2000 must have options

Finally sold my weekend car; now looking for a 2000 996. Any options that are must have's for this car? PSM, Litronic? What else? Thanks.

The only must haves are the Litronics, imo. And full leather unless you're getting a black interior. Non-full-leather 996 interiors in other colors are simply horrid (jmo, obviously).

Ditto on the Litronics, full-leather (best in any color). After that shoot for PSE, sport seats and carbon fiber! Taco wing!! 3 cheers for the Taco

Late '99 with traction control (limited slip diff)?

The On board computer is an option you may want to consider

how is full leather different from standard leather? don't all 996's come with leather? how good is the nav on the 996's? some old nav/computer are more cumbersome to use than using a traditional map...

Full leather is a must, it includes dash, doors & pillars. Looks really cheap without. If you can afford it get an '02, they're way better than '99-'01. Do a search for a discussion on all the differences. I don't know what the price delta is these days, but I'm sure it's worth it having owned versions of both.

Oh yeah, suede headliner rocks! and a leather hand-sewn dash top.

Holger yes i agree 2002 is a better car compared to 2000 but the price difference between 2000 and 2002 is about 10k. Which is substantial. About 1/3 difference. Is the 2002 1/3 better than a 2000? I guess that's another way of thinking about it...

Regarding the 996 Nav, I find it extremely easy to use and effective. The arrival time prediction is very accurate ( unlike my Toyota Prius). Unfortunately, the PCM I disks in my 2000 aren't updated beyond 2001 (and will never be). Plus, the older PCM is CD-based, rather than DVD, and takes 7 disks to cover the US. You might do better adding an after-market unit to a vehicle without Nav.

Full leather....Best thing for Nav is aftermarket...i have the Kenwood system and its flash based..no disks for all of North America...updated via downloads and flash cards like your digital camera takes. Its VERY fast and very accurate...also has traffic Nav options so you can have it guide you to your destination using the route with the lowest amount of traffic.....its touchscreen as well....no **** turning...If Nav is important to you, this is the way to go...there are not many factory Nav systems that are better than this.

I don't know the delta & you're probably correct, but it seems like I've seen some very reasonable prices on '02's recently. Are they that much better? IMO, yes. Visually much better loooking, much better chassis (stiffer), more power, etc. I think you can't go wrong with either version if you get the right car, but with all the little changes they made, the later cars are much better packages IMO and deserving of the premium. (You're also getting a newer car and from strictly a financial standpoint, amortize the additional cost over the anticipated ownership timeframe and factor in a higher ending value and it may make a lot of sense to go that route.)

Just buy the car and then put on a better suspension. You don't need leather or litronics.

[QUOTE=Holger B]Full leather is a must, it includes dash, doors & pillars. Looks really cheap without.[QUOTE] This may be a dumb question but I've looked at a number of 996s but is there a way to tell which cars have full vs. partial visually? I assume the doors would be the easiest to tell?

Full leather 3 spoke steering wheel (not sure if this was standard in the 2000MY) Heated Seats

[QUOTE=s14roller][QUOTE=Holger B]Full leather is a must, it includes dash, doors & pillars. Looks really cheap without. The dash is a dead giveaway, it's either leather covered or cheap plastic. Doors are obvious too.

[QUOTE=s14roller][QUOTE=Holger B]Full leather is a must, it includes dash, doors & pillars. Looks really cheap without. full leather is just that....almost every survace you can see from the drivers seat is leather...dash, door pillars, door.....its a must have....the only other option that MIGHT be a must is heated seats, both are extremely difficult, and expensive to add later....all other options can be added to the car if they are not on there.

To answer the original question...full leather, xenon, 3 spoke steering wheel, 18" wheels

Flux Capacitor

I have a 2001. 3-spoke, Litronics, Heated Seats..... PSM is also a very nice option With 18s, dont worry about it... it is cheaper to upgrade them after and then you can use 17s for Snow tires... re:02+, i personally like the lights on the 99-01 better... unless you have a c4s or Turbo... Ross

Thanks for all the replies regarding the full leather. I guess everything I've seen for sale so far have been partial.

The main objection to a non-full-leather interior is the aesthetics. If you personally like it, who cares what others think.

but which wears better? full leather or partial; especially in a cab? i know leather are prone to shrinkage esp when left in the sun. the plastic these days have been made to withstand quite a bit of UV rays...

It's high quality leather & if you take care of it, it will last a long time. Here's what I use: http://www.autogeek.net/conhid.html

sunroof delete option,

I think they're about the same -- leather will hold up well provided you treat it regularly (3-4 times per year); vinyl will eventually dry out and crack. The key in both cases is regular maintenance.

I'm thinking about selling my 2000 carrera. Email if interested [email removed] 16,500 miles Red with tan full leather Sport seats with full leather back's and crest Navigation PSM 19 daytona wheels Pss-9 shocks EVO-supercharger GT3 tail with Factory Aero kit Litronic headlights

If you track your car, full leather can have issues. Since you must leave your windows open on the track - and the track is open rain or shine -- full leather can shrivel up if it gets very wet. I have seen it happen. Not on my plastic dash.

i wouldnt be too concerned about full leather vs partial (I have no idea what I have)... i would think a non-leather dash would wear better...

I guess on a track car, but the full leather looks soooo much better and wears very well....My 99 with 109k miles looks new..My old Boxster had the plastic dash, and to me it looks cheap.

Ditto. Once you see full leather compared to semi, you'll never go back.

I would recommend to concentrate on one with the typical options that is easy to sell and try to pick up a few optional things if the particular car you are looking at has them. First, like above I believe Litronics are a must. So is having the Hi-Fi or Digital Sound. Non-GT3's with the base 4-speaker stereo are much harder to sell. It should have either power seats or/and sport seats. Finally, having factory 18" wheels. Yes you can change wheels, but it is better for resale (and less cash outlay) if the car you are looking at has them. Cars with factory 17" wheels tend to be lower option cars. Stay with neutral colors: silvers, grays, blacks and whites. Lapiz blue is very nice and unique, typically on high-option cars. Due to low production numbers, they are easy to move. Be careful with some of the brighter colors like yellow and red. Although they may look nice and seem traditional, they are much harder to sale. There are a couple of things I would personally look for: the M030 sports suspension, heated seats, trunk mounted disc changer and factory aero kit. You will pay a premium for the factory aero kit. You may have noticed I did not list full leather. Why? Full leather, seat crests, aluminum trim, carbon trim, wood trim and painted interior parts may look nice, but they don't add to the resale. New, many buyers are sucked in to spending as much as $20K on the needless luxuries only to see every dime instantly lost in resale. If it has it, consider it a bonus. I also don't put PSM in the must have. A lot of buyers don't know what it is until after they buy the car and hence doesn't seem to change value whether it has it or not; but if you find one with digital sound, power seats, 18" wheels and litronics then it will most likely have PSM. FYI, the easiest way to tell if it has full leather is to look for stiching on the dash just above the gauges. Only full leather cars have leather covered dashes. No stitching, no full leather.

That's all good advice...if you're a dealer. Buy the car that makes you happy. That's why you're shelling out the money, for the pride of ownership & the driving enjoyment, not the resale value. Besides, resale value is a wash in this case since you're buying it used and not new. You're not taking a hit on options that add no value, the original owner did. My take on some of those options...I already said to get one with the 18" wheels, much cheaper than replacing the ones that are on the car (& the 17's look really cheap IMO). The Hi-Fi option sucks (and I'm no audiophile), don't pass on a car that doesn't have it. The CD changer is ok (mine never skipped a beat, even over the nastiest potholes). Xenons are nice, but not a must. Same with sport suspension & aero kit. Heated seats are a waste unless you drive in cold weather IMO. Sport seats are really nice. Finally, get the color that grabs you. My old 996 was Wimbledon Green (I called it Love-it-or-hate-it Green because of the feedback I got). I saw a lot of 996's when I owned it, but no other Wimbledon Greens (I did see some 993's & Boxsters in that color though). I enjoyed that car every day I had it...and then I sold it to the first guy that came and looked at it for almost full asking price.

Regarding color, I say ignore it. I searched for the "right" car with no particular color in mind. I NEVER would have guessed I would fall for a Green car. In person, it turned out to be one of the best looking P's I have seen or owned. I have already had 4 offers to buy it in the first 45 days from existing P-car owners. Dont hone in on a particular color, keep your mind open and buy what "moves" you! Here is the "never thought I would own it Green"

Full leather, litronics, 18" wheels, sport seats, heated seats if you are looking for a cab. You can add the PSE and sport shifter, would be great if it already had it. I have a 99 cab, black on black with the options listed above. The full leather is awsome, mine still looks brand new. I have a friend without the full leather and it looks cheap IMO. As others have said the leather is a personal preference, so just get what you like. Mine also had parking sensors which I definitely don't consider a must have but they are sure great when parking. Mine also had the HiFi option, but I am planning to upgrade the speakers and amp. I am not sure what the non-litronics lights are like, they may be OK; although, I would not recommend your only test drive to be at night. Good luck. The most important thing is to be patient. Once you decide what you want wait until the right car comes along, it's out there! Kris

Thanks for all your inputs! Now the search begins...

Litronics painted Guages. Heated seats if you live northern. PSM Full Leather Aluminum trim/Gear-shifter. Sport exaust