Realistic budget for a 996

I've set my heart on a 996 . My budget is tight but I can get in some extra money so I'm just trying to work out the costs involved. Basically I'm looking at buying one in January 2008 and keeping it for a year. I've seen you can get a 996 with reasonable mileage for around £20k. Mainly I'm worried about the running costs in particular if something goes wrong - I've noticed an OPC warranty is highly recommended - they sound great to me. Am I correct in saying the car must be less than 9 years old? Other than the waranty and insurance , what other costs should I budget for in a year ownership doing about 10k miles? Just a rough idea would be great so I can make sure I've got the funds in place before I buy one. Thanks, Phil.

Probably not the answer you want, but I doubt that you will get an OPC warranty on a £20k 996, unless it's a mega-mileage 8-year old one. And without a warranty, you really need to have some spare cash as things will go wrong / need replacing unless you are really lucky and find one that has been maintained regardless of cost and the owner doesn't really know what it's worth to have a well sorted car! Personally, with £20k I would go for a 964 or earlier and keep some cash in reserve for maintenance: The older cars are built stronger, will give you a more involving driving experience, but you probably wouldn't want it as your only car (although many do!)

Thanks for the reply. So for the OPC what's the maximum age of the car I can get please? Cheers.

Up to 9 years and 125,000 miles I think? (I'm sure someone will come along and confirm soon) 996 was not as well built as most earlier cars, and it's not uncommon to have to spend a lot of money on things that have just worn out at that sort of age - e.g. new suspension will set you back £2-3,000, new pads and discs all round is a grand, 48/96k service could be £1,000 by the time you've changed brake fluid, plugs and coils, Clutch is close to £1000 etc. So I wouldn't try to run one as an only car to a tight budget. I try to keep to a fairly tight budget myself, but have another car that I can use if I need to save up to pay for something really big, so it's not so bad (hasn't happened yet thank goodness!)

Welcome! To get a car with an OPC warranty you don't need to buy one from an OPC. A warranty can be purchased for any Porsche so long as it's under 9 years old or under 125k miles, if you find a car without a warranty but it is under these limits then get it checked out (OPC 111 point check) if it passes then a warranty can be issued for £895.

I've had a look at some of the cars for sales from the advertisers on our forum for you. The only one I could find that sits inside your budget is this one (near the end of the list): http://www.northway.co.uk/car_sales/car.asp?ModelName=996+and+Boxster If you can move outside your budget by a few thousand more then you could get your hands on any one of these: http://www.eporsch.co.uk/C2CSilver5.htm http://www.autobahn.co.uk/Autobahn_2005/pre_owned_focus.php?id=524 http://www.911box.co.uk/vehicle-det...on=&intMin=&intMax=&RSpage=1&ID=351356&popup= http://www.portiacraft.com/ (very last car after you have selected 911/996 option on the left hand side of the site) Have fun searching - I know I did! ~ Maxie

It is fun looking isn't it - especially as I'm supposed to be working really! However - all those are going to be too old to get a Porsche warranty I'm afraid (all 1998 cars)... Loads of nice sub-£20k 964 / 3.2s though and I think that's what I would do in this case (or something newer and less exciting if it has to be an only car)

Cheers for the help guys. I'll have to stretch my budget to get one that can qualify for a warranty I guess, for peace of mind. Will the warranty cover clutches etc? Any major items excluded that I should be aware of? one last question on the warranty - I assume that the car can be 8 year 11 months old on warranty commencement? And then I can get a years warranty cover, but won't be able to extend it afterwards.

Warranty won't cover the clutch I'm afraid - not unless it is mechanical failure rather than worn out.

The question is what can you afford, of which you need to allocated 90% to the purchase price and 10% to the PPI, Insurance and 1st year's servicing and the maintenance fund if you only had it for a year, you could run a facelifted 996 (2002 onwards) for a year and due to variable servicing, not have to service it for that year

One problem i can see here is you wont want to part with her after twelve months. Bought mine in the mid life 40th birthday chrisis to own for a year and i could never part with her now. my advice is look long and hard for good un , get good advice on its purchase, find a good all round mechanic to look after it for you and enjoy it !