New Owner (Happy Birthday)

Hello all, new member here and very new Porsche owner. I've always said I wanted one and occasionally surf cars.com or autotrader.com for used ones but never drove one or really seriously considered one. I have previously owned an Audi TT and a Volvo S60R, both of which were quick and fun but not in the same class as a 911. A week ago my wife surprised me with a 1999 911 Carrera Coupe for my birthday. (I tried to upload a picture but I failed; I'll figure it out and load some.) That's certainly the good news. The other news: Things I know about the car: 1. There was no PPI. I'll need to do the PostPI and intend to very soon. 2. Almost 90,000 miles. 3. Pretty sure I need to get new rear tires (currently has 295/30-18s) as the ones on it are getting pretty worn although they certainly will pass inspection. 4. Nothing leaks. 5. Nothing makes a weird noise (at least I don't think so). 6. Champion Motorsports wheels. Things I think I might know about the car: 1. Per carfax and a once over from my neighbor who used to work as a mechanic, no accident damage. 2. Decently(?) maintained. The maintenance book has stamps consistently during two time periods and none in the middle. I'm the fourth owner. The maintenance book has stamps from two different dealers. The first is in NJ where it was originally put into service. Then there is a gap in time and then there are stamps from a dealer in Virginia, where it was purchased. 3. It's been sitting for a while. The last stamp is in 2011 with only a few thousand less miles than what it has now. 4. I suspect, based on the fact that it was sitting for a while and the wheels which google tells me are pretty high end, that this was someone's track car. Questions I have: 1. Before I take it in to have it looked over, would you call the last dealership and ask them for more details on what they have done to the car other than routine maintenance? I have no idea if the RMS or the IMS has been replaced. Like I said, no leaks or weird noises. Will they tell me if they know? Would you call the dealer from early in its life? That's going back about 10 years. 2. What should I be asking my dealer when I take it for an inspection? I see from the maintenance book that there is a 90,000 mile maintenance coming up; should I just combine the inspection with the maintenance or should I just have them do the 90k maintenance and assume anything that is amiss will come to light during that? Thanks, I've learned a lot from browsing the forum the last week or so (for example, no, that's not a CD changer; it's a CD holder and the CD holder does indeed just pop out of the dash if you just tug on it) including the dreaded RMS and IMS bearing issues that literally kept me awake the other night after reading about them. Looking forward to playing with my new toy and learning from you folks. Thanks, DTM

Good news on the great birthday present. Don't worry about the RMS. If its dry now you are in good shape and if starts leaking just get it replaced. If your car needs a clutch they can go in and replace the IMS with no additional labor cost. They would have to do the same labor to even take a look at it anyway. I think having a good porsche indy tech do an inspection is even better than calling the dealer to get more mainenance details. Whats done is done so just figure out where you stand now and what need sorting out. Post some pics when you figure out how. Congrats

Congrats on the 996. Just start reading evrything you can.

Welcome & enjoy. Happy Birthday!

Welcome and congrats! I would call the previous dealerships to see what you can find, no reason not to. I would have them do the 90k service as well while you are there (link below shows everything that is included in the 90k). I would either go to a dealer or an indy (in a separate post, post your location and ask if someone can recommend an indy for that location, you will usually get a few) and tell them you just bought it, want the 90k service done, and to really look it over while they are doing the other work. The 90k is pretty comprehensive, so they will be doing a lot of things that a regular PPI would be looking for anyway. You may also see if they can hook it up to a PIWIS and check for any over-revs, that type of thing. I'm not sure I agree with the premise that it was/used to be a track car just because it was sitting for awhile and has high end tires. If it had Hoosier slicks maybe, but these cars usually have high(er) end rubber on them because they are high performance cars. http://mysite.verizon.net/resqir1s/P...aintenance.pdf Congrats again and Happy Birthday! DS

Thanks for the comments. Yeah, I'm not convinced it was a track car. It's just a weird sequence in the service intervals with it clearly being driven some and then hardly at all for 18 months or so. Thanks for the maintenance link. Here's a pretty terrible and way too big picture of her in the garage. That white thing under the door is a piece of paper on the ground, not something hanging off the car. [IMG] Uploaded with ImageShack.us [/IMG]

Congrats and welcome.

Congrats and you got one of the best looking wheels(Champion Motorsports RG5) for the 996 IMHO.

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Yep... Have fun and tell your wife, "Thanks"!!!

Very sharp. congrats.......

Welcome, nice!

DT,Looks good! Based on the tail lights it looks like an early production '99 (do you have a CDR-210 or a CDR-220 (assuming you still have a stock stereo in your car)? The earlier one's came with the CDR-210. DS

Welcome aboard.....all the guys before me have said the majority of what I would add other than when reading all the posts on IMS and RMS you can drive yourself crazy. I did that for the first year I had the car. I discussed it with my Indy and he gave me some comfort on the health of my car indicating all was good. Unfortunately these cars are high performance and do have issues that can be catastrophic. Chill, listen to the car, drive it and stay on top of the maintenance....you'll be fine.

Gongrats on your purchase. For several of the Porsche's I have purchased I called the dealer to get as much information as they would provide. In many instanced they would fax over all the service information they had on file which helped significantly, as long as you prove that you are the owner. Enjoy your new Porsche and you have a great wife.

Nice intro, happy b-day, welcome to Rennlist. As suggested, get your dealer or indy to do your 90k mile service and check over your Porsche for any others potential issues. Hope you don't buy into the frantic fear that the internet seems to perpetuate about these 996s. My 99 C2 has been very reliable and trouble free for me going on 7 years of ownership. Be sure to thank your wife for such a great present, she's a keeper.

Welcome, congrats on the new acquisition, I know you will enjoy her.

Nice car! It's definitely worth calling the previous dealers and seeing if they will print/fax/email the previous service summaries. They definitely have access to the info, just a matter if you get somebody who is willing to do 10 minutes work for somebody out of town whom will never be a customer. Most will... Considering how fanatical most Porsche enthusiasts are when purchasing the car, it would be useful info to have in the long run. Don't lose sleep over the IMS issue... Personally, my approach is this, but you will definitely get other opinions! Don't panic. Don't lose sleep. Don't buy into the M96 engines are doomed talk. Drive the car like it was meant to be driven. Don't lug the engine. Use good oil (not necessarily mobil 1 0w-30), don't wait 10K to change. Cut apart your filter on oil changes, look for *magnetic* bits of metal (not tiny bits of aluminum). Don't drop the tranny just to change the bearing. If the car needs a clutch or RMS seal, go ahead and upgrade to an LN IMS bearing for the comparatively small incremental cost. If you hear sudden, loud rattle on start-up, shut down immediately. You probably just lost your bearing, but if you shut it down quickly enough, you'll hopefully save the engine. If you are really unlucky, engine repair/replacement isn't nearly as expensive as it was a few years ago making the worst-case scenario not nearly as painful.

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It's a CDR-210 (for now; an upgrade is on the early list of modifications I intend to make after the 90k maintenance gives me a sense of what else may need to be done). Thanks, I'll keep these thoughts in mind. The more I read the more paranoid I was and then I realized that the advice I gave my wife while she was pregnant probably applies -- no one runs to the internet and posts "I had a weird feeling and then after a normal pregnancy my baby was born healthy and happy." All you find on the internet is horror stories of things going horribly wrong; it seems like there might be some of that bias with the RMS and IMS bearing stuff. I was raving to a buddy about the car last night. It's just a ton of fun and I'm fortunate to live in an area with some twisty little roads. I'm also fortunate to have a really really great wife.

Congrats!! Your wife is a keeper Now, get the check book ready for mods

Congrats and welcome..

Congrats and enjoy. Lots of knowledgeable peeps on this site to offer help, suggestions and advice.

Congrats. I am also a new Porsche owner of a 1999 C2. I have never driven anything that drives as good as this car. Enjoy yours!

I don't think it's a track car. Suspension looks stock and usually tires will have globs of rubber on the outter edge or chunking in the tread

Sweet looking ride. Congrats! Don't forget to name her. It's proven that named cars last a lot longer and don't have any IMS issues.

Welcome to the rennlist That's one great looking Birthday Present !! Now let the modifications begin.

I really hope for your wife's sake that you're a "Stock" kind of guy or else I don't think she realizes what she's in for.

Sooooo.... I called the last dealer and they faxed to me the service they did. Here's the rundown: They did a major service, replacing the fuel filter, the oil filter, spark plugs, air filter, cabin filter, brake flush, fuel induction service, transmission service, front brakes (replaced front pads, rotors and sensors), new battery, new water pump, tension roller, cable roller, main drive belt, thermostat and cooling system cap. The other/possible bad news: They list as recommendations: Front and rear struts, Front and rear sway bar links, Rear toe arms, Alignment (probably would do this with the upcoming new tires anyway) Oil leaks (Not according to my garage floor....) Oil separator Both soloniod plates Oil pan gasket Scavage pumps "Need to monitor oil cooler leaking coolant" "Some engine lifter noise Cowl Drains" So, give it to me straight. What am I in for? Taking it to my local shop tomorrow for the 90K and state inspection. Edit to add: That service was October 2011, less than 3,000 miles ago.

Just got her back from the local Indy. I love these guys already. They looked over the paperwork from the last shop and determined that was the bulk of the 90k service so they did a minor service and then gave her a good once over. I had a couple questions so they got the guy who worked on her go come out and he spent about 45 minutes talking to me about the car and explaining what he would keep an eye on and what should be done next so I can have a sense of what is coming as far as maintenance. We were talking about tires and he grabbed a wheel caliper to determine the wheel size. Just really pleased. And under $500 for service + state inspection. Very pleased.