996 turbo - advice

There is a 996 turbo that I quite like at Paragon but I think it is really overpriced (2002, 38 miles for £49K). Am I right or is this price seems right ? In addition whatever car I will buy I would want to have it inspected by an OPC with the view to buying a full OPC warranty. If I follow this route (ie inspection by an OPC) is it worth to have it inspected for a VPI first such as by Peter Morgan or would there be any duplication ? Many thanks for your help

I would buy it subject to the OPC warranty. No point doing both (ie. Peter Morgan check + 111 pt check) and wouldn't have any problems buying from Paragon. Paragon are one of the more expensive Indy's, but with good reason. Agreed it's slightly over-priced (by about 10%). Cheers.

Thanks GD, has anyone got any other views ? I called Paragon today and they have been most helpful, I am not familiar with the 996 turbo but I talked to Jason and he was quite happy to tell me all about the car. Therefore sofar I have a very good impression of them(although their price is a bit stiff I must say but maybe with good reasons). I am looking at buying my first Porsche but I drove today one of my friend's Porsche (a 993 C4) and this was amazing

Try this one, it's a private sale but get a PPI and a Porsche warrantee and save lots....... :food: 2002 PORSCHE 911 Turbo , 52 reg. 26000 Miles, 6 speed manual, met black, full leather, S/R, C/C, 6 CD, Bose sound system, E/seats, long Tax & Mot, very good condition. Telephone: 01702 544488 Price: £41,995 ono Good luck :thumbs:

My apologies for asking all these questions but I need help since this would be my first Porsche. 1. Is the Peter Morgan PPI as thorough or more thorough than an OPC 111 ct check ? I suspect that if I want an OPC warranty then I will need to go through the 111 ct check in any case but is it still worth asking Peter Morgan to do a PPI also ? 2. Assuming that I get an OPC's 111 ct, will Porche sells me a warranty despite the fact that the car in the past was serviced by an independent ? I have called two OPCs yesterday and I got conflicting responses - the first OPC said it did not matter the car was serviced by an independent and the other OPC said no OPC will give me a warranty if the car in the past was serviced by someone other than an OPC. The latter seems strange to me. :?:

1) Yes, the Peter Morgan check should (in theory) be more detailed....I think they state the cover 300 things, but the main difference is they also look into the cars history. The OPC 111 point check can be done by any mechanic at Porsche, so you want to try and ask for a more experienced mechanic to do it if possible. The difference really is the OPC is looking to check the car the warranty-able, where as Peter Morgan is checking it over for you as a potential purchaser. Note, if you go the Peter Morgan route and you want to put OPC warranty on it, you still need to do the 111 point check. Personally, I would only bother with the 111 point check...as the main concern would be the inside of the engine and neither check does that...and you can check the history yourself! 2) Doesn't matter where the car has been serviced for the warranty, as long as a) the car has been maintained to OPC standards and b) they used Porsche parts. The only problem will be if you go to make a claim and the Indy didn't use genuine parts, or their previous work wasn't done to standard....then you would have to pay (and would be extremely difficult to claim against the Indy). Cheers, GD

On the face of it I think it is overpriced. However it really depends upon many factors. For example I have a 2003 TT with 40k miles that has recently had the following: - 4 year/48k mile service - New tyres, discs and pads all round - new lower control arms (they squeak and it becomes annoying!) - new clutch - 12 month OPC warranty and tracker renewal (and radiators replaced under warranty) Now you can imagine the price of that little lot. Now if the car at Paragon has had similar work then maybe it not too badly priced. If it hasn't and it needs any of the above then its way overpriced. I would even think about letting mine go at that price :wink: . The OPC warranty is great for piece of mind and has already paid for itself with mine because of the radiators. I wouldn't buy one without now and would make it a condition of sale. If you don't then no end of issues could be identified by the OPC 111 point check which you need to remediate before the warranty will be given. No experience with Paragon but would suspect that at the price quoted they would easily be able to get an OPC warranty included and still make a healthy return if the car is sound.[/list]

Paragon are at the expensive end of the Indy market IMHO. I asked for a deal once and was politely refused. I must say that every car I see there, and I'm local (ish) is extremely clean and well presented. They have a standard on minimum tread depth for example. DavidM's pont is interesting & valid, a lot of cars can look similar in spec/mileage & vary a lot on price, I really think this can have a lot to do with what a car may or may not need as it's extremely easy to spend £5k getting a turbo to top condition, ie clutch, tyres, 48k service etc. If you did buy from Paragon you should expect to spend nothing on the car for at least a year, you pays your money you take your chances etc...........

where did you see this add ??

Found it on Top Marques who seem to have Autotrader plus a few more ... Good luck :thumbs:

Thank you all for the advice

When I bought mine I was looking at a car in a well thought of indie but bought mine for similar money from an OPC. I have to say that I am really glad that I bought from the OPC they have completely stood by the car and thrown in a number of sweeteners as compensation. I wouldn't say the car has been exactly reliable. They also mentioned that they have had the car from the indie in to fit a new engine which wasn't quite covered on the indie warranty.

It's important to grasp the difference in emphasis between the Porsche 111-point check and our pre-purchase inspection (which checks around 190 items!). From my experience, the OPC network will only consider the best and more recent cars for inclusion in the official warranty scheme and unless you are renewing an existing warranty, you will pay a premium for entry to the scheme. It is very good business and is justifiable from the viewpoint that customers are expecting Porsche to underwrite the quality of the car. It is also important to appreciate that the official network operate within a highly structured and quality-driven environment (as it should be) and they have no visibility of the quality standards being operated by the independent network (even if the best independents are often better than some OPCs). That is why they would insist on checking the car out before warranting it. That said, in my experience the 111-point check (performed at the customer's cost) weeds out mechanical issues that might result in a claim against the warranty that will be offered as a consequence of it. You pay up front for what might fail during the warranty, and then you take out the warranty. Our inspections are commissioned by the purchaser and our priorities are quite different to those who intend (or have an interest) to sell you a warranty, parts or other services. We aim to assess the car from the buyer's viewpoint, so we can often prioritise what needs to be replaced and what doesn't. We separate out what we believe is normal wear and tear on the car, what might compromise the roadworthiness and what accessory issues some sellers would prefer you to find out - at your expense - at the next service. We also advise on the quality of the (critical) service history and the selling price. We go into more detail than the OPC, aim to consider its total condition and look at all aspects of its value for money. Like Porsche and the OPCs, we are not infallible but like the official organsiation we do aim to bring a carefully considered standard operating procedure and quality standard to a wider marketplace that is otherwise unregulated (and sometimes abused). Peter Morgan

Welcome Peter ! I always enjoy your column in 911&PW

Peter Morgan's in the house!!! Welcome ~ Maxie