I think I found my first porsche

Hey folks, I just found an '01 911 cab with 15k miles. two owners, each drove it sparingly. complete service records. super shape. 30k$ good deal? looking for a daily driver. Any thoughts or guidance? Thanks, David

Get the IMS bearing changed to an LN Engineering ceramic bearing right after you buy it. Garage Queens seem to have more issues than cars that are driven regularly. Have the fluids been changed on the recommended time schedule (as opposed to recommended mileage)?

Yes, sounds like a good deal if it's in PERFECT shape. $30K is not a bargain, but given the mileage, it isn't criminal either. Anything interesting in the service records? Any PM items replaced? Assuming you are going to schedule a pre-purchase inspection at a reputable independent Porsche garage?

Oh, and PICTURES.

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I agree, the mileage sets the mark, so $30K is reasonable, but not anything spectacular . Post some photos after you do the deal, inquiring minds want to know Main thing is the PPI

A 30K '01 cab is perhaps worth that much, but I wouldn't buy it. Especially if I was going to daily drive the car. Concerns about low mileage 996s seem well-founded. Another point: That is good, lower mileage '02 territory. With the improvements to power, style, and interior trim quality the following year, paying top dollar for an '01 seems like a bad idea.

okay, so the RMS has been replaced, last year. Looks like it did have one episode of overheating due to a temp sensor issue back in '04. that doesn't look good. noise from engine area, car got hot, lost oil. that was at 4k miles. a lot of miles since then. and it looks like the front bumper was repaired in 02, and the rear bumper in 05. looks like it's had regular fluid changes. serveral trips in with complaints of a noisy roof. new tires in 09, @8k miles muffler replaced in 11 @12k miles mileage in June of last year, about the same as now, 15.495 vs 15,600 now, clutch disk close to rivets, likely needs replacing. So, it looks like I'm looking at IMS bearings and clutch to start my journey. A couple repaired fenders and an overheat back in 04. Checking with the owner about facilitating the PPI. I guess if there were damage from the overheat, it might show in the compression test. Any additional thoughts? Really appreciate y'all taking the time, David

and how about if I get the price to come down a bit, what range starts making it a good deal?

It took me about 6 months to find my car. I probably looked at every single Porsche that was white, red, or yellow (which were the only colors I wanted) in SoCal and a few in northern California where I ended up buying my car. About half of dozen of the cars I looked at had some indicator of mileage rollback. So the first thing that i would do is look for signs of rollback. And if i was still in the market all the stuff that you mentioned above that was done especially the clutch going out at 15k miles is a big red light for me. Either that car has a lot more miles then what the odo is telling you or they just abused the crap out of it. Try to do a thoural inspection before you commit.

Not to be negative, but if you got 30K keep looking. The overheating thing would scare me off. From what I have read (being concerned about big engine failures) one overheating episode can lead to small cracks that may not show up now, but may in the future. And there is no way to tell. Without the overheating episode, if everything else check out 30K is not unreasonable. Also, it is still an 11 year old car. You are going to have a few thousand more in new seals and fluids. Plus clutch and IMS are another few grand. Mine had 36K when I got it and I am fast approaching 5 grand in maint stuff.

i would say keep looking, cars are easy to buy and harder to sell. with lots around dont rush it

"Not to be negative, but if you got 30K keep looking. " +30K Lot's of better maintained choices in my opinion.

How do you chew a clutch to the rivets in 15K? For reference, most of us go through a set of rear tires in 10-12K miles. Fronts usually go to around 20.

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I find a lot of humor here on RL. There are those that will scare the **** out of you when you contemplate purchasing a 996 with six figures on the odo and then you have those that say things that make you tremble on the hazards of buying a low mileage car. Just a comment and observation

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It is not a joke. The only correct mileage to buy a 996 with is when the owner drives it 72 miles per week. This has been shown to be enough to avoid the IMS issues but not enough miles to wear out the engine. But it can only be a manual that is not shifted until 5673 rpm's. This means it was driven aggressively and avoids other issues. This car should have 48673 miles on it. So I would keep looking until I found one with that exact mileage (depending upon build month)

Sounds like a really hard life for such low mileage.

I'm less inclined to worry about low mileage as long as everything else is good. In this case, though, there are some red flags. I've never heard of anyone replacing a muffler at 12k. They're heavy-duty stainless steel. The overheating worries me too. I would walk from this deal and keep looking.

Oof. $30k sounds high to me. As others have said, low mileage isn't really that big of a benefit. I'd consider a low mileage car, but I wouldn't pay a premium for it.

With a ~$30k budget, have you considered a 996TT? Much more car, solid drivetrain and most likely much easier to sell when you're done w/ it. It's just likely to have more miles, but a well-maintained example may be more reliable. As others have said, keep looking - even if you return to this cab you have your eye on. Don't be in a rush - you'll have a 911 in your driveway before you know it.

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Good lord you 996 guys blow this IMS thing way out of proportion. I know it is the weak link in the car but there are TONS of cars still running on factory IMS. I can't go 20 seconds on this forum without someone yelling IMS or giving their .02 on it.

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The Bearing Headed Bull****ters now show up within 5 minutes of any new thread. It really does detract from the overall usefulness of rennlist.

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+996 I wouldn't touch that car for $30k, or $20K for that matter. Hard hard life. To the OP, When you say it has had the fluids changed, is that according to Porsche intervals? (I.e. oil change every 20,000Km or 2 years) A clutch at 15K? RUN! RUUUUUUNNNNN AWAY!!!!!! Did they know what the 3rd pedal was for?

Dumping oil is a normal symptom of overheating? Or am I misinterpreting what "lost oil" means? "noise from engine area, car got hot, lost oil. that was at 4k miles. a lot of miles since then."

Wayyy too high. There's a 997.1 with a 1K miles since rebuild Raby 3.6 -- with a serviceable IMSB (since its an '05) -- that can probably be had for same money in the 997 forum.

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I have to agree with this poster. Run like the wind away from this. How we look for evidence of roll back I don't know but I would still run. It's not about how much you can save or if its a good deal or not. There are too many red flags here. Get your running shoes on. Don't look any further. There are lots of other cars out there.

great info, thanks everyone!!

I would be scared to buy a car with such LOW miles !!! I think its a lot worse than a lot of miles , just my .02 cents, not driven enough is a serious problem for a PORSCHE , I think.

A low-mile car that was started regularly, driven often with drives long enough to bring the oil up to temperature and burn off any fuel/water in the oil, etc. is a wonderful find. As long as it was not stored long-term, especially improperly (like with untreated fuel in the tank, etc.), low mileage goes in the "Plus" column, not the "Minus." There seems to be a pervasive fear that low-mile cars were all owned by little old ladies whose driving consisted of a quarter-mile run to the store twice a week to buy cat food, never revving above 2.5K RPM, driving uphill both ways in third gear @ 15MPH and lugging the crap out of the engine. How often does this scenario happen in real life? If this little old lady existed, she'd have a Tip. Or an Oldsmobile. Intentionally AVOIDING low-mileage cars flies in the face of the truth that machines wear out, and that the likelihood of a failure increases as the hours/miles on the machine go up. Anyone who has a choice between two cars that are identical in all ways except that one has 20K miles and the other 80K and has an overwhelming urge to pick the 80K car should stop looking at cars and start shopping for a lobotomy.

I completely agree with 5CHN3LL on the low mileage cars. I would take a low mileage with less options any day then something with high miles and fully optioned. But on this one with all the stuff that went wrong on the car in those 15k miles and now needing a new clutch that just doesn't add up for me. Like I said the PO either abused the crap out of the car or its got a lot more miles then 15K.

Walk away. 15k on a clutch is SO red flag.

you guys rock, learning a lot. Thanks for all your input. Still looking. Tempted by a few CLK AMGs as they have a bigger back seat, but keep coming back to the 911s. Just found this one for @30 (see below). I'm hoping for a one-owner dealer-maintained car, but carfax will tell me that. Thoughts on this one?

And of course the M3s and 6 series are sorely tempting, too....

"has had a clutch at 25k" Does not compute. This would raise a flag for me. A clutch should last more than 25k miles on a decently maintained/not abused car.

Yeah, that's what I was thinking, too...