New Owner of 1991 964 C4
03-13-2012, 08:41 PM
#1
Instructor
Thread Starter
New Owner of 1991 964 C4
I'm proud to report that I'm the new owner of a 1991 964 C4 in Oak Green Metallic / Tan. It's been an interesting purchase process, but nothing I'm new to. I think this will be my 7th car (4 BMW, 2 Porsche, 1 Chevrolet) that I've bought remotely and either shipped or drove home. I never seem to find cool cars local to me. This one unfortunately had to be shipped. It would have been a fun road trip but the timing with work and everything was bad. This one hails from New Hampshire. The prior owner is a Rennlister as well.
This is a very special car for me. I come mainly from the BMW community until fairly recently when I bought an '83 911 SC Targa. That was a beautiful car and in great shape. The Targa style and chassis flex just wasn't for me. It all works out for a reason, however, because I learned a lot more about Porsche while owning that car and was able to come to the condlusion that my ultimate 911 would be a 964. Once I sold the 911 SC and received the go-ahead from the wife, it took a matter of weeks to find the one I wanted. It's just my personal style that when I decide I want something, I pull out all the stops and make it happen in fairly short time. It's not necessarily a good trait, because I end up making decisions on emotion rather than maybe the smartest choice, but I've always been that way and have learned to live with it. With my budget, I had the pick of most standard 964 C2/C4 models. C2 vs C4 wasn't too much of an issue for me. My primary search condition was color, since it seems so many were made in a small set of standard colors (red and black); second being overall mechanical condition, and third was the bonus of already having upgraded adjustable/lower suspension and "wheels". The special order and even rarer RS colors were hot to me. My best finds were in the forums (mainly Pelican and Rennlist), where I searched all the way back in time to Jan 2011. My tactic worked when I found a great color - Oak Green Metallic - from a summer 2011 for sale post that the guy just sort of gave up selling because he was actually enjoying the car. So he was a bit surprised when I called asking about the car.
Anyway, the car just arrived last week, but unfortunately I'm not enjoying it yet due to some registration issues that should be resolved in a few days. I can't say that I didn't resist the temptation to give it a good washing (it was nasty after the trip from New Hampshire to Colorado) and a nice, albeit brief, spin down a few of my twisty rural neighborhood roads.
The car isn't perfect, but no surprise to me; that was acceptable given my budget and afformentioned search criteria. Most importantly, the shell is solid and the motor has good compression. Oh my God, and the G50 transmission is the best I've ever shifted. In the near future I'll be addressing the following mostly cosmetic issues/annoyances:
- Passenger side rocker trim piece not quite lying flat
- Top engine compartment insulation piece sagging down
- Center console, shifter, p-brake is a bit ratty looking (tan trim is dirty or worn)
- A few of the gauge lenses appear to have a clear film that is bubbling a little
- Cruise control inop (I suspect it to be the control module)
- Some speakers reportedly are in-op (I'm not really into listening to the radio anyway)
Of course, many other upgrades are in store such as suspension (Bilstein PSS10, 18" wheels (thinking Cup wheels from 996), and tires of course. It'll never stop. I plan to own this car for the rest of my days. Anyway, without further adeu, here is the eye candy that most of you will immediately scroll down to. These are from the prior owner because I've had no time lately to give it a proper wash/detail and drive to a scenic location for pictures.
This is a very special car for me. I come mainly from the BMW community until fairly recently when I bought an '83 911 SC Targa. That was a beautiful car and in great shape. The Targa style and chassis flex just wasn't for me. It all works out for a reason, however, because I learned a lot more about Porsche while owning that car and was able to come to the condlusion that my ultimate 911 would be a 964. Once I sold the 911 SC and received the go-ahead from the wife, it took a matter of weeks to find the one I wanted. It's just my personal style that when I decide I want something, I pull out all the stops and make it happen in fairly short time. It's not necessarily a good trait, because I end up making decisions on emotion rather than maybe the smartest choice, but I've always been that way and have learned to live with it. With my budget, I had the pick of most standard 964 C2/C4 models. C2 vs C4 wasn't too much of an issue for me. My primary search condition was color, since it seems so many were made in a small set of standard colors (red and black); second being overall mechanical condition, and third was the bonus of already having upgraded adjustable/lower suspension and "wheels". The special order and even rarer RS colors were hot to me. My best finds were in the forums (mainly Pelican and Rennlist), where I searched all the way back in time to Jan 2011. My tactic worked when I found a great color - Oak Green Metallic - from a summer 2011 for sale post that the guy just sort of gave up selling because he was actually enjoying the car. So he was a bit surprised when I called asking about the car.
Anyway, the car just arrived last week, but unfortunately I'm not enjoying it yet due to some registration issues that should be resolved in a few days. I can't say that I didn't resist the temptation to give it a good washing (it was nasty after the trip from New Hampshire to Colorado) and a nice, albeit brief, spin down a few of my twisty rural neighborhood roads.
The car isn't perfect, but no surprise to me; that was acceptable given my budget and afformentioned search criteria. Most importantly, the shell is solid and the motor has good compression. Oh my God, and the G50 transmission is the best I've ever shifted. In the near future I'll be addressing the following mostly cosmetic issues/annoyances:
- Passenger side rocker trim piece not quite lying flat
- Top engine compartment insulation piece sagging down
- Center console, shifter, p-brake is a bit ratty looking (tan trim is dirty or worn)
- A few of the gauge lenses appear to have a clear film that is bubbling a little
- Cruise control inop (I suspect it to be the control module)
- Some speakers reportedly are in-op (I'm not really into listening to the radio anyway)
Last edited by MrNvgtr; 03-14-2012 at 08:24 PM. Reason: grammar
03-13-2012, 09:03 PM
#3
Rennlist Member
Nice! Welcome.
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03-14-2012, 10:14 AM
#8
Rennlist Member
Welcome!
Great introduction (I did read it first before looking at the pics). Wonderful story.
Smart looking back at old sales ads...the seller knew you were serious when he got the call!
Great introduction (I did read it first before looking at the pics). Wonderful story.
Smart looking back at old sales ads...the seller knew you were serious when he got the call!
03-14-2012, 11:50 AM
#11
Addict
Rennlist Member
Rennlist Member
Congrats! You're in good company with that color - dark green metallic was a favorite of Ferdinand (Ferry) Porsche.
Anyone ever tell you you look just like Gerald McRaney?
Anyone ever tell you you look just like Gerald McRaney?
03-14-2012, 08:51 PM
#13
Instructor
Thread Starter
Thanks for sending the welcoming committee 
I can't wait to get started on things. There's essentially no maintenance records, so I'll be steadily accomplishing all those routine tasts one-by-one. First things first is an oil change since the PO said it's about time to do it again. I've already bought oil (Brad Penn 20w50) - great price at Oil Wearhouse thanks to RL - and a Mahl OC54 oil filter to do my first oil change.
I also bought a Lloyd's carpet set, tan w/string color script, to at least hide and protect this hideous floor insulation issue for the short term. I forgot to mention that in my original post. I'll look into that more probably next year. Based on my reading here, I have a feeling there's a window trim leakage issue that I'll need to address to make it go completely away. Once that's resolved or ruled out, I'm thinking of deleting the bottom portion and adding an aluminum floor (track mat?) sprayed with black crinkle paint or something similar that's durable. I think that's a sharp look without going full bare or re-installing new carpet. I've always hated the feeling of thick padding and carpet under your shoes where all the action happens with the pedals.
I also bought a 40 amp relay to get DRLs enabled. I think it's a cheap, good looking, and safe upgrade to do.
Not much else to do in the near future. I'm mainly just saving up for the suspension and wheels in the meantime. Some of the other stuff (passenger rocker trim, aging center console pieces, and engine padding) is just cosmetic and may just require some free labor (myself) and research.
@CarlSkisWP - Will I be seeing you around anywhere? I like to be active in local car groups, but haven't seen/heard of much going on around here in the P-car world. I'm with the Alpine Mountain Region PCA too.
@911Jetta - Yeah, I definitely had to convince him to even sell it.
@Ken D - Haha, I just added that tonight. I posted on Facebook yesterday about being notified of my upcoming promotion to Major (USAFR), and someone suggested I change my username to Major Dad. Totally forgot about that '80's show. That's where that idea came from.
I can't wait to get started on things. There's essentially no maintenance records, so I'll be steadily accomplishing all those routine tasts one-by-one. First things first is an oil change since the PO said it's about time to do it again. I've already bought oil (Brad Penn 20w50) - great price at Oil Wearhouse thanks to RL - and a Mahl OC54 oil filter to do my first oil change.
I also bought a Lloyd's carpet set, tan w/string color script, to at least hide and protect this hideous floor insulation issue for the short term. I forgot to mention that in my original post. I'll look into that more probably next year. Based on my reading here, I have a feeling there's a window trim leakage issue that I'll need to address to make it go completely away. Once that's resolved or ruled out, I'm thinking of deleting the bottom portion and adding an aluminum floor (track mat?) sprayed with black crinkle paint or something similar that's durable. I think that's a sharp look without going full bare or re-installing new carpet. I've always hated the feeling of thick padding and carpet under your shoes where all the action happens with the pedals.
I also bought a 40 amp relay to get DRLs enabled. I think it's a cheap, good looking, and safe upgrade to do.
Not much else to do in the near future. I'm mainly just saving up for the suspension and wheels in the meantime. Some of the other stuff (passenger rocker trim, aging center console pieces, and engine padding) is just cosmetic and may just require some free labor (myself) and research.
@CarlSkisWP - Will I be seeing you around anywhere? I like to be active in local car groups, but haven't seen/heard of much going on around here in the P-car world. I'm with the Alpine Mountain Region PCA too.
@911Jetta - Yeah, I definitely had to convince him to even sell it.
@Ken D - Haha, I just added that tonight. I posted on Facebook yesterday about being notified of my upcoming promotion to Major (USAFR), and someone suggested I change my username to Major Dad. Totally forgot about that '80's show. That's where that idea came from.
03-14-2012, 09:26 PM
#15
Burning Brakes
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: Saddle River, New Jersey / Corolla, NC
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Welcome....she's a beauty
I replaced the Design 90 wheels on my 964 with a set I bought from Wheel Enhancement. they were great to work with and the offsets were PERFECTION !
I replaced the Design 90 wheels on my 964 with a set I bought from Wheel Enhancement. they were great to work with and the offsets were PERFECTION !