buying advice please

This is my first post on here ,but feel that this is the site which will offer the most informed opinions of 996 ownership I have a budget of 30000£ to spend but am bemused by the vast choice and variance on price available. Should I buy from a porsche dealership , specialist or private.Dealership prices seem to be a lot higher!! Should I be put off by high mileage examples ,buying a high mileage example would mean I could get a 3.6 rather than 3.4 engined model .Is the 3.6 a better car What are the general servicing costs like. ? Is there any extras I should look out for.I am after a basic carreara 2 with manual transmission without all the side skirts , spoilers etc Regards Colin

Hi colin, I have owned my 996 for just over a week and found the advice given to me by people on here really helpful. My method was (1) Sort budget out, (2) Find newest car for my budget (3) kick the tyers at a main dealer to compare. I drove three cars one was at Porsche who offered me about £1.85 for my old Boxster but it was useful driving a £35k car, I'm happy with my 2001 tip which at £27,500 was a much better buy for me. I had been to 911virgin.com but to be honest I found them to be very imanture and up themselves and quite expensive. Main dealers are a waste of time as for my budget I would have got a 1998 car. There are 1000's to choose from one tactic is to simple wait for the one in your prefered coulour combo. An indepentant inspection is a must and check the vin details! The best thing also to do is spend time on autotrader. Anyway good luck!

Thanks for the adviceAdi9601. I agree that main dealer prices appear to be highly inflated.The budget is set at 30000£ and I do not have to part ex anything which should put me in a good buying position. What is your impression of the tiptronic box?I understand that it was a 4000£ option when released but is this price difference still reflected with 7 year old cars. I am wary purely due to my ignorance and the association that it basically a glorified automatic which I am sure it is not.

you will get a lovely car within your budget. forget OPCs though. if you are already viewing this forum then you will be far more knowledgeable than most buyers. go to your local pcgb meeting and there will probably be more than 1 996 owner willing to show you round their vehicle. facelift car features a number of advancements although i know people more than happy with their 3.4s. you may well find a newer/lower mileage/better specced car if you go down the private route but would have more comeback from a dealer. many would suggest not getting too hung up over mileage. concentrate on finding the "right" car that suits you with good and recent history. whether that's a c2, c4, manual or tip, coupe or cab doesn't really matter - you pay your money you take your choice. get it inspected before you part with your cash though.

What ever you do Scuby, look at the VIN and check the service booklet thoroughly to make sure it's not an import (unless you're getting the discount you should with an import of course)