Need advice on 2nd hand 996

To start, apologies since I'm sure people have seen this subject a lot. I'm new to this list and have read a lot of the historic posts on what to do for buying a 2nd Porsche, but would like to get some more pointed advie as well as places to do additional research. Following are my specs: - 996... price less then $50K - Have two kids (2 & 4) so need the back seat for booster seats - Daily driver... live in Charlotte, NC - 90% certain on Cab (since I live in CLT) Following some of my questions: - Should I buy from a Porsche dealer (CPO), a different car dealer or an individual? - If different car dealer, does anybody have advice on good (independent) car places? - What car (year) can I reasonably expect for less than $50K - What can I expect in annual maintenance for a couple of yrs old 996 (will drive it about 10K miles per yr)? - Cars with what mileage should I target/avoid, for instance, I don't want to have a 4 yr old car with 70K miles on it and on the other hand, do I want a car that is 4 yrs old with only 10K miles on it (i.e., do these cars need to be driven else they get lazy)? - Cab or Coupe? - Does it make sense to get a Carrera 4 for in the winter months (daily driver)? - Any recommendations on web, books, etc for me to read and get smarter re 996's? - Any other advice is welcome. Thx so much!!

Great questions - my company has an office in Charlotte, so I visit often - beautiful country. The prevailing opinion here will be to buy CPO from a dealer. I've bought two Porsches, low mileage from private sellers, with great success. If you buy from a dealer, you're going to get less car, more money, so I would try to get a 2003 cab, private party if possible, under 20k miles, for under 50k. Should be very doable, and you'll have over a year of factory warranty left. I've got kids, so I'm with you on the back seat deal - I bought a Porsche convertible car seat for about $300 off ebay, and had the dealer install the airbag deactivation bar. You can put the 4 year old in back with a booster, and ride the 2 year old in the front, rear facing, with the airbag. Your wilfe will have to walk! I don't think you'll need a C4 for winter - it's cold there, but not too much snow, right? You should be good with winter tires on a C2. I would also strongly consider a targa - they're great cars, and more usable year-round. I've always thought that cabs with the top up are pretty depressing. You should be able to get a low mileage 2003 for under 50k no problem. Good luck!!!

Buy from a Porsche dealer and get a CPO. It is worth the additional money for the peace of mind. Just read some of the threads that Bob posts to. Although I don't subscribe to the conspiracy theory that some like to spout, I do know that Porsches are expensive to repair if the need arises. For maintainence, these cars are very reliable despite what you may read on these boards and should be not much more than the oil change and consumables which you could have a indy shop do for you. Good luck and congratulations in advance.

I bought my 2004 996 C2 Coupe with 6,500 on the clock about a year ago from an upscale (non-Porsche) dealer north of Atlanta, so no CPO. Since I am leasing for 3 years, the original 4 year/50,000 mile warranty will be up about the time my lease is up, so that was not a real big concern for me. However, if you plan on keeping it past the original warranty you probably want to consider buying from a CPO car from the dealer. I have lived in Concord for 5 1/2 years and don't think the weather is cause enough to spend the extra $$$ for a C4. I personally like the look of a Coupe better than a Cab, but mostly am not that much of a Cab guy. My wife has an '05 MB CLK Cab and the top isn't really down that much, even though she insisted that she wanted a Cab. But only you can make the call on the �Cab or Coupe� question. With estimated annual miles of about 10,000, plan to replace the rear tires every 12 to 15 months, especially if you stay with the "softer" compound tires with a 220 or less tread wear rating. That will run you $620 to $660 for two rear tires. Oil change will be $185 unless you DIY. DIY will probably run $80 or so for parts & synthetic oil. I bought my car before I "found" this site and thought I was pretty well informed about P-cars. Since reading this site, I now know I was a "babe in the woods" from an information standpoint. Read all that you can on these threads. You will truly be amazed how much you learn in a few months. There are a lot of very knowledgeable people here and they are all very willing to help answer questions or give advice. I would also recommentd RennTech.org as a good source. Good luck on your search. BTW, Edmunds.com is a great place to see prices for various model year cars.

buying a 911 for under 50K from a Porsche dealer?? A cab with CPO?? Goodluck. Buying a Porsche from a P dealer adds without reason about 6-9K on top of the current market value, at least it did when I was looking for one.

Nick's right on this point. For 42-45 k you can get an outstanding car from a private seller. Save the 9,000 markup and buy an additional 2 year warranty on the car's motor for about 2,500, and bank the rest for incidental repairs. Porsche dealers have some of the highest margins in the car pusiness, why pay it when there's lot's of ways now to meet private sellers?

I bought mine from autohaus west an independent dealer...and I overpaid....but wanted a tripple black one with tip (wife can't drive stick and she wouldn't give me the okay otherwise compromise..compromise!!) and they were the only one selling one..at that moment and I am very impatient....so had to have it didn't even have it inspected....7K later still lucky (knock on wood!) anyway my next one is going to be a private buy...you can get them so much cheaper and just take agood extented warranty....3K and before you buy bring it in for an inspection!

anyway my next one is going to be a private buy...you can get them so much cheaper and just take agood extented warranty.... If it were only that easy. The only warranty that meets my definition of "a good extented warranty" is offered by Porsche. Unfortunately you can only get a Porsche warranty from a Porsche Dealer. Now if the present owner of the Porsche has a solid relationship with a Porsche Dealer, they may be willing to work out a deal for a few $K whereby they will provide the CPO for the designated buyer.

Where can you buy independent extended warranties... any names, links, etc?

If your buying just a drivetrain warranty I would reccomend warrantydirect in New York. I'm not sure if Porsche wouldn't sell you an engine/ transmission warranty as well while the car is still under factory warranty. If they don't they'd be the first mfr I found that didn't.

Here's prices for a major care coverage at warrantydirect.com. These prices are for a 2003 with 25000 miles: 4 Years / 60,000 Miles 2/22/2010 60,000 Miles $1,702 $1,502 4 Years / 75,000 Miles 2/22/2010 75,000 Miles $2,003 $1,778 4 Years / 100,000 Miles 2/22/2010 100,000 Miles $2,714 $2,464 5 Years / 60,000 Miles 2/22/2011 60,000 Miles $1,771 $1,571 5 Years / 75,000 Miles 2/22/2011 75,000 Miles $2,086 $1,861 5 Years / 100,000 Miles 2/22/2011 100,000 Miles $2,855 $2,605

I bought mine from "the exotic car warranty" thru a broker.....but I read in a rennlist post that they had some problems with licenses in FL and CA..checked this out, and everything seemed fine...so check them out. Paid 2100 bucks for full extended warranty including wear and tear for 36k miles or 3 years

I have to say that is one of the best requests i have seen from a new member, You have put good thought into your questions......Unlike my anwser what they said^

I was in your shoes up till about 2 weeks ago so I feel your pain IMHO you can get a good car from a Porsche dealer, or a non-Porsche dealer, or an individual. But if you buy a CPO car from a Porsche dealer you will probably pay a little more, but your buying experience will be easier and if there is a problem with the car, you will have more recourse. The other way you will have to get a PPI, research and buy your own warranty and maybe even repair any small issues found in the PPI, but in the end you may save a little $$$. Most of the info about 996s can be found here but if you don't want to have to sift through all the posts trying to parse out the useful tips there are publications which put it all together. I used a 996 buyers guide from http://www.performance2and4.co.uk . I thought it was pretty good and gave a detailed plan on how to evaluate pre-owned 996 models (it's written by a guy in the UK so some of the information pertains to European 996). It shows you what to ask a seller, how to look at the paperwork, check for body damage, test drive and negotiate. It does NOT replace a PPI, but it does help you figure out if a car is worth getting a PPI. I would recommend it because it saved me some time trying to figure it all out from the forums. Good luck.

If you have the opportunity get an 02 but I think for less than $50K you will have a hard time finding a good one. The 02s have some engine & other upgrades. Mine is an 01 and I love it but if I were buying one today I would throw down the extra $$ for an 02. If you can find the one you want as a CPO move on it. But if I found one either from a dealer or an individual I would just get it checked out via. PPI. Cab or Coupe- personal pref. I'm not a Cab guy and I have become addicted to DE events so a coupe is for me. Don't get a C4 soley for snow. A C2 with winter tires will outperform a C4 w/summer tires in the snow. Also a C4 will cost you more and there are more to components to go wrong. But with the same tires a C4 is safer in the rain and snow than a C2, of course Charlotte doesn't get much snow. PSM makes the C2 pretty safe in the rain as well. Best case scenerio get the newest technology with the fewest miles. Beware though if the price sounds a little too low there could be some history. Also I don't know what your timeline is but you may want to go to the local PCA meeting and ask around there. They can tell you the best people to work with in Charlotte for both sales and service. The Metrolina chapter meets the third Thrusday each month at JOCK'S AND JILLS 4109 South Stream Blvd. Good luck, k

Again sorry for the ignorance... what does PPI stand for?

pre purchase inspection. basically a complete mechanical to better ensure your potential new car is healthy.