considering 996 ownership, advise?

Hi, As the prior owner of 964 and the current owner of an S2 cab, I am familiar with some of the P-car's personality and what to look out for, but the 996 version is new ground for me. I am looking at a 41000 mile 99 model, usually there are 1st year issues with cars and I can only assume the attractive price of the 99 has something to do with that. Can anyone tell me what might be troublesome with one of these and if they are to be avoided all together or if they are worth some risk for the price benefit? How do they compare in driveability, quickness and maintenance with the 964? Thanks, Scott

take what you read on this forum here with a grain of salt, while gatherings of enthusiasts are a great thing, they tend to highlight negatives and forget about the everyday positives... point in case is the RMS and engine itself, there's a small sect of people who believe the m96 motor is fundamentally flawed but the overall concensus is it's a great car. RMS issues are a pain in the ***, but virtually never fatal and not really the end of the world. They are definately a lot less "brutal" for lack of a better word than a 964, much more modern car inside and out. I love mine to death and would only trade it for a newer one

Forgive my ignorance, but is RMS=rear main seal?

precisely. they have a bad habit of leaking, and almost every porsche since 97ish has been affected by this.

Yes - RMS= rear main seal. This is blown out of proportion, really. In some cars the RMS will leak, and cause a drip or two on the driveway. If this ever happens, just wait until you need the clutch replaced and do them both at the same time to save on labor. Really - it isn't a big deal. There are a few people floating around here that will try to scare you into thinking your engine is gonna explode. Don't listen to them, or let them keep you from your 996. Just get a solid one that has been well-maintained. Try and get maintenance records and hopefully it had regular servicing and oil changes, and do a CarFax report on it, also. My 996 has 85,000+ miles and is driven every day, multiple times a day, and runs awesome! It doesn't drip or burn any oil, and is just a wonderful all-around car. You might want to look into an after-market warranty, too, for peace of mind.

If you can afford it, get at least a 2002 or 2003 model year. By this time Porsche had made several changes that really improved the car.

I would agree to hold out for a 2002+ model, even if you have to wait a year.

i owned a 944 turbo then a 993 - both gone! now i have a 928 and just purchased a 1999 996 and could not be happier. the car is great. i did my homework first and then had the car checked out. very clean and rms is dry as a bone. definitley do your homework--i would stay away from a car that had multiple rms issues and prob get a car with > than 45.000 miles on it. i am pretty sure that engine failures were more common in cars with lower milege. I love mine and now getting an extended warranty through a reputable company. good luck v-tach 1986.5/ 928 1999 /996

Forgive my ignorance (if it comes out that way). I am in the same boat as the thread starter. I have been reading these boards day and night trying to dig up everything on this car (good and bad). The RMS thing, IMO, has been the route of many debates but doesn't seem like a huge deal. To respond to your comment, you mentioned purchasing a car with MORE than 45,000 miles. With this logic, are you making the conclusion that the vehicles are driven on a more regular basis, hence keeping the fluids moving more often? Whereas, a garage queen (say a '99 with 12k on it for arguments sake) has a lot of 'sit' time. In this sit time, it causes all of the oil to drain out of the engine and could cause a drying out of the seals, read RMS. When dried out and then started again, there could be premature wear on the seals causing them to fail sooner (if at all). Am I on the right track here?

I think v-tach is alluding to the sometimes-suggested idea that failures tend to occur sooner rather than later, if they are going to occur. Its all merely rumor, if that's what he's getting at.

Hi Scott, You mention attractive price, how much are they asking for the car? Is this car also a Cabriolet? The window deal was a big decision when I was searching for my Cab. In 2002 the Cabs come with back windows made of Glass. 99-2001 have plastic back windows.

Go for it, the 996 is one of the finest porsches ever made, the m96 engine is tough as nails, bullet proof, regardless of what the 'experts' say.

Hi Chris, Actually it is a coupe. I would love a cab but I've heard that you can't DE them in a PCA event so I have decided to look for a coupe (and likely sell my S2 cab). The car I am looking at is a 99 with 42000 on it, manual, turbo wheels, looks clean and they want $29000 for it (I think I could get it for a little less than that). What do you think?

Here is Edmunds.com quote: Used Car Appraiser 1999 Porsche 911 2 Dr Carrera Coupe Trade-In -- --- Private Party ----- Dealer Retail National Base Price $25,925 $28,994 $32,188 Optional Equipment $370 $416 $515 18 Inch Wheels - Turbo Look $370 $416 $515 Color Adjustment Dark Blue $-184 $-205 $-228 Regional Adjustment for Zip Code 93550 $125 $139 $155 Mileage Adjustment 42,000 miles $1,098 $1,098 $1,098 Condition Adjustment Clean $0 $0 $0 Total $27,334 ----- $30,442 ------ $33,728 I think some guys on this board might say that buying for a very low price would allow you to use the money you saved to buy modifications for the car. Track etc... $29K seems like a fair price. Like you said, they may even come down lower.

to clarify things up a bit about the <45,000 mile engine failure. i did my homework for many months. observing these boards as well as others. it just seemed that many engine failures were on lower milege cars and im not sure exactly why..engine seals dry ?? i dont know why... but thats what i gathered from my observations - it just seemed that engine failures were less common in the higher milege cars. v-tach 1999-996 1986.5-928

if it checks out, for $29,000... jump on it.

Just to put a more positive spin on things, I have a '99 996 which I bought new in July of 99 at Champion Porsche. All through the warranty period I never had any problems and I was seriously autocrossing it throughout the whole year, winning 3 FL State Championships and 2 Porsche Parade Autocrosses. Then after the warranty was over, I decided to Club Race it. Last year, we competed in over 21 races in some very demading and tough environments and still NOTHING WRONG!!! Simply put, this 996 is a dream car! Seen years and not one problem.

Love to hear storys like that one!!

Man, a 99 for $29k is a no-brainer. Go for it...

Gotcha. I trust ya...was just trying to see if you had any theories on why/why not.

I talked with the dealership today and with less than 20000 miles it was in a front end wreck, airbag deployed but not totalled (a Carfax has verified this). According to him the repair was top notch and he warrants that I won't be able to tell in any capacity it was hit. So now the question is...still worth $29K? I know they are stuctuarlly tough, so a good repair outcome is of higher likelyhood, but hit is hit. Your thoughts? Scott

scott - im pretty sure you can DE a cab. check with your local PCA club. you may need some addition safety equipment.. as far as finding out about the accident - make sure it was repaired correctly and negotiate the price. i think you probably have a little more room to negot..remember it may be tougher for you to sell it afterwards..porsche owners are finicky!! good luck v-tach

Go over it with a finetooth comb and get a thorough PPI check the fitment of panels take it on an extended test drive, check for any unusual squeaks/rattles. Sometimes when a car is rebuilt it's just not the same anymore....

You will always know that it has been in a wreck. Imagine the force the car took when crashing. All the extra stress on the car. Cars are not the same after a wreck. As others have said there are other 996's available. Not worth $29K. How will this guy "warrant" that you won't be able to tell? Once you buy the Car there is no looking back. Other fish in the sea. Like you said "Hit is Hit"

I would rather pay more money to get a car that wasn't in an accident.

ElTorrente and v-tach-my fears exactly-I don't keep them forever so resale matters to me more than some others I'm sure. Thanks for the advise everyone-I'll resume the search. Scott

PCA rules dictate a rollbar in any open top cars for DE.

The rollbar is what I have gotten as a necessity as well, and something I would rather not do to the S2 since I have little desire to do any other mods to it.

interestingly enough there's a guy looking at a 993 that was a writeoff in the 993 forum.... Go read it.

Thanks Vancouver83LTD, I did. 4 years ago we had a 325I, I went to trade it in and the dealer ran a carfax-flood marked title (just not the title I had)!!!! I took a vicious beating on that one trying to get rid of it-no more salvage titles for me-if you're going to keep it forever or race it , it might be okay but if you buy and sell them like I do it's a reciepe for disaster.