Buying a 996 cab

Am keen to buy my first porsche in 20 years (kids and work got in the way in between). Have seen a clean 2000 C2 996 cab with FPSH and only 53k miles. My concern is that the MOT expires in 1 month as does the warranty and I think I should have it checked over before buying. Where can I get the check done in the Thatcham/Reading area and at what cost. What will a new warranty cost? Car is priced at £25500 and appears straight and clean....does this seem a good price?

Hi David. I assume it is a private sale, in which case the car seems reasonably priced, provided it is in excellent condition and has a full service history. Reading OPC at Calcot (west of Reading) is just down the road from Thatcham, and I would have thought they should be able to transfer and renew the warranty - probably without the 111 point check, if the warranty hasn't lapsed. I would certainly get the seller to get a fresh MOT - he/she really shouldn't object to doing that. Take a look here, where you can download a buyer's checklist, and other useful info: http://www.porscheclubgbforum.com/fb.asp?m=269468

Yes its a private sale with full main dealer history and is extremely clean, just a small hole on drivers seat to attend to. Have just HPI'd it and its had 6 previous owners, does that affect the value do you think? Will take your advice and get the owner to put a new MOT on it.Will talk to Calcot dealer re warranty. Thanks for the advice.

Hi David, The warranty will cost £895. As it's a private sale the remainder of warranty is transferable. Price seems good. Have a read of the buyer's guide and checklist that Richard has pointed out, it may give you an idea what to look at when inspecting the car. I think average Porsche ownership lasts around 18 months, so 6 owners is not unreasonable...I wouldn't worry about that too much. The first thing I would do after an HPI is ask the owner to read out the VIL numbers (located in a sticker under the bonnet and in the Service manual) that will give you the full spec of the car as it left the factory and will tell you if it's C16 spec (UK spec car), which is the most important (ie not an import) Good luck

Hi, I recently purchsed a 2000 model C2 coupe after an 18 months search. As Richard pointed out, yes - if it is a private sales the warrantee (assuming it is an official OPC warrantee) is transferrable - there's a form in the back of the warrantee booklet for the previous owner to complete. So, although a 111 point check is not technically necessary for the warrantee, I'd get one done anyway (only about 130 GBP) and attend the inspection to see what the mechanics think of the car. As well as warranteeable items, they'll tell you about the condition of other parts too (e.g. tyres, exhaust, good look under car where you can check for accident damage) as well as give it a test drive and overall impression of whether the car is 'nice and tight'. More importantly they'll put attach their diagnostic equipment to the car to check for any fault codes etc. There's always a possbility if you buy a car without an inspection that it has been (for example) overreved in the past which will show up on the diagnostics - if this has happened and your engine goes pop the warrantee will be void. The OPC will also be able to verify the service history. And also, their diagnostics will give a read-out of total running hours which can be used as a cross-reference to see the the mileage is about right. As for number of owners, that's a difficult one. The general wisdom is that if they have all been careful or enthusiast owners then more owners is not a problem. Some say that if the car has been resold that many times (e.g. once per year) it will have had any problems sorted out each time it is sold, which is a good thing. The danger is that 1 or 2 of them may have bought above their budget and not been able to afford its upkeep. However, many buyers (myself included) prefer a low number of owners - purely on the subjective feeling that less owners means each owner has had the car longer and (probably) cared for it more. This WILL affect the ability to resell it and the price you will get. I looked at a 98 model that had 6 owners, 55,000 miles and was on sale for 23,000. I didn't buy it and despite it being passed on to a porsche specialist, remained for sale for about 9 months. Anyway, from what you say, if it has a full OPC service history, is a C16 car in the colours you want and the 111 point check comes out OK, then I'd make an offer between 24 and 25K for it with a new MOT. Quite a few people will be put off by the number of owners, so I'd be surprised if there's a rush to buy it - do you know how long its been on the market and/or why the current owner is selling ? Other factors affecting resale of older cars will be manual vs. tiptronic (tiptronic fetch less than manual) and colour (black, silver, dark blue are more popular (hence easier to sell) than red, green or yellow). Similarly Boxter red, mint green or savannah interiors are less popular than the greys, metropole blues and black). And I guess, for cabriolets, the time of year [mind you haven't we just had our summer?]. I'd be prepared to go nearer to the asking price if the tyres are quite new (and correct 'N' rating) and if its had any significant work done (e.g. if its already had a new clutch, that would be perfect). BTW: A little bonus for pre March 2001 cars is that the road fund licence (aka Gordon's cash cow) only costs 180 GBP per annum. Let us know how you get on.

Hi Bertie, I went to see this car a few months ago - car itself looked and sounded very nice but I'm now looking for a coupe instead. From memory I think the tax disc had expired when I viewed it in December - make sure he's renewed that as well as the MOT. Good luck, G P.S. I was informed by the previous owner that the current owner got it for a bargain as he had a new car in drive and had to get rid. Bear this in mind when you offer!