Reasonable Mileage for Used 991
 

I'm looking to upgrade from my current 2003 996 and with my budget, it looks like a 2012-2015 Carrera S would be a good fit. A lot of the cars I've looked at in this year range have 20,000 to 35,000 miles on them, which seems reasonable for their age. A few good very nice looking ones have 50,000 miles or a bit more. Is there any significant risk in going with a mileage on the higher end of the range? I'd prefer to buy CPO from a Porsche dealer, but many of their higher mileage cars are not offered as CPO, although I'm told that a Porsche dealer will usually certify them for a few thousand dollars over the listed price. Any advice will be appreciated!

991's have been very reliable with no catastrophic problems as with M96/7 engines. I'm closing in on 50K on mine and it's never had a mechanical problem in its entire life except a bad window switch. How many miles a car you buy has on it is entirely a matter of personal preference. There's nothing "wrong" with a 2014 991 with 50K miles. All it means is that it's been driven, you know, 50K miles. Just don't pay 20K mile money for it and you'll be fine.

Well maintained car is always more important than mileage IMO - as long as you don't mind extra rock pecks etc.

2013 991.1 here - closing in 55000, "knock on wood" - not a problem

Cab in the North. :) I get in about 12,500 per driving season. Will have over 54,000 miles by the time I get home tomorrow.

Good for you.:)
I see so many very low mileage 991s in the Boston/NH area. The cars seem to come out from hibernation in late spring.

​​​​​​I would think worse for resale because depreciation curve is steeper the lower the mileage, i.e. you're going to lose more money owning a 991 from 20k to 50k than one you own from 50k to 80k. But this is probably overthinking it.

I put about 18-20,000 on mine last year . Couldnt imagine only 5/year. Barely get the moisture out of the exhaust at that!

I think that is great that you are able to drive your 911 so much. For most folks, it seems like a second or third car. Also folks who buy used 911s seem to want low mileage ones not that it should matter if one plans to keep the car or even otherwise. As I said, most used 911s on dealer lots that I have seen have low miles. When I bought my Boxster in 2013, the dealer had a pristine 10-year old 911 in the showroom with one thousand miles. Very strange.

Dealers of all brands generally only keep the low mileage cars on their lots, the rest go to auction. I also drive an SQ5...put about 20,000 on it last year too! It hasn't moved for about 4 weeks. This is my first 911 so I am driving it almost everywhere every day

Within standard annual lease mileage limits is reasonable. As many have stated, it's common to find used 911s with odometer readings substantially lower than standard lease mileage limits.

IMO, the geographic "home" of the car is more important than mileage. For example, I would much prefer to buy a Southern California, Arizona, Nevada car than one that has been owned and driven in areas that get snow (and resulting salt from the roads). That's my preference. No disrespect to midwesterners and easterners. I'm from Western NY state, so I know about snow and salt.

IME 5-9K miles per year is a range you can use for "normal" miles before you'd expect to pay less/get less for a 911 due to mileage, all other things being equal.