Newbee in search of a C4S

Hi guys, I've had the fever for a Porsche for most of my life, and have finally reached the point where I can afford one without skipping any meals. The 996 C4S has forever been the car that "does it for me", and I'm desperately scavenging the earth in search for one within my price range! I was wondering if I could ask the help of all of you to keep an eye out for me for such a car. I'm looking to spend up to $60k total- out the door with taxes included. I've searched the Dupont Registry, Autotrader, Ebay, and of course the Rennlist classifieds. Seems as though 90% of C4S's are sold by dealers and are therefore a little on the high side for me. I'll buy a car that has been well maintained and am not afraid of higher mileage as long as the car is in great mechanical shape. I'm interested in all colors but red, and the only "must have" option is a manual transmission. If anyone knows of a car like this, I would be most thankful to you. Thanks! Ross

If your looking to purchase from a private party the best places to look are autotrader.com, ebaymotors.com, and craigslist.org. Stay patient, I guarantee there's an owner somewhere who will post their car on one of these before trading it into a dealer. This is also an excellent place to find a c4 owner looking to trade up.

Your price range is on the low side but possible for a private sale. Just keep searching, you will find your car eventually! Remember, the prices are coming toward you (i.e. down), not moving "up".

Thanks for the words... On this same note- where do you predict the value of the 996 C4S to begin to level off. I don't want to buy the car just to have it depreciate $20k in 2 years (unfortuneatly happened to me several times!). Would you say $50k or so?

^ ^ What he said

Just went through this myself. My experience is that the dealer cars below 60K are not too great. Search for the thread with pictures of the one at Stevinson in Denver. Tim in Denver looked at it and it was in pretty rough shape and how they could offer CPO on it with mismatched tires spoke volumes about how cautious you should be with so-called prisitne dealer cars. All the private cars were cleaner and better equiped. I kept revising my budget to make sure I got what i wanted in the end. Just make sure you get a full history on it and a PPI. CPO is important if the car has absolutely no OEM warranty left. I know of one private car in LA that is in pristine condition; it's an '02, well equiped, no OEM warranty remaining but full CPO asking 60K. PM me if you want more details.

Holiday: Try doing a few searches with this http://ucl.porsche.de/ucl/plsql/usa/...69DBF8&sflg_=1 Plenty of c4s under 60k if you're willing ti go back a few years (but still 996). GBG

err you cant go back a few more years and still get a C4S... 02+

That's right...C4 yes, but not C4S.

A good reference for price analysis is the market section in "Excellence" magazine. I believe the 911 is due soon to be published.

I found a C4S in January at a dealer (Maplewood Imports) that had just come off a 3 year lease. I bought it with a Porsche certifed warranty through 2008 with low miles in your price range. I first found it on Cars.com. I had been checking there and on Autotrader for several months before finding "the one". Be patient and you will also.

Not to jump on the bandwagon, but I'm also interested in a C4S, mainly in white. I agree with some of the comments above, but just be patient, and you will find the right car for you

Jon, I've seen a white C4S at Jack Daniels a week ago. Give them a call and ask for Alan.

If you don't want depreciation, get a clean unmodified 993 C4S.

Thanks, Jee! I'll give them a ring later today

Thanks for all of the replies! I think I found "the one". It's an 02' C4S in Silver and believe it or not, it was right up the way from my house. I started another thread on it... I gave the owner a $1000 check and agreed to buy it pending a good PPI report. Price is $52k and the car has 17k miles- one owner. Really appreciate the advice- we'll see how the PPI goes on Wed, and if everything goes well, I'll be posting some pics next week . Anyone know when the new Excellence magazine is coming out with the 911 value info?

I hope the PPI goes well. That's a great price!

52k? Geeze....

52k is a steal,.....hope it works out for you. I'd guess you'd be at least the 3rd or even the fourth owner to explain that price. GREAT FIND.

02 c4s, 17K miles, $52K .... something is not right .....

You would expect that car to have about 30K miles on it for that price.

Totally agree. Be very careful and have that car checked thouroughly. Make sure that a reputable body shop checks the paint density and under carrage for any signs of repair. FYI: my 03 C4S with 24K miles, loaded and a brilliant PPI and bodywork report (only needed new wiper blades) was $63K USD (had to convert from CDN minus taxes, duty etc...) with 15 months of original warranty too. I looked at a lot of C4S and anything with that low mileage and below $55K had some other issues that negated the good deal...major repaints are sometimes very hard to spot with the naked eye. Then again, your seller might not know what he really has and then you're getting a killer deal! Best of luck either way.

Did you guy's hear of the secretary selling her boss's prestine 993TT for kelly blue book value. So, one can get lucky if the timing is right, Hope it works out for you man.

No, but is that like the one about the priest and rabbi that walk into a bar?

$54,900 was the original asking price, but I made a low ball offer and he took it. He owns a large company in SD and I don't believe he would have any reason to lie about the condition, but you never know... Wed. is the PPI. I'm taking it to a body shop afterwards to check the paint and bodywork. Stay tuned.... Jeeva/Pongo- thanks for the words...

keep us posted. if low mileage c4s's are going in the low 50's, I am a buyer

believe it or not, that's the ball park for trading-in. so unless he 's buying another car, and can take advantage for tax, he will make a little bit more when selling to you.