Advice on possible purchase

Hi, I'm a current '11 Boxster owner and am considering adding a 911 to the stable. I've located a 2000 911 C2 convertible with 65000 miles. It is relatively lightly optioned car but what it has that attracts me is it's Rain Forest Green color with grey interior and 6MT. The owner is asking $20k for the car. He is the second owner and has had it since 2005. I'm aware of the IMS issues and as near as I can tell this car is all stock. He has all the maintenance records from 2005 and the 60000 mile service was done. He also just replaced the front brakes and rotors. Complicating this is the fact I am in New Jersey and the car is in California. I will probably pay for a PPI to give me a little comfort. So here are a couple of my questions... 1. Is the price fair and what can I expect for value down the road? 2. Why would this be a bad idea? 3. What other things should I be wary of? Finally, is there any reason I shouldn't fly out and drive the car back to NJ? Thanks in advance...Jon.

Here are my thoughts to your questions... #1. Fair price? It sounds reasonable. Mileage is funny on Porsches. Even tho this is a 17 yr old car, surpassing 60K mi has an impact on Porsche pricing. As the mileage goes into the 70s, 80s, and past 100, it has a negative impact on price. If you plan to drive it forever, who cares? But if the plan is to put some miles on it and sell it in a few yrs, the mileage will bring the price down. #2. Why drive it home? Look out your window. Stella is not fond of sports cars. Depending on where in CA the car is and how tight your travel time is could determine if you should drive or not. If it's in LA, you could travel across the lower US and then zig up to NJ. If it's in SF, you have to travel thru the Rockies in UT & WY. And this yr it seems the east coast is constantly hammered by storms. If you can take some extra days to get home, then maybe you can bypass some storms. Respect Mother Nature! #3. Find out how old the tires are. It would be a fun trip if it was July.

Just my opinion/ observations. The 996 is currently the least desirable 911, largely due to styling- especially the interior. Also reliability concerns. On the plus side they can be a good value. Excellence magazine suggests the early cars 99-00, may be fully depreciated now. So you may be able to sell later for similar cost. 20k sounds like it's in the ballpark, depending on condition. Maintenance and repairs can be expensive, although a lot can be DIY if you are handy. For some reasons green Porsches tend to be less popular (except some PTS colors like signal green), so that may also be an advantage in negotiating. The biggest risk is probably an engine failure that makes the car nearly worthless. Not sure but as an early car it may have a dual row IMS, but there are other failure modes with the M96. As far as driving cross country, suggest view it as any near 20yr old car. Need to be sure the tires are in good condition including the spare (yes it has one!). Also that the cooling system is in good condition with no leaks. The coolant tank and water pump are potential weak points. PPI should catch such things. Also any oil leaks, suspension wear, engine/trans mounts, etc. Best of luck.

In addition to the OEM IMS issue, there is the water pump issue. The plastic vanes deteriorate with time at temperature. From what I'm hearing 50k-60k miles is a good time to replace the water pump. Failure can crack a head and virtually total the engine.

So I did wind up purchasing this car. I flew out to San Diego and after an inspection purchased it for $16K. I then drove it through across South California, Arizona and New Mexico before turning north to Denver. It was a great trip and the car performed flawlessly. The weather was great and I got to do some nice hiking in several national parks. I wound up shipping the car from Denver back to New Jersey because I wanted to save the miles and it was cheaper than driving. I now have the car back and have started doing some work to bring it up to the condition I want. I have had the interior cleaned and redyed. It looks great! I also had the IMS replaced with a direct lubricated bearing, replaced the clutch, RMS, water pump and low temp thermostat. Here are a couple pictures of the car to close the loop. This was a great experience and I look forward to owning the car for a long time.

Love the color. Congrats!

Thanks Husker, the color was the reason I really wanted the car. My first Porsche was a Forrest Green Boxster and I've always regretted selling it. When I found this one I knew I had to have it.

Great Deal and sounds like a good vacation like trip

car looks great! and that road trip sounds like a great way for you to get to know the car and enjoy it! great work showing the car some lovin.... any next plans for the car?

I would not drive it home. I have been shipping my Porsche (different models over recent years) twice a year between Orlando and Chicago, 1200 miles, and it costs me an average $775 or about 65¢/mile. For that kind of distance and with today's low diesel fuel costs, I don't think it pays for you to drive it home.

For some reason, I can't edit my post from my phone, so I'll say this separately. Ship it back, then go take a fun ride/tour with your local or nearby PCA Region. I think you would enjoy that more...

I'm looking for purchase advice also. I'm on my 3rd Boxster S. I've had an '10, a '13 and now have a 2015. (The '05 was not an S but the next two were.) Now I'm kicking around the idea of a standard 911 but I see the 0-60 times on the 2017 Boxster S are pretty darn close to the 911. (Not 911 S) And the Boxster's do handle great. So why pay the extra $30K for a 911? The rear seats are basically storage and the Boxster has 2 trunks for that balances out. What else would the 911 give me?

The 911 has a totally different feel due to all of the weight in the rear. In spots where my Cayman S would lose a little traction, my C2S just puts the power down. Also less claustrophobic, a little quieter, nicer interior (at least in mine which has a lot of options).