are left hookers o.k.

Hello All I am keen for a turbo(obvious statement) and am unsure whether to wait until 06 January for right hooker values to come under 50K or to be done with it and go LHD? Can anyone help with the implications.i.e. once a left hooker always when p/x etc. Edmund 996c4 tip

i know a lot of people who are quite happy with their left hookers, and if i travelled into europe a lot then i would be tempted too. but, i live in the midlands,do most of my driving on country roads and am unlikely to ever drive abroad so I would stick with a RHD. i've been offered great cars to buy but haven't as they turned out to be LHD.

Thanks for your reply. I notice you list cayenne as your car. My other car is an x5 and wondered how good the cayenne is ? Edmund

I was originally seducted into the Porsche world by a left hooker 993. All the time I owned it I would have said it was not really any different to driving a RHD car, once you had got used to the change in perspective. When I came to px it against a new RHD 996, my local OPC accepted the car no problem and resold it through the independant network (I saw it for sale a week or two later) However, it does affect the resale value, and I have to say once I drove the RHD car, I realised that it was slightly easier to drive in the UK than the LHD

never driven an X5 so can't compare. but,the Cayenne S is awsome. none of the usual 4x4 wollow at all.

Hey Edmund I have always been importing & driving LHD, but I am used to them and I drive a lot in EU. Nevertheless, I do prefer them from a purist's point of view, because that is how they were originally designed and balanced and sometimes they come better equipped than UK cars. Besides, I always find them at not "Ripp Off" UK prices, assuming that you know exactly what you want and you buy cash. From the resale point of view, taking into account the huge savings you have potentially made on the purchase, I would say the whole "experience" is more profitable than a RHD equivalent. Cheers [ ]

Dr P Most of my miles are motorway commute (up to 18k per year) and I would plan to do this in a turbo. I just need to get my head around the comments from other porker mates i.e. you don't want LHD. Edmund c4 tip

If you are on a UK motorway LHD is not an issue. What is an issue is being on a narrow single-lane in each direction road in France, behind a HGV, with the local populace queued up 6mm from your rear bumper. THEN you really wish you had a LHD so that you could see if it is safe to overtake...[:'(]

Mark, Having long since perfected a RHD overtaking method for French roads, a passenger helps, but holding back about 50 meters from what you want to overtake, and then when clear flooring the loud pedal, is the best method. I have to say that IMHO the greatest problem on French roads is the car in front of you that is behind the lorry. French car drivers rarely seem to expect to be overtaken, especially when they want to overtake, so the best approach here is to come up slowly with lights blazing** and your hand poised above the horn button ( I have all my cars fitted with an auxiliary horn and button in the passenger footwell, so I concentrate on overtaking, having told the passenger to blast the car in front if he so much as twitches towards the centre line !! This is pretty foolproof, even Frenchfoolproof ! Cheers, Steve. ** A German friend of mine has fitted a relay to his big Healey so at the press of a button his head lamps, foglights and driving lamps are sequentially switched on/off a spilt second apart and continue to look like Piccadilly Circus until he has overtaken. I want one of those relays !!!!

Supplementary point with LHD 911's is that the pedal cluster in the LHD is much easier to use. This is because with the RHD cars the internal wheel arch is on the RH side of the pedals. With the LHD the centre tunnel is on the RH side, so the legs are not offset when driving a LHD - Does that make sense?

Steve With all the corsa's and the such occupying the fast lane m62 these days even at 7pm I tend to use the fast flicking and now have the best pinball right hand in Wakefield!!! Edmund c4 996 tip sore right hand

I agreee entirely. But you know how you get trapped - and holding back 50M is not understood by our French cousins, so when you are at 50M, the 6mm gap between the car behind and yourself becomes 2mm - with the car behind weaving back and forth so YOUR safe manouver has to be made at the point when they are not at the "out" part of their cycle - when they may have just decided to go too! (I always leave a big gap - I'm just pointing out the situation)

Jokes apart My main concern is residual although it affects all cars is the saving proportional to the loss. I imagine the set up will be fine and the driving position fine. Last questioncan I live with a turbo every day 18k a year? Edmund

With respect to living with a Turbo, once having driven one try living without it!! As you can see mine is somewhat modified[ ] I do approx 18-20K/year

Mark, If I understand you aright, what you are saying is that the leaving of a 50 metre gap between you and the vehichle to be overtaken is just going to get the car behind you press you all the more to overtake ? I wouldn't argue with that, other than to say that whatever their shortcomings, most French drivers know well enough not to seriously try to overtake a Porsche, especially if, by means of signalling indicators, the Porker is indicating a desire to overtake the front vehicle. Of course, my 50 metre gap idea is crap in Italy, since if you do that you will get the butcher,baker and bloody candlestick maker ( all in their Fiat delivery vans) attempting to overtake you and cram themselves into that gap ! Mind you, I have even been able to stop them doing that, since at the time of my firstborn I had some stickers made up showing crossed Italian and British flags and prominently marked with the words " Bambino a Bordo ! " Steve.

I bought my first Porsche 2 years ago, it is LHD, it came available, the price was right etc etc - we decided to go for it. On motorways, it is great. Take care joining if you are driving on your own though. We also enjoy touring around Europe. I have just agreed to part ex (NB: I was not able to sell it myself for what I was told by a dealer was a fair figure ) against a LHD 996. The 996 is fully loaded (and I mean fully!), tiptronic, PCM, PSM, BOSE etc. 16k miles, 09/2003. I am paying £37,500. The RHD equivalent (well almost, I cannot find anywhere near the same spec) is going for 33% more at £50k. You pays your money and makes your choice. I would rather have a 16k mile, LHD 09/2003 car than a RHD 06/1999 version with 37k miles on it (OPC Bristol) for the same money. Over time, my belief is that this price differential will narrow and that I will suffer less depreciation. Time will tell. You should try www.LHDPorsche.com That said, I found my 996 myself, but LHDP got it cheaper than I could. We are here, but once. Go for it.

Thanks Jut e-mailed them for some idea of p/x price on mine Edmund

Edmund see http://www.porscheclubgbforum.com/tm.asp?m=118155&mpage=1&key=&#121115 David Has yours arrived? I thought it was coming in August?

Dr P Your experience gives the impression they do not have any stock? Edmund

PGA - see above !! porkersrule - correct. I paid the deposit (10.8%) direct to his contacts in Germany - an OPC set up. LHDP pay the balance, ship it over, then I pay the other 89.2% on collection, to LHDP. Have a look yourself on porsche.de, find the car you want then tell LHDP where it is and ask what the price will be. You should have a smile on your face at this point !

Dr P Thanks for the link,they look like a reasonable stockist. Did you visit their showrrom or are they sourcing only? Are the requirments in a turbo the same as when I bought c4 i.e. colour etc or is there issues concering 420/450 bhp ect. I am looking at pre facelift car but might stretch to post. How different would these be. I drove a 2003 c4 manual convertible for a couple of days this year and the difference between the extra 30bhp from mine was noticeable,also the car was marginally tighter on handling etc. The main issue is power as well,between 2000 or 2001/2 car? Thanks for help Edmund fellow powder hound

Ted Stop faffing about and get your hand in your pocket and buy a bloomin' turbo - at least then you "might" be able to keep up with the rest of the Thorner Porkers Club on next year's trip to the Ring and Le Mans [ ][ ][ ]

Don Foz Therell be no 150kmh in my c4 ,just because you can now legitimaley read this site now you are no longer a "Hairdresser". Slick rekons everyone thinks LHD is a cop out,but I think I'd smiling longer!! Bling

Edmund I think they source cars for customers, they prefer nearly new ones for greater profit margin, but I do not think they have any huge stock; if they have any at all.... I do not know the answers to your questions, because I was only concerned about the "turbo" version and I wanted the best possible value for money, so my models were either X50 or S. It took me about 3 months before I found exactly what I wanted and 2 more months to get it at the price I wanted. As far as I was concerned 06/02 was the optimum date. What was the response to your email to them? Go to mobile, http://www.mobile.de/cgi-bin/index_cgi.pl?sprache=2, to get a feeling about what is available and where prices are currently. Then you search both Porsche uk & de... Cheers

Ted Dr P has given you all the information you need - get on with it!!! It will be nice to see you being able to keep up with the rest of us now[ ]

Alex I feel we need to post only relevant posts rather than inexperienced posts froma two week 996 boy!

Edmund, if you're man enough to drive a turbo, then LHD should not bother you. Mine is LHD, a 2001/2 model, one previous owner, all the coveted options and 2 years of extended warranty. The huge saving compared to RHD justified it and though I'll get less when I sell in a year or so from now, it'll be proportionate to what I paid. Come track days, blasts into Northern France and deeper into Europe, then take LHD every time. In the UK it's occassionally a nuisance (car park exits!) but not on the motorway. Some parts differ to RHD but max wait so far has been 24 hours through OPC. There's not many LHD examples on the market - as always provenance and total history is essential to protect yourself and future resale prospects. Mine was perfect - main dealer in Stuttgart, all the export papers, and the DVLA correspondence for UK registration. Goos luck; get a good one and you will never regret.

Tallmat I am going to suss out the dealer market over here first.Although the idea of sourcing one from Germany seems like a good saving I dont mind dealing u.k. for p/x and future dealings . PRices in u.k. for lhd seem as cheap as Europe prices when I have had a quick look. Thanks for encouragement I will let you know how I get on. Any tips in desirable for turbo ?i.e colour etc Edmund

Edmund, you're right about prices. I spent a lot of hours on the 2 main german websites ( www.mobile.de and http://eng.autoscout24.com/home/index/default.asp ) and made several day trips to Germany. Initially I was looking for a 993 turbo and prices there were as high as in UK - if anthing, marginally higher. Same for the 996 once I decided I wanted that model. After all that, I found mine on Autotrader - and it was just 2 miles from my house! Colour - nearly all seem to be the ubiquitous silver; mine is Lapis Blue which I prefer. I guess if you restrict yourself to buying in the UK then you will not have too much choice. If you have time time ( and it does need time...) going to Germany will obviously present you more choice. But you'll need to go through the import process which requires getting export license plates from the local vehicle license office in Germany, and then registering it when you get to the UK. In between you'll have that fabulous drive home! There is some risk in buying in Germany. You'll get the best price from a private seller or local non franchise dealer, but obviously some risk in history etc. Just as in UK. So German OPC will be more secure, they'll likely speak decent English and will help you with export plates. I went through all this with my first 993. Ultimately you have to trust your senses - you know when you're looking at a good car with proper history. Make sure you get Sat Nav - this seems to be the #1 option that helps resale values. If you buy in Germany, be prepared for an expensive UK disc for the PSM (see other threads on this) Good luck & enjoy the search. Matthew

I am talking to rsj sportscars at the momment and he has both rhd and lhd,my bigest problem is the difference between p/x and retail.Although I am in business it seems that a dealer wants to buy bottom dollar not taking into account condition etc and sell top dollar harping on about condition etc. Cake and eat it. Theres a deal to be done wth me but I need more advise about thngs like difference between 2000 car and facelift,some tt members talk about x50 ? Can anyone tell me the diffreneces between the pre and post facelift model in terms of performance and kit on board? Edmund

Ted Please don't get a RHD Turbo - you must buy a LHD model At least then Thorner Porkers Club would be able to take the mickey out of you [ ] (PS You still wouldn't be as fast as us though - I can see it now "Driving Miss Daisy 2 - driven by Ted"

sticks and stones etc blah hoo hoo well just slap some 13 year olds about and sing who let the frogs out

[ ][ ][ ]

Who has got a big grin on his face now then? YEP, that's right, ME !! Last Saturday picked up my 09/2003 ex Porsche AG factory staff car. I'd post some pictures on here but the files are too big and I don't know how to size them for the forum. [Answers welcome]. Had it 'Zymoled' - looks great, and is looking extremely incognito on our drive under the cover sourced from Bigskycovers in Montana. Love Tiptronic, makes it a real Jekyll & Hyde character; cruising on the motorways, bruising on the A roads. And if this is the 'poor mans' 996, I look forward to experiencing a turbo someday. LHDPorsche have done a pretty good job (so far) and have asked me for feedback for their website. This, I will do, but only after I receive all the manuals I need, in English, to understand the servicing schedule, car features and functions, PCM etc etc. You would have thought that when the car was ordered they would put in for the manuals at the same time, silly me! Also, I was offered a warranty extension for £500, but by the time I asked about it the car had left Germany, and the price was only valid for the German OPC to sort it out. Now in the UK we are back to rip off RHD pricing - £725? Still, I'm definitely the cat that got the cream, very satisfied so far especially with my cash saving over RHD of £13k plus. If my car had been RHD, with the options it has it would have cost ~ £80k when new or 2.13 times what I paid.

Hey David Congrats for your purchase, well done. Couple of points, the ext. warranty story sounds very "de ja vu"... offer to go halves max. Regarding manuals, you find all of them at http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?act=Content&code=manuals Cheers

Dr P Thanks for the link to Renntech, I had seen it referred to but did not appreciate what they were all about until now. The deal as I understood it was that there was no warranty included in the price (other than the factory standard until 30.09.03). I expected to have to pay for an extension to the warranty - am just a bit ****ed that they didn't tell me about the timing issue. Can't wait until the weekend, have to take the wife out for a spin, she did all the ferrying of others in the second car last weekend!

I ve just read through previus posts and your order date for this car was July? Having been in contact with LHD they cannot answer my part exchange question. Did they dispose of your car for you or how best to dispose of my car first. The only thing is,if I was a cash buyer I woulf fly over to see the car. Edmund c4 tip artic looking for turbo

Edmund My part-ex was LHD also. I tried the usual places to sell it and got the usual twits trying to pay peanuts for it (inc, someone on this forum). At the end of the day LHDP offered a figure for it which I accepted because I could not be bothered to keep going myself. The LHD issue and second hand 'expensive to maintain' sports car issues I think. LHDP were approached by a guy looking for a LHD Boxster who lived in London. LHDP do not carry stocks, so they put us together, and the rest, as they say, is history. LHDP priced so as to be able to shift my part ex car very quickly. In the circumstances, LHDP did not get to see it! I ended up buying for cash. Being ultra conservative (the wife) we paid the (11%) deposit directly to the OPC in Hamburg (in Euros) and the balance by sterling bankers draft when we collected from Nottingham on 6th August. The only things that I am annoyed about are; 1 - the warranty - I could have extended for £500 for a year whilst the car was in Germany, but once it left, the charge went up to UK 'rip-off' prices. Given its provenance we have decided not to extend. 2 - I have still not got hold of the English language manuals. Which, apparently are requested from PGB, sent to OPC Hamburg, then sent to LHDP !! Thanks to Dr P I have downloaded them from Renntech successfully. Hope this helps Regards David