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I never noticed the 'smell' until I read posts like these. Now I do notice it.
Minor blemishes on the paintwork will be glaringly obvious when you first get the car. After a few months maybe you won't notice them. After a few more months, maybe you will love the car as it is and not be bothered to wrap, or mess with it in any way.
I never noticed the 'smell' until I read posts like these. Now I do notice it.
Minor blemishes on the paintwork will be glaringly obvious when you first get the car. After a few months maybe you won't notice them. After a few more months, maybe you will love the car as it is and not be bothered to wrap, or mess with it in any way.
You're probably right. I'm still in the honeymoon phase where I go check to see who is parked by me at the office, investigate every smudge, and right before bed I go down to do one more check-in. Lol.
Originally Posted by StimmyGaroppolo;[url=tel:18565020
18565020]After 30+ years of lusting, I am officially a member of the 911 club!
Following the maxim "Buy as new a model as you can afford", I went with a 2013 991.1 Carrera S with <20k miles. Two owners, no accidents. Paid cash and skipped financing. The most recent owner is a wonderful dude who clearly cared for and loved this car.
My questions for the community:
- [GENERAL] When buying a used 911, is there anything you do immediately upon purchase? Take it in for a full inspection?
- [OBSERVATION] Whenever I drive the car, I can smell the engine once I step out. It doesn't smell like burnt rubber or anything, and perhaps this is totally normal for a 911(or any car with the engine in the rear) and I'm just not used to smelling an engine. Totally normal?
- [REPAIR] The body has two or three small exterior flaws: pain chip, scratch on passenger mirror. Is it best to just take this to a Porsche dealer for repairs? Or should I just find a body shop with good reviews that deals with nicer vehicles.
- [MODS] The emblem doesn't say "CARRERA", just "911S". I'd like to add "CARRERA" to the rear. Also, I'd like to wrap it British racing green. Anyone with experience making either of these mods? Any guidance?
Thanks in advance. Excited to be officially part of the club!
I don't want to assume you know, so I'll add to other's comments on the wrap:
Vinyl and PPF wraps are not the same thing, one is mostly for style and the other is mostly to protect. To my knowledge, a BRG PPF does not exist. Nor do wraps in general have set lifespans, like any product, they will vary with quality and use. As was said, it is expensive either way so I would make it the last big ticket item you do for the car for several reasons.
Last, I have two recommendations if you decide to go through with it: 1. Be well-versed in the differences/tradeoffs/looks of PPF vs Vinyl and look at pictures or videos of both good and bad installs. 2. Go meet a few shops to discuss. Know that you may have to make several visits to get your wrap dialed in for (hopefully) minor corrections. IMO, one does not simply "buy" a wrap and walk away, it becomes a thing to keep tabs on, have touch ups, and maintain (just like your normal paint lol). Because of that, be sure you get with a solid shop that will stand by the install through hell or high water. A good installer will take care of you and make it mostly painless if/when a problem does come up!
Last edited by Curious Cat; 01-16-2023 at 10:59 AM.
Reason: typo
Congratulations! Just got my '13 991.1 Carrera S manual in October. So far I've added AP Racing rotors, Ferodo 3.12 pads, DSC controller, Apex forged wheels, Nankang AR1 tires, PPF/ceramic coating and AWE wind diffusers. I also have MSI wheel studs, Tarett caliper studs and BMC air filters I haven't installed yet. Probably going to add Tarett camber plates, change springs and sway bars and call it quits for a while. The shiny sliver badges are probably my least favorite thing about the look of the car. Not sure if I'll keep them or not. Enjoy yours and have fun!
After 30+ years of lusting, I am officially a member of the 911 club!
Following the maxim "Buy as new a model as you can afford", I went with a 2013 991.1 Carrera S with <20k miles. Two owners, no accidents. Paid cash and skipped financing. The most recent owner is a wonderful dude who clearly cared for and loved this car.
My questions for the community:
- [GENERAL] When buying a used 911, is there anything you do immediately upon purchase? Take it in for a full inspection?
- [OBSERVATION] Whenever I drive the car, I can smell the engine once I step out. It doesn't smell like burnt rubber or anything, and perhaps this is totally normal for a 911(or any car with the engine in the rear) and I'm just not used to smelling an engine. Totally normal?
- [REPAIR] The body has two or three small exterior flaws: pain chip, scratch on passenger mirror. Is it best to just take this to a Porsche dealer for repairs? Or should I just find a body shop with good reviews that deals with nicer vehicles.
- [MODS] The emblem doesn't say "CARRERA", just "911S". I'd like to add "CARRERA" to the rear. Also, I'd like to wrap it British racing green. Anyone with experience making either of these mods? Any guidance?
Thanks in advance. Excited to be officially part of the club!
If you plan on wrapping, why worry about paint chips/blemishes?
If you wrap a car with chips there is likelihood of the paint ripping off when you remove the wrap. Typically, installers will require chips to be repaired but still warn the repaired area of paint may not be as strongly bonded and still rip off when removing the wrap. Sometimes this is more of a concern than other times. Personally, I think the entire wrap industry is a racket. Costs thousands to install, has to be replaced every so often, costs thousands to remove, may damage the paint anyways in the process, and then cost thousands more to rewrap again; repeat for the lifetime of the vehicle. Personally, I’ll be busy enjoying my car and not worrying about wrapping, but others should enjoy their car ownership in whatever way they seem fit.
Thank you sir! Sure, totally open to suggestions.
I am tentatively going to be taking my car to TRE up in Van Nuys. Inspection for half the price of others I called, and they are going to get the "Carrera" put on there for cheap.
To close the loop here, I went up to TRE.
They had my car up for maybe 10 min before letting me know the car was basically perfect, not a spec of oil anywhere. Wouldn't even charge me for looking at it. Great shop, really excited to go back.
Unfortunately the emblem broke, so they have to order a new one and I'll go back in probably next week to do that.
01-12-2023, 10:42 PM
