Buying a 996 turbo, please help! - Page 1 - 911/Carrera GT - PistonHeads UK

Hi all, this is my first post here so please forgive any howlers! I should say firstly that I don't yet own a Porsche, but I have my eye on one and could really do with some advice. For the last 2 years I've walked past an unloved 996 turbo on a drive near me which has a flat tyre and hasn't moved a muscle. What I now know is this. It's manual, registered in Dec 2001 and has 65000 on the clock. It looks in very good condition (although it is filthy now). It's arctic silver and is unmodified. It's service history checks out up to 3 years ago (independent as well as Porsche) but it hasn't been serviced since then. The owner claims there is nothing wrong with it but he has neglected it and his wife wants rid of it. I've spoken to him a couple of times and he keeps saying he is going to get it running again but hasn't yet. So I'm thinking about making a cheeky offer. I couldn't afford the £20-25K these appear to go for in good nick and I would of course get it towed and checked out properly before agreeing to buy it. If it checks out, I smell a bargain...maybe! My question is this - if it checks out (is the Porsche 111 point check the way to go?) then what sort of money do to think it might be worth given what I know so far? I assume it's going to need a fair bit of work given it hasn't even been started in 2 years... Also, what do people think about whether values for these early 996s have bottomed out and whether there is any potential for prices to rise in future?? Thanks! Neil

Hi and welcome, Here's my two penneth. Nothing ground breaking in my reply but here i go anyway! These cars like to be used, things sieze and split when left standing. Brakes will probably need freeing off etc. A 3 year gap in service history will have people turning away come re-sale time. Prices 'may' up in future but buy because you want the car, not to make a profit. If the guy says he's going to get it back on the road, don't expect him to be giving it away, he may intend to put it back on the road, but 'life' has got in the way. He's probably got an iflated idea of what it's worth. Why did he stop using it? Failure of a component or just lack of funds to run it? I would get a specialist to check it out, but could prove difficult/costly as it would need to be put on a ramp for a proper check. There's no harm in making an offer, what's the worse that he can say?!! If it came at the right money then great. I have a feeling though that money saved in the purchase price would be eaten up by remedial work to get it roadworthy. You could end up with a car that's cost you a lot and still has a big gap in the service history that becomes harder to sell on when the time comes. Kind Regards, DD

Thank you. My best mate is friends with a couple of good indie mechanics, one of whom apparently used to run servicing at a Porsche dealership so I expect if he would take a deposit I can get it checked over at minimal expense. As you say it might burn money further down the line and I do worry that I'd probably have to keep it regularly serviced and loved for a good few years to start to offset the service history gap. If there is something fundamental wrong with it I wouldn't proceed with the purchase, but the question is how cheeky an offer to make based on what we know?! I would hope not to loose money over a few year period and I would definitely want to enjoy the car.

Also look for corrosion on the underside, not chassis/bodywork corrosion necessarily, more the components/pipes etc. Corroded brake pipes are an MOT failure if severe enough, and replacement involves engine out (IIRC).

Hi, would this car be in a certain roman town in Herts ?

No, this car is in London.

Took the initiative and went for a chat on the way home. He is definitely going to get it back on the road himself alas. No bargain to be had there :-( Oh well, the turbo pipe dream will have to live for another day. Sounds like he is expecting to spend quite a lot on it too, so maybe I've had a lucky escape. Thanks for your help guys. Neil

If your budget is £20-£25k you should be able to source yourself a good example with a bit of patience and diligence. I think prices have bottomed out in this range for a private sale for 70-100k mile example. J

Sounds like a pile of crap run by a skint flint if you ask me. A recipe for a disaster. I reckon you've had a lucky escape.

pdj81 said: Hi, would this car be in a certain roman town in Herts ? That was my first thought as well... Sounds very similar to a degrading silver 996 TT very local to me that hasn't moved a wheel in the 4 years I have lived here and is slowly being consumed by the owner's front garden.

Time to fess up, it's the same car! I couldn't believe how small a world it is and I wanted to speak to the guy to rule it in or out, sorry. I assume you've both checked it out and if it's true that it has been rotting there for 4 years not 2 then I'm glad he isn't interested in selling. It did worry me when he claimed it had only been off the road for 18 months and I've lived in this part of town since Feb 12 and it was already immobile then. He is adamant nothing is wrong with it but the more I think about it the more I smell a rat, a mashed gearbox or something. Why would anyone do that to such a beautiful car?! I smelt a bargain but whoever posted that it's probably a lucky escape is right. I can only imagine that if it's been sat there for 4 years it would cost a fortune to get running so good luck to the guy. Seems such a waste of an amazing car. I've been bitten by the bug now and I'm going to have to find a better one somewhere!

What a crying shame. If he is going to leave it off the road at least have the sense to store it in a dry warm garage and start it up and move it about now and then. Can anybody put a link to street view?

Having bought cars that have been stood, MOT'd and then used the regularly afterwards I can say that from experience these cars always look better than they turn out to be once they get used properly, when stuff will fall off or go wrong. The next time I get the opportunity of something similar it'll get MOT'd, cleaned up and auctioned or sold in the trade. Let's say you got that 911 Turbo for £15k, you'd be much better off putting it in an auction and making a few bob than finding out the hard way it could cost 5 figures to have everything done and it running reliably, when you could have spent under £25k to get a properly sorted car.

I don't think we should be linking street view here. If it were my house I wouldn't appreciate it!!

"Having bought cars that have been stood, MOT'd and then used the regularly afterwards I can say that from experience these cars always look better than they turn out to be once they get used properly, when stuff will fall off or go wrong. The next time I get the opportunity of something similar it'll get MOT'd, cleaned up and auctioned or sold in the trade. Let's say you got that 911 Turbo for £15k, you'd be much better off putting it in an auction and making a few bob than finding out the hard way it could cost 5 figures to have everything done and it running reliably, when you could have spent under £25k to get a properly sorted car." That's pretty much what I had offered but he wasn't remotely interested as he is convinced nothing is wrong with it. May be best to give it another 12 to 18 months to see if prices really have bottomed out and save up that extra for a better one that isn't going to become a money pit.

Surely a cared for car at £22k of similar age/mileage is a much better bet, there are couple in the classifieds here This 15k might cost 5k to get back in a fit state plus who knows what hidden cost down the line

10k

CGJJ said: 10k Not a chance alas! Oh well, I'm going to keep looking and keep saving for a better one