,500). Just spitballing the prices - but you can see how even normal maint may get you up to over $10k

Yes, I can see how that can add up very quickly. I'm doing some soul searching at the moment to see if I'd rather just spend 25-30k up front and hopefully have a fairly solid 987, or try to low ball the 996 and treat it as a hobby project. The appealing thing about the 996 is I would be planning from the start to have to fix things, where as the 987 if something came up it would be on top of the higher purchase price. I haven't driven either models but I also suspect the 996 would be a bit more of an exciting experience vs the more composed mid engine 987 with less power. Sound about right?

As I said before, sometimes you have to get it out of your system, else you will be lusting after the turbo until you get one. The 996 Turbo (IMO) is an awesome car - eye popping acceleration for cheap. After awhile I found myself not enjoying it as much as I thought I would. The big woosh at wide open throttle on the highway is addicting. Problems = do this for more than 5 seconds at a time and you are at 'go directly to jail' speeds. Therefore, it became a chore to drive - throttle on - hehe/fun - back off...repeat - it got old quickly. I took it autocrossing a few times. The 996TT (AWD) is a big lumbering ox, not nimble. So I view it more as a one trick pony. It made me refine my wants as I later got into a new 981 Cayman GTS . Much more nimble, more balanced, more engaging, modern interior, more fun to drive on side roads, more approachable. My view is to own as new as possible to avoid the maintenance nightmares - but that is just me. In retrospect, I would have loved a less powerful 987 with RWD vs the 996TT. But if I never got the 996TT, I would have lusted after one forever. Even the base 911 's Caymans are very awesome - you just have to adjust your mindset and not care about what other people think. You say the 996TT would be a project car - would you really DIY on it? I did a few jobs and it is not easy unless you have a lift and good tools. Therefore you'll be paying for Joe Mechanic's vacations with your project money. It is a hard car to work on.

As others have said get a PPI. Even if you plan to fix everything the PPI will give an indication of what is wrong so you can better estimate the repairs. Also, get a PPI that includes a thorough inspection for body damage. A CarFax report would be helpful as it might include some of the service records and ownership records but the CarFax report may not include collision damage. You can rebuild all the mechanical stuff but if something is badly bent it's bent. Alternately, CarFax might report a minor accident but inspection will show the damage as repaired well and properly and so not a real issue. Also, I'm not sure I would want to buy from or sell to someone I know or who is nearby. Might be awkward when things are always going wrong, although this would be worse for the seller than you. I would not worry about resale for such an old car, high-milage car. Buy it, fix it, enjoy. But be aware that generally restoration is more expensive than the resulting value of the restored car and so getting a car that was recently restored by a previous owner is usually a better deal overall.