"New" 1999 C4 shake-down - hints?

Hi all, So I have been driving my newly acquired 1999 C4 for about two weeks now. Having a lot of fun but looking for some advice from the more experienced owners here. The car has ~11,500 miles. I think that the first service in the manual doesn't appear until 15,000. That said, I'm curious as to what precautions any of you might recommend. The car had two owners prior to me. Both previous owners were by all accounts experienced sports car owners. The car doesn't have a single scratch on it; it really is something of a time capsule! All that said, this is my first Porsche (but I have had lots of other Euro cars) and looking for advice and to share my observations/thinking: 1. replaced the cd storage unit with a factory shelf/bin and did the mandatory Bumper Plugs 2. ordered an aux cable from Becker USA to run an iPod or sat radio 3. ordered the ultimate cupholder -- this car will become my daily driver, and i drive from Pittsburgh to Washington, DC several times a month (~250 miles each way) so the first three are quick-wins to make the car more enjoyable on long trips; however, i'm not a high-mileage driver--Vespa the two miles to work most days and our A4 Avant only has 58K after four years 4. need to buy 17-inch winter wheels/snow tires (probably from Tire Rack unless someone has a used set...) 5. need to buy a roof rack for bicycles and skis 6. thinking about buying a new battery as I can't readily discern how new this one is and that seems like cheap insurance... 7. puzzled by the harsh ride (Continental ZR/18)--feel overly loud and like they might be flat-spotted. However the previous owner freely offered that he replaced the rears which were flat-spotted.... ???? Of course I didn't think to ask about the fronts; I'm thinking that I will put the snows on and see if the ride improves. Otherwise, maybe the the problem is/are a wheel bearing(s)? Moreover, maybe I just move to 17-inch wheels for summer driving as well--western PA has HORRIBLE roads. Love to hear advice/experience from others. Hopefully, my approach seems reasonable to the more well versed! Many thanks!

Only 11k miles?? That does sound like a time capsule. The tires might be original - even if they're the 2nd set, they might be 6 years old. Replace them. At that mileage, I'd also have all fluids changed - who knows when the last oil change was, and the brake fluid, diff/tranny oil, and coolant have probably never been changed. Wise to do the engine belt, too. Re battery - it'll either start the car or it wont... You'll know when it wont.

What Van said! A car that age and miles who knows when the last maintenance was done. Tirerack is a good place to get snow tires. You can find the wheels in the F/S section here on RL or Craiglist or Ebay. These cars are great in the snow! Do you have any pics?

Each car will have a unique set of circumstances. In April I bought a 14K '99 Carrera 4 with Tiptronic. I took it to the local Porsche racer/independent mechanic and told him I didn't know the service history, gave him a blank check and told him to do whatever he thought was needed. After checking the fluids, filters, and everything else, he decided it needed an oil change and brake fluid flush and we had to replace one of the oxygen sensors to clear an intermittent check engine light. Compared to the Audi, this car is definitely going to ride rougher, especially on 18" wheels. Although I noticed it early on, I don't really feel like it is rough any more. Maybe a litte more time will help with you as well. I would, however, check the age of the tires to make sure the fronts aren't original.

Wow! 11K miles in 11 years. That's...how you say.... not so good. This is what I would change/do to make it the ideal DD: Change the oil - and have an oil analysis done of the old oil - Blackstone labs. When you change the oil filter, inspect it by cutting off the ends and laying the media out on a flat surface. Check for metal/plastic/rubber debris. Change the tranny fluid - only use Porsche fluid no matter what your indy says change brake fluid - that's a given. Change out the coolant/thermostat/and water pump. I know it only has 11K on it but if you ask experienced folks liek Jake, that coolant does and will degarde the plastic innards of the water pump. Change the spark plugs and check the coils if they haven't been done in the past 5 years. Check the dates on the tires. Doesn't matter who replaced what with who. If the tires were "old" when they were installed and then sat for years they need to go. Probably doesn't need it but I would swap out the air/cabin filters. Mice love cabin filters and this car sat still for a looong time. Check the brake pads for cracks as well as the rotors. happy motoring!

change tires and fluids.... the car will shake itself out in time. Look for leaks and keep an eye on anything with seals and rubber. Listen to squeals and whining noises. She'll eventually get back into shape if you drive her often

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I couldn't agree more. Don't go crazy, your driving the car and putting on miles will go a long way. This forum can give you some great suggestions for improving your Porsche, and I've found that you can do many of the fluid changes and filter replacements very easily, and feel good about doing them yourself.

Appreciate all the suggestions... I am scheduled to have the fluids done next Wednesday; I'm fortunate to have a local dealer within walking distance to my office. Will report back with anything interesting... Thanks again!

pics???

Quotes source post: 8028220

good point.... pics or ban!

Even pics of your battery....

Where is Tim??

Just haven't had time to snap any good pics -- dark when I go to work, dark when I come home from work.... Sigh.

Thanks.

Thanks for the pics! I like your garage doors.

Very nice!! Super clean, and almost new with such low miles! Enjoy it!

So I picked up the car from the dealer servicing--relatively clean bill of health. Oil change and brake fluid flush. $350. Ran the VIN and found a gas cap recall. Mechanic couldn't believe how clean it was--which of course made me feel reasonably well that I made a decent buy. Of course the dealer did try to get me to do the RMS which they said was "seeping." However, they seemed to back off on the matter when I said that I had been watching the garage floor with a critical eye and hadn't noticed a single drop. This weekend the snow tires go on :-) I also hope to test the Porsche roof rack that I bought off the PCA classifieds; it's all coming together.....

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Don't mean to darken your day but the seep on a RMS is just a matter of time. I would have had it done.

Quotes source post: 8050522

I would do the RMS and a LN IMS upgrade ($600) at the same time. it would be good insurance on a '99 11K mile car.

I had 17k on my car when I bought it in '07. The RMS was also seeping, according to the PPI. When I started driving it, the seeping stopped! Just saying.

Yep a car sitting around not going through heat cycles with oils flowing will have gaskets and seals leakings more than usual. Even seen some hard rubbers turn to sponge from sitting around. Do a gentle break in to get the seals to rejuvinate and watch for leaks in case one gives out from being too soft. Or just relace if thats the route you prefer. One of the bad things of cars sitting is oil sediments having a sit around and tuning into hardened garbage on metal surfaces. It's like letting a kid make food on the counter and not cleaning up the mess and letting it dry hard. Just running cleaner over it wont clean things up after that. Of course an engine oil path is sort of like a hot solvent tank bath so things might clean up well. After things get settled and you are comfortable try crusing along on a long stretch of road with a high speed limit. Here is the thing I would do on that stretch of road. Get into a gear where you can exercise the rpms back and forth below and above the variocam operation range. Go back and forth from around 2.5k and 4k rpms to make sure the piston section that operates the cams is being functioned and hopefully getting cleaned up. I hope the material on the cam adjusters isn't prone to rotting from sitting around not being used. Thats one reason watching the oil removed from the car will be helpful to see if that sort of stuff is falling apart. You have found a great car to keep for a long time. The 99 might be a super collector one of these day. I've tried having friends drive my car while I sit there for the ride. I know many guys would love to own a prorsche so I try to give them the thrills needed. It seems anybody I let drive the car is always playing like they are rolling the space shuttle back and forth along the launch pad. The car will launch very nicely and radically at times when in the higher revs. Just make sure you have it well broken in with the seals all tight and have some fun down the road from time to time. Fantastic car you have. Good luck the first time you get pulled over by the police Oh yah, nice dog. Mans best friend for sure.

Get a Redtop for german auto's. RMS and LNEngineering IMS a must , don't wait. 23k on a 2002.

That ground cable is under some stress there!!

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Yah I'm believing most cars could use a bogger battery. I'm not sure if 48 variety is the largest that can fit. I do know there are some brutal cold days in some parts of germany so the bigger the better.

Quotes source post: 8055784

...it's part of the tie-down system

If I were you...and some may not agree with this, but change the fluids, and give it a nice 50 mile break in, with varying RPMS. Than wind that motor out and put it through its paces. I would suggest a IMS bearing, your cars milage and year is a prime canidate for failure according to the rennlist rumor mill.

Great find!

Everything they all ^^^ just said. Once you get all that done, you gotta cherry on your hands. Looks great.