lml999

Now lessee. Belt job $1200 (estimated). Clutch job $1200 (estimated). Other stuff -- bushings, control arms, gaskets, etc. $750 (light). Dealer will be paying me to take the car off the lot.

200K was an upper limit estimate on my part, based on the 10 years elapsed. It could have been a garage queen and racked 500 miles over those ten years. You know...only driven on Sunday, to/from church (NHIS or Mont Tremblant).

Or Ferris Buehler could have borrowed the car, driven it backwards and taken the 30K off.

Dealer is typical used car shop. Started the business 2 years ago, has one visible negative experience on the web (BMW motorcycle sale, bad transmission).

I will take a look at the exhaust...thanks for the tip!

This will be a daily driver for me for a couple of years and may turn into more of a dedicated autocross/track rat. I'm a PCA associate member and autocross regularly with NER PCA, spend a couple of days on the track each year with either the PCA or Audi club. Current toy is a tastefully modified '01 A4 1.8t quattro avant.

While I don't want to pour tons of money into it fixing things that I didn't know about prepurchase, I've been driving Audis for the past 15 years and understand upkeep...and preventive maintenance. I also have another car that sees winter time DD duties (an A6 wagon), so the 968 won't be my only transportation.

And DD responsibilities are fairly light -- I work from a home office and commute to other offices by Acela or air

My grail car is a 996 or 997 C4S. This will be my first Porsche and I don't feel that I'm ready for my grail car yet!

Lee

ernie9468

___Also red flag on this one ,if nothing to hide there is no reasons not to let the car go for an independant PPI.I'll say forget it,to much unknown.Suggest you look here on RL or Pelican pay a little more & buy one with maintenance records & known history it will pay off in a long run.GL

odurandina

yes. i agree 100 %; and Ernie's synopsis gets right to the point....


just a couple of thoughts to consider when purchasing a 968;

don't stay firm on the idea of purchasing local... the car closest to your home could end up costing you.. and this one is a completely, blind car. in this situation it might just be best to move on... one significant problem with the 968s is that they're now getting really old.. and like the 944s of just a couple of years ago, they now have a lot of history, good and bad.. but, one thing about our cars that the dealer doesn't know can be used to your advantage; it's that the 968 is like, a 4X better built car than the 944 ! serious. it's a dramatic upgrade. yet, quite different now than from just a few years ago — is that the 968s are nearly as old as the old crapola '44.... there's not going to be as much of a separation in the dealer's mind as there would have been before...

and even better, you hold all the cards in terms of buying the right one ! you don't even know this car's true mileage (something that would drive most of us nuts and, over time, will probably drive you nuts too)..... occasionally there are Rennlisters (and others) who have very well-cared for 968s with all records, and they're simply moving on to Cayman's and 911s.... or this is already their second Porsche and they're upgrading their number two cars to Boxsters or Caymans.....

the parts might not break the bank but they are numerous and pricey... the engine might be okay, and i'm not saying you can't buy this car and make it work.... but, you have to go on the assumption that everything is past due... you'll need to spend about $1,400 dollars worth of parts and fluids.... do a tune up and complete 110~120 mile engine service including replacing most of the timing system before you can properly drive the car. then there's the driveline and transmission compenents.... you don't really know the mileage on the clutch... a lot of unknowns here.... you don't know when the brake fluids, coolant and transmission oil was done, so you can add those.

when i purchased my 968, i told the seller that his upkeep on the car was good, but that a lot of time had elapsed during his retirement and as far as i was concerned all of the wires, hoses and belts needed fresh replacement... additionally, i told him the clutch was long overdue for replacement... i read the born-on dates of the tires, and discovered fluids on the suspension bushings.. and he caved.

in your situation, it's not likely you'll get a used car dealer to come down to earth, because he knows he can find someone else who will overpay..... but just the same, tell him you'll meet halfway on $4~5 k worth of refreshes that need to be done right now... which means getting him to come down about 20~25 hundred dollars. explain you won't drive this car until the risks associated with valvetrain failure are eliminated, and the car's igniton parts, fluids and filters are replaced.... if a miracle occurs and you're able to get him to come back to reality, the guys here will be happy to point to the items that need replacement.

on a bright note, the Porsche 968 is a very forgiving car... if it was me i might leave him an offer @ about $2,500 less than his asking price in a sealed envalope explaining the carfax discrep, and the long list of parts and fluids that would need to be replaced... and most of all, that the offer is your final.

good luck,

regards,

od.


.

odurandina

think they fixed the fatal flaw of the H20-cooled 996, Boxster and Cayman engines with the Gen 1 997s ?

https://rennlist.com/forums/997-foru...lure-mode.html

ernie9468

Also red flag here,there is no reasons for not letting you have the car for a PPI unless they have something to hide.Simple no PPI no money in their pockets,if I were you I'll look around RL or Pelican & try to buy one which has records & known history.You migth pay a little more upfront but it will pay in a long run.GL

lml999

Thanks Ernie. Dealer okay with PPI, just not a full day without car.

I will continue to look...will also take this one for a spin later this week.

I fully understand the statement that the least expensive car is not usually the cheapest.

Lee

odurandina

first the good news... on a bright note, i'm of the school that you can roll the dice on the clutch and transmission for now, as they can go for a very long time (my clutch is the original and i'm almost at 160 k miles. but, do change the fluids....

120 k mile service (or sooner) talking about pulling the valve cover off and replacing the cam chain, pads and hall sender.... the cams sprockets could be damaged.... they need to be inspected... and you could have a couple of lifters sticking.....

then the timing/bs/serpine belts, rollers and tensioner, H20 pump, thermostat, hoses (incl. fuel hoses), front engine seals, some gaskets, brake, clutch fluids/coolant, full tune up w/ cap and rotor (old rotors fail), plugs/wires, air and fuel filters, check all ps hoses, pump (ps pump seals may require replacing), and rack for leaks, and check steering column for play....

good chance the ball joints in the control arms will have play,..... control arms and caster blocks are a grand (just the parts)... and you can almost guarentee the caster blocks and sway bar bushings need to be swapped.... on the 968, strut mounts are a grand and change.... struts... shocks.......

welcome to Porsche.

rgs944

With higher miles I would only suggest it if you do your own wrenching. Let me tell ya, there is something I like about that car, I just can not pinpoint it right now though.

odurandina

black interior WIN !

jeff968

Lee, if you are ever in the neighborhood and want to take a look at some colorful examples of the 968 send me a PM. Also, if you are still shopping on April 21st head down to the PCA swap in Hershey. There are always nice 968s in the car coral for sale.
Jeff

odurandina

what you can say about any P-car, you can say about any P-car...

overall, the cars are great.... the parts often leave much to be desired.

lml999

I do basic maintenance, the big stuff I leave to a very good private mechanic...a guy I've been working with for more than 20 years. I also have a buddy who is a very accomplished mechanic, and Porsche owner, he may assist with some work if necessary.

I agree about the color combo. My A6 wagon is black on black, with black Ultraleggera summer wheels.

Lee

lml999

Thanks Jeff, I appreciate the offer. I may well take you up on it!

Lee

lml999

Funny....I just ran across the *same* car listed in West Palm Beach. Most likely a scam...but perhaps the guy is legitimately trying to turn a quick buck. Sell it for 14K, buy it for $9K. Not bad.

http://miami.craigslist.org/pbc/cto/2828155589.html

Lee

odurandina

barn find.


waitaminute.... you were gonna pay $14 k for a car with a bad carfax ?

be thinking more like $7.5~8.5 k (tops) for that thing bro.