sugarwood

Someone posted this on a subforum and thought it might be an interesting topic.

Worry. It may sound like you've bought a car you're afraid to use, for a variety of reasons. Maybe you don't want to ruin a piece of history. Maybe you don't trust 30 year old reliability, or needing a niche mechanic on a long trip. Maybe you own a low mileage cream puff, and each mile driven is going to cost you. Maybe you're fearful of a high dollar repair? Can one address these worries? Or is your 911's fait accompli to be a trophy sculpture? When does it make sense to sell it?

Not parking outside. If that prevents you from driving it, maybe it's something to consider. After all, you bought the car to drive, not store, right? As a "Fear Factor" exercise, why not just park your 911 outside for a few days? Sometimes, I also need to remind myself my car is not made of paper mache, it's made of galvanized steel.

Is the car sorted out? Owning a car you don't "trust" is not a good feeling. I think part of this is just sorting it out, but another facet is simply logging miles and getting used to the car, like the psychology of a reliable old shoe. For limited use weekend cars, that old shoe feeling may never arrive. I have driven my 911 about 5000 miles, and I'm not yet fully at ease when I drive it, like I am with my DD that I've logged 30k miles on. For my DD, I just turn the key and go, and never think about stuff. In my 911, I still may think about the DME, the questionable space saver spare, the dash wires lighting on fire (yea, I did the fuse), prospects of rain, etc. This might be a negative by-product of spending too much time on Pelican.

Maybe we got in at the wrong time, after these cars had begun to morph from common track rat cars into scarce collector's items. As a 2014 buyer, I was nudged to view the car through a different lens than the P-car veterans here. Clean the car with a diaper. Everything stock. No driving in rain. No parking outdoors. The slippery slope of concours **** retentiveness beckons. I wonder if even 5 years ago, the 911 had a more "down and dirty" ethos, maybe more similar to what an old Miata is today. Cheap. Fun. Sun baked. Caution to the wind. Mod with no guilt. Crash it? Just buy another one. No one else wants 'em. Now, in a heated flipper dominated market, it could take a year to replace your car, at a reasonable price. If so, I can see how the old guard would bemoan the direction things have taken.

In his final few years of ownership, my PO barely drove the car. I declared from day one I didn't want that fate for myself. Garage space has opportunity cost. I made a decision after seeing the "neglected 911s" thread that if I dwindled to barely ever driving my 911, or an entire season passed without my driving it, I would sell it.

I should clarify that I am not meaning to pass judgement on those who don't drive their cars much. The satisfaction of owning an old car has many facets, and actually driving it is just one. I enjoy driving the car. But, I also enjoy cleaning my car, doing basic repairs, being a "caretaker", reading and learning more about the car, etc. Borrowing the main theme of "The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up", it occurred to me, even if one does not drive a car, but owning it still brings joy...then owning makes sense for that owner. We all have different ideas of what owning something should mean. The act of driving an old car is just one facet of owning an old car. Some may take great joy in maintaining it, looking at it, talking about it, preserving it, etc. without needing to drive it.

I'm not getting younger. I'd like to drive it more ...before I start to drive it less. Right now, probably drive it once a week. The motivation is sometimes, "I better drive the 911 (so the injectors don't clog)" I even felt that logging highway miles were a "waste" on my double digit odometer. So, I try to take back roads when I take the 911 out. But, sometimes, you're just in a hurry, or not in a mood. Every drive should not have to be an "event". That's negative overhead. One a recent drive, I said screw it, and drove all highway to and from work, because I was running late. Maybe that was a step in the right direction in logging some miles to break in these new shoes....and think less, and drive more.

Invictus

This is a nice essay.

Mine just caterpillared from a scratched dented and tinwormed but nonetheless thrilling driver into something approaching a butterfly.

I am frantically looking to find garage space for the butterfly after paying much more than I paid for the entire car in the first place to fix the frunk, all oil lines, all of other little bits hidden in and around te frunk, both doors, all glass, all of those little (and big) rubber seals that shrink with age, all rust, and then paint the whole thing.

Just this morning (before dawn) I stared at my bedroom ceiling and wondered what the f*ck have I done. So honestly it was great to read your essay and realize that a bit of rain or a few snowflakes won't cause my car to evaporate. Thank you - and be sure to beep if you see my shiny car in the non-snowstorm scheduled to paralyze Washington this afternoon.

Mikke_Possu

Unfortunately Yes. For last two years I've been driven less than 1000 km and 20 times. I will start up it regular basis but don't have time/interested to used it propely. However, I don't have plan to sell it so I just stored it my garage and keep sure that service book get stamp every year

fenixv8

Sadly this has how things have been for me since I moved from the suburbs and into the city. I rarely get the NSX or 964 out. They just sit there and look pretty. End of taking the bike or my wife's hybrid or sometimes even public transportation. I am guilty of having fear of them being hit and repairs being ridiculously expensive. The 964 was just scratched last month and paint repair was crazy expensive. Mostly though I just don't seem to have the time and it doesnt make things any better that we only get 6 nice months out of the year to drive. I am hoping this spring will be different.

New years resolution. Drive NSX more and continue to sort the 964 to that old shoe reliability.

klokwerk

Thanks for the OP.....there are several things there to consider as a newer owner of a 964.
The car I bought is far from perfect and I was okay with that so long as it was mechanically sound.

I plan on keeping this car for a very long time and will sort out the cosmetic issues along the way.

The biggest thing or problem I've ever had with owning very nice or vintage (collector) cars has been parking it in public. The one that scared me the most was my 89 e30 M3.

This 964 doesn't bother me as much because it's not a perfect car. Maybe the take away is to keep it that way so I won't become afraid to use it like it's supposed to be used! LOL

peter_jansen

When I'm not in the driving season I'm wrenching on it. This way I feel that I enjoy it year around and when it is parked inside. The hunt was part of the fun too. I read everything about these cars that I can get my hands on. So even if it doesn't move it brings a great deal of pleasure. I agree that I only worry when in a parking lot. Even when I park a marathon's distance from the entrance with no other car around some dolt will wedge his POS next to me. Always looking for another one

Wachuko

Yes, but only because none of them are road worthy at this time

SC to RS Project:



964 - Need to rebuilt, again due to installing a seal backwards, the steering rack and sort out a transmission issue...and car needs a full respray. This is my baby and was my daily driver for many years... :



912 - Out to repair the few rust spots and install floors



While the first full engine rebuild that I have made, waits patiently to go in...



So yeah, sigh, I just sit in the garage and look at them daydreaming of driving them at some point in the future....

Just look at my avatar... that is Daniel (my son)... and here he is working on the SC->RS project... My projects take so frigging long!!

canuck964

Yes unfortunately for me the 964 is a garage statue.

Other than my golf club (where there is gated security) I do not drive her anywhere that requires public parking.

Paranoid that she will be stolen.

Really sad but this is the world we live in.

Driving is limited to weekend early morning and late evening drives. Lucky I live very near some great roads by the seaside.

I am not a rookie new owner this is my 10th year with her.

Three years ago I purchase a 350Z convertible as my real summer car and I take her everywhere. If she gets stolen or banged up I can readily get a replacement. Not true for the 964.

Earlydays

Just make sure you have an "Agreed Value" insurance policy....and enjoy the car!

911Jetta

+1

Nostrathomas

The most care-free fun I’ve ever had in a car was a rusty Mazda 5 Protege that I bought from my brother for $1000. Man that thing was like a go-kart in the city, and you could drive the crap out of it and not care. I still miss that car to be honest.

I bought my 964 with somewhat similar reasoning. I actively wanted a car that wasn’t perfect. When I found my 964, the buy-in was relatively cheap, it wasn’t a low mileage example (even though it’s in great shape, at 160K km's, it will never be some investment prize). I figured it was in solid enough condition to actively care about about, but not something that you have to be paranoid about. That, and the "dream" for me was always a 993 or 3.2, not a 964, so I figured it would be a nice relatively paranoia-free driver.

I even bought some nice winter wheels (from a Rennlister) to be able to drive it on a frozen lake. I had a blast.




Then two things happened:
1) The prices really shot up here in Canada (a combo of plummeting CAD and rising 964 values). What I jokingly called the "Beater Porsche" to my wife is now perhaps worth more than our 2 other cars combined, ha.

2) I really started to like the damn thing! Stupid sexy Porsche...

Now that it has value, both financial and sentimental, I definitely baby the thing more, and perhaps drive it less. Last year I took it out for the occasional winter drive. This year, it’s basically packed in for good. On one hand, Im glad 964 values have risen so they can get their due respect, but on the other hand it's also lost a little bit of that carefree magic that a lot of cheaper cars have.

Perhaps it's time to go looking for a 996 to be the beater....

Wachuko

Yeah... that one will never see the increase in value. It will disintegrate on its own. I just can't stand that car... I had a 996TT, that would be the only one to exclude but only for the drive train... the full leather interior helped. A normal 996 , on the other hand, I will never own.

964George

Mines used and abused
Go car not show car

bmichael

Then two things happened:
1) The prices really shot up here in Canada (a combo of plummeting CAD and rising 964 values). What I jokingly called the "Beater Porsche" to my wife is now perhaps worth more than our 2 other cars combined, ha.

2) I really started to like the damn thing! Stupid sexy Porsche...

Now that it has value, both financial and sentimental, I definitely baby the thing more, and perhaps drive it less. Last year I took it out for the occasional winter drive. This year, it’s basically packed in for good. On one hand, Im glad 964 values have risen so they can get their due respect, but on the other hand it's also lost a little bit of that carefree magic that a lot of cheaper cars have.

Perhaps it's time to go looking for a 996 to be the beater....[/QUOTE]

+1 or perhaps a Cayman

canuck964

I have the policy but its not a money thing.

My problem is with the fear of finding a replacement if it stolen or written off in an accident.

Odds are virtually zero that I will find a similar 964.

With my 350Z I know there is an exact replacement available.

Have been on this forum since 2006 and have yet to find a 964 that is similar to mine.