High mileage C4s vs Low mileage C4 - good condition

Hi Guys, If prices were comparable, and overall condition and maintenance history were good for both cars, would you opt/recommend or prefer buying a 2002 C4S, or a 2001 C4, and why?..talking like 20-30k for the C4 and 75k for a C4S On a side note, i'm taking a look at a 01 C4 later this week that has an OEM GT3 body kit on it, the owner said it was bought and installed by a Porsche dealership, but for some reason the photos look off..I can't tell if its just in my head, but doesn't the front bumper and sides look to be painted slightly different than the body?... As usual, I value all of your opinions and would appreciate any help thanks Jason

I decided to add two more pics just to get an idea of how it all looks together. I plan on checking it out this week so i'm not sure if its just the pics or what..but it kinda looks noticeable to me..maybe its the case with all body kits that are added?

Personally, I prefer the C4S. For the right car in the right condition, I would still opt for the C4S. The only C4 that I would consider is one with the aero kit. You've got a tough decision!

The front bumper looks a little darker to me than the body color. Can't give you an opinion either way with the C4 vs C4S, but I can say I do enjoy C2 ownership. GLWYSearch.

I prefer the .1 body (specifically the lights) better than the .2 so I would lean towards the .1, but the low miles would mean that the IMS should be high on the list of things to do ASAP (and I'm not a polly-anna about the IMS). I would agree with Dennis, gotta have the aerokit. Maybe it's been 13 years living with our 01 C4 with it, but I think 993s on just look unfinished without the aerokits/wings on them. I especially like the 996.1 taco wing though. As far as the pics, I'd guess that the parts were painted without the car and no blending has been done. Makes it look stupid, but it's correctable. I'd get it into a good body shop and have them look at it and give you an idea on what such a correction might cost.

thanks for the feedback guys.. Gnat - As far as blending, would that entail a new paint job of the bumpers to get them to match? I have to ask them about that when I go check it out, I'm pretty sure the guy said that the kit was ordered and put on when they originally got the car, the first owner was his father on a 4 year lease, then he financed it and put it under his name..but maybe I heard that wrong as far as the IMS and RMS issues I love to read about and hear multiple views on..is it just worth getting them done at the time I'd buy it? They are fine with me getting a 3rd party PPI, and I had mentioned to the guy about my IMS/RMS concerns, he told me that he hasn't had any of the preventative stuff done, and that IMS didnt happen as much to the tiptronic transmissions..is that even true? I've heard conflicting views. Is it worth doing both just so I can sleep at night? He spent about $10k of work in 2010 replacing: Coolant reservoir replaced Water pump replaced Four wheel alignment performed Breaks and Break pads He had a whole list of stuff done I need to get a complete list of. Edit: I'm thinking about bringing it to Deman Motorsports for a PPI, anyone in NJ have a good experience with them?

First off $75k for a C4S, are you on crack? Secondly if the C4 in the pic is a tip, I personally wouldn't pay more than 25k tops. If you are set on getting a tip, get a '04+ model as those had more sophisticated shift algorithms than the previous mk1 models. As for IXX, only you can make a determination based on hours of reading about it on here. Also worth mentioning from the pic is that it seems to be lowered. Also either the dealership or PO painted the lower lip silver which technically should've been kept black for a factory look. Also in addition to "breaks", make sure the Calibers don't have peeling clear coat on it.

Thanks for the input, i'm not on crack, 75k is the mileage, no $ in front of it was comparing an 01 C4 with 20-30k miles, and the 02 C4s with 75k miles Just to make sure i'm looking at it correctly, you are talking about the most bottom part of the front bumper? that should have been black? I agree I thought the the whole stance/wheel size looked a little suspect, he did mention he added new H&R springs

I honestly wouldn't consider 75k high mileage at all. I bought my C4S a few years ago when it was at 30k miles. It has right at about 75k miles on it now and it is just as reliable as it was at 30k. I would not for a second hesitate to buy another C4S with 75k miles if it was well cared for.

good to know, and you do make a good point, I for some reason have this stigma that anything above 50k miles is getting up there in mileage, but if its taken care of whats really the difference? I'm looking at spending around $25k, so that I can comfortably afford it, buy another SUV clunker to drive in bad weather and snow storms in the winter, and have a rainy day fund for any issues that come up. Plus its also going to be my first Porsche, and it has to be tiptronic, so that the wife can drive it if needed (really my only fair option/compromise to getting one at this point) So basically 25k for 27k miles 01 996 C4, ~25k for 70k miles 02 996 C4s If I end up wanting to trade it in, or sell it for another, newer/better one, what is my better re-sale value in 5-7 years? I know its hard to really compare them but...

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Thanks for the clarification. If both are tip tranny's, as I've mentioned, go with the 04+. But you should really drive them and make a determination on what speaks to you. Both will ride/drive a bit different.

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I was just researching the history of the Porsche Tiptronic and it looks like it was changed in the 2005, so I think i'm out of range if I went for one of those

Metallic silvers and golds are the toughest colors to match/ blend. Everybody talks about avoiding low mileage M96 cars that sat for long periods without being driven. On a low mileage car, I'd be more concerned about multiple owners and complete records showing regular use and no neglected maintenance.

The mark 1 in silver with the Aero kit is the best looking 911. Period.

A good PPI would be able to detect issues with the car being left to sit around not being used or neglected though wouldn't it? Will definitely request it's maintenance history. I know the current owner had received it from his father with around 19-20k miles in 2004 or so, so it hasn't had much use the remaining 9-10 years. Just looking at my phone I really can see the color difference between the bumper and car..I hope it isn't as noticeable or bother me as much in person, maybe on a more natural background it isn't as noticeable.

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If it was put on at the factory or as part of delivery, then something has happened and it's been repainted. As far as what's involved, blending is what appears to NOT have been done. You'd have to talk to a body shop about the options to correct it. I would guess it will need a respray, but that shouldn't cost that much (I'm friends with my body guy and he did ours for $500). From my research it seems to be low milage cars (especially ones that did lots of short trips that didn't get run out much) that are the higher percentage of IMS failures. There are certainly high milage examples of failed or failing bearings, but the majority seem to be garage queens. Our 01 is still on it's original IMSB at 70k and I sleep well at night. At only 20k though, even I would get that IMSB swapped ASAP and plan for it in the purchase price. The IMSB discussions are approaching religious debate though so there are lots of opinions to go on and mine is no more accurate or valuable than most others.

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Sorry I made an error in stating 04+ when I meant 02+ when the Mk2 started. The transmission might've not changed too much physically but the transmission ecu and programming has. The mk2 models had way more shift program algorithms than the mk1 tips. This will be noticeable in any kind of performance driving situation but might not be that important if you're mainly a cruiser.

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No. A PPI would not be able to detect any issues with the car being left to sit, unless of course there were active issues. I bought a nice pristine 2003 Turbo in 2009 with just 10K miles. There were no issues until there were issues. The first that I think has to be attributed to lack of use was a leaking transmission selector shaft seal at 30K miles. This was covered under warranty -- the transmission was replaced. Other issues that I would attribute to lack of use in the car's early life were a leaking RMS, leaking water pump, leaking front diff flange axle seals, and leaking spoiler cylinders. These all appeared between 100K and 120K miles. All out of warranty.

Thanks for all of the advice guys..my plan is to check out this 01 on Saturday, drive it, see how I like the tip, and see how that feels. I honestly dont have that much manual driving experience, and the last time i drove my Dads , well, lets just say it was a bumpy ride. If I want to go any further I'm going to tell the place that I need to replace the ims and rms issue right off the top, ill have a PPI done, if that all checks out and he is willing to do a little better with the price due to the immediate and recommended preventative maintenance, I think I'm going to get it. That's a lot of ifs, but I figure for my first porsche I'd like to get something that isn't going to stretch the budget too far. Plus I like the way the 996s look, I know it's not for everyone, but I think it's a good starting place to break into the club

Guess I missed out on that one..was sold within 3 days of being listed....guess it was a good deal?..oh well the body color mismatch annoyed me.