Moffman

I'm 17 and unfortunately have a very distinctive taste towards cars, I wish I could own a civic or integra and be happy like the rest of my peers but no go. I am currently looking at buying a car for daily driving and just fun.

So I was looking into buying a Porsche 911 (930), I have 23,000 from an inheritance. Now I know the 930 is a very stubborn untamed beast and that the 996 is probably my best choice but it just doesn't seem to suite me, I'm also considering a non turbo 964 but there a bit out of my price range (then again so is the 930).

I've also been thinking a lot of whether I want to blow it all on my 1st car. I have had a lot of driving experience but obviously I'm no expert , amateur at best.

I was thinking of buying possibly a beater to learn more on, but its no easy challenge finding the right car considering most are civics or mustangs. I did find something not so expensive that looks decent, the BMW E30 M3.

But my mind keeps wandering back to the 930 and if it would be a good idea to buy one and to daily which doesn't seem it but I wish it was. My mind says no but my heart says yes (haha)

Any advice or suggestions would be highly appreciated I'm in a mind boggling situation at the moment.

User 040621

save your cash. buy the civic as a starter car...but if you need a German car fix, maybe an older VW GTI would work.

abe

When I was 17 I took the bus and then bought an old car. If I had 23k I would apply it to higher education. For a 17yo to waste 23k on a car unless mom/dad are rich and going to put you through college...is a sad statement about todays generation and their priority. How does this relate to your question...save your money, get and education, and when the time is right buy the P car you want.
Lesson to grandparents and relatives...don't leave money to kids!!!! Put it in a trust so that they can receive the money when they are mature enough to know what to do with it or with specific instructions on how it can be spent untill they are 35 yo.

abe

Moffman

Thats why I said I didn't want to spend the 22k all on a car and looked into a cheaper resort - BMW E30...

Peter Zimmermann

Spend your first $30 on a copy of the 8th Edition of my book (my signature). Amazon.com has the book in stock. Read it. Study it. Learn it. Then buy more books, and read them. Six months from now you will know far more about P-cars than you ever dreamed you would, and the pause to study will be well-spent as you contemplate the other posts in this, your, thread.

mck911

I agree to a solid NO for the 930. These cars are very expensive to keep up with. I'm not going to get all high and mighty on you. I was fortunate enough to get an athletic scholarship to go to college and have parents that helped support me. Cars have always been a part of our family since my dad has owned a Porsche shop for nearly 30 years now. I bought my 968 when I was 19 but I also had a means to keep it running perfectly. I'm all for not having what everybody else has but am completely against spending all of your money on something like a 996 or 930 (for many reasons). If you really want a Porsche look at a 951 (944 Turbo), 944 S2 or a 968. The entry point is much lower and "can" be less expensive to keep up. E36 M3's can be had very cheap these days too. There are also some really cool E30's out there with swapped motors that can be picked up really cheap. There are a lot of options to get into a "cool" car that all of your friends won't have for $10k or less.

Moffman

Haha I appreciate the help I know the 930 is a bad idea I just don't want it to be :l Meh but to your other point I don't care what my friends think of the car or what there interested in. If I liked a civic I'd buy it in a heart beat luckily I don't and I also looked into 951's but was worried about maintenance with them too I hear there not to bullet proof.

I've never really been a BMW guy but these E30's and E36's aren't to bad at all.

rusnak

I can't say anything either without sounding like a hypocrite. What I would probably say is buy a 930 if you can keep it garaged and have enough left over to buy a used but not totally beat up old BMW or something less exotic but still German (different than a more pedestrian econobox).

Nine11

Do what you want, it's your money. But the logical thing is to stay away from classic air cooled Porsche's if you:

a) don't have too much experience driving
b) don't have a stable income to support the running costs
c) haven't started on the road to life yet (house, education, career etc)
d) will have this as your only car

These are toy/hobby cars....meant for pleasure and enjoyment. However, you can only enjoy them if you aren't going to worry about this breaking or that costing xxx amount of dollars. Purchase price is only the beginning of the total cost of ownership. You also don't want to buy one to have it sit....

Ed Hughes

Keep in mind that you can easily be on the hook for several thousand $ for an unexpected repair. Parts are not cheap and these are all 20+ year old cars now. They eat rear tires at $250 each for good ones.

racer

Be sure to check out insurance for your car first.

I think the biggest issue is that, no matter how good of a driver you already are at 17, there is an excellent chance you will have 1-2 accidents in the next couple of years.

Mix in a 300hp (stock) to 400hp easily reached, "tricky" to drive rear engined car and well, it is just a disaster waiting to happen.

Its great that you have been given a nice inheritance.. but as they said in that dopey spiderman movie, "with great power comes great responsibility".

I would consider getting something rather "disposable" as a first car. Something with sub 200hp might be a nice start too.

I think you will find that many out here started with the old "family wagon" or its equivalent as a first car. Not many owned their "dream car" right out of the gate.

Peter Zimmermann

How the heck did you know that? '53 Ford Ranch Wagon. Took it off road one afternoon when I was doing two things that I shouldn't have been doing; smoking and driving too fast. I was always driving too fast, but when I dropped the cigarette and it landed in an unfortunate place, while looking for it I learned a valuable lesson. When the family wagon came to rest it was up to its rocker panels in soft dirt and sand. I had to walk two miles to a friend's house, beg him to get a tow rope and pull me out, so I could get the damn car home before my dad got home from work. Made it with enough time to wash it, and park it in the middle of the garage. I thought that I knew how to drive, before that afternoon.

rusnak

Does anyone remember the editorial by Pete Stout, the Excellence editor, who wrote about his friend that had Porsche GTs and exotic 911s stored throught the city, and rode the bus to work? He supposedly had no furniture, or very improvised furniture. He had to have his Porsches. I don't know why that stuck with me. These cars will make you sacrifice for them, no matter what.

Tango635

What kind of budget do you have to support a car? That might help you decide on what to purchase. Remember that you will probably want to put some mods into whatever you get, so take that into account as well.

The mid to late 80's BMWs are decently reliable, well within your budget and offer a fairly good driving experience.

Next up in price, I think are 944's. Excellent driving car, some say one of the best.

Or, have you driven an SC or Carrera? Maybe you should start there. These cars offer most of the allure of the Turbo, yet less expensive to maintain. That is a relative term though, still expensive if something breaks. So maybe find a $12,000 SC and take it easy on it to minimize the chance of something breaking.

All that said, if a 911Turbo is your dream, then figure out how to monetarily support it (insurance, maintenance, repairs, upgrades). Easy to say, much more difficult to do, but if you want it bad enough, you just might come up with a brilliant idea, like Facebook. You never know.

VERBOTN

930 is a beast and can be very hungry. That being said I was in similar space albeit +20 years from you and I do not regret my choice to buy what I did. I only get to drive it half the year and only on weekends but each time I do I have a very fond memory of how it came to be. @17 you have lots to look forward to, if you or your family have the space consider an SC if you are into air cooled and tinker with it and learn the marque. If not you can get a very nice 996 coupe. Fair warning they all are expensive to fix. A buddy put a small $-sign on min-boost and progressively larger ones until full-boost.

They are great cars but life has lots of options.