Heirsh

I guess I shouldnt add to such an old thread, but, I agree with You Jim.

I like the bug eyes. I think the bumper itself is better on the 993, but the headlights detract compared to a 964. The back of the 993 is quite nice though. I certainly wouldnt mind owning a 993 either. I can just smell a twin turbo.

p993targa

RX-8 decent looks, sorry but IMHO its awful

Mark

marcandkimmie

Yes an air cooled only mechanic told me the 964 is the best Porsche 911 to own. His reasons are that it offers the modern amenities while being the last of the hand built 911's. He said that starting with the 993, Porsche started using "modern" manufacturing techniques that actually decreased build quality to some degree.

I do not know if that is true, but he is a very reputable source. I also own an 86 Carrera and at first I did not like the 964 styling, but after time, I realized that it is indeed a beautiful car and not at all chunky. The 993 is gorgeous, but the 964 is also quite beautiful in a slightly more classic 911 kind of way.

I love my 964 and I do not intend to get rid of it...ever.

H964

if you want a 993 , you might as well buy a 996, same price, and does everything better. if you want a real classic you buy a pre 94 911's
i always thought 993s were amazing looking cars, but they are just a pretty thing
on the other hand, 964s are more abstract, the more you look at them the more you discover their beauty, i remember the first time i saw a 964 , i hated it...
anyway, why are we still talking about this???? get a life

Euromagination

I always see threads similar to this but I rarely comment.

I think any Porsche is just a Porsche. (Well, not "just" a Porsche, but you know what I mean; they're ALL in the same great marque.) From 356 --> 912 --> 924 --> Carrera GT, I respect them all equally for what they are. Obviously as time goes on the cars' designs will be rev'd and improved, and hand-built isn't always best-built IMO... (Not that the 964 was hand-built anyway, but that's not the point here.)

That said, I think the 964 is situated nicely between the 'classic' and 'modern' Porsche eras which is partially the reason why I think it's special. But in my opinion it's not better per se; just special in its own way. Each Porsche is...

Actually, the only thing I'd change about the 964 is to retrofit HID headlights. They're just too awesome to not have once you've had them. The 993 has Litronics; they're lucky.

aeroman

I just do not know how one can't think this is not great looking:

blake

Nice car! I agree completely that the 964 is a "looker"... My top 4 964s would be (in no particular order): 1) 1994 Speedster, 2) 1992 America Roadster, 3) 1994 3.6 Turbo, and 4) 1993 RSA (note: I'd drop the America Roadster if they ever shipped a wide body Speedster stateside).

Adrian made the point earlier in this thread that anyone with a 964 would not have a problem upgrading to a GT3. Truth be told, I dreamed of adding an RSA to the stable, but found the price point of the GT3 hard to resist. My goal is to get the aforementioned 964s during my lifetime. I absolutely love the 964 line.

Chris M.

Hmm? $40K for an RSA, $80K for a GT3? I do think RSAs are overpriced for an 80 pound loss but $80K is a lot o' coin.
No way! Night and day difference between those cars! No comparison.

c

jlr

Mine is a 93 RSA and the real benefit to me is the lack of power steering (to me, brilliant steering feel is one of the elemental qualities of a Porsche). Beyond the 964 model's aesthetics, I also love the very supportive cloth seats, and the stripped out RS look of the interior. BTW, I sold a 997S to "move on" to my RSA, which is a much more involving car to drive than the newer Porsche. The only new Porsche I'd consider now is a GT3.

blake

Chris M - actually, if you look at "rsamerica.net", the RSA prices are rising into the low $50s. Considering they were at the $30-$35K point a few years back (2002/2003), I would rather wait and buy in at the next trough. With that said, I am betting that the 997 GT3 will be a disappointment to the track enthusiast, and expect the 996 GT3 prices to stabilize in the low to mid 70s, then pick up again. So far, my 964 Speedster which I picked up in 2000 with 10K on the odometer had depreciated little.

jlr - the lack of power steering int he RSA is what really appeals to me. I have been thinking about taking that route with the Speedster...

-B

SleepRM3

I recently started looking into the 964 series Carreras. I was initially impressed with the '99 996 (the only MY 996 with LSD option), but my realistic budget keeps my in the G50 911s and early 964s. It seems the 964 is the modernized iteration of the classic 911--while the 993 began the "modernization" of the 911 into what the 997 is today--a heavy grand tourer--instead of the svelte sports car it was with the classic 911.

108.5dba-static

On the topic of build quality, I was once told that a 964 took 450 hours of labour to screw together, where as a 996 took 180 hours. This does not necessary mean that the 996 is a lesser car (it just is ), just that Porsche spent more time and money producing the 964.

For me the 964 is the best although I would swap for a 993RS or TT, a 996 GT2 or a 997 Turbo or 904, 917 or 550/356 spyder. However I have to live in the real world so its a 964 for me and they do not get much better than this one.

Jay H

Those manufacturing methods Porsche used to build the 964 (and prior 911's) was a very outdated method of building cars. Hence the hiring of consultants from Toyota when the 993 was being produced to modify how Porsche built cars. They sought out increased efficiencies to make them more profitable.

The base 993 was about $5000 less than the base price of the outgoing 1994 964. Maybe these better production techniques had something to do with this price change? The 993 is still a well screwed together 911. I do think some of the materials Porsche employed on the 996 are not as expensive as materials used in the 993 and earlier cars.

I've also read that Porsche had to rework almost 50% of the cars that came off the assembly line in the '80's. We all know that rework is the most expensive work a company can do. Porsche most likely was forced to change their production methods in order to stay alive.

KirkF

Interesting thread to read.

I think the 964 is a stunning part of the 911 line, and my personal favorite. I wish I had the $$$ to keep more than one of them. (I would love a polar silver 993)

Marc, we gotta figure out some way to get a TPC group buy going!

Kirk