Buying my first 996!

What to look out for? What are the little things to be aware of? I'm looking at a 1999 or 2000. Do they have ISOfix in the back? Front? Will the passenger in the front have enough space if there is a babyseat beheind? How big a difference is there between a C2 and C4, in the 996 models? I have been told the Triptronic has a better gearbox than the manual? True?

Hi - really surprised to see people on here didn't bother to reply to your question - come on guys we might be elitist people as we have Porsches but not to the extent where we cannot even be bothered to talk to new people surely!! Anyway, I am new here as well. I bought my 996 X50 Turbo about 4 months ago now. I am new to Porsches as well having been a BMW fanatic for years and still owning 3 including an M5. But I will tell you what I know and my opinion (apologies for errors!): 1) The Turbo uses a stronger engine than the standard 996 cars which can suffer problems with oil leaks. I am sure the standard cars are great but I sleep easier knowing that I have a strong engine, as well as it being one of the fastest versions! 2) Tiptronic box is the one for me. It has no clutch so it has no clutch to replace. If your gonna have a Porsche you want to give it some beans but equally you don't want to be stressing about clutch wear. Purists will tell you I am wrong but its miles faster than my manual M5 and thats no slouch so its more than fast enough for most speed demons. If you pull away quick it will drop to 1st gear (usually pulls away in 2nd) and after the turbo lag (which you'll get regardless of the gearbox) it absolutely flies. You are doing 100+ before you even have the balls to look down from the windscreen 3) They are very bumpy, at least with Turbo's set up anyway. I live in Spain and we have some brilliant new motorways with no speed cams down in the south. But I have bashed my head on the roof many a time going over bumps 4) Interior is nice if a little dated now 5) I find the brakes very poor until they warm up - you really have to give them a push when cold Great cars though, I am so glad I own one. Every day I come home and walk through my garage I stop and look at it crouched there waiting for me to take it for a blast at the weekend ... awesome.

!! Sam. Thanks for your reply. Unfortunatly I live in a socialist Country (Denmark) and the Car prices are out of this World. I have a 1993 911 Carrera 4 - Price in Denmark because of the tax system and too many socialist goverments: 62.000 Euros. For a Porsche 911 - C4 from 1993. Permission to say "*****"... In other terms. There is no Way I ever will be able to affort a 996 Turbo. I'm looking at the 3.6 litre 320 bhp 996. But many thanks again for your answer and reply. P.s. I'm currently in Spain - Cala Dore in Mallorca

Well, Probably the worst advice you'll get on here about buying a Porsche is from me, I bought my 964 off ebay and traded it for my 996 cos I liked the colour, and having driven to the OPC in the 964 to get some work done, on a wet and miserable day, I test drove the 996 and decided to buy it cos the heater blew out hot air, and the a/c worked ie, blew out cold air ! that said, the 996 is pure joy. Still a Porsche for sure, but you don't feel like you've been armwrestling for 6 hours on a long drive. I got mine from a Porsche Dealer, FSH etc etc, with warranty so was reasonably confident but I think 'normal' sensible checks, ownership history, service history, and if you have them in Denmark, an independant porsche specialist who can give the car an inspection and report for you seems to be well worth the money wherever you are. There is some discussion over the 3.4 vs 3.6 engine, Most people, IMO, seem happy if they have a 3.4 and keep it maintained and serviced, Some people have sufferred engine blow-ups, you can search the forum on here for many threads debating the pro's and cons of the 3.4 engine. Really, I guess it's just good common sense, check the history, check the servicing, a bit deeper than just looking at the stamps in the book if you can, and test drive. Good hunting

!! Pete. Thanks for that. "...a bit deeper than just looking at the stamps in the book if you can, and test drive" What exactly do you mean by that? I'm most likely to buy my 996 of the Internet in Germany. And have a pro. help me out with that part. All I can, so far, is to trust the stamps etc. Armwrestling a 964 - I know what you mean

Love the website! Regarding a C2 or C4, I am not sure there is much difference - luggage space excepted. I managed to drive one of each back to back and preferred the 4 - it was just a more 'settled' drive to my way of thinking. I could easily see that the 2 is an exciting drive... The 4 is also great in the snow.

Don't think any of the 996s have ISOFIX mounts (but I could be wrong). My 98/99 3.4 certainly doesn't. Engines can blow up (lots of threads on here), but not restricted to 996 3.4s, it's the same engine in all boxsters, caymans and 997s. They go because of cracked cylinder liners. It's probably no worse than any other car but people expect more of Porsche, probably seems worse than older porshes because ther have been loads more 996s sold. Regarding baby / child seats. I have a 6 year old and a 1 year old. The 6 year old is on a booster seat and the 1 year old's rear facing child carrier/baby seat fits in fine. There are many child seats that fit, such as Concord Ultimax. Again lots of threads on here re. this. C2s have a larger front luggage compartment and a larger fuel tank than C4s. You can fit a Quinny Zap buggy in the front of a C2 but not in a C4 boot. Also, the basic 3.4 996 C2 is the lightest production 911 for years - lighter than both 993 and 964, lighter than 997s and all the GT3s and it's an EVO Magazine 5 star car, unlike the later 3.6 litre 996s. Gearbox choice is a personal one. I prefer manual, it's faster and more involving. The auto's (slush boxes ) are apparently easier on drive train tho. Hope some of this helps or provides some food for thought.

"...a bit deeper than just looking at the stamps in the book if you can, and test drive" Does the seller have supporting invoices from the garage/workshop/dealer for the servicing and any work he's had done which marry's up with the stamps in the service book.

Can't help with the C2/C4 thing as I'm another turbo X50 person (although manual rather than tip) but I can help with the kids thing maybe. There's no ISOFIX in the back. How much space for the missus depends on the age of the kids I think. If it's forward facing then yeah you'll probably be ok. If it's rear facing then no, probably not. My son's been in the back since about 7 months old and seems to like it back there. He's high enough to look out the window so that keeps him happy for a while and he giggles when the turbos kick in up the dual carriageway near his nursery :grin: And, contrary to a previous post, you can fit a Quinny Zapp in a turbo boot so it should fit in a C4. I have the buggy permanently in my boot in case we go out anywhere. There's also enough space behind the seats to fit a travel cot too so long as you don't have the subwoofer (I removed mine for this purpose). All in all, the perfect family car

Hi mate Thanks for your very usefull reply. One follow up: Is that a mechanical fact, or your personal view?

Carrera 4 in the snow = outstanding !! After using my C4 this winter which was particularly bad i couldnt be happier with it. . . so much so i often chose to drive it rather than the Range Rover.

When I purchased my car I rang up all the OPC's to verify the stamps in the service book, they can tell you what was done at each service in detail, very helpful and in some cases the people at Porsche even remembered the owners etc + if you get the MOT test number from the buyer you can print a copy of all the previous test results including advisories etc for free, the link's below. Getting these bits of information helps to give you a feel of how the car was looked after and helps in the decision process. http://www.dft.gov.uk/vosa/onlineservices/onlineservices.htm

Manual is my personal preference. It's a performance car and I feel there's something missing if all you have to do is push to go and push to stop. I drive autos for work and it bores the pi55 out of me......