I'm thinking about buying a 996 Turbo... I need help!!

What should I be looking for? Originally I was aiming for the lowest miles I could find but after doing some reading i've noticed some people say it's somewhat bad because the car could have just been sitting for awhile. How can I tell? What should I be looking for? It appears I can afford an 01-03 Turbo (looking to spend no more than 60-65, would prefer to stay around 40-50)... and this will be my first Porsche. It would have to be a stick, so if there are any concerns related to that aspect I figured I would mention it. Thanks in advance for any help!!

Have you also tried asking in the TURBO forum? Best of luck https://rennlist.com/forums/996-turbo-forum-61/

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You should be looking for the best car you can find and afford. These are not cheap cars when new -- mine stickered for $120K -- and they are not cheap cars to own and operate and service even used so you want to avoid a car that needs work to bring up to an acceptable condition or one that based on how it was used, or not used, serviced or not services, etc, will likely need extra work over and beyond the work they need. Extremely low miles cars can be a bit of a risk. One risk is that "new" car issues have not yet surfaced but of course any warranty has expired so these issues will have to be paid for you by you. Based on my experience this is not to be taken lightly. I bought my 03 in 2009 with around 10K miles on the car. The car came with a 2 year CPO warranty. The warranty expired on time in June of 2011. The warranty came in handy. A radiator fan motor shaft snapped, an idler roller bearing got noisy, the 6 speed selector shaft started leaking, the clutch accumulator and slave cylinder acted up, and the shifter broke. All were covered under the CPO warranty. The transmission was replaced. The warranty expired in June of 2011 with around 60K miles on the car. Afterwards, the power steering tank was replaced to address a noisy high pressure relief valve. $1K. The RMS developed a leak. $1700. The spoiler failed and I had the entire system (other than the painted panels) replaced: $2200. The water pump failed (started leaking) and the tech found a bad radiator fan motor (the driver's side this time), leaking front diff axle flanges seals. $3K+. Then most recently the belt tensioner roller bearing started making noise and I had it and the idler rollers replaced along with the air filter and some other things. $1500. Now you might be able to do some if not all the above work yourself. If so that's great. Or you might have a qualified indy shop that can do the work. So you can adjust what you believe the car might cost to service based on your circumstances. Also, some owners have not had any issues. But I want to attribute some of the above to a car that was not used much (1600 miles/year on average) before I bought it. My advice is to seek out a stock car. Give it a thorough check out which includes after you cold start the engine and confirm the warning lights, including the CEL, come on then go off and then let the engine idle while you listen to it for any scary noises you have the seller take you out on a test ride. The test ride wants to cover around 15 miles and give the driver a chance to demo the car in a variety of scenarios. Afterwards, back at the starting point you take the car out and follow the same route, drive the car the same way. You want to give the engine and the car every chance to act up show their true colors. You have to experience the car in its natural state, with the engine running and the car on the road. There are too many things to list so you'll have to search for 996 Turbo used car check out posts. Afterwards, give the car a thorough used car check out. Assume nothing works until you confirm otherwise. Now for instance don't just manually raise/lower the spoiler. Raise and lower it a few times making sure it raises properly/evenly and lowers the same way then lower it the last time and get out and open the engine compartment and look for any fluid leak sign. If you find anything the cylinders are leaking and the spoiler is not long for this world. If after all of the above if you still like the car and believe you can buy it for a reasonable sum then have the car PPI'd. This should have the over rev counters read along with the engine run time so you can confirm the engine has not been severely overreved and the engine run time agrees with the odometer. The PPI also lifts the car in the air so the inspector can search for any fluid leaks. The PPI should be Turbo experienced so he knows where all the gaskets, seals, connections, hoses and fittings are located so he can inspect every one for signs of a leak. The RMS is kind of easy. But the water pump is buried. The selector shafts are hidden by panels that cover the transmission area. (It was when I had my Turbo in for an early transmission fluid change the tech removed the panels and found the leak.) My 03 Turbo now has just over 120K miles. There is another Turbo owner who has put over 400K miles on his car. (He recently removed the engine to address some leaks and and rebuild a suspected worn out engine but found upon engine tear down the the engine did not have any measurable wear.) These cars are solid cars and I believe (hope) I have all the issues addressed. I plan on keeping the car a long time. Like my Boxster (with over 278K miles) the Turbo gets 5K mile oil/filter changes and other services when due on miles or time if not a bit sooner. Anyhow, when you are looking at cars and find something that gives you pause, remember there is always another car. Good luck with your search.

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Very helpful! thank you

You can get yourself into a 997.1 turbo with $65K. Plenty of budget for a 996 Turbo in the $40s. Beware that 996TT takes much longer to sell and may end up taking a bigger hit in the sell price if you ever want to upgrade to a 997.1TT.

Going for a TT as your first Porsche? Wow, that's ballsy. No sense in screwing around with, say, an inexpensive 996 NA to see if you like the Porsche experience. Then, as an experienced Porsche owner, maybe you'd be in a little better position to take that big plunge in the turbo. My 2 cents worth.

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I have wanted a Turbo since I was around 11 or 12 years old. I've ridden in MANY (several times i've actually waited outside of stores when I saw a nice one in the lot and asked for a ride) and i've driven many other cars as well. I did not think I could realistically afford a Turbo this early so my original plan was to start with something as you mentioned... but I have found myself in a position where I can afford my dream car earlier than expected so i'm pulling the trigger.

Heck my first Porsche was a 930...Porsche Turbo Carrera...there is no other.

Hey, do what's right for you - I'm not criticizing you one bit. I bought a 944 Turbo for my older son as his first car, and you would've thought I was bludgeoning baby seals by the way people reacted on here. He's had it for 2 1/2 years and its been a great daily driver for him with none of the predicted dire consequences (knock on wood). I bought my 996 NA right at a year ago (but not my first Porsche), and I've already started looking for a TT. So, in a way, it makes sense to go straight to the TT if that's what you ultimately want. Good luck with the search - the search is half the fun.

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There's a 2008 997 Turbo Cab six-speed with 25,000 miles asking $70K and a gorgeous Meteor over Cocoa 2007 Turbo Coupe with 43K miles asking $64K in the vehicles section.... Just food for thought. And while I think a $38K-$48K clean, no issues 996TT is an awesome amount of car for the money, no way would I be interested in a 996 generation TT in any condition for anything over $50K.