When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Did you buy a 72 911t in 1997 from Northern California, then drive it home to Oxnard, CA? Do you know someone who did? In 1997 my mom sold this car, and I know the odds are stacked against me because I have so little info on the car but I'd really like to find it. It had a small dent above the left rear wheel and a rear deck lid that had a crack that looked like a spiderweb. I don't have the vin (update: vin 9112102627), and the only photograph of the license plate is below and I can't quite make it out. What a shame.
I am in the market and I would love to know if this car is available. This is like a needle in a haystack and I really don't expect much from this but on the slim chance a rennlister owns the car I thought I'd put it out there. Any info is appreciated.
Update: I found the VIN using an old income tax return. I guess I thought a google search would turn up more information but unfortunately neither the VIN or license plate number has turned up anything. Carfax doesn't deal with cars older than 1981 so the vin and lic plate got me nowhere. I wanted to post it in here in case someday the owner does a search for it. If you have anymore thoughts, let me know.
I run a google search for the VIN somewhat often just to see if anything new pops up. Last night I ran it and a one week old For Sale ad pops up at The Beverly Hills Club, it unfortunately said the car was already sold though.
The car appears to be untouched since she sold it. Seeing all the photos instantly took me back, I felt like the kid that fell in love with the car so many years back, but it was still just out of reach. I've been wondering what state the car was in, hoping it was not restored yet which would push it way out of my price range, hoping I would be the one to get to restore it over the years. Now that its been sold again, chances are it will now get the restoration it deserves.
I checked with the dealer and they agreed to forward an email I sent them, over to the new owner. Either way it looks like the ship has sailed. Then again, since I started my search a couple of years back, I've purchased another car so I'm not exactly prepared to buy another one at this moment. At this point I just hope its in someones hands that will care for it and have some fun with it, and maybe share their journey here on Rennlist.
I am happy to have added 62 modern digital photos to my collection of the car, here are a few:
Wow man! So good to see you finally tracked it down!
I can see why one would want it even if their mother never owned it! A black long hood with side oil filler!
Prices have doubled since 2012, but alas, keep in touch with current owner. You know what he just paid for it to give you an idea of what he would want for it when the time comes.
It will be yours again someday. Part of the fun is the chase.
Bumping an old thread, the dealer that sold it in Beverly Hills finally told me they sold it to another dealership in San Francisco, I reached out to them and they had already sold the car as well. Still checking Google regularly and hoping it'll turn up at the EASY early 911 meet one of these days.
I thought you all might be interested in an update on this 12 year old thread. In 2012 I decided to buy my first Porsche and the idea of finding and buying my mom’s old 911T got me excited. My search began with this thread in 2012 that I updated now and then until October 2015, a little while after the car popped up for sale in Beverly Hills. I got real close to finding the car when it was listed for sale, missing the ad by just days, from there it was sold to another dealership in the Bay Area and then to a private party. I sent some emails to the original dealer to forward to the new owner but never heard back. After some time a friend was able to obtain a name for me, but I was hesitant to do much with that information and really hoped I could find the car organically in the Bay Area through the EASY early 911 meet in Emeryville, my Porsche friends, or the good ol internet where I still googled the VIN regularly.
By 2024 it became clear the new owner was not a big user of social media and enough time had passed that I decided to reach out on Linked In. A response came quickly and confirmed he owned the car, which blew me away. I had finally found it, sort of. I gushed about the car and shared everything that came to mind. To my delight, he was an enthusiast and was happy to learn more about the history of his little car, and he seemed excited to learn that his car played such a role in someone else’s life.
After he purchased the car around 2015 he drove it as is around the Bay Area for a couple years before moving his family to Europe in 2017 where he embarked on a full restoration of the 72. The restoration included returning the car to its original color, SILVER! It never occurred to me that black might not be the original color. He included photos and I just couldn’t believe how perfect the car looked. After the restoration him and his wife embarked on a road trip spanning six countries across Europe. My moms old car is really living the good life now.
I would’ve loved to find this car for sale and ready to be restored, but beyond that I really don’t think it could’ve played out much better than this. I do wish I would’ve pushed harder back in 2015/16 so I could’ve at least seen the car in person, but I’m sure I’ll get to see it someday.
My mom knew I was looking for the car, she actually helped start my search by digging up her old 1990s tax returns to find the VIN number. I shared what I found along with photos of the car in its present state and she was so excited to hear that its being properly cared for. She was also just as surprised as I was to find out it was originally Silver, we had no idea. There was one story that stuck out to her… When I was young and nobody was home I used to get in the 72 and pretend to drive it, I’d even pile my friends into it and we’d sit in the closed garage and pretend we were cruising around, shifting gears and having fun. I told the new owner about this and he said his son was around the same age when he got the car and also used to crawl in it and pretend to drive it just like I did. I wonder how many other kids hearts the little car has captured over the years. Many I’m sure.
This search could’ve ended a lot of different ways, but I’m happy with the outcome and can finally put my search to rest. The current owner did give me permission to share some photos of the car both before and after its restoration so i hope you enjoy these.
10-26-2012, 03:33 AM
Tracking down an old car - 72 911T sold in 1997
