Would you buy an ex-press GT car? - Page 3 - Porsche General - PistonHeads UK

Would you buy an ex-press GT car? I hear they are thoroughly inspected at Porsche GB Reading before they go on sale but curious to hear other people's thoughts and whether they think that offsets being ragged from day 1?

Tricky one. Given a hard time for sure - but likely maintained very well due to them wanting it to be in top form for the journos. At least you know it’s history and have a slight bit of come back? Nothing saying any other owners haven’t tracked their car from day one with less care and attention? I’d consider, but would defo not being paying over the odds for one.

On first glance… you might say no. I did and imo… i got it wrong. The cars will have been meticulously maintained mechanically… as has been mentioned.… master tech at Porsche Central Operations is assigned to look after the press fleet. And the car will have its own history, documented and everyone will know ‘which one’ that was, particularly if it was involved in a popular video or driven by the best journos… E.g.… RO10 HBY… 997 GT3 RS… people would pay big money to get that car. Also they if they are offered to market it’s usually at a pretty good price. There was a pair of 991.2 GT3, one white Manual driven by Henry Catchpole, was sold on by Superleggra from here iirc, and then one silver PDK driven by Chris Harris and Steve Sutcliffe.... bought by a mate of mine. In hindsight I’d have loved to have got my hand on one of those.

Not a problem. Take Harris for an example , I cant stick him but he can drive a car on the edge without over revving and its what Porsche want you to see what the car is capable of .I think it tends to put most people off, simply because they will never be able to drive like he does and think the car is getting ragged. Press cars are always meticulously maintained for obvious reasons as its the main selling point for any Brand.

Without a shadow of a doubt, yes. Better maintained than any other GT car.

Interesting responses. Would you pay the same price as other cars too?

Not for me. Whilst people have mentioned the known faces who get to drive them , there are also the idiots that treat them with no mechanical sympathy whatsoever. Regardless of the maintenance , repairs , rebuilds , kerbage repairs , smart repairs and the whole detailing business to get it looking a million dollars come sale time, its still a no from me unless it was an absolute bargain to reflect its former life as a hack.

Implus1 said: Interesting responses. Would you pay the same price as other cars too? No why would you? Whilst it is probably an internet myth most quality Press cars get ragged from cold overevved etc etc their history would put MOST used buyers off so on that basis alone the car is worth less to the market than a genuine 1 owner example in a similar way to why ex hire cars whether mainstream or high end will be worth less ££. Yes we all know of the rare one owner car that is abused but generally they are better cared for and better driven and easier to sell for obvious reasons. It is not necessarilly the fact that numerous drivers are a bad thing in fact in many cases this can be good but the cars history and use is essentially a factor against it. Ex PEC cars are warmed up properly driven mainly hard but well within their limits by 1000s of drivers and excellently maintained then mainly retailed through OPCs but ask yourself would you really want a Porsche GT that had literally done 1000s of launch starts instead of an equivalent 1 owner cherished example at the same money and you probably have your answer.

av185 said: Implus1 said: Interesting responses. Would you pay the same price as other cars too? No why would you? Whilst it is probably an internet myth most quality Press cars get ragged from cold overevved etc etc their history would put MOST used buyers off so on that basis alone the car is worth less to the market than a genuine 1 owner example in a similar way to why ex hire cars whether mainstream or high end will be worth less ££. Yes we all know of the rare one owner car that is abused but generally they are better cared for and better driven and easier to sell for obvious reasons. It is not necessarilly the fact that numerous drivers are a bad thing in fact in many cases this can be good but the cars history and use is essentially a factor against it. Ex PEC cars are warmed up properly driven mainly hard but well within their limits by 1000s of drivers and excellently maintained then mainly retailed through OPCs but ask yourself would you really want a Porsche GT that had literally done 1000s of launch starts instead of an equivalent 1 owner cherished example at the same money and you probably have your answer. I feel a PEC car would be a risky buy, warmed up sure but multiple launches and drivers with varying ablilties, but a press car not so. Much of a press car's usage is mundane photo opportunity shots and trundling around public roads. OK, the GT3 type press cars will probably see tracks where there are attempts to catch a tyre spining slide and maybe a good lap time. Then it's back to Porsche for a service, probably after every time it has gone out. Any used performance car is a risk, I see many well thrashed private cars at track days, probably coming to market initially as one owner low mileage.

Can you ask for overrevs report? Anything for the state of the PDK ie clutch wear? If Porsche happy to put a warranty on it then that should help. I bought an approved used BMW about 20 years ago and one of the options was ‘press preparation’. Raised a few eyebrows at the dealership. Was an e36 325i coupe. The dealer did say it felt particularly strong and I remember it did seem suspiciously quick compared to other contemporary cars that were supposed to accelerate quicker. Spec was basic but driver focused; optional LSD, and met paint were I think the only options Good car, that. Ran it from 57k to 98k in 3 years

Not in the same league but previous to the current Cayenne GTS I'm in, I bought a MacanS which was an ex-press car. It was pretty well specced for an early Macan and featured on both Drive & Telegraph videos (that I found) but I'm sure also in other magazines. The back of the Service Book had about 12 stamps in it from "Campaigns" which I presumed was the pre and/or post-checks it received from the various Journo's taking it out. I did consider it long and hard before I bought it, but I was assured by Hatfield OPC that it had been meticulously looked after during that time and in fairness, apart from 2 x transfer boxes, which can be the norm on Macans, it was totally reliable in the 2.5yrs I had it. Providing it's got an OPC warranty and the condition/service history stacks up, I'd have no problems with buying another. But I do appreciate we're talking about a £45k car versus a £200k car.

TDT said: On first glance… you might say no. I did and imo… i got it wrong. The cars will have been meticulously maintained mechanically… as has been mentioned.… master tech at Porsche Central Operations is assigned to look after the press fleet. And the car will have its own history, documented and everyone will know ‘which one’ that was, particularly if it was involved in a popular video or driven by the best journos… E.g.… RO10 HBY… 997 GT3 RS… people would pay big money to get that car. Also they if they are offered to market it’s usually at a pretty good price. There was a pair of 991.2 GT3, one white Manual driven by Henry Catchpole, was sold on by Superleggra from here iirc, and then one silver PDK driven by Chris Harris and Steve Sutcliffe.... bought by a mate of mine. In hindsight I’d have loved to have got my hand on one of those. You are well informed I agree with you. It's the OPC's we have to worry about. With an extended warranty however, I guess that P insurers are picking up any unexpected bills ? Interestingly, Toyota have just extended their 100k mile warranty to 10 years so long as their cars are serviced within their main dealer network ... no need for an extended warranty.

I see Cambridge OPC are flogging the lizard green ex-press 991.2 GT3RS. Twenty-odd thousand "interesting" miles, no front axle lift and £189,000. Thoughts?

Its a left swipe.

Hmmmm, personally OP, I’d be reticent but there are definitely two sides to this particular coin. On the plus side as others have said - car *should* have received regular timely servicing, along with all recalls or other faults rectified. On the negative side, apart from the obvious “village bicycle” syndrome, I’d have to question whether a vehicle has been sympathetically run-in, and you’d also have to be on the ball at inspection time regarding certain wear & tear items like brakes (esp ceramics) which some OPC’s are not always diligent in replacing prior to sale. I seem to remember someone on here was very upset recently in this regard. At the right price, and with the official Porsche warranty - a case can be made for. But all things being equal where equivalent stock available, I personally wouldn’t. Best of luck either way.

Hard to compute how being ‘meticulously maintained’ helps with the core concerns, such as being ragged mercilessly from cold, having gears grinded and so on. They’re not dropping a new lump in after every third loan or swapping the synchros out. Which isn’t to say it’s a necessarily a really bad idea to buy an ex press car. But if it is an ok purchase, it’s not because the cars have had super special maintenance. There’s not much that’s realistically going to be done in maintenance terms to offset any genuine mechanical wear and tear due abuse to the powertrain. Seriously, what would be the ‘meticulous maintenance’ that would offset routine lack of mechanical sympathy and or clumsy inputs? So either the cars can tolerate the way they’re treated by the great throng of hacks each having their day. In which case it’s all good. Or they can’t, in which case buyer beware out of warranty at the very least. Either way, can’t see how maintenance really comes into it. If you’re buying warranty and not planning on keeping it forever, of course, it probably doesn’t matter. But, again, maintenance not really a factor.

Had a lhd 968CS which I sold a while back. Purchaser did some research into it's history and it turned out to be a Porsche Germany press car. Never had a car that drank as much oil as that one . . .

F6C said: Hard to compute how being ‘meticulously maintained’ helps with the core concerns, such as being ragged mercilessly from cold, having gears grinded and so on. They’re not dropping a new lump in after every third loan or swapping the synchros out. Which isn’t to say it’s a necessarily a really bad idea to buy an ex press car. But if it is an ok purchase, it’s not because the cars have had super special maintenance. There’s not much that’s realistically going to be done in maintenance terms to offset any genuine mechanical wear and tear due abuse to the powertrain. Seriously, what would be the ‘meticulous maintenance’ that would offset routine lack of mechanical sympathy and or clumsy inputs? So either the cars can tolerate the way they’re treated by the great throng of hacks each having their day. In which case it’s all good. Or they can’t, in which case buyer beware out of warranty at the very least. Either way, can’t see how maintenance really comes into it. If you’re buying warranty and not planning on keeping it forever, of course, it probably doesn’t matter. But, again, maintenance not really a factor. You cannot rag a GT car unless its warmed up, it wont let you.Gears is another matter on a manual, so many heal and toe merchants who would tie there feet in knots, obviously why P made auto blip.

Not for me no matter how well maintained or cheap. Journos and youtubers will use and abuse them with Zero respect.

I noticed the yellow 992 4 GTS press car was recently sold for £125k, 13k miles, nothing in the advert about it's history as ex-press.... I wonder if they were told?

I recall one of the OPC’s sold the Miami blue 991 GT2RS press car for £265k- This press car was a great spec but had about 20,000 miles on the clock, the going rate for normal low mileage cars was about £315k at the time…….it sold pretty much instantly. I would have been happy to buy it despite its press car history- however one high end car dealer I spoke to told me they had been offered a certain McLaren press car but they turned it down because Chris Harris had been thrashing it around a track ……..

No way. I bought an ex press 997 and it was a dog. ‘Maintained’ or not, I’m not sure how you could ever inspect the mechanical innards having been ragged from cold by numerous low rent journos.

Billy_Whizzzz said: No way. I bought an ex press 997 and it was a dog. ‘Maintained’ or not, I’m not sure how you could ever inspect the mechanical innards having been ragged from cold by numerous low rent journos. Ha ha, however, they do run on 0-30(?) oil ...

Years ago my Dad bought a 997 Carrera, RX11 HZM. That was an ex press car and it was in great condition, never skipped a beat but I doubt a base car would have been as thrashed as GT cars.

With the new data protection laws you never know the previous owner these days. Dealer can sell hire care and ex fleet cars and you dont know that thet were.

Press cars are handed to all kinds of media from when they are brand new, sometimes with delivery+ mileage. Media have been known to pick up cars from the factory and drive them back to the UK. For better or worse, these days that includes YouTubers and other social media. Whether they are more sympathetic to mechanicals than a local newspaper journalist of yore, who knows. It's quite hard to thrash a modern supercar on the road without getting banned or killed, but also quite possible. There are also considerations like launch starts, speed bumps, etc. So the equation is this on one side, vs being maintained and repaired weekly by the importer, on the other. On balance I wouldn't buy a press car of a high performance marque. I reckon the average owner of a GT3, for example, is going to be more sympathetic, and have fewer reasons to thrash it, than a different and unknown media driver twice a week.

I see the ex press 991.1 gt3 rs RF15XLG is up for sale. https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202402156... Any takers?

Drove an RF Lava RS with around 3k miles on at PEC and around Buckingham back roads for an afternoon in 2016 could well have been that car.

Not a Porsche, but back in 2009 or 2010 I bought the ex press manual Gallardo Superleggera after a full fettle by the factory. Still have it and will probably never sell it. Now sporting a factory large wing.

Off brand but Im looking at an ex press RS6 today. 11000miles 1 yr Had all the jouros in it for sure, lots of vids etc. Its about 8k cheaper. My thoughts are along the lines of consumables ie brakes/tyres more then anything else. Ie if it doesnt have brake warp when I drive it and has new tyres and new pads then Im more relaxed about it I think. Any views? https://youtu.be/lDaghfes-0c?si=oMRaPNy7imEDwU-h https://youtu.be/KHx6Ra_ftJk?si=w9qI-g71DdDcVWLr etc lots of vids

Ask for an extended warranty?

It has 2 yes left but yes good point

Depends on the GT car but Volkswizards experience with that Frozen Berry GT4 and the shambles that followed would have me running a mile. However I accept that might be an isolated occurrence and not representative of all the care cars in the press fleet receive.

Wouldn't stop me, in fact my Evora S was an ex-marketing car that I'd ragged round the track myself when I worked there Pros: - Cars are generally serviced and maintained within an inch of their life - A Porsche no doubt will have a clean bill of health with regard to overrevs - They'll typically come with a fresh set of boots, rotors, pads etc - Often cheaper because people are scared of them - Press cars being modified for increased power might be a myth (excluding maybe cowboy firms like TVR) but they are certainly often 'blueprinted' in terms of suspension (perhaps engine and gearbox too) to make sure they are representative of the exact design intent rather than just being within specified tolerance of it. Might not make as much of a difference with a Porsche but on something like a Ferrari or a Lambo I bet most ex-press cars will be noticeably 'good ones' Cons: - A youtuber has likely incompetently ragged it around Goodwood with a terrified racing driver in the passenger seat at some point - I'd be making sure that the paint is in good condition as no guarantee it will have been fully tidied up to fix inevitable things caused by it being a working vehicle, e.g. extra stone chips, unsympathetic washing by journos for photos, that sort of stuff.

I own an ex Porsche Germany GT3 RS press car. It's on its second Mezger engine (not on my watch). Make of that what you will. I think it's a bit of a voyage into the unknown, frankly. I've owned mine for a while and like that the car has a bit of history and a story to it which adds to the ownership experience. Depends what you're looking for I guess. Not for everyone, I'm sure.

Heathrow said: I own an ex Porsche Germany GT3 RS press car. It's on its second Mezger engine (not on my watch). Make of that what you will. I think it's a bit of a voyage into the unknown, frankly. I've owned mine for a while and like that the car has a bit of history and a story to it which adds to the ownership experience. Depends what you're looking for I guess. Not for everyone, I'm sure. If it's priced right and you go in with your eyes open as above then it can be a good buy for some

I wonder what happened to the yellow press GT4RS that an OPC couldnt sell so was outted to an indy ( Ashgoods IIRC) and it didnt sell there either. Last I saw was it was being advertised less VAT for export

See the GT4RS thread which recently referred to that car still overpriced at £140k.

av185 said: See the GT4RS thread which recently referred to that car still overpriced at £140k. I`ll have a look as I unsubscribed from that one

I read statements on this thread that press cars are "meticulously maintained" etc, which would imply that they are subject to more frequent oil & filter changes etc. Is there any evidence (such as service records of a purchased press car) that this is really the case? If not, I doubt very much that they are serviced beyond the scheduled maintenance requirements and likely just checked for error codes, fluid levels, tyre condition etc, and valeting each time a car is returned back from press.

Far Cough said: I`ll have a look as I unsubscribed from that one It would be worth watching Harry’s Garage review of this car. Porsche Reading loaned it too him just after they got it back from EVO, who had just used it for their 2022 Car of the Year event. Harry commented on the poor condition of the car including a cracked rear screen and extensive stone chipping

Nuttcase said: I read statements on this thread that press cars are "meticulously maintained" etc, which would imply that they are subject to more frequent oil & filter changes etc. Is there any evidence (such as service records of a purchased press car) that this is really the case? If not, I doubt very much that they are serviced beyond the scheduled maintenance requirements and likely just checked for error codes, fluid levels, tyre condition etc, and valeting each time a car is returned back from press. In my old job I’m pretty sure press cars were given a full visual once over top and bottom, aligned regularly, drive sign off, don’t know about oil changes but I’d be surprised if they weren’t at least serviced on a ‘heavy duty’ regime. This was out of the factory rather than a national HQ though, might be the difference. Like I said though the main advantage of having one is they’re usually cheaper and sometimes ‘blue-printed’, you have to accept they’ve had a harder life but for most modern stuff it makes little difference to it beyond cosmetic wear and tear. Any car sold by Porsche I’d expect to be prepped to tidy up any dings/scuffs etc, as long as it offered a saving over a ‘perfect’ car it wouldn’t bother me

I ran an ex-press F80 M3CS ... the build spec included a Press Pack ... now what might that have been ? One thing it wasn't was a car just plucked off the end of the production line ...

CDR said: It would be worth watching Harry’s Garage review of this car. Porsche Reading loaned it too him just after they got it back from EVO, who had just used it for their 2022 Car of the Year event. Harry commented on the poor condition of the car including a cracked rear screen and extensive stone chipping I am well aware of the condition of it as a Porsche buyer friend of mine looked at it and was shocked at the state of it before politely declining. Then it appeared for silly money at various outlets. A perfect example of what everyone on this thread probably thinks who wouldnt touch an ex press car

No

Far Cough said: CDR said: It would be worth watching Harry’s Garage review of this car. Porsche Reading loaned it too him just after they got it back from EVO, who had just used it for their 2022 Car of the Year event. Harry commented on the poor condition of the car including a cracked rear screen and extensive stone chipping I am well aware of the condition of it as a Porsche buyer friend of mine looked at it and was shocked at the state of it before politely declining. Then it appeared for silly money at various outlets. A perfect example of what everyone on this thread probably thinks who wouldnt touch an ex press car I think you would need to be pretty brave to buy any ex press GT car unless it’s priced considerably lower than other cars for sale. I believe there is another GT press car for sale, a blue 997.2 gt3 at a opc.

The Wookie said: In my old job I’m pretty sure press cars were given a full visual once over top and bottom, aligned regularly, drive sign off, don’t know about oil changes but I’d be surprised if they weren’t at least serviced on a ‘heavy duty’ regime. Would suggest the problem is that you can't "service" gearbox wear due to someone being clumsy and grinding their changes or engine wear due to not warming the thing up properly etc. They're certainly not swapping in a new powertrain after every third loan. Obviously it's speculative just how much damage is done in that way to any one press car. And likewise, with any used car, you don't know how it's been driven. The thing about a press car is that you know for sure at least some of its pilots were talentless and without mechanical sympathy! With other cars, you can at least hope that's not the case. If it was your car, you firstly wouldn't let scores of randoms drive it and secondly would be pretty upset by how at least some of them treated the car if observing. I would just bear that in mind when buying. All that said, if it's a newish model, you're not planning on keeping long term, you're running under Porsche warranty, it drives fine at point of purchase etc, it probably doesn't matter so long as the price is right.

jamsp00n said: Would suggest the problem is that you can't "service" gearbox wear due to someone being clumsy and grinding their changes or engine wear due to not warming the thing up properly etc. They're certainly not swapping in a new powertrain after every third loan. Obviously it's speculative just how much damage is done in that way to any one press car. And likewise, with any used car, you don't know how it's been driven. The thing about a press car is that you know for sure at least some of its pilots were talentless and without mechanical sympathy! With other cars, you can at least hope that's not the case. If it was your car, you firstly wouldn't let scores of randoms drive it and secondly would be pretty upset by how at least some of them treated the car if observing. I would just bear that in mind when buying. All that said, if it's a newish model, you're not planning on keeping long term, you're running under Porsche warranty, it drives fine at point of purchase etc, it probably doesn't matter so long as the price is right. I think it’s fair to say that most journos aren’t going to be abusing a car for the sake of it but yeah you have to accept they’ve had a harder life and like you say the consequences of that are debateable Good example, my Evora S had about 15k on it when I bought it IIRC and about 65k when I sold it and it was still on its original clutch when some cars were only managing 30-35k. I wouldn’t be buying a tatty one (and frankly the fact that Porsche are selling them that way is pretty disappointing) and I wouldn’t be paying full whack for one, but I like I said I don’t think anyone should be afraid of them, and they can make for a good deal

This story comes with a caveat that the person concerned could, on occasion, embellish stories. Although he did own the car concerned for a while. Many years ago I knew someone who bought a 996 GT3 RS; he claimed it was the Porsche GB press car used on Top Gear (RX04PPK) although for the life of me I cannot remember it's registration at the time he owned it. He had bought it knowing that the car had lived a hard life. He was of the opinion that the car had, apparently, received a full mechanical strip down at an OPC prior to being sold & came with a full warranty. The car was in good condition and never let him down during his ownership. No idea if the car still exists (I'd guess it does) as it was last MOT in 2021 having done 54k miles.