Will

I love my '87 Carrera coupe, which I've bonded with to a degree that I can't possibly sell it. Unfortunately, I have an increasing lust for a 993. I keep sneaking over here to the 993 board. I'm seriously thinking of buying one and keeping the '87. Unfortunately, the garage is full with the 911, a Passat, and a BMW R1100RT. So here's the plan: (1) Sell my house. (2) Buy one with a bigger garage. (3) Buy the 993. Anything I'm missing?

Someone please stop me.

George Helser

Will,

Buy the 993 and park the Passat outside.
After a while this situation will seem fine or you come to another solution:
a) Sell one of the cars
b) Get a bigger garage
You may find you prefer to drive the 993 so much the 87 will just sit. Then if you sell the 87, it could just start over again thinking about a 993 TT!

Good luck!

Regards,
George
In sunny Arizona
(Seeking a 993 C2 coupe w LSD)

dwe8922

I was in the same boat. I had an '88 before the 993. I didn't want to sell it b/c I was so attached. In FL, the '88 was a bear to ride in 4 months out of the year b/c of the a/c. I couldn't afford both, so I sold the '88, and bought a near-perfect 993. I really don't miss the '88 much, which I thought I would. My feeling of the 993 is that they took everything I loved about the '88, and fixed everything I didn't. This 993 is just so much more car, that I have yet to look back. Good luck.

David

Phil

I had a 1988 ltd edition targa......sold it, got a 1998 c4!!.....WOW what a difference 10yrs makes...pwr steering, real a/c, etc etc.....

Charles Morrison

David is 100% correct about how the 993 retains everything you liked about the late 80's 911's and fixes everything that you didn't. I had an 86 911 for over 12 years and had thought that I would never part with it. After about two months of anguish I finally sold it to someone whom I knew would take care of it. It only had 34,000 miles and was mechanically perfect. After another two months, I finally found a really nice 96 993. In less than two days I had almost forgotten about the 86. The 993 is that impressive and is so much easier to drive.

My advice: Sell the 87 and then get a 993. Try to find a seller who is passionate about the car but who is forced to sell because of circumstances and be sure to get a competent pre-purchase inspection.

Rick in Portland

Will,

A couple of years ago I sold a pristine '89 3.2 Carrera and bought a Polar Silver '96 C4S. The difference in the cars is night and day, and you will never look back if you sell your '87 911 and get a 993.

Rick

Will

Guys,

I was expecting "keep them both", but I should have known that I would get replies that send my thinking in another direction. Nice to hear from those of you that started with 80's 911s and moved to 993s. I especially like to hear that the 993 has the "character" of my '87. Your responses have me seriously thinking about selling. Financially, that would put me in a position to afford a *really* fine 993. It's hard to bear the thought of parting with the '87, especially since it is such a fine example of that car, and I've lavished it with time and money to update all the aging components to make it nearly mechanically perfect. On the other hand, that should make it easy to sell, especially since it's a relatively popular year (first G50, etc.).

Damn. You are all very persuasive. I have a strong feeling that I will soon be joining the 993 ranks.

Will

Mike W

Will, I had a number of 80's 911's. My last one was a "perfect" SC that I thought I could never bear to part with. One drive in a 993 and I was hooked. Now I can't even remember what I liked abpout the older cars. You will love the 993. Mike W

Terry Adams

In '89 I bought a used '87 911 Carrera Cab, put 110K miles on it, had the top end rebuilt (valve guides), and sold it to buy a new 993. When I sold it I questioned my own reasoning in spending over $60K difference including optiions and taxes to upgrade. The '87 is a perfectly acceptable 911, but you won't miss it if you sell it. The soundest part of your reasoning is that selling the '87 will allow you to buy a newer 993.

ZCAT3

Will - I just did exactly what you propose - traded in my 87 coupe for a 993 C4 Cabriolet. That was 2 months ago and and I must say, I still miss the 87. There is something about that car that is lost in the 993. I think it is mostly that the 993 is so much more refined that it does not feel as much like a "true" sports car as the 87 did. Everything about the 993 is better (except the sound, in my opinion), but the 87 had something about it that just isn't there with the 993. If you want to sell your 87 let me know as I am in the market to replace the one I gave up.

Martin S.

When you sit in a 993, if you don't look too closely, you would very well be in a 87 911. A friend of mine has a tricked out 78SC. suspension mods, lowered, corner balanced, RSR inserts in front, Turbo sport shocks in the rear. While out at the Streets of Willow in Rosamond, CA, I let him drive my car for the noon Parade Laps. His reply when he got back, "My grandmother could drive this car."

As I was parallel parking the 993 the other day, with 18" turbo wheels, I couldn't believe how well the power steering works, what a dream.

In summary, the 993 is a bit of a nostalgia car, with some very sophisticated improvements that make it night and day over a 87 Carrera: Power Steering, ABS brakes, coilover suspension all the way around, great air conditioning and heating, 3.6 motor with twin plugs, sophisticated electronic ignition...and it will go 170 mph, if that is important to you.

Get the 993...this way you won't have to lurk around anymore...join the club!!!

Tim, near Boston

Strongly agree with the opinions voiced here, sold a '77 Euro Carrera I had for 13 years, bought a 993 targa, and have never looked back. The older cars are easier to work on, that may not be true for an '87 however.

As for grandma driving, I would agree, the 993 will let you get away with maneuvers which would cause a '77 to spin, barrel roll, or maybe both...

Timg-B'ham

Jump right in, Will. You won't be sorry! I can agree with many of the other replys. Had a 1989 911 Cab and traded for a 1995 993 Cab.

The differences I immediately noticed were:

* Much more power
* Much easier steering
* Much faster braking

The new 993's really outperform the older 911's in almost every way. Good luck and now seems to be a GREAT time to buy a 993 with the iffy market. I think you can find very low prices for some terrific cars.

CC993

Will...

Keep the 87 coupe!!! I had a gorgeous 88 coupe (GPW) and miss it greatly...of course, I now have an incredible 98 C2S (no small consulation)...two totally different cars...the 3.2 will always be a classic in many people's minds...like I say, I made a great error getting rid of mine, although, if I could only have one there is simply no contest...the 993 is rolling nirvana...good luck and happy hunting...

os993

I would argue that the 993 (c2 at least) is not a piece-of-cake-car to drive fast on the track. Just ask some AWD folks, ie Audi's, etc..., how forgiving their rides are compared to our heavily rear weight-biased 993's (again, my experience is only in 2wds).

If I make a mistake in a turn, I pay dearly for it Such off roading should be done in a truck. AWD's don't have such problems...they just ease off the gas and the fronts kick in, at least for Audi's (amazing cars, BTY....I ran with an S4 wagon last week and couldn't believe how well he was doing...even at 3700 lb weight

What am I trying to say? I have no direct experience with older Porsches, but I can vouch for the challenges, and rewards, of driving a 993 at its limits. Afraid of not being challenged enough in a 993??? Forget about it....this car will definitely challenge you and reward you in amazing fashion when you nail everything right...