How many of you park your 996 outside all year round?

Any 996 owners here that don't have the luxury of a garage? Those of you that park outside year round, do you use a car cover? Just curious to see answers here. I am in the Chicago suburbs in an apartment complex. Park both my cars outside. Winter is a nightmare!

First two years I parked my 996 outside in my driveway - no car cover. It's my daily driver so I figured what's the difference since I couldn't park in a garage at work. Picked up a house with a 2 car garage in 2009 so yes, since then they get parked in the garage. Funny story when the 996 was parked in the driveway after an ice and snow storm. We were caring for my mother in-law and had to call for an emergency ambulance. Was chaotic as hell in the house, doorbell rings, I open the door and see a policeman standing in front of me and only his car in the street, no ambulance. With a dead serious face the guy points to the 996 and gruffly asks who owns the car. I say I do - he shakes his head and says "now that's a crime". Ambulance pulled up right after, the cop was just there to act as an escort - heck of sense of humor on the guy.

I have a one car garage, although that will change this summer. One of my other " toys" is a Lotus Esprit. Due to the type of insurance it carries , it has to be in the garage. The 996 is parked in the driveway , but I always use a cover when it's not driven( tried driving it with the cover. Didn't work well ). Alan

My car is not a 996, but a 997, and it lives outside 24/7/365 due to no garage in our hundred year old house. Our winters are mild in Texas, so I worry more about it baking out there in 100+ temps for much of the summer....T

Ours has lived outside since the it was new. No cover, but we did use a windshield screen for a few years. We have the extra full leather interior and besides the dash bubbling some it has held up really well. Especially since we've only treated it two or three times. The carpet in the rear under the back glass has turned silver though (was black).

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Yikes, where do you live? Mild summers? Cold winters?

Mine hasn't had an engine or trans in it for over a year and it has never spent a night outside-it is even covered in the garage! My new Ford Edge sleeps outside all night but not the P-car!

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Northern VA. Summers tend to have lots of sun and have stretches of high 90 days. Winters are typically right around freezing.

Mines outside, under a cover. I converted the garage into a gym before I got the car.

Any recommendations for a good all season outdoor cover? I'm assuming the OEM Porsche one is best?

I purchased mine from California Car Cover. They have a good rep for making solid durable covers. www.calcarcover.com/n_carcovermaterials/All Alan

I couldn't stand for mine to be outside. I park in a garage at home and work..

I converted my garage into a complete man cave. So the driveway is all i got. Atleast my office garage is covered where it spends most of the day during the week.

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More power to ya! Hope my Porsche holds up as well as yours does.... T

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Go to covercraft.com. They have a ton of good info on the pros and cons of different covers for different situations....T

+1 for covercraft This year i had my 996 out but I must say the cover worked well. Anytime I was able to remove it for inspection the underside was clean and dry. The covercraft was $$ but the best I have owned yet.

http://www.covercraft.com/carcovers/...r_fabrics.html The above URL can guide you to the right cover for your needs....T

Great, much appreciated!

I've been lucky to have garage space for my treasures for the last 30 years. Living in Los Angeles my concerns are not weather as much as crime and vandalism. We once caught two guys in our condo garage, they were on cell phones, scouting the wheels on all the cars and taking orders for them. Turns out they were part of a gang that ranged over almost all of LA county. And then there are just people who like to key cars. A local dealer had a 996tt on his lot...out on the front line. One morning he was opening up and found the tt and a Mercedes had been worked over. I do have a car cover for use in cases of extended exposure to sun and heat.

funny thing is that daily drivers tend to rust more if they are parked in warm garages every day in winter (concerns only parts of the world with heavy snowy winters and salty roads)

I know we should take care of our P-cars, I love my car. But it stands outside all year round, and I live in Norway. Cold,rains and ****ty weather all year, but no rust what so ever, it performs, is my daily drive, love it. No cover sheet (would just blow away anyway), only thing I do is to wash it and rince it well, and of course most of the maintenance. Just had a thourough rub and swissvax, looks great. I must say the car suits the norwegian weather well.

One more reason to love Norway (wife and I visited on our honeymoon)!! Potentially interesting factoid, Wikipedia says hottest temperature ever recorded in Norway is 96 F, which is more or less the average high in Dallas in August. I worry more about these cars in extreme heat than cold, especially the leather, vinyl, rubber, etc. Not to mention the UV damage from sunlight....T

Yes, tomc_mets , we are not spoiled with warm or good weather for that matter. Cracks in leather of our cars are also not a problem due to lack of sunshine and temperature. But on would think that the salty roads and harsh weather, rain (lots and lots), hail, snow, ice and storms would deteriorate the car faster, it does not seems so. Build quality and TLC is key.

Outside all day in the tropical heat and sun at the office. Windows are filmed, and sunshade in the windshield, but no cover. Where would I put it if I take it off and it's soaking wet from rain? Besides, rain=carwash. That or whenever it's in the shop, they wash it, I never have. It's just a car, not an appreciating classic.

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Hi Arne.... Indeed, each place has its own car care challenges. But, as you say, TLC is key, and besides it's fun to spoil such great cars!....T

Keep mine outdoors year round even when the termperatures dip into the 60's

Personally, I'd skip the car cover as it will do more harm than good, especially the more you take it off. Forget covering anything but a pristine washed car else you chance contaminants getting on the inside of the cover and potentially harming your paint the next time you put it on. Been there, done that. The best thing IMO for you is to polish and prep your car for car coating like CQuartz followed up a a durable wax or sealant like Collinite 845 or Klasse Sealer. Since living in Apt complex, it might make sense to also have ONR(Optimium No Rinse) for bucket washes and a quick detailer with some GOOD microfiber cloths on hand. I recommend Ultima Waterless Wash + for the best bang for buck QD solution. This way you will not be going through $5-7 bottles at a time. You will probably want to clay your car at least 3 times a year since it sits outside as well.

The only thing that worries me when I park outside is sun damage. Things like paint, light lenses, and dashboard couldn't give an s about rain. It's the UV rays that kill them. No salt on California roads to worry about. I bought the car I did because it was mechanically sound and the paint was covered in minute swirl marks and stuff. Didn't want a concourse winner, wanted a corner carver. In other words, my less-than-than-perfect paintjob sitting in the rain does not cause me an ounce of stress. Good for resale? no. Am I smart? Absolutely (not).

My garage became a gym before I purchased my 996, so the car lives outside under a badazz cover. It whimpers on cold nights.

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By my calculations, you're enjoying your car & not worrying about it, that makes you very smart! T

Sorry to weigh in late here - not my usual Forum. The Covercraft looks nice, but Gert at Carnewal carries a nice outdoor product for less than half the price. Perfect for the hot sun - I just ordered one myself. Also comes with the Porsche logo if you like. http://www.carnewal.com/products/All...Outdoor-Silver

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Why have a generic one when you can have a genuine Porsche specific one for around the same price? http://www.suncoastparts.com/product...Code=POTE996WW

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I went with Cover Craft as they had one with extra padding, which living in Texas I hoped would give some extra degree of protection against small hail. That worked, but it still got dinged by large hail (roughly size of a golf ball)�.T

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alpine003...Do you or anyone here have any experience with this hail-resistant cover?�T

Mine sits out mostly, because it's my daily driver. Really not saving it for anyone else, I'm trying to enjoy it.

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I do not. The one time I knew it was going to hail when my car was parked in public, I got some freight blankets and threw it on top. This guy wasn't so lucky... Man Desperately Tries To Protect His Car From Hail - YouTube

I bought a car lift to double-stack'em so I could get the 996 inside. Storms are toooo big here in the midwest to leave a car outside all year round.

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Oh my. I might have thought about doing that with my 911 when it got hailed on, but the family and I were sheltered in a closet in an interior room hoping the tornado siren would go off. Welcome to spring in Texas!�.T

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There are places in the world where you have to have shelter for your car. If you take a drive around Queensland, Cold Coast or thereabouts in Australia you start seeing cars like these lurking around, I've seen some that are far worse. This guy believes he has the solution, imagine putting that on your car every time you park. It's friday, all weekend to drive my car, with it's summer shoes on, finally.

Arne - that hail damage looks familiar...... a lot of local Brisbane car dealers got caught out in February when a summer hailstorm swept through Queensland - the last thing I would have done is lay prostrate over my car during that storm - I would probably be dead after the first 5 minutes !!

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My wife's friend lives in the Gold Coast and it's a really beautiful place. I would sell my left nut to be on one of the waterfront properties at Surfers Paradise.

Parking a 996 outside works exactly like parking any other car outside; it will survive. Drive over to your local Porsche dealer and check out where they keep all of their Porsches.