Cost of Ownership?

Howdy! I have been reading this forum a for a while, many thanks for all the great info. Like many of us I found a dream car in the 996 that is in a generally affordable ballpark. I know this question has many variables, but let's say I purchased a 996 for ~20k with 80k miles on it, good condition, documentation/service records, etc. I would be driving it pretty regularly, maybe 12k/year, but also have a backup car if needed. No tracking but obviously spirited driving. What would be a reasonable expectation of yearly ownership? I was thinking a couple grand a year but wanted to check with the group. I have zero wrenching skills, live in a moderately sized area with several highly rated independent shops. Also thoughts on maintaining value? Variables of course, but seems to me this model is at a pretty lowpoint compared to models before and after them and would not expect them to depreciate any more. Thanks for any thoughts! Tommy

Depends on what the car needs. Lots of variables here...

If you are able to have $5,000 available for immediate repairs and improvements, and then set aside $2,500/year or whatever is left over for the year after required maintenance, you should have plenty of money to repair whatever comes at you after a few years. I tend to have needy years and perfect years (oil change only.) I save the money, regardless, and my Porsche fund has been healthy. Like "blow up if you have to" healthy. So I enjoy my car! Disclaimer - I drive fewer than 3,000 miles/yr in my 996 so at 4x that amount you may need to squirrel away a little more per year. Maybe $3,500, or so? One thing that just came to mind is at 12,000 miles per year you could be changing your rear tires roughly every year, so keep stuff like that in the back of your head when you are doing napkin calculations. **EDIT** Another member brought this up and this is an important note - I do my own work. Long story short - have a "Porsche fund".

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We recently purchased an '02 with 100k miles. Got it for $17.8k and it's very clean and original which decreases the chance a previous owner messed up the wiring or something in the engine. No Pre-Purchase Inspection (PPI) just watched a lot of 996 check videos and applied my mechanical experience for inspection. In a few months spent $7k total for major service at dealer (oil and air filter change, flush brakes, comprehensive inspection), new key, tires, brakes, Tiptronic fluid and filter, replaced bad crank position sensor, motor mounts, and some other minor things. So we're at $25k and still need full front and rear suspension overhaul, and facing a whole bunch of possible engine problems some catastrophic up to $15k to fix. So in retrospect it would probably have been more cost effective to find an enthusiast owned 996 for $30k that had all the engine updates (including starter, fuel pump, injectors, O2 sensors, cats etc etc), rebuilt suspension, newer window regulators and door latch, etc etc. The enthusiast owned route wasn't really an option for us though because we had specific requirements that meant not many vehicles available; .2 model ('02-04), cabriolet, Tiptronic, full leather, lots of wood, and lesser seen color (not silver, grey, black, or blue although those are all beautiful). Looking over the long-term it is elating to drive and there's no depreciation which is a rare combination and saves many thousands every year, and it was the right choice for us.

Its a bad idea. 12k is too many miles for someone who doesn't do their own wrenching. If you can afford the maintenance on a 20 year old german sports car to be driven full time you should probably buy a better more reliable car. Theses cars are easy to buy and expensive to have shops maintain. As investment? Thats ridiculous. These cars are a very stable buy will never go up much in value (or down) . The cost of maintenance will dwarf added value. These cars easy for anyone to go purchase. But proper maintenance is a slippery slope. If you you want to save money on stuff here and there its gonna come back and bite you pretty hard.

It really depends on what you want out of the car, but 12000 miles a year sounds like a daily driver. The best way I have seen it put was these are $100K cars new. If you are driving them a lot you need to maintain them like they are $100K cars.

Such analysis would have to be determined on each car you look at, there are just too many variables to give a blanket estimate on the entire model range. That said, these cars require significant maintenance at the 60k and 90k mark, so if you wanna find a car that will keep you on the low side of maintenance costs, look for one around those miles that has recent up to date maintenance and records that span the life of the car (or as close to it as possible. I did not and bought a great car with 90k on the clock but have spent $10k in parts alone over the past 2 years to get it back up to where it needs to be and still have another $5k to go. Best of of luck in your search, they are wonderful cars and worth every penny in my book.

They are all $30-35K cars...just depends if you spend the $30K up front for a well sorted car, or if you spend it on the back end after you purchase a cheaper car.

I'd say, budget roughly 5k for deferred maintenance, another few k for odd stuff, and you are good to go. Then, just tires, oil, brakes, normal stuff for these cars. Easy and cheap if you want to do it yourself.

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So true! Reminds me of the E36 M3. It's a $20k car. If you buy a $7k car, expect $13k in repairs. If it's a $15k car, expect $5k in repairs..etc The 996 is not much different. Many people are intrigued by the lower prices of the 996 but dont realize how quickly the repair costs can add up, especially if the owner cant do their own repairs. The only reason why I am a 996 owner is because of all the problems it has. It gave me the opportunity to buy a cheap car, make it reliable (mainly from an engine rebuild), and make it even better than it was from the factory for less money than a 997. I highly urge you to accept that these lower-priced cars are really ~$35k cars. If that figure isn't acceptable, I wouldn't recommend getting one. I also recommend finding the best example you can find.....that has a blown engine. Buy it and book an engine rebuild from Flat6 Innovations to rebuild the engine. That way you can enjoy driving the car and slowly fix the non-engine related issues at your leisure. The engine rebuild alone with help the resale value of your car. Invest the money now, reap the benefits while you drive it, and most likely have one of the more desirable 996s when you sell in the future. The engine alone will get you access to sell on Bring A Trailer.

I bought my original, but relatively pristine 996 with 48,000 miles on it about 2.5 years ago for $17,600. I�ve spent $7,400 after 2.5 years, and I will need to drop another $3k soon on a new top and hydrolic rams (convertible). Car has 63,000 miles now. I daily drive it.

Thanks for all the responses! This was very helpful. The thought of looking at it as truly a $30k-$35k car was great and I now have a much better barometer to check out cars and such. Hope everyone has a Great Weekend! Tommy

I suggest you read about flyingshawns's experience before you decide... https://rennlist.com/forums/996-foru...-at-10mph.html Buyer beware!

Sticker on mine was I think $102k. Repairs/maint. goes to match. IMO save and buy a 997.1 C2S or 997.2 C2, etc. You will save money in the long run. I daily mine and the more I do, the more that goes wrong, comes loose, or needs to get fixed/replaced. Kind of like any car!

Owned ours just under 2 years. Paid 16k with 95k on the clock and haven't put one dime into it besides 2 oil changes. We do only put around 3k miles a year on it though. Ours was obviously well maintained and loved by the previous owner, plenty of maintenance records, IMS/RMS, tires, breaks, etc. We have spent money on it but it was items like the radio upgrade, garage door opener, etc. Besides that not one issue, knock on wood! I think it all depends on how far you want to take it too.

Does the old adage "if you have to ask, you can't afford it" sound familiar? I know, it's a little stuffy but it really seems to apply here. These were $80-$100k cars when they were new, so you can't expect to have the maintenance bills associated with a $20-$30k car when it was new. Generally speaking parts are expensive if not outrageous, and labor is even more so. If you have the space, the tools and the know how (or are willing to learn - a lot) you can mitigate much of the expense, and if you like this sort of thing, you can have fun doing it. If you're a "jump in and turn the key" kind of person, you could be in for a frustrating and expensive experience. These things are closing in on 20 years old now (if not already there) and tend to need something (TLC) just about all the time! Good luck

I bought my car almost five years ago with 33K miles on it. I keep a log of everything I have done to it. I do the work myself. I have spent $3,003.41 on maintenance (I see that it does not include about $1K for new tires and mounting last year which is in addition to this. I've spent $5,015 on upgrades. I love my car!

While ^^That's^^ all well and good (and nicely kept/categorized), I'd call it a "best case scenario"... it says nothing of what you may encounter with any given car.

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^^THIS^^ "Pay up now or pay up later" 996.2 driven that much will be $30k first 18 months (generally)

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I�d say that�s middle of the road if he paid someone else to do it (add 200% to Paul�s cost). Best case is the guy who hasn�t done anything but fluid changes.

Nickshu’s numbers are true for me. Purchased for $21.5k. $4.8k to baseline fluids, plugs, injectors, AOS, tires and interior/exterior trim. $5.8k for everything new front and rear suspension and Bridport exhaust. $32,000 for my 996 is ok ‘cuz I’ve never owned a car that I enjoy driving around and fiddling with so much. Never get what I put in back out, but that is fine. I love this car, just right for all I want it to do or be. If the engine grenades, I expect I’ll just fix it the right way and drive it as long as I can get out of the seat - so 20 more years if fortune smiles upon my aging body. I’m almost ok with a $21k to $25k engine when I consider always having this car. OP: If you don’t feel that way about your purchase, then a tough call. Slippery slope and all that. I know, with 100% certainty, I never could’ve enjoyed owning this car without the forums! For every KrazyK there are 10 Ahsai- and Porschetech3-types. So you have that going for you.

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holy Throwback Thursday, Batman......makes me wonder how KK is doing?

OP: I just bought my 2000 C4 Cab two weeks ago, which was by & large in apparently excellent mechanical/physical shape BUT I was prepared for the "worst" just looking at the $8k for just 3 yrs in service records, which included an LNE IMS upgrade and new clutch, that the previous owner provided. So far, I've only spent $350 on the car for an oil/filter change (which was due per the service records) and a general mechanical inspection (supposedly all good) and $50 for a manual for the CDR220 radio/CD player but that's just a drop in the bucket compared to what else I may have to pay for in the not too distant future. I already know that I need to buy/program another key and get a diagnosis of a problem w/the central locking system (CLS) at the dealer, which will cost about $350 for the key plus $200 for the diagnosis of the CLS problem. No telling what it will cost to "fix" the CLS but I'd guess at least $1k (including the $200 diagnosis cost). However, even though the CLS doesn't work "right," it's NOT an absolute "must fix" because the ignition, locks and everything else connected w/them works. So, I may defer it if the repair cost is too great. The driver's side door window doesn't line up w/the roof (when it's down) properly. Am told it's probably the window regulator which will cost about $920 to fix at the dealer or $750 at my indie shop. However, I prefer driving w/the top down and never drive in the rain. So, as long as I don't put the top up, this is also a deferrable repair item. I'm also aware that the roof may need new hydraulic cylinders; the roof works most of the time but has balked a couple times which I consider a warning. Got an estimate from an indie shop of about $2,350 to repair it using OEM parts (they won't install customer supplied parts) but I'm aware from another thread that I could get the cylinders rebuilt for just $500 and pay nothing if I'm willing/able to do the work myself. I took a close look at the installation instructions for the hydraulic cylinders and, although it's something that I "could do," it's right at the limit of what I'd "want to do." If/when it looks like I can't put if off any more, I'll have to decide what's more important - my $ or the time/aggravation necessary to get the work done. Also, according to LNE, the IMS upgrade "should" be replaced in 75k miles or 6 years after installation. No way I'll get to 75k miles but there only 3 more years until the 6 years is up. Looking at around $5k for an indie shop to do this and,, if I follow LNE's recommendation, I'll need to budget at least $1.5-2k/yr for the next 3 years to pay for this As for mods, I already know that I want to change the wheels/tires on the car. It came w/aftermarket 19" wheels w/Nexen N3000 tires on them. They look good but I think that they seriously impair the handling and steering of the car. So, I am thinking of returning it to "stock" by purchasing OEM 18" Turbo Twist wheels mounted w/Michelin Pilot Sport 4s tires at a cost of about $2.5k. However, this is NOT a "must buy" and I can defer it for as long as I can stand the way the car handles w/the 19's on it. This is just a short list of "costs" for the 996 that I just bought that I am already looking at but the list can get much longer and more expensive very quickly. So, IMO, if you (OP) don't have at least a spare $5-10k lying around to address both expected and unexpected service/repair issues, a 996 (which was made between 1997-2004 and will be between 15-22 yrs old) is probably NOT a car that you should purchase.