purchase advice

Hello, I am new to this forum. I am considering purchasing a 10 year old 911. I have always wanted one and my daughter is turning sixteen. I can give her my much loved Tundra and have the car I have always wanted. From my brief research it seems that is when the prices seem to flatten out. They don't get any cheaper and you can still find some with under 50K mileage at the ten year mark. My questions are. Can I handle the oil changes, brakes belts and hoses myself? I have a ton of exp but none on a porsche. I have rebuilt car and bike motors myself. Does it require special tools and techniques I wont want to attempt. DO I want to avoid a certain mileage mark? When do these cars get problematic? Is their a year I want to avoid? I was thinking a convertible would be fun is that going to present more issue do to the body flex over ten years? I want a manual. Should I consider a tiptronic due to resale or maintenance issue? Should I avoid any car that has been fitted with aftermarket parts. I find many that have been lowered? does this stiffen them up to much? DO I want to avoid a carrera4. Does the four-wheel drive become a problem with age? Any other advice you may have would be great also. Thank you Gordon LeBlanc

Ohhhh they do and will get cheaper.

I can only really address a few of your questions. If you want a cab....buy a cab. Lots of them available. A lot of the 99-01 cars still have a hardtop in the used market while the 02+ cars have a better back window in the softtop. If you want a manual...buy a manual. Tip porsches don't do as well on resale so that isn't an issue. Also, the NA cars don't seem to have that many issues with the manual trans. As far as aftermarket parts. These cars aren't collectables. They won't be collectable for a very long time, if ever. If you see a car that has goodies you want, go for it. That said, traditionally, stock or close to stock Porsches hold value better than modded cars. On the C4. Nothing about the all wheel drive system is an issue on these cars but it does make them heavier which equals slower. If I found a C4 that had everything I wanted color/option/mileage/price wise I wouldn't turn it down. Also, the C4S is a much different beast than a normal C4 in case you are unaware. Still slower than a C2 but more attractive bodystyle, better brakes, and leather dash/doorpanels inside.

Thank you for the advice. Keep it coming if you have more. Should I go for a 997 or is not worth the additional investment if I don't plan any track days ?

Oil, poly belt, brakes , filters all very easy I'd look for an '02 or newer with 3.6l engine Can definitely find ones around 60k miles .. Should be able to get one <80k .. I would not personally roll dice above 100k but many here run well above that with normal maintenance Get good pre purchase inspection from Porsche expert .. Budget for aos and ims when clutch is done ... Not really a DIY job unless you have access to good ramp and lots of time ... Other things to look for .. Water pump around 10yrs ... Window regulator , condition of soft top ... Generally reliable and easy to work on for high end perf car .. But don't expect Toyota costs and maintenance

also depending on where you live and the type of drive you have you will miss your Tundra. My daily is a VW Touareg and most days I gladly take it rather than my lowered 996 - that's in suburb Dallas so all highway stop and go traffic. Porsche is pointless for that. A few advices: 1) buy a 993. Those did bottom up in value a few years ago and you will not lose any money on it. You don't have to worry about engine failures as much as the 996. Body style is sexier except for the 993 cab which is fugly. 2) if you still want a 996 and can deal with a coupe then get a C4S or a 40th anniversary. Those might retain their value a little bit better. Also the 40th anniversary came from the factory with a LOT of goodies (+25hp, LSD, lowered suspension, full leather interior). There are some C4S cab but hard to find. 3) basic maintenance is very easy, and distribution is by chain so not too many worries with belts. HOWEVER, there are a LOT of annoying small things that will fail and are a pain to replace. AOS is a pain to reach, SAI is a pain to troubleshoot and reach, remote keys will fail and you need the dealer to program new one, stereo is sh*t on all years and newer years make it very hard to upgrade, ... 4) overall I love mine, don't see myself selling it

read this for a quick primer. https://rennlist.com/forums/996-foru...ing-guide.html

Personally, I think 55K-75K miles is the sweet spot for 996's... Garage queens are thought to have a higher likelyhood of IMSB issues, higher mileage cars can be dependable, but often the price adjustment isn't big enough to warrant the additional parts replacements they might need. Tip's are a bargain because nobody wants them, Cabs with tiptronic in particular. *MY* personal recommendation? A very clean & well cared for MKII (2002-2004) coupe or cab six speed, 55K-75K miles. Budget $23K-$28K for a nice one. 997's still have a way to fall depreciation wise, and unless you go to a 997 MKII (2009-2012), they don't really offer any significant advantage over the 996 other than round headlights and a nicer interior. The MKI's still have the IMS bearing as a potential failure point, and while the incidence on 997's is arguably lower, they can't be easily retrofit with upgraded bearings like the 996's can. 996 C4 and C4S models cost more and are less fun to drive (IMHO). More push, less throttle steering response, but are not prone to any notable issues that I'm aware of. I guess you can drive them in the snow, but hey, I'll take the F150 if it's snowing out, mostly for protection from somebody sliding into me! Cab's can have some additional top repair issues (nothing too serious, though the latches seem to break on the early ones and can be expensive to replace). MK-I's had plastic rear windows instead of glass... yuck! Kind of contrary to 6ta1's advice above... I'd avoid a 993. Good part of the price is speculative 'collector' value. Fine if you plan on putting it in a garage, not so much for a daily driver. And they are *easily* as expensive to maintain. I'd also avoid special models like the 40th anniversary... Way too much of a premium for what you get (again, IMHO).

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I agree as well. 993's are a collectors car (any time a car goes up in value) while 996's are more suited to a DD. Don't get me wrong - I plan on getting some sort of aircooled 911 next, but as a project / toy only. I also agree about 40th anniversary cars being overrated as well. The appeal of the 40's are the LSD and extra power - two features that are great for the track. So why would they be more appealing used? Either the car has been beat up and put away raw or it's been babied and the new owner would be crazy to go ruin the mint value by taking it to the track. It's a lose/lose situation. I love them for what they are, but I don't think they're worth the premium. As you said, IMHO. Personally I think the widebody's look beautiful, but the RWD feels better. Yes. If you've worked on a car before, you can handle a 996. Every bolt is metric and the design is pretty standard. You'll need special tools for odd jobs (wheel bearings, etc) - but you'd need that for any car. In fact I think working on my 996 is sometimes easier than my old 4runner. Porsche's have a racing history and you can tell major jobs were meant to be done in the pits (clutch, brakes).

I think a 996 is a great car if properly maintained. I would look for one with full documentation and service performed at the recommended intervals. I believe that cars with a few miles on the clock as opposed to garage queens are less prone to problems. The C4S is a great choice because it has the look of the turbo, it shares brakes, suspension, wheel and tire sizes, etc. It also has some nice interior upgrades, as mentioned above. It is a heavier car than a C2 as mentioned above, but that doesn't really make it less fun to drive or noticably slower. In fact, it was 4 seconds faster around the N�rburgring than a 996 C2 in Porsche's internal testing. It definitely feels different, but it's still very satisfying to drive. The AWD system can develop problems over time and mileage, but it's fairly uncommon. I had to have my front differential rebuilt last year, and that wasn't cheap. I think you should decide which 996 or 997 variant you like best, decide which options you want and just buy it! Good luck!

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and full leather interior. You don't want a 996 with the standard interior. I had a colleague who had a base 996 , everyone in the office was asking why he had a Toyota Corolla interior in his $80k car. price wise there sure is a premium for the 40s (or any 996 with X51 engine) but once I was set on getting what was to me a "nicer" 996 (3.6/facelift/full leather) the $2-$3k premium wasn't that much if you consider what you get. Compare it to the price of an exhaust system... 996 are not that powerful by today's standards, and even by yesterday's standards. So to me getting the most powerful engine had some value. Also I feel that the X51 engine is more "exciting" to drive with more top end power I think OP should look around and test drive. We're not sure about his past experience with sports cars. One thing we have not talked about is PSM (Porsche Stability Management). It will be harder to find on older models, and depending on the OP's past experiences the 996 is a handful to drive at the limit. Due to a lot of weight behind the rear axle it has a very high polar moment, and when it goes, it goes.

The best Porsche purchase advice always came from the late, great Bruce Anderson: "Buy the newest, best Porsche you can afford." What he meant is a pristine 2002 996 with 60K is better than a tired 2007 997 with 100K. And if you can afford a good 997 then that is what you should look for and buy. They are better cars, in particular having a much nicer interior. That said, the 996 is a fantastic car and will provide as much performance as most people can handle. Sure it has some potential issues, but pretty much all Porsches do. They are not Toyotas...

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Good point. I made PSM a requirement when I was searching.

I would suggest you get to know everything about the 996 first. Things you didn't know https://rennlist.com/forums/996-foru...96-thread.html Then you know what to expect down the road. The 996 has been painted with a tar brush by many posters but we still love the model. The tar brush tends to keep the prices within our range. A PPI is only as good as they see. They can overlook things they don't expect from the 996.. ie that it locks itself up again if you don't open the door within so many seconds. That the cab roof opens when you put the key in a 99 model door and turn and hold to the left and closes if you hold the key to the right. Closes the same as it does from the dash board. That the air deflector on the engine lid (if that's the name) opens from a switch by your left foot. Things like that. That the built in alarm is working as it should be. The PPI can miss these things out and it could be a very expensive repair down the road. In other words, the PPI guy won't look if he doesn't know what to look for. Get to know everything there is to know about the model you are interested in buying and you can check these things for yourself. I mean its no use the PPI guy telling you about tire condition. We have eyes. These things wear out anyway. The DIY preventative maintenance is kind of easy as the 996 is easy to work on. Cruise control, AC, door window drop, gas door, plus much more all working as expected. Anyway good luck with your searching.