996 turbo

I have been tempted to buy a turbo but i am put off by the price of the servicing. is this really as high as i imagine it to be?

Service prices are available on the Porsche website - have you looked ? --> CLICK HERE <-- to download the .pdf

Don't not buy a turbo because of servicing costs - its the cheapest supercar of all to run! It's awesome and life's far too short to be faint-hearted!! [ ] Regards, Clive

If you don't buy the car you will be missing a real treat! Had my car 6 months now and drive it nearly every day. Its absolutely awesome! [ ][ ]. 997TT coming soon!

I don't think its that bad - especially if you go to an indi - obviously its going to depend on miles. I'd be inclined to do a spreadsheet and try and guage costs of services vs. depreciation. In general I think you'll find that depreciation is a bigger factor in the running costs of a car than servicing so - if my predictions are right in that over (say) a 3 year period, the turbo will depreciate much less than the C4S of the same value - then you should be £££ in. I may be totally wrong on that one - but the turbo is currently looking very good value for money and will surely always command a premium over normally aspirated ones.

Well i've seen a few turbos for under £40k recently - and from the description they're not dogs either. At that price i'm tempted! The only reason to service your car at the OPC and pay OPC prices is if you really want the warranty. I'd much rather trust my car to a good ind than the OPC anyday. The good thing about the GT3 and turbo's are that they don't have the same engine as the cars in the rest of the range and it is much more robust and doesn't suffer any of the well documented (though still rare) problems. The only thing stopping me is that I want to do more track days and can afford to track my 944 turbo but not a 996 turbo. 98% of the performance (or will be once i've finished tweaking it), 98% lower cost!

I am interested to learn how a 944 turbo is cheaper than a 996 turbo to run on track days. Surely entry fees and travelling costs are the same and, with 4 wheel drive, the 996TT will be much easier on tyres. Regards, Clive

wee bit of advice, go and look at them. Not saying this is for all of them, but when i was looking for one in may last year, i travelled 1200 miles and looked at 13 before i found one that was up to standard. This was ones in the price region 55k-65k so not the cheapest and only the ones with good descriptions and suppossedly good history and from private, dealer and indies so a good spread and couldn't believe how poor the standards were on some of them. I wouldn't have paid 12k for a subaru in these conditions and expected these 100k cars when new to at least be at a decent standard. Having seen a few since at opcs etc I still believe the majority are well below good/excellent condtion but thats all imho!

I agree. I paid £61k for mine, one owner with 12,000 miles. Depreciation is far better than most models and running costs, well its a super car! so don't expect to run them cheaply. You need to drive a few. Its an acquired taste on track as sequential turbo's become abit of an handful, but it must be miles quicker than 944T even a well sorted one!.

You must be thinking about your bm, the tt's got a turbo per cylinder bank which works simultaneously[ ]

I'm with the other guys, servicing is very fair for the type of car it is, its only the big one with spark plugs & belts that can be nasty & remember you can negotiate with the better OPC's!!! You won't find a cheaper car to run with this level of performance & prestige!

Don't get me wrong a 944 turbo isn't a cheap car to track by any stretch of the imagination but with 50/50 weight distribution they are not that hard on tyres either and they are less than £100 per corner. Also brakes are more expensive on the 911 turbo- a 944 turbo's disks are only £80 per corner for OEM (though my BigBlacks are about £150 each) and with a 996/997 turbo being a heavier car you are bound to get through them at a quicker rate. Then there is the cost if you were to have an off. I'd be gutted if I put my 944T in the tyre wall but at least from a financial perspective i've only lost a cheap car. I'm not so sure i'd be prepared to drive a 996/997 turbo as hard as I drive my 944 turbo on track.

I'm sure they are. Although my car is not the most powerfull 944T out there it is pretty well sorted in the chassis dept with the suspension and brake mods i've carried out but my driving skills are still 'under development'! However when it comes to track day's 80% of it is all about the driver. There is a chap on the 944 forum who tracks his completely std 944T apart from bigger brakes and slick tyres and i've seen him trounce (and I mean leave standing) GT3RS's and other similar machinery. Of course it helps if you've had a decent amount of experience racing 944's. It is impressive to watch.

I've mulled over a 996 for several months, I've just sold my Ferrari after 14 years of pleasure and pain but I'am thinking of either a 996tt or a 996 mk1 gt3 in the next few months. I am trying to work out what would suite me best as I only do about 3-5k miles / year and would want to use it daily. (certainly couldn't do that in the Ferrari) I can't really run to a 997 although I had one for 24hours earlier this year through my local OPC and loved it. I've seen the service data from the Porsche site so thats one thing to consider, I am also thinking about depreciation, am I right in thinking it looks quite high on the tt but not too bad on a gt3? Oh well, I'll carry on researching for now, be interested in any owner views on the 2 models, I've dissmissed a 996 C2 or 4 as I am a bit worrid about reliability and big depreciation on these. Cheers, Mario.

Gosh, I think with all those worries I'd be inclined to take up something different - like golf! [ ] Regards, Clive

I don't know why you have ruled out the 996 C2 & 4, they are both good cars, all depends on your budget, but much of the main depreciation has gone from most of the cars, a £50k Turbo is nearly half price now! I don't think the 996GT3 is a daily driver unless you like your ride very hard core, my picks for the 996 range would be would be...... C2 with sports pack. C4S. Anniversary edition C2. Turbo. All depends on your budget & requirements!!! P.S..... Sawood I used to run a 944T, it was my first slice of Pork & a great car, enjoy!

I agree completely! Track days is 80% about driver ability, hence me saying its an aquired taste with 420+ bhp and rear engine its takes a while to master compared to mid engined or front engined cars with less power. I still think I am somewhat of a pupil on this score. I could ring the neck out of my Boxster S beating alot more powerful cars but am still learning to drive the TT. But slightly soiled Kelvins is what track days are about![ ][ ]

I am enjoying Grant! A bit too much for my wife's liking. I've often wondered about a standard 996C2 with KW suspension, bigger brakes and a set of track tyres with semi-slicks would be like as a track slag. My interest in track days is primarily about improving my driving rather than out and out times - if you drive well the speed will come automatically - and the challenge of driving a 911 well is appealing to me.

When Peter Morgan inspected my C2, I spoke to him about things to look for when buying a Turbo, and the first thing he said was to look out for noisy wastegates. He said they can rattle loudly on tickover. I've never heard it myself, and I trawled Renntech, but can't seem to find anything, so it can't be that common. They are about £250 each, btw. Not much help really.....

Thanks, you have put my mind at rest. I have been looking through all sorts of data and as you, I have never heard of a waste gate rattling until now. Many thanks 996 Babes

Wow - you were planning ahead

Not that far. PM did the inspection for the guy who bought my car.

Hello Does it sound like the wastegate or where the waste gate goes into the turbocharger ? If its the connection piece onto the turbo then you have a problem as this is part of the turbocharger and is worn there is a bush and pin assembly and can wear but is very rare, 996 TT normally suffer from seized waste gates as they have not been driven hard enough for them to actuate on a regular basis. hope this helps mike

Hi Mick Thanks for your help yes the west gate is seized solid and it has started to smoke on start up on this bank I have decides to take both Turbo of and send them to KKK as I have spoken to them and they seem very help full As everything is very rusty I have decided to take the lot off Managed to get the manifold bolts free but having problems with the silencer box any help would be grate Is it held in place by the stainless steel shield or the ally plate? I have loosen the bolts on the ally plate but there to long to come completely out Tried the Alan keys but like everything under their rusty?????? Michael

Personaly although softtops look nice, I think you suffer greatly from the loss of the roof. I tried and noticed a huge difference I would definetly try before you buy!

The hardtop is pretty noisy (and I generally don't mind noise) and the cab (with roof up) is very noisy on the motorway. If you're only going to use it in the summer with the roof down, no probs though.

If you think the 996 Turbo Coupe is fast, try driving at the same speed with the roof down in the Cabriolet! The open top makes it feel twice as fast!! Get a wind deflector though and go for the heated seat option if you can find one. With those two accessories you can drive topless any time of year.

During my search I drove all body types and decided on a coupe because they felt tighter. I found that Targas were prone to rattles and cabriolets were much less predictable in handling. The first 996 I drove was a Turbo Cab and while it felt good, I quickly realised it didn't feel as good as a car with a proper roof. Regards

I agree with the comments re handling and scuttle movement/rattle, rear seats are compromised too. Whilst I like open top motoring the Turbo coupe feels much more of a driver's car to me and I don't think the roof lines of the cab (up or down) are as nice but looks are subjective.

Although there is a bit of body flex with the cabrio, and the backrest of the rear seats are vertical rather than slightly reclined, it isn't so significant that that should stop you from getting a cabriolet. If you value driving purity more than open top motoring then go for the coupe. If you're not that bothered the cab is really nice to have.

Drive them both and make your decision. Simples

Plus 1......

thanks. anyone tried the cab with the hard top fitted? is that more rigid/quieter? also, any views on cost difference between the two.

It's significantly quieter, with a lot bigger glass area for better visibility. I wouldn't say it was any more rigid.

Unfortunately not. The rigidity or stiffness of the Coupe body shell is due to the monocoque construction where the roof is an integral part, effectively forming a rigid cage. Cutting the roof off causes a significant loss to rigidity with the body effectively becoming a ladder chassis. Ladder chassis are poor at controlling twist, eg if you jack up single wheel on an MGB you cannot open/close the doors. Welding in more metal to strengthen the chassis improves the situation but this is never quite as good as a monocoque and adds more weight. Hence the cab being heavier than the coupe, Fitting a hard top does not add significantly to stiffness as it is only clipped on rather than being a integral part of the shell. In fact driving in a cab with a hard top you are most likely to notice scuttle shake. Look for movement between the body and the hard top on bumpy twisty roads. This is why there is a clearance fit between the two in vulnerable areas to prevent rub damage. Personally I think a cab with a removable hard top doesn't look as good as just having the soft top, the lines are awkward and disjointed. Of course IMO the coupe has the best lines of all but then I am rather biased....

comments appreciated. obviously i need to try both, although that might be a little tricky. lots of coupes about, fewer cabs. the price of both seems to be dropping, or at least cars are not selling if they seem at all expensive. i doubt if that will change in the forseeable future as there's not much cash around. any views on the specialists like JZM or RSJ?

I bought mine from Joel at RSJ. I found that the prices matched the service I received. The car was not cheap, I paid top book for it but it is a very nice car and the post-sale service was the best I have experienced. I posted an initial thoughts thread on the forum with a three month followup, try searching for RSJ; they should come up. Good luck and keep us informed!

Found them: Initial thoughts Follow up IIRC RSJ do not allow potential customer test drives but will allow a Peter Morgan inspection with test drive. I suggest you drive a few private cars, even try hiring; there used to be a company who hire 996 cars on eBay. HTH

I agree with Boggie and I too prefer coupes to cabriolets (in any type of car). However, if you want a cabriolet then buy one. Its still a great car and I suspect that you could forgive a good one almost anything.

^WHS^

Hi Trevor Just one comment. The turbo S wont be a Turbo S. Only registered in 2004 & 5. X.50 doesn't mean its an S. X.50 upgrade is only part of the S. For your own peace of mind check the door sills, rev counter, centre console under the radio, they should all have Turbo S badges. Good luck with your search. If they are all near to you then get out there and drive them. Manual/Auto is a personal choice and there are lots of different opinions on here and other forums. Sounds to me like you have already made your choice! [ ]

Thanks. That makes more sense. No, really not sure whether to go man / auto. Drove a paddle shift 2002 before getting the BMW and thought it was a quick car and unlikely that I would need to change gear any faster, but this one is a button shift on the steering wheel. Not sure if that is good/bad. The manual one (in blue) seems to have a really good spec and looks good, but then the manual/auto conversation comes in again. Not sure, but will need to be before parting with my hard earned, as this will be with me for a long time.

I think there is a flappy paddle conversion but not sure which years etc. For what its worth Ive had my Turbo S for six years now and it would require an awful lot of cash to get me to change it as nothing out there comes close for the same money. Also dare I mention it but they seem to be slowly creeping up in price. Depending on how confident you are re choosing and purchasing cars you might want an inspection. I bought mine form a reputable indy with twelve months external warranty and had some things sorted before I bought. Good luck and let us know how you get on.

I've a 2003 Turbo with Tiptronic, 44k miles on it and it has been fabulous - once I got it sorted through the supplying dealer's all inclusive one-year warranty. I looked for an automatic [Tiptronic] as often the manual versions have been "buzzed" i.e revved hard in neutral just for the sheer noise it makes. So do get the diagnostics plugged in and the R registers read; they will tell you quite a bit. If you want some more detailed information on what to look for on suspension / brakes / boy etc then do contact me. Ray Chandler

Ray - you can't 'buzz' a Turbo in neutral. They have a limiter at 4000rpm. In theory, you can only get a mechanical over-rev on a manual car by a premature downshift. Edit: After looking it up again to refresh my memory, it is only the Tiptronic which is limited to 4000RPM in neutral, to protect the torque converter.

If it helps I've always had manuals and had a manual 964 Targa and 996 C4 for 4 years each. Tested both tip and manual and for the Turbo I felt the Tip was the better choice IMHO, perfectly suited to cruising and for hanging on for dear life when giving it some poke- just means you can hang on with 2 hands on the wheel rather than one! It's all down to personal choice so try both before you buy. Don't get confused with a Turbo S vs Tiptronic S which is just the gearbox. Craig

Bought one. Lapis blue, 39k miles, excellent condition and really pleased with it. Thanks for your input.

I don't believe you. Not until you post pictures

[Image-only or quote-only post; no author-written text.] http://www.oakfieldsoftware.co.uk/996/996turbo2.png

Nice! Did you go for Tip or Manual?

Went tip in the end. Tried a manual and liked it, but couldn't resist this one with such low mileage and in excellent condition. Plenty quick enough and I am unlikely to be tracking it, just for country roads round Shropshire and mid Wales.