Advice regarding first 996 purchase

Howdy folks, New here and I'm looking for some advice in regards to purchasing a 996. Now to start things off, i'm very mechnically inclined and am not affraid of ripping apart a Porsche. I know the IMS and RMS can be/is an issue, however after reading probably a dozen or so threads on the topics, I'm confident that with the help of my brother (mechanic) we could have the IMS and RMS done in a weekend. So, aside from a PPI, the first thing that will be done to my 996 purchase will be an LNE IMS retrofit kit and replacing of the RMS (even if it doesnt need it). Possibly the clutch as well if it needs it. Ok, on to what I need your help with.... Basically I want to know what I should be paying for a '99/'00 996 C2 with less than 60K miles. The prices in my area (Seattle, WA) are all over the map anywhere form a 112K mile '99 for $21K, to an 80K mile '00 for $27,9K. The car I'm thinking about going to take a look at is this: a 1999 C2 coupe with 59.2K miles on it, the add says its black/tan, but the exterior looks more like blue to me. The asking price is $20,995. This car would be my DD. I only drive 15-20 miles per day, with a once per month 300 mile round trip. I only put maybe 8-9K per year on my vehicles. So i'm not too worried about higher mileage, but I'd like to stay under 60K miles and under $24,000 for a price point. Sorry for the long n00b post, but thanks in advance for any help. Here is the autotrader link for those interested. porsche 911 edit: i r smart... link is fixed.

Looks like you have updates planned, the price seems about right.....but do you really want to by a Pcar from a Ford Dealer?????

Welcome - I am in Bellevue, if you want a second set of eyes, let me know. I have just came out of a 99' and spend a lot of time in and around the 996's Price's in this area are high but the important thing is to find a good car. If you pay a little over for a good car, its better than getting a deal on something that might have issues. I also can recomend a shop where you can pick up the LN kit too ( that way you can pull yours out, get the right one, and have it all back in pretty fast) Ed

make sure you do a leakdown test and compression test... if these look even remotely bad don't even consider it... remember your buying an 11 year old car... also listen for gear whine.... some of the transmissions need to have the bearings replaced and make a "whining" noise..... big $$$ to fix

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Looks like a lapis blue car to me. Interior definitely tan. Oh boy is it tan. I'm not current on '99 or thereabouts market prices. What does www.kbb.com have to say about the car's trade in, private sale, and retail sale prices? Or www.nada.com or I forget the other site that supplies "trade-in" and other price estimates. Car is worth somewhere between trade in value (probably even a bit under this) to high retail. Just depends upon how bad you want the car and how much you're willing to pay. Oh, and the seller has some say in this matter too. If the car needs any of the services/attention you mentioned do not pay excellent price for the car, whatever your research indicates that is. Get estimates for the RMS, clutch, and IMS bearing retrofit. Subtract these from a good to excellent condition price. If the car doesn't need an RMS or clutch then so much the better. And of course there's nothing to subtract. What you want to avoid is paying for a car that needs a RMS/clutch job and then having the RMS/clutch done even if you plan to do the work yourself. No need to share that with the seller. Be sure car checks out ok. The pics were not sufficient for me to be able to say the car looks ok. Not enough views. Not enough detail. If you can visit the car give it a good going over. If you can't ask for more pictures. Straight on front, rear views, full side views, 3/4 views from the rear and from the front. You want a view of each wheel/tire. You can't have too many pics to study. Now don't focus on RMS, clutch, IMS to the extent you overlook other things. First off is the car free of shoddy accident/paint work? Check body panel fits, gaps, look for signs of tape ridges under rubber weatherstripping. Remove front trunk carpeting and look for signs of body work, paint work. Remove cowl panels and look at battery and battery box condition. Check drains are clean/clear. What does tire wear look like? Is there good tire tread life left? Is tire wear even? Are tires same brand, N-rated, and so on? Unless you can learn what services the car has had recently budget for oil/filter, engine air filter, cabin air filter, brake fluid flush, alignment. This assumes the A/C blows nice and cold. If it doesn't, budget an A/C system check out -- there's probably a leak if the system is low in refrigerant. Another thing it would be nice to budget for is a cooling system drain/refill and transmission/diff fluid change. The car is going on 11 to 12 years old. (Build date can be found on door tag on driver's door.) So it can and almost certainly will need some attention to bring it up to the best condition it can obtain. Sincerely, Macster.

Just shop around and which ever one makes you happy

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I hear that... Sooo to many people get wrapped up in price. Set your budget, Figure out what you are willing to live with vs what the money will buy and go get yoru car.

How many have you looked at and driven? There are plenty of Porsches out there, some maintained, some not so much, conditions vary as do the asking prices. Don't worry, lots of good choices to choose from.GL

Find the car you love. Have a PPI. Negotiate the price. Enjoy! If you look for a bargain, you will most likely find it, however a neglected and poorly maintained car could end up being your worst nightmare. These cars are not inexpensive to work on even if the labor is taken out of the equasion. Fix all the issues on beater and you could easily far exceed the cost of buying a lower mileage pristine example. Oh, and I wouldn't fix it if it ain't broke. GL with the search

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Thanks for the offer Ed, I will probably take you up on that when I find the car I truely want. Do you have a shop in the area you'd recomend for a PPI? Like I said, my budget is $24k give or take a little, and I'd prefer around 60K miles (or less obviously) I'm not "set" on buying the blue car in the add. I'm just trying to get an idea of a reasonable price range from mor experienced P-car buyers. I've only driven one so far, and I loved the car. It was a 2000 C2 with around 75K miles. It was a friend of a friends car and I loved every second of it. I've always been a Porsche fan though. My father has owned quite a few early cars (a few 930's and 1 S/C) and that really hooked me on wanting a P-car. Thanks for help Colin

welcome Colin, good luck on your quest; do you have a time frame? If not, be patient, there are many 996's for sale all over the US; Canada Pcars seem to run on a higher side of the price range... I think you're first better off looking at a few 996's with some documented history and those that are well maintained; there's one on here that they're asking $22, 950, silver coupe ( no affiliation, I think it's in Cali)...... then you'll see where the higher end prices are; IMO, those are the ones worth paying more for. a 996 coupe, pry running in your price range... like a few members have stated here, high miles, but well maintained are also well worth it, than a "questionable" low mile car with ambiguous maintenance .... but there are a few high mile cars that are selling for below $21,000... anyway, let me see if I can find that 99 FS....

yea, there is a great shop in Bellevue near the Coca-Cola plant - hears a link (no affiliation) http://www.chrisgerman.com/ <you can click on that link also I would be happy to go check out anything you are interested in and at least point things that I know out to you. and lastly, http://www.pnwr.org/ another link! Check out the "at the track" tab and we offer a Drivers Skills days that for $55 is UNBEATABLE !! you really get a TON of seat time WITH instructors - I have been to that about 20 times and it really helps build a bond with your car and the localPorsche community good luck on the search, yesterday was a GREAT DAY for a porsche drive

I just posted on the pristine 99 FS, how do you link that thread with this one?

like this LINKY edit - I see, not your car, just passing it along - NICE

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I have no time frame at the moment. I have my current vehicle and I'm really not in a hurry. I don't want to jump into a car just for the sake of buying a car. I want a well clean car with maintenance records. I checked out that '99 that you were talking about, it looks like a very clean car, I may have to look in to that one. I'm not very picky about options either. The one thing that is a *must have* is the sport seats. Color combos... I really like seal gray, black, white, the darker blue that was available (midnight blue i think?) but again not picky. I'm looking the one car that screams to me "I must have this". Awesome! Thanks for the links. I will let you know when I find a car i'm really interested in, and if you have time to check it out that would be great, if not I'll just go by what the PPI comes up with. I've done a bit of autocross, but have never had the chance to get any real track time. Being that it will be my first rear engine car (have owned true mid engine before) that is definitely something I'd like to get someone "figured out" on the track.

My little contribution: Service history, for me, would trump mileage and even year. It's so, so important with these cars and very revealing about how they were treated. Maintenance is insurance, but it also tells you a lot about the mentality of the previous owner. You can spiff up upholstery, you can polish faded paint, you can replace shocks and tires, but you can't go back and do the oil changes that never got done, or the hot miles someone drove with a cracked coolant tank or a bad AOS. If you bought my car (which is not for sale), you'd get a binder. You'd think I was out of my **** retentive tree, but you'd trust the car with your life.

thats a big deal as with my first one I got major service records and "some" minor, but the tires ended up being very old and I didnt catch it.... that could have been a major issue if they would have let go at speed (turned out they let go the day after speed - thanks gawd!)

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Reading the date codes on tires is a good habit, even when you're buying 'new' ones. Performance tires are pretty much useless after five years or so, regardless of treadwear.

If you're willing to travel (as I think one should be while shopping for the "right" car) please see my post "pristine '99 996....." I've sold a number of cars long distance and can guarantee that by the time you came to pick it up, you would know exactly the condition (which is really really nice). I think it's currently priced as the best deal in the country for a low mileage, maintained, clean '99, PPI, at your expense of course, is welcome. Thanks, Joe