finally taken the plunge

Thanks for all your input. After months of research and searching have finally gone ahead and put down deposit on a 2000-W, Silver/Black, C2 !! Will be getting an OPC check done on it this week and, assuming all OK, getting the warantee and buying the car.

At Last - Well done! I'm sure you have made the right choice. Any pics yet?

It seems like a long long haul but glad you have done it. Well done!!

No pics yet. It Arctic Silver, black leather interior, 17" alloys, no GT3 aerobits ... 46,000 miles, comprehensive service history ... Yes - its taken a while - still seems a big step to make :-O

It will be worth it when you get behind the wheel.

Well done, I'm in a similar situation, been looking for a while and will only buy with a check up and extended warrenty interested to hear what shows up needing doing and how much it all costs for the peace of mind.

Fingers crossed that nothing significant will come up on the inspection. The dealer says they won't pay for anything that Porsche find, but my deposit is refundable if I don't want the car after the inspection. In practice, maybe there'll be some bargining room. I'll be giving Colchester OPC a bell on Monday to get a date booked. Will update you when I get the outcome. Spent around 2.5 hours looking over the car, armed with my notes from discusssions on here and my Peter Morgan 'ultimate buyers guide'. Even phoned up Porscheworx who serviced the car last summer for advice - very helpful chap there (Mario I think he said) his name was), who ran through what had been done and seemed to know something of the history of the car. Am pinning my hopes to the fact that its only 46,000 miles and had a good service history. Its had new brake discs, brake fluid changes and all regular services and has a tracker fitted. Didn't see any receipts for more major work - I would have preferred if it had had a new engine, gearbox and clutch last month (!), but couldn't see any signs of oil leaks underneath, not any signs of accident damage. The clutch pedal felt smoother and lighter than the last one I tried and it didn't make a horrendous rattle on start up that I've heard on others before. The only negatives are that the front tyre treads are getting a bit low (they've worn slightly more on the inside than the outside, but I understand that is normal with the 996's camber angle) and that it has 17", rather than 18" alloys. But I guess an upgrade to 18" would not cost the earth if I decide to go down that route in the future. Peter Morgan's book says the 17" are more compliant, so maybe that's not a bad thing for our broken roads around Suffolk. The other thing I noticed is the tick over seems a little low (only just over 600rpm) - is that normal ? - there was a bit of vibration noticeable in the cabin at tick over. Anyway, I'll have Colcherster OPC take a look at that in particular. Otherwise, it drove very nicely.

Tickover should be 680 rpm.

Well done ! Looking forward to some pictures... and Silver ones are the fastest [ ]

Sounds like you have done your homework. When you have the inspection i would try and be there while it is done the opc you use should let you go over the car while it is being inspected, as you seam to now know a bit about these cars you can ask questions. Wheels i would not worry about to much had 17" on my C4 and when i needed new tyres bought some Turbo 18" wheels with new tyres cost the same as 4 new tyres and these wheels look so much better, and i think the ride is better too. Will be intrested to see pics, hope all goes well with the inspection. Phil

yes ... months ! where did you get those from ? Do you normally notice a significant vibration in the cabin at tick over ?

got the wheels from member who advertised them in the Porsche Post Mag, Paid £900 including Pierrle P zero tyres, wheels and tyres like new, much nicer to drive with. Vibration not a massive ammount but you can see the passanger seet move a bit, if the idle is not set 100% this may cause it, ask them when you have the check done. I hope all goes well let us see pics when you have done the deal. Phil

Has the car had the big 48k service done or is the previous owner selling up just before? My tickover is at 750 (with no vibrations), and was 800 before I fitted a sports exhaust.

DME Set point for tickover of engines with Motronic 5.2.2 (non eGas cars) was 680 rpm (engine hot). When version 7.2 was introduced, the idle was raised to 700 rpm. 750-800 is slightly high. The idle speed is not adjustable at all (not even with a PST2). It is programmed into the DME, and the only way to change it would be by reprogramming.

It had an OPC '48,000', / major service in 2004. An OPC 60,000 minor service in 2005 and an independent major service, new brake discs and a few other bits last summer. So should be due for a minor service next year, if I understood the service schedule correctly.

Good news...sounds like you've done your homework....should end up with a great car....fingers crossed for u, you'll love every minute of it! Good info Rich....another word with the OPC me thinks

Was the aircon on or off? With it OFF the revs drop slightly which, in mine, causes a slight vibration - sweet when on though!

Booked in for 9am Wednesday

Great news - it passed ! Only two (small) issues; lower of 2 tone horn not working and cigarette lighter not working. Tyres are low tread depth at the front, but I knew about that. Engineer complimented it on its smoothness and taughtness. So, just need to sort out payment/collection details and await its new MOT - hopefully picking up at end of next week !

Congratulations on the purchase and just a quick question, did the dealer pay for the OPC check or did you have to personally fund this? Many thanks

Diesel, horn will be about £18, plus VAT, less PCGB discount. Easy to fit yourself, the main challenge is removing and refitting the front PU. The following link advises how to do this: http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=7070 or http://www.realtime.net/~rentner/Porsche/Radiator/Radiator.html or you could pay your OPC £120/hr for the privilege (I think it's a 2 hour job)... Have taken my PU off a couple of times now and it's relatively straight forward.

Or you could look on the DIY pages of this forum.................? Oh yes, you need to be a PCGB menber.............[ ][ ][ ]

No, I paid for the check; 110 GBP + VAT = 129.25 all in. Very pleasant experience - the mechanic took me all through the car, checked it out from underneath and took me on the test drive too. I'll also be paying for the warrantee (£895). The dealer I got the car from was a non-porsche main dealer, the car was taken in p/ex, so think I got quite a good deal in the end.

Interestingly I asked the service manager about PCGB discounts as there seems to be different policies at different OPC's. He said that you get a 10% discount off parts only, not labour. BUT ... they currently have a special offer on (limited to March) which gives PCGB members a reduced labour price from £110 / hour to £65 per hour - t&c's apply - being mainly that you drop off and collect your car and you don't get a loan car & probably that you don't drink their coffee either ... but it didn't sound a bad deal.

Someone i work with took her Pegueot in for a service and it was £85.00 an hour so £65.00 is very good, business must be slow for them. Glad things are all ok with your car shows that doing the homework and waiting for the right one paid off then. Enjoy Phil

Blimey! £65/hr?! Not aware of whether this is a UK-wide or a local initiative, but the last time I contacted my OPC (Wilmslow) it was £120/hr and they couldn't get me in for 2 weeks!! Dread to think how long I'd have to wait if their rates became attractive...

how come I have been quoted £300 at the OPC at Hatfield for the 111 point cheque - Id like to get the wrrty - but the £300 is sending it out of affordability. Any ideas on where to go to get the check done - I'm (unsurprisingly) near to Hatfield!!! Im getting very nervous without any kind of warranty back-up! thanks for any advice Alex

I didn't get a 111 point CHEQUE !!! But Colchester OPC charged me 1 hour's labour = 110 GBP + VAT for the check. Probably worth the journey up from Hatfield to save more than 150 GBP - or try bartering with Hatfield.

Try Cambridge, they charge £110 as well only 30 min from hatfield with the new Baldock by-pass. Phil

Diesel, Congrats on the car, like others I look forward to the pics. I was just wondering what the record is for the number of posts on the forum before someone buys.[ ] The forum is really good for building confidence that you know enough to take the plunge - at least it was for me.

yes - 91 posts on here and quite a few on Pistonheads too! I've been 'web-browsing' for 911's for about 3.5 years (well actually since the 996 won EVO magasine's car of the year in 1998 to be honest - but couldn't afford one then), and seriously trying to get one since June 2006. The problem is, I don't think the car's pics will be very interesting - its a 'standard' 996 in silver with 17" turbo alloys. No GT3 aero bits (I didn't want them). Just a good history and low mileage , but those don't show up too well in the photos !!!

We like posts of standard looking ones! [ ][ ]

very nice - personal plate too - but they're 18" alloys aren't they ?

Yes, 18" (and M030 so it's a bit lower) but don't they go well with the 'fried egg' lights?

That's a beautiful looking car

They ALL look beautiful! [ ][ ]

Picking it up on Saturday ...

Richard Hamilton stand back and take a bow, originals are the best! What a sensational colour combo, and the orange indicators are an asset..... yes They ALL look beautiful.... but some more than others.....your pic is going in the Best 996's folder here!

where is the best 996 folder?

I think Denis means on his computer, but have you seen the Gallery here? http://www.porscheclubgbforum.com/albumphoto.asp?albumid=1&asortType=1&apage=1

If it's a best 996 folder, then presumably it has pictures of just one car in it ?

Good point! [ ] 3 days and counting, eh Diesel?

Yes !! Picked the car up yesterday from near Stansted ... Took about 2.5 hours to do the 60 miles home due to the A12 being closed and all the A12 traffic diverted through the centre of Colchester ... Did 3.5 miles in one hour - must be a record for Porsche 911 driving ! Still, at least I've got an idea of where the clutch bitting point is now! Looks and sounds great .... went out today to get a newspaper and strangely it took an hours drive Took a few photos this afternoon ... Basically a fairly standard 996, manual, silver, black interior, small alloy pack, silver dials, 17" turbo alloys ... BTW: Do all Porsche owners have strange creases on their faces from the constant grinning ??

EXCELLENT! And no, the grin never wears off. There's nothing quite like it, is there?

Richards right, its a folder on my computer, Diesal, congratulations on the car, nice and original, it too is going in the Best 996 folder! My 996 is due Wednesday or Thursday this week, all going well, new clutch going in, and extended warrenty being set up.

Great - what spec 996 are you getting?

2000 Carrera 4 Cabriolet, Vesuvius Grey (Slight Violet Spec in the metallic), Grey Leather interior, 18" GT3 Alloys, 29K miles, will post some pics later in the week when its on the ground.