992carreraS

I just got a 2018 991.2 with 7000 miles, CPO for just under $100K. Couldn't be happier. Establish a relationship with a dealer as close to you as possible, and have them help you find one through their customer network or in coming trades. MHO

911.

37K miles, accident and over 100k? wow...

WonderBuck

https://finder.porsche.com/us/en_US/...briolet-212519
Plinker, I had seen this one but didn't pursue because I want sport exhaust.

https://www.themiamigarage.com/detai...6hs154518.html
Walrus, I have spoken with Hugo, the seller of this car. Hugo just had the car inspected and serviced by Patrick at Fiorano Sports Cars and the car was given a clean bill of health (see attached sheet). Anyone here have experience with this seller or mechanic/inspector? Unless there's a strong consensus that these guys are beyond reproach, I'm thinking I should get my own PPI done. Thoughts?

HkPlinker

I agree,
Sports Exhaust is my favorite option. I almost went with a non PSE car and went with the Soul cats and exhaust set up, but 6500 was a tough pill to swallow for extra exhaust noise, but I finally found my PSE car

Rich_Jenkins

I have no affiliation with this seller or his service/inspection. The inspection report is not "clean". It specifically mentions the car needs a front set of tires. The rest of the "inspection" is a series of check marks against a very generic set of topics. Without knowing more about the knowledge or capability of the inspector, it's basically meaningless. I did 30 second web search. Fiorano Sports Cars has a D+ BBB rating. That doesn't mean it's a shady company, it just means this web site reports they have a D+ rating on BBB. So who knows.

https://www.bbb.org/us/fl/hialeah/pr...-0633-90345827

As to the seller, The Garage in Doral has been in business since 2009. I could not find any local reviews, which I find odd. They have an A+ BBB rating, with 0 reviews.

https://www.bbb.org/us/fl/miami/prof...-0633-92012640

So, that's all I can objectively contribute.

I will say, subjectively, as a Florida resident, it's Miami. I would not trust any local private car dealer in Miami to represent a car accurately without inspecting the car myself. One last point, the car has only the balance of the four year Porsche warranty. As a non-dealer sale, it will not be and can't be a CPO. If you want a warranty post-expiration, you'll need to look aftermarket. (forgive me if you were aware of that already.)

Good luck!

WonderBuck

Yes, Fiorno also has a lot of alarming comments on their Facebook page.

Very odd that The Garage has zero reviews. I recall reading another thread about a guy traveling to Dallas to look at a Porsche, only to find that the dealership didn't exist.

I may travel to Miami later this month to look at this car, as I have some upcoming time off. I'm no mechanic but at least I could confirm that (a) the dealership and car do indeed exist; (b) the car is satisfactory from a cosmetic perspective; (c) nothing is obviously wrong based on a test drive.

Buying a used Porsche appears to be some treacherous ****.

Buck

WonderBuck

Regarding the warranty, my initial enthusiasm for CPO cars has waned considerably. Initially, I considered CPO status assurance that the car was free of issues. I now understand that to be untrue. The warranty part is still desirable I suppose; however, I have no local Porsche Dealer so would probably be better (or at least more conveniently) served by something like a Fidelity Warranty. There is an independent Porsche mechanic, locally. - Buck

Porschejam

How do you find out auction sales prices? That would be some interesting knowledge to have.

WonderBuck

I stumbled upon the auction listing on this website, actually. I was browsing through the thread called something like "hot buy of the week" and there was a link to a closed bringatrailer auction. I clicked on it and it just happened to be the same car that I was preparing to have inspected... I repeatedly compared the VINs because the coincidence seemed so unlikely. In the comments section, the winning bidder admits to being a dealer and mentions he'll be paying $3,200 to CPO the car. The seller also discusses the accident history with another bidder and opines on why it didn't show up on CafFax. Along with the photos, the seller on bringatrailer provided receipts from the accident repairs, disclosing the accident history. The Porsche Dealer opted not to do the same; it appears that they intend to sell the car without disclosing its accident history.

A more reliable/reproducible way to have found the same information would have been simply Googling the VIN. The bringatrailer listing comes right up in the search results.

Buck

I am the Walrus

Smart of you. A lot of times you can learn a lot of information about a vehicle by searching google with the VIN.

On any potential purchase I would always get a PPI, I would ask on here for the best local porsche indy shop for said car, and go with the consensus.

Porschejam

If it's CPO, hasn't a PPI already been done?

Tier1Terrier

I've only read a few of the replies and can already see that I'm in agreement with most.

These are not great options for a ~$100k vehicle. Keep shopping. Take your time. I took easily 6 months before I found the one I LOVED and pounced on it when I did. I encountered a bunch more or less the same as yours that left me with lots of doubts. I'm so glad I waited.

Also, CPO is nothing more than piece of mind ownership for two years but it doesn't tell you much about the vehicle. First, you cant even fully trust that the CPO was done to Porsche specifications. I almost bought (had a deposit down and begun paperwork) on a CPO vehicle which in the process of buying I had inspected by an independent mechanic who discovered a LOT of issues that would have cost me soon and not been covered by the CPO. Your better off buying a perfectly cared for and maintained vehicle without CPO and purchasing an extended warranty than a poorly cared for one with a two year warranty.

Keep looking.

WonderBuck

Just had another '17 C4S Cabriolet inspected. This is the third one I've described in this thread, so let's call it Car C.

Car C was listed for sale by an exotic car dealer (not an authorized Porsche Dealer) for about $95K. The dealer disclosed that there were a couple of rock chips on the front bumper and that the car needed new front tires. The CarFax is clean and the dealer indicated to me that the paint was all original. The pictures on the dealer's website looked good.

I had an inspection done by a well reputed mechanic. The inspection found that indeed there were rock chips on the front bumper and that the front tires were worn to the point of not being road worthy. It additionally found that a number of panels had been repainted (some of them very poorly), marked thinning of the paint on the front fenders, numerous scratches and rock chips (a number of which someone had attempted to cover with the wrong color of touch-up paint), badly scratched underside of the font bumper, fairly large scratch on one side of the front bumper, bent inner aspect of one of the wheels, leaking water pump, and numerous fault codes. The inspector relayed an opinion that the listed $95K price was way too high, given the car's condition. So, of course, I passed.

To his credit, the dealer agreed to reimburse me for the tow to and from the inspection.

I need to do some math to determine how many failed inspections I would have to pay for to eclipse the price difference between a new C4S and a 3 year old C4S (half kidding).

Buck

SFZ GT3

Buck, looks like it's time for "Door Number D", LOL. Seriously, the 3 cars you have described so far are very sketchy in so many ways that I (we) are glad you did. One thought from over 50 years of buying, selling, and enjoying P Cars is that the PPI should be way near the end of the process. What you are finding on these cars (at the cost of several hundred dollars each time) could/should be found out during a simple, visual inspection that any shade tree tech, enthusiast, friend could discover in 5-10 minutes. A couple of suggestions;
1. Do a deep, detailed Q/A with the seller. Make them do a specific walkaround and take 20-30 (at least) detailed, fairly close shots in good lighting of all panels, bumpers, wheels, tires, door treads, glass, interior/seat wear, etc. It's the easy, visible stuff that should be done and seen before the car goes in for a $$ PPI.

2. CarFax, Porsche VIN check with a friendly local dealer, and a RennFriend inspection can go a long way to take a deeper, independent look prior to any paid PPI. The seller wants to sell the car; if they are not motivated to assist, supply what you need (especially on a non-factory warranty or non-CPO car), I would pass. Especially on cars that have been for sale/listed for more than 30 days.

3. Private party, enthusiast owners, and cars, are usually your best bet. The number of buyers ready to stroke a check for or finance a close to 6 figure USED car are pretty slim. So dealers way underbid on the less than nice cars and then try to get full market value for a doggy car. The pristine, no stories, full history cars from private parties are the best option. With a quality car, and a cooperative seller, it is hard to go wrong and (to me at least) worth overpaying a bit for. And, usually, the PPI is a non-event. Of course, a DME Range Report on a manual car is required in any case.

Finally, I'm attaching a few detail pics I supplied to the recent buyer of a 997.s that I sold here on RL. These are what you want to see from a seller that is distant from you before you start signing up for PPI's.

Good luck, and I have a good feeling that behind Door D might be an A+ car!!

barncobob

gotta love those "exotic" dealers, usually fixer uppers that are shiny..