Color seems to make a big difference.....

I am currently shopping for a 996. I noticed that it appears the color makes a big difference in resale value. For example, I see "Speed Yellow" getting a very big premium over other similarly equipped 996's. Also it seems there is a lot of silver/gray out there, and those dont seem to get as much as other more flashly colors like red, yellow, or even blue. It sucks for me, because Speed Yellow would be my first choice

I've been shopping for a few months now and can't say I've seen much of a price difference. Sometimes the yellows, whites, reds, greens and blues go for less... I guess it can be a hit or miss with the "flashy" colors in regards to resale.

speed yellow = speeding ticket.

Exterior and interior colour and their combination are major price drivers. Here in Switzerland a Green exterior and a light interior will be on sale for significantly less and will take considerably longer to sell if it sells at all. White is not that popular here either. Silver or Seal gray are middle of the road safe colours in purchasing and selling price range. Here Metallic Blacks and Speed Yellow retain the highest resale value (all else being equal regarding condition etc.), but the interior colour also plays a role. There were some people with strange tastes that purchased some of these cars new. I saw a beautiful Red model year 1983 944 the other day. It was in seriously good condition, but it had the black and white Pasha check interior and the owner could not sell the car because of the interior. It looked awful even though it was in good condition. I know of a Green/Tan 996TT that is priced way below the equivalent Black/Silver/Gray versions, low mileage than many others and it has been for sale for over a year. There is a Green 928 S4 for sale locally with a white interior. Has not moved in three years despite the relatively low price. Colour and combinations of colours are certainly something thats needs to be seriously considered if the Porsche is not going to be a lifer. By the way colour choices and what is liked and disliked varies from country to country. Ciao, Adrian.

You can always buy the low priced car and get a repaint or new leather! Hell - I'm even thinking about repainting my 2000 Arctic Silver into something less common (that bronze on the new Targa pics on Porsche websites for example).

I conducted some un-scientific research on the Porsche USA used car site a while back and found that nationally, Silver, Black, and Gray colors were about 65% of the used cars available at that time. Those colors are "a dime a dozen" and if they are what you want, the selection of cars is abundant. The other colors (CW, SY, GR, Blues, Greens) are less abundant and it may take longer to find a car in your preferred color. Additionally, you may have to increase the search distance from your home to improve your changes of finding the right car. Good Luck!

Yes you can and then watch the original price you paid seem expensive when you try and sell it, if you can sell it. If anyone asks me about any post model year 1978 911 that they have found, that has been completely repainted Porsche in a colour that does not match the original documentation colour code, I say "run away as fast as you can". Same goes for the interior. This repainting of new cars after delivery is quite common in Hong Kong. Ciao, Adrian.

Thats what I thought too until I owned one. My red porsche was a ticket magnet, thats why its gone.

The Metallics are more expensive, by definition. I think Silvers, greys's and black Metallics are the most expensive

Resale SUICIDE!

...and they look like crap when you have to touch them up.

Silver is definitely the most common color out there so you'd think that would lower the sale prices, but on the flip side, there's more demand for them so the prices stay about the same as other colors. In the end, the options on the car make a lot more difference in the resale price than the color. As long as you don't ever plan on selling it then go ahead. Otherwise, don't do it!

The exotic stuff will be worth a lot less until you find the right buyer who will pay $$$$$ becuase he/she has the same taste as you and there were only a few made in/ with whatever color or option.

I see the opposite. Yellow and red seem to be very partcular to certain buyers and are a much harder sell. As a result, they tend to sell for less here.

I did almost a full year of shopping 'till I found just the right car. I literally did the statistics. Using all 1999-2001 convertibles on Cars.com, Autotrader, and Autobaron, Speed Yellow demanded a $3-5k premium beyond any mileage or age adjustments. That said, I still bit the bullett and held out for just the car I wanted, Speed Yellow with Yellow sport backs and center console. It was hell waiting, I missed a local DE event and our PCA yearly shine-and-show event. But it was worth it!!! HOLD OUT TILL YOU GET THE ONE YOU WANT!!!!!!!

Definitely - thats not the argument I try to make. If you want to buy a car to keep, whats wrong with buying a unsellable mint green 996 and getting it repainted in e.g. silver or speed yellow if thats what you fancy? Yes - resale will be even worse than the mint green. But if its a car to keep, then why not. I've been trying to sell my silver 2000 996 for 6 month now through private ways, and it is almost impossible - unless one wants to take the dealers price at $10k lower than what the cars are selling privately. The market is just swamped with silver 2000's. Thats why I'm thinking about declaring it a keeper, pimping it up with aero kit, ssk etc and getting a repaint.

Okay, I'll ask the following question - when buying a Porsche why does color matter? As long is the color is not totally repulsive and falls into the mainstream, why would it matter at all if we're buying the car for the styling and the performance? I know that it does to many people, but when I was buying it made little difference to me what color the car was. I chose not to have a tan interior, but that was for the practical manner that in my opinion the tan interior seems to age faster, but otherwise the exterior color mattered little. I test drove, white, black, silver, midnight blue, and grey. If I could have found other colors I would probably have considered them too, but finding cars outside that color range is painfully difficult. If anything, I'd say that we need to get more adventurous on color selection on our p-cars.

oreganet, Because as much as I love a 911, including the "styling", color is a large part of it. I was in a rush to buy my 911 (other car died, had been driving around a borrowed Siena for awhile), so I bought the first mechanically sound car I saw at a good price. I decided that because the interior color wasn't black, that it would be fine. Ideally, I'd have gotten a SY/Cobalt car with aerokit, 3-spoke wheel, 18" wheels, sport seats, xenons, and a grey interior. Instead, I got a basalt black car with a 3-spoke wheel, 17", comfort seats, and a grey interior. It's nice, but I reeaaaly wish I'd held out longer. But I'm back to being a "starving student" again, so trading it isn't on the agenda for some time to come. Does my car look okay? Yes. Does it drive okay? Yes. But I really wish I'd held out a bit longer. Of course, if I had an aerokit, I'm sure my car would look a lot more aggressive and I'd not care as much. Same for xenons. I miss them. But when you add all those things up, it makes a difference, and color is a huge part of that. If I had Cobalt Blue, I think none of it would make a difference Justin Second time's a charm!

Because all of my cars are red

I recommend you go ask people in the motor trade and ask them why colour matters. I know many dealers stuck with cars they cannot get rid of simply because of the colour. These are usually the "special order cars" or what I refer to as the "brain fart colour combinations". This problem is found across all brands as well, not just Porsche. Your reasoning behind purchasing a Porsche is certainly not what was behind my reasons for purchasing the particular Porsche I have at the moment. Colour to ensure what I wanted to achieve was very important. I do not consider a Porsche a fashion statement. I require understated and stealth because I do not like to be noticed. I also consider resale problems based on my own previous experience of selling my own Porsches over the years. For the record over 60% of all 996s were sold "new" in various shades of Silver and Seal Gray. Silver and Gray remain the most popular colours for new Porsche buyers. What motivates individuals in their purchases is of no interest to me. People can be as adventurous as they like with their own money, but when somebody asks the question about colour they have the right to be told the truth of the real world. Colour does matter especially if you use your own money to purchase and one day you have to resell it. I recommend the serious Porsche Enthusiast looking to purchase a 996 or any of the newer models look into the colour issue very carefully and hang out for what you want. I also recommend asking the wife about the colour. If she says the colour sucks I suggest you take notice. Ciao, Adrian.

Color was certainly important to me when I was shopping for my 996. I was only interested in guards red or speed yellow. And I paid a premium for getting what I wanted. Over a 6 month period when I was shopping nationwide, I saw, literally, dozens of silver and grey 996's with the options I was looking for. I saw only a few in red or yellow and was outbid on every single one until I finally sucked it up and paid a $4k-$5k premium to get what I wanted. I don't regret it at all and I imagine I'll get some of the cash back if I ever decide to sell (not likely).

I also recommend asking the wife about the colour. If she says the colour sucks I suggest you take notice. LOL That sounds like a lesson learned from the school of hard knocks.

I wasn't trying to ask a dumb question, as I know the issues around color with other cars. Color absolutely matters when you're buying a car that is nothing special and few other redeeming qualities. I was just curious as to how others felt when it came to Porsches. I would say that in my case I didn't want to color that was the same black, blue, grey, etc that others were driving, but color wasn't so much a deal breaker for me. To me the quality of the car, features, and performance were the main issues. That being said, I had a strong preference not to have a metallic color due to them being such a pain to touch-up imperfections. The most stunning Carrera I've seen recently was a metallic teal. I'm not sure I'd want to own it (for the reason above), but the color was spectacular.

email me if you like this color. 2003 C-2 w/GT3Areo,heavy options, 4800 miles ,warranty till 4/08 Elliot

Color is nice, wouldn't be my first choice, but most likely 2003 is out of the range I am shopping. A 2000 is probably more in line with where I need to be. Nice looking car though! Brian

My #1 choice in color combo right there. Which I had held out a bit longer and got it instead of silver/black

School of frustration actually, but in the end if everyone is happy with all the choices it makes things a lot better in the long run. My 996 choice was happily accepted by my wife. It was getting her new car that proved frustrating. Getting back on theme, the photo below is my interior. The Savannah Beige broken up by metallic blue trim (yes it looks a little Purple in the picture, but it's blue in real life) and a little bit of chrome I find very attractive. I certainly believe you have to like what surrounds you when driving especially if you do the amount of touring that we do. My exterior colour is Pearl Effect Black Metallic (water based paint). Ciao, Adrian.

Thats mine too! Blue with tan leather, stunning car