I'm looking at purchasing a 2009 997 CPO'd. The car is in New Jersey but spent most of it's life in Chicago area. I live in California. I'm concerned about the rust factor in general with east coast/snowy area cars. I have a 2010 Audi that looks brand new sparkly clean underneath so when this car looks weathered as it does (see bolts on muffler join specifically) I wonder how much it matters. Can you guys weigh in and tell me if this rust is surface and unimportant or if I should be concerned. Pics attached. Thanks!

 

I live in Michigan and have never had any issue with something rusting out or deteriorating due to salt & snow. It may look uglier, but unless it fails or you're having people admire the bottom of your car, you'll be OK.

Porsche also has a longer corrosion warranty to ease your mind.

It's still a good idea to get a PPI.

 

I too purchased a car from an area with a lot of snow. A lot of what you see around the engine and exhaust isn't actually corrosion. It can be cleaned off with steel wool and some soapy water. There is corrosion, however, on the muffler bolts. If you go through with the purchase, I'd ask the Porsche dealer to replace the nuts and bolts for you. On my car, I had to hammer a smaller sockets onto the bolts and tighten them, so I could snap the bolts and remove them. You could also have a PPI done and use any corrosion/other defects as negotiating points.