zareth

Another thing to keep in mind, the PSE can be retrofitted into an existing car at the dealership. They charge quit a bit ($3,500 or more) to get it done, but if you find a car that you love that just doesn't happen to have the PSE, know you can add it in afterwards (For a lot more though than if you got it built in).

Jrod

My advice would be not to compromise on your must have options. If sound is important than I would not settle for a non PSE equipped car (can be installed later) and as far as the tranny the PDK is really phenomenal and I like to roll through gears too but the PDK is impressive. It took more than 6 months for me to find my car and I'm glad I didn't settle and this was for a black C2S coupe with PDK, PSE and Sports chrono. This car has quite a few more options that weren't important to me so I had to shell out a little more but the extra stuff is nice. So I guess I think you should stick to your guns on the must haves and be patient. Happy hunting and good luck!

mrmojom3

Thanks all for the advice.

I've been on the web all weekend trying to find the ideal 911. And.... my head hurts! This is tougher than I thought.... With all the cars for sale, there are so many variables its quite difficult sifting through. Half of these cars dont even have heated seats lol... who buys a $100k car with not headed seats?? I've gotten pretty efficient now, just by pictures I can tell which options are on the car. One thing that made it tougher is looking at ride heights - I noticed some base seem to have large wheel gaps - so now I'm hung up on needing PASM. Ugh...

I've narrowed my car selections down to 4 "categories"

1) 2013 S with all the nice options - PASM / PSE / Chrono / etc - 25k miles range - $72k. No warranty.

2) 2014 CPO - $68k to $70k - no PASM on base cars but PDK and maybe PSE if I'm lucky.

3) 2013 base $64k - no warranty. Found a 2013 manual / PSE / 13k miles for $64k I'm considering, super clean.

4) 2012 base 36k miles manual $53k. This one is a bit boring but all the records are complete.

I do have a good local Indy who's awesome and super low cost for me. So maintenance and light repairs should be low cost.

1) I get a very nice "S" with all the goodies, but no warranty.
2) I get a new model with 2+ years warranty, but lacking PASM. By the time I end up adding exhaust, springs, swapping wheels, etc I may as well just bought the "S"
3) "value buy" - less money up front feels better but I'll likely trade in sooner since its not an "S" with PASM / PSE
4) maybe a good entry to 911 option - local, manual, well kept, base 911. But I know I'll be looking to get out in 12 months to an S or GTS.

Going to drive a couple more tomorrow. I agree on some of the advice here, I'm going to have to be open to PDK vs. manual. But what is up with the steering wheel "buttons"? Didnt Porsche get the memo on shift paddles???

Question on resale - I factor in TCO as a higher priority than acquisition cost. Will #1 on my list come out to a similar price point as 2,3,4 when factored in higher resale?

The search continues.... thanks

Hurricane

Of those, I would go with option #1 (depending on condition and PPI of course). Most any problem that has happened, probably happened while it was under warranty and was fixed. Your S will have a lot of nice upgrades over a base model.

There were three steering wheels available for the 991. The standard one, with PDK shift buttons front and back, the multi-function steering wheel that adds buttons on the wheel for volume control, phone, and to control the LCD display on in the gauge cluster (without this, you would use a stalk on the right - it's really easy to get used to either one), or the Sport Design steering wheel which has true paddle shifters for PDK-equipped cars (and is probably the best looking of the three, except for my MF CF one hahaha.

Standard wheel: (for PDK, it would have the silver buttons front and back to shift, as on the MF steering wheel below)



MF wheel:



Sport design wheel: (this one has the paddle shifters)

911boy

Or go aftermarket and be different..................
Hold out for manual and learn how to match revs..... thats so much fun and not too hard to learn.

911boy

Wheel gap can also be easily fixed aftermarket as well. Be careful though, these cars are low. I've lowered a few cars but not this one......can barely get up my own driveway without scraping front lip.
Personally, I wouldnt worry too much about resale...buy the car for YOU. In a few years it wont mean much IMO.
Good luck. Fun process.

NoGaBiker

It was suggested before and you didn't respond. Perhaps you have to have 4 seats. But with your budget you can get a helluva nice Cayman or Boxster -- probably a warrantied 981 GTS with lots-o-options. You'll also be likelier to find a manual, and if you do, it will be a proper 6 speed rather than the 7 in the Carrera.

I've only had one of the mid-engine Porsches, a Boxster SE550 back in 2004, but it was a delightful experience. If I wanted to go open-air, it would be Boxster over 911 Cab every time.

Personally... I'd always rather have the "GTS" version of the slightly lesser model than the base version of the pricier model.

Needsdecaf

I bought a manual C2S thinking I "had" to have Sport Chrono for rev matching.

Rev matching is only active in Sport Plus on a 991.1. Being that I almost never drive in Sport Plus unless I'm nailing it in the twisties (which is almost never since this is Houston after all) I have no rev matching for 99% of my driving. So what have I done?

Learned to heel and toe.

Honestly, if I can do it with size 13 duck feet (toes point out, which is the exact opposite you want for heel - toe) then so can you. The only one I have trouble with is the 3-2 shift, which usually requires a big boot of revs, which I rarely give it enough. Unless I'm in Sport, which will give it enough with my normal movement.

maxpowers

1. You need sport chrono for rev matching. I didn't like the look at the clock in the dash so I went without it, but it's up to you.
4. I test drove the PDK and it cemented that I needed to get the manual. The people at the dealership looked at me like I was from Mars when I told them, so I custom ordered exactly what I wanted. There's no way I was spending this kind of money for a car and not getting the transmission I want.

mrmojom3

Yup, 4 seats is a requirement for getting the kids around from time to time. Love the idea of a boxter though.

mrmojom3

Thanks all for the feedback. I test drove a PDK base 991.1 yesterday. I actually think the PDK will work out fine as well.

I'm leaning more towards a 2013 S, being patient for the lowest mileage cleanest one I can find. I even found a couple 4S that looked great. Gotta love the big rear

JimHJr

Be patient. The right car will pop up, like others said be prepared to buy when it appears. They don't last very long. You should be able to find a 12.5-13S CPO with all the right toys for low 70's.

I was trying to hold out for a manual and drove a few base models, 997's, caymans, etc. Waited and waited then all of the sudden the right spec/right price CPO car appeared a few hundred miles from me but had PDK, contacted the dealer immediately then drove it the next day and loved it. Bought it.

MJG911

you haven't mounted them yet?

I was going to say, get the wheels powdercoated. Either S or classic look great in black. Here are my classics:

The Fat Kid

Your wheels are still sitting in the boxes, unmolested! My P Zeros are loose with less than 1k miles, and I have TPMS sensors.

I ended up mounting my PA4s on the sport design wheels that came with the car, and I was planning on using your wheels as a summer setup, but "SPASM + terrible roads" has me considering 19" wheels with MPS4S for a summer setup. Extra sidewall cushion for when the potholes are pushin'

I need to figure it out soon since warmer temps are finally here!

P.S. Black on black with tinted windows

R_Rated

Caved and got PDK with zero regrets.