If you had to choose, what 911 turbo is the best performing, reliable, and affordable.

Early turbos have scared the bejesus out of some of my friends. Too much power too late, is what they say. How is driving a Turbo on the street any different than a Carrera? What would I notice between the two? I know about the maintainance difference etc...

I currently own an 89' Carrera but I think of the lure of the turbo sometimes. From Carrera to Turbo,,,,,,,,,

RMS

 

I started with a 90 C-2 and have gone thru a varierty of Porsches (993, boxster, 996) they were all fun to drive, a 944 turbo I had and used as a track car introduced me to the kick of the turbo boost. I finally found a 87 930 that I had rebuilt this past fall by Stephen at Imagine Auto to a stage 3 upgrade. This car is very easy to drive like a regular NA until you put your foot into it then its hang because your gone in a flash the grin factor is addictive. I don't think there is a more fun car to drive.

 

If 100 people respond, you'll get 100 different answers! That's what makes turbo ownership so much fun.

I've owned an '89 930 3.4 and presently own a '97 993tt. I've driven the water-cooled turbo as well. I've also driven one of the "final 50" 1979 930. All are fantastic cars. The water-cooled turbo has 21 more years of Porsche R&D (and marketing). The '79 and '89 turbos are raw driving machines that require 100% attention by their driver. Make a mistake, and it could be huge. Whereas, the '97 and '2001 turbos allow the driver to make small mistakes the results of which end up being much less serious - thankfully.

One can buy performance - that's why you'll get 100 different responses to this email. Of those I have driven, the '89 930 was the most "thrilling" to drive. It was set up to throw flames. It was loud (no cat, had a Ruf four-pipe exhaust). The suspension was modified. And the lines on that car cannot be beat.

The '97, on the other hand, well, it's the 400 linear horses with AWD and six forward gears (referring to the advances by Porsche R&D) are awesome in their own right.

Reliability depends on how well the car is cared for. It also depends on the car's age. Older cars will have parts fail. In 2001 I replaced thousands of $$$ of parts (hoses, belts, seals, pulleys) in the '89 just because of age. A major tune-up of the '89 included a valve adjustment - the '97 has self-adjusting valves so the "major" service isn't so "major". My '89 was very reliable. Over the years of ownership I only had one gremlin - a cold start problem that was eventually fixed. The '97 has not had any issues at all during the 2+ years I've owned it.

Affordability - don't know if you mean purchase price or maintenance costs or both. Many people say buy as much of a Porsche as you can afford. At the time I bought the '89 930, that was about as much as I could afford. I was fortunate to be able to buy the '97 while the '89 remained in the stable. I had both cars for more than two years. Having the choice of which to take out for a drive was incredible.

Obviously, the purchase price is higher for the newer model. The maintenance costs, for me, were higher for the '89 than I have experienced so far with the '97. I am expecting, though, as the '97 ages, I will have similar issues with hoses, belts, seals, and pulleys as I did with the '89 (hopefully not too much before 2010!!).

Why did I keep the '97? Because I feel it is a piece of Porsche history - it is the last full-production model year for the air-cooled turbo. While it lacks the "rawness" of the '89, the thrill of driving it is much the same.

It will be interesting to see others chime in on this topic - good question!

Dan

 

I'd say Dan's response it about as accurate and thoughtful as they come...he pretty well sums up the turbo experience and reinforces why this is such a great community.

The 930 tweaked is such a blast to drive...mine is set up to throw flames as well...it is a grin machine through and through...raw and immediate...the other turbos are awesome too, just more modern and a bit more civilised and bit more forgiving...

Upfront costs and longterm costs are probably a tradeoff...you can obviously buy in to a 930 for less than a newer AWD tt...but the maintenance will be more on the older car. However, part of the fun of the 930 has been the wild build out that can be afforded by at least Porsche standards, relatively "reasonable" monies. The newer models are a bit more costly to modify...all depends on your taste, budget and when enough is enough...

There are no wrong answers...
Take care

 

I own both a '79 and an '02 Turbo, and I owned a '96 (993tt) Turbo for a couple of years. I agree with Dan above - he makes very valid points.
In my opinion, buy the best one you can afford. They're all great, and they just keep getting better!! The newer they are, the less routine maintenance they will need. It is interesting to note that there are some 993TT's starting to sell in the mid-high $50,000 range. What a great car for the bucks.

 

Last930...that's pretty cool you have #1200...

I agree with the best you can afford...and also if you want to leave it "stock" or want to modify....sort of depends upon one's goals.

 

Thanks for your replies.


RMS

 

Best peforming, reliable and affordable. Not sure affordable belongs in the list. Best performing and reliablity come at the expense of a less affordable price tag.
I think there is a huge difference in the affordablity factor between the early '78,'79, the later '89, the C2 turbo,993TT, and the 996 TT. If high horsepower is your goal (500+), then you will most likely bust a 50K budget on just buying the later Turbos (993 on) For 50K, you can have one screaming 78 thru 89 930 with all of the mods.
Rick
'78 930