VinnyC

Hello all. This is my first post here and would like some of your opinions.
I am looking to buy a turbo and have always loved the 964 widebody cars. The problem is the limited availability of cars for sale. This usually means that you have to settle for some color combo you might not necessarily love or buy a car out of state, which I personally am reluctant to do.
In my area, I have 4-5 Porsche Dealers all of which have pre-owned 996's in almost every color combo and configuration. Most of these cars can be had for 15-20K more than the 964's for sale, but you can get financing easily, get a warranty, and because of the year difference, have much better long term resale value.

So have any of you owned / driven the 996 and the 964? Can you help me compare the performance between the two. How different is the air-cooled turbo vs. the water cooled? 2 wheel drive vs. 4 wheel, etc. Do the modern electronics in the 996 change the feel of the car drastically?
Should I also consider the 993? Thanks!

C2 Turbo

Vinny,
Do you see the SEARCH sign on th top,please click on that tab and you will get your answers and you forgot to mention 930 Turbos and 996 TT's ?
So the Porsche dealers in your town have various color 997 TT's for sale for around 60-70 grand ( wonder what planet would that be ? ) but unfortunately on our Planet Earth Porsche hasn't even released the 997 TT yet ?

jeff91C2T

Yo Yasir. Did you miss your cup of coffee this morning?

Vinny....all good questions. Surf the forums and you'll get lots of info. Hopefully you won't see as much attitude ;-)

DrJupeman

Vinny, welcome. The "search first" scoldings will only continue so best to heed the advice. That said, I will save you the searching and simply respond to your question:

Take the time to find the one you like and buy a 964 Turbo. You won't regret it.

Mark S.

964 Turbo v. 996 Turbo ... all water cooled 911 Porsche's are from the 'dark side' ...

C2 Turbo

He has since edited his post esp replacing 997 TT with 996 TT so thats why my response sounded so weird

JBH

I would be really surprised to see 964T and 996T price difference of only $20K. If that were the case and you can afford it, there is no question but to seek a 996TT.

The 996 will be faster and more comfortable than the 964. You are looking at the advantage of an additional 10 years of development: twin turbos, EFI, 4 wheel drive, 6 speed gear box, bigger brakes, superior suspension, etc.

Sameer

Th 964 turbo IMHO is one of the last few good looking turbos other than the 993tt around. If you go for the 964, try looking for the 3.6turbo.

Miles965uk

I would choose the 964 only if you want that look and you like em rare... otherwise look at the 993s as well. These cars are not one dimensional! i.e there will be so many for and againsts on all models- and in the end its your personal taste & budget. I would say dont knock anything first until you driven them as thats what youll be doing when you own it!
Then do some search on the running issues with them and depreciation- which will all effect your wallet.
oh if you want credit- dont forget youll need a small amount set aside for the unexpected repairs which you shouldnt really own one without.
Good luck

Curt911

I think your resale value will be better with the 964, 996TT is still far from bottoming out pricewise.

What is your price range? What about a 993?

I think if you want more modern luxury go with the 996, peronally I'd pick a 993TT or the 964 3.6. The 996 is great, but I prefer the more traditional feel of the older ones...

speednme

if your not in a hurry, do your research. i.e. performance, maintenance, etc.. on all the turbo's on your list. try to find and test drive each model. some people rather have the 2wd over the awd. i guess in the end it will be your personal choice. i personally own a 3.6 turbo which i enjoy. you can purchase your own warranty on line if you choose to. you don't actually need a dealer to finance a car. you can use your own bank. so to summarize my response, once again do your research. good luck

p.s. is this your first porsche? if it is. you need to also drive the normally aspirated cars. in other words drive as many as you can ( find ). before making a final decision.

Rey

cobalt

IMO all the turbos are great but if you crave a car that requires the most out of its driver, delivers the highest level of excitement and fun and looks the hottest their is no other than the 964 Turbos. The 993TT's and 996TT's are awesome machines but have lost most of what IMO the Porsche Turbo is all about. They are smooth and docile and deliver great power and handling but if your not tracking the car you need to break the sound barrier to bring the car to the level were you feel you are driving a beast The 996TT's have all the creature comforts and to me feel like I am driving something other than a Porsche. The build quality of the newer cars is nothing compared to the earlier cars and with the glut of 996TT's out there the value is dropping on used examples all the time. If you want a daily driver that gives you all the bells and whistles then the 996TT is for you, otherwise for weekend fun or if you like cars that challenge you every day the 964 is the way to go. Just my .02.

38D

The 996TT and 964T are going to feel very different. The 996TT will have more creature comforts, and be easier to drive fast. The 964T will feel more "raw".

VinnyC

I appreciate all your comments. To answer some questions, I have owned 2 normally aspirated 911's and 1 turbo. A '95 C2 coupe, '99 C2 Cab. and a long time ago I owned a '76 930 turbo. The excitement and feeling of the 930 was second to none. I can still remember it and crave that feeling. I'm currently driving an E55 AMG which is also an amazing car, but something is missing. Maybe because it's a sedan, or maybe because it does not handle all that well. It certainly has enormous power, and all the "Comfort" I could want.
What I'm really tring to find out is how different the cars feel in terms of performance. We all know the specs, 0-60 times are stated at 4.8 vs. 4.5 or so. So they are similar. But is the 964 turbo like the old 930's where you have this lag and then this tremendous rush of power from the turbo? Is the 996 more linear in it's power delivery to the point where the average person could not tell it was turbo charged? Is the 964 more fun to drive or vice versa?

38D

The 993s and the 996s will both have far less lag than the 964T. I don't find the 964T lag to be problematic, but it is there. If you crave the rush, the 964T will deliver. Drop in a 1.0 bar spring and it's one honking fast car.