Chuck W.

I just got back from a weeklong dive trip with my wife in Fiji. No TV, no Internet and the only electricity was from a generator at the resort. It was great. I read at least 25 car magazines that I had saved up over time.

During the trip I made the decision to sell the 993 cabriolet and replace it with a 993 Turbo. I had originally bought the cab (with a tiptronic) as a daily driver. It was for 14 months until I changed assignments at work and ended up with a company car. Over the 6+ years I have owned the 993 I have learned to love the 993 and learned more from Rennlist than I could have ever on my own. I considered selling it awhile back because I wasn’t putting enough miles on it. However, based on the sheer enjoyment of looking at the car in the garage and the joy of driving it, I elected to keep it.

In just over 18 months I’ll retire. Thus, the 993 will see much more street time. I love the cab and never put the top up. I’ll miss that aspect of it but still have the Boxster S for the top down driving. However, the 993 model has me. And the wide body really has me. So, if I am going to get a 993 wide body that I will have forever, it might as well be a 993 Turbo.

I plan on removing the sport seats, aluminum shifter, Bird armrest, silver hood crest, red seat belts and supercup exhaust from my cab and replacing them with the stock pieces. These parts will go on the turbo if it doesn’t come with them. Except the supercups; I’ll go with Darin’s stage IIIs there.

This will be a drawn out process. Selling the cab will take some time. It is a tiptronic with a salvaged title. Even though the damage was slight and I have 75 photos documenting the damage and repair, it is branded.

Then, finding the right Turbo will be a chore too.

I’ll keep you posted. Wish me luck.

cabrio993

Very cool. I recently bought a C4S for my brother in law and I've gotten bitten by the widebody bug as well. So, I may follow your steps... good luck with the sale and happy hunting!

C4 NLW

Hi Chuck,

You say a week long Dive trip. Just wondering what the diving is like in Fiji. How's the vis and what are the dive sites like?

Nick

rome

Nothing like a trip to an exotic location to make you do some clear thinking...good luck with the purchase..

Raptor

GL with the sale. Hard to beat a white cab, but Turbo will.

murfysflaw

Good luck! That's a leap I'd love to take someday.

Chuck W.

Fiji was great. We stayed on a small island called Taveuni. The resort was “Paradise Taveuni”; http://www.paradiseinfiji.com/. They only have ten bures with an onsite dive shop. The Fuji to dollar ratio is 2 to 1 so the dollar goes far. The weather was fair in the high 70s with a lot of clouds and some sun. It’s winter there. The water was way too cold for me; 77 to 78 degrees. I wore a 5-mil long suit. But then, I am a lightweight. My wife wore a light 3-mil suit without issue (but she has more natural “insulation”). Great diving. Saw lots of things including many white tip sharks. The last day we were there and couldn’t dive they saw two hammerhead sharks on the dive. The food was OK, but we don’t go to eat. The beer was good!

I have dove a lot in the West Indies and the Caribbean. Last year we dove in the Philippians. By far this was the “prettiest” and most exotic looking tropical resort. It is new and owner operated. The Fijian people are very gracious and at least on this Island, they live a very simple life. We took a guided four-hour walk through the hills and saw the small farms and homes. It was amazing. No electricity, no running water and the nicest people you would want to meet.

We never go back to the same place twice. There is too much to see out there. This is one place I would recommend before it gets ruined. They are 19 hours ahead of us and the trip from door to door took us 20 hours from Los Angeles.

I am looking at Anthony Keys in Honduras for next year; http://www.anthonyskey.com/en/index.html. We did a mule ride to the bottom of the Grand Canyon (and spent the night there) last month. In January I am planning a trip to Yellowstone to do a snowmobile ride into the backcountry.

Damn, I can hardly wait until I retire and can really travel!

MarkD

Cool all around Chuck...

Good luck with the sale and purchase!

Arrwin

Sounds like a fantastic trip! Good luck with the sale and purchase of your new toy.

TRINITONY

Try Tobago one day....and GL with the sale.

2Many Cars

Searching for a cool older car like a Turbo is not a chore, it's fun IMHO. Enjoy it!

Giantviper

Very Cool Trip. You are a man molded like my father and myself. We both love to Dive and do not like the cold water. We love it when the water is 80+ and all you need a a thin lycra suit for protection.

We have done a lot of diving in the Florida Keys and Carribean. If you have never done the Spiegal Grove and the Duane you should head down to Key Largo and give both a dive or more...its a great wreck. We have dove both of them many times and each time we see something new.

My Dad agrees with this statment thouroughly. He jsut sold his '86 3.2 which had 32,000 miles on it (He loved that car), and is going over the the dark side as he has a 997 GT3 MKII coming in. But he is suffering a little sellers remorse as he follows the same code considering he only put like 1500 miles a year on the car and is missing it. We will see if that changes next month when the new car is supposed to come in.

Oh and good luck on your sale and search. The 993 Turbos have always been one of my favorite cars.

e9stibi

I hear you. Just look at my avitar. I just could not sell my 993 cabrio when I added the wide body a couple of weeks ago. I would rather unload the Boxster and keep the 993 ...

chris walrod

I am so jealous of diving in Fiji !! The south Pacific is really a dream for me to one day visit and dive !!

@ 146ft

Chuck W.

No lie. During a trip to Little Cayman 2 years ago I configured a Mini S for my wife. It had a base price of 22K. By the time I was finished it was 35K plus tax and license. These trips can get expensive. She loves the car so it was worth it.

I am looking forward to it. And you’re right, it will be fun. I just have to pace myself. Having read past postings, it’s taken some Rennlisters months to find the right car. Because I plan on keeping this TT forever, I want the right one.

I would love to find a white TT with black interior. I just don’t think I can narrow my search that far.

Yap. I live 10 miles in from Malibu and I have never dove in the local ocean. Putting on a dry suit just doesn’t interest me. And this way, it’s a vacation thing, not a weekend thing. Florida is on the list. We did Hawaii one year. Too expensive and too pricey. Plus, it just didn’t feel like we were on vacation. To Los Angeles like.

I feel for your Dad. At least until he get in the seat of the GT3!.


If the 993 were not a salvage and not a tiptronic, I would have a harder time selling it. The Boxster is a just a different car. Besides the Porsche emblem, I can’t compare them. It would be like comparing the BMW to the 993 to the Boxster. All are great cars, just different. Plus, my wife and I have five cars between us; the company car makes six!


Every time I look at your aviator I smile. You’ll make it to the South Pacific; I may just be awhile. After 8 years of marriage we had four kids. We didn’t start buying cars and traveling until we got them raised. Now, 33 years later, it’s our turn!