wellcraft290

So I know this is the 993 forum, but anyone here owned or own a 964 and 993. I have talked to a few who went from a 993 to 964 or vice versa. Most like the feel of the 964 say lighter easier to drive and almost feels faster. i know the numbers are about the same.

Besides the difference in looks what should I look at and why buy one or the other. i know th e993 is more but think just because a few years newer and will decrease in value to about the 964 values and hold steady.

Any real world experience on reliabilty (assuming head leak is fixed on 964) I do like the looks on both cars front on 964 and rear on 993. So opinions ?

race911

Own/owned both, in several iterations. Not to mention worked on whatever model I haven't owned. From 100% stock to obscenely modified (thanks to the previous owner!). What's your purpose? Track? I'll run my near stock RS America with pretty much anything out there (and it's more car than driver). Street? You'll never even sniff the limits of the car. Cars are more than numbers.........

Bottom line, figure out your budget, drive both within that price range, and decide which one you like better.

(Cylinder-to-head mating surface leak issues are greatly exaggerated.)

tejstar01

I am in the same boat, I love the looks of the 993 but I also love the 964 Targa for its function and the little more head room in the rear for my kids. I have asked a couple of porsche mechanics and brokers and they always say to stay away from the 964's and get the 993.

Race911, since you have owned both seriously how was your cost for maintaining both cars, were they close to the same or did the 964 have more leak issues that were more costly etc?? I am seriously looking at both of these cars also. It's a hard decision for me also, I really love both cars and looks pretty much the same, however even if the 993 is more expensive upfront, if the maintenance is much higher on the 964 than I would purchase the 993. This is a great wealth of knowledge on this forum and we appreciate all your advice. I can't wait to get into another Porsche, I think I'm having withdrawels symtoms even though its been over 12+ years since my 87 Carrera.

bpras@msn.com

I currently have a 92 964 and just purchased a 97 993 and do 90% of the service work myself. The 964 is lowered with Eibach springs, Wevo engine mounts and drives like a track car. The 993 is still stock and drives like a street car(starting the slippery slope and just installed RS engine mounts, suspension is next).

I prefer the performance suspension to stock, feels more like a sports car. The 993 is harder to modify the engine with the OBD II system but does not require valve adjustments, a significant time sink if you DIY. The 993 has Varioram and the engine compartment is very tight compared to the 964 making some service/maintenance more difficult.

They are both great cars and you will probably end up modifying what you buy to meet your tastes. I recommend you spend a long time looking and test driving both to get the one you want. I also suggest you get a "driver" quality car and not a garage queen. You will spend less money and enjoy the car a lot more. Both of my cars have minor door dings and some repaint work and I do not hesitate to use them as often as possible.

Enjoy the hunt!

jwdwight

Won't happen. 993 will hold value better than 964 but I love the 964!

wellcraft290

Well I am sure everyone said that about the 964 and the 964 looks like a real porsche. I hope they all go up in value after I buy one heheh

wellcraft290

race I will use the car for street use now maybe some track down the line just for fun. Just a safe place to open her up more legally.

Tango635

I think it will be difficult to tell which you like better by just driving within the city limits as both cars are pretty close in specs...you will probably have to take them to the track. You might be able to attend a DE course and persuade an instructor or student to ride along with them and get their input. Just an idea

Also for your consideration, the 95 993 is OBD1 and the 993 AC is supposed to have a better AC system than the 964 (I don't know since I too am looking for my first Porsche, first 911). But for the price difference, you could probably upgrade the 964 AC system and have money left over for some upgrades. Good luck.

wellcraft290

Tango which one you leaning towards? I kind of lik eth e964 more, but still lik eth e993 hard call heheh

face-ache

this link pretty much says it all...http://forums.pelicanparts.com/showthread.php?t=399143

tejstar01

Thanks for the link to pelican for the 964 vs 993 comparisons, great read. I will be mainly using for street and/or daily driver when I can. Other than the differences in suspension, steel vs aluminum and brake differences, which is cheaper to modify or maybe update with just a better suspension for the street? It seems that the 964 is a simpler suspension to me so does that mean replacement parts or aftermarket upgrades are less expensive?

I also understand that the normal services from what I'm told even though the 993 has the self adjusting valves the cost of maintenance for say every 15k miles is really close for both cars?

wellcraft290

Ok so really did not see a clear winner and don't think there is one. But which is easier to maintain?

wellcraft290

tejstar from a few people on here I never really hear them say anything about a valve job. Most say the cars just don't need it..

Sonic dB

I like the 964 turbo very much... however I went with the 993 after owning an 86 Carrera for several reasons, which I do not regret:

1) more powerful, faster, hp
2) handles great when properly set up (after upgrading from poor stock suspension to Bilstens and new coil overs...
3) better looking
4) more reliable
etc

tejstar01

Hey Sonic, I would honestly say between a 964 Turbo & 993 looks would be a coin toss, I really love the looks of the 964 turbo. But turbo's aren't as reliable as normally aspirated porsches and do require more maintenance. The thing that scares me about the 964 is hearing about all the oil leaks the engine can have and that the owners were basically test people for the porsche designers for that engine. I do know that I should basically only get a 1992-1994 and skip the 90-91 model from what I've read so far?

Of course the 993 has its issues as well, the SAI, valve guides etc. I just want a great car to drive a lot that won't cost a fortune to maintain. My 87 carrera was pretty trouble free and I do drive the car the way it was meant to be driven. I will not baby, it will be driven and run out plenty to keep the carbon out..lol. From what I can tell it seems that all the issues are the cars that are mainly never driven, or driven on short trips and then shut down or left sitting for long periods of time, my car will not have that issue.

Wellcraft, yes from what I've read it seems that the 993's actually suffer more from the needed valve job or top end rebuild at times. Again it seems to be the ones that don't get driven daily or are constantly on short trips and the car never really gets to operating temps which takes about 30 minutes or so. I don't think the 964's really suffer from this although in my search I still see 964's with a rebuilt top end but my guess its because of poor maintenance on a 964?? Either using crap oil or going way to long between oil changes and not adjusting the valves every 15k?? Would that be a fair assessment guys?