Yearly service costs for a 993 (guess-timate)
 

So some of you know I have been looking to buy a 993, no luck so far, but lots of learning, and money on PPI's and so on so forth. (Let me know if you have a coupe for sale).

Anyway, some owners have kept service records for years and its quite impressive. However as a newbie, its quite alarming how much service is done on these cars.

So the question is this, how much on average should I expect to pay for mandatory and break fix items? I'm sure the mandatory service is somewhat fixed. The over and beyond service varies. And the break fix stuff is hard to determine yearly average.

What are the mandatory service I should have on a per year basis?
What are the over and beyond pampering service I should do on a yearly basis?

Thanks-
Tony

I would price out the scheduled maintenance http://p-car.com/technical/maintainschedule.pdf Obviously you can save money if you do the work.

There are so many variables dependent on your mileage, car use (autocross / track) and the current mileage and condition of the car. My maintenance over the past years is dwarfed by the $$$ spent on upgrades. :)

Thanks Matt, that checklist is very helpful. I'm looking at a '95 993 coupe and the seller sent me the service records since birth. On one hand it was impressive, the other hand it looked like a ton of money!

I spend about $300 a year on both 993's for oil changes a year.
24qts oil
2 small oil filters
2 large oil filters

Rear tires, every year or so on the C4
$400

Last year I did the 90kmi service on the C4, it was about $800 in parts, however $550 of that was new plug wires that will not need to be replaced for another 15 years.

I do just about all my own work, but my mechanic has specials in late winter on oil changes for $99, can't do it that cheap myself.

Of course there has been some bulb changes, & other small things that are cheap.

OT but really now, that schedule says to change the oil filters every 30K miles. SRSLY?

Someone posted the link to the shop manual recently and I noticed under Oil Consumption the value was "up to 1.5 L / 1000KM." That's 2.55 quarts per 1,000 miles.

Again, WUT?

1) Will you be doing your own work?
2) How many miles will the car you purchase have,
3) and how much will you drive it?

Thanks Stealth on those numbers. I'm trying to some sort of idea so seeing your actuals frames it for me.

Mongrelcat, I am not handy so no work done by me. I'm looking for 50k and under, and driving it about 3k a year (according to my current car mileage).

Thanks-
Tony

My guess would be average of $600/year for routine maintenance plus a big ticket repair every three or four years, $3-4K?

So, I'll round up and say an average of $1600/year

How much did the PO spend per year?

You might want to fill in your location, you may find another enthusiast near you that likes working on these cars, and a good recommendation for an indy shop.

And like Matt said, the upgrade slope will likely dwarf your maintenance costs. And best of all in this equation, it's worth it! :D

3 years of ownership about 20k of driving

1 oil change per year:
12qts oil
1 small oil filter
1 large oil filter
2 $0.45 Plug washers

2 front tires = $450
4 rear tires = $900

Front pads & rotors = $500

1 A/C Charge = $95

1 Valve cover gasket + 11 new bolts =$35

20k miles of smiles = Priceless



Everything else has been completely optional

As far as costs go, be prepared to alter your figures if/when you buy your car. I found out that these cars are so much fun to drive, I want to drive it all the time. On my previous "fun" vehicle, I put on approx. 3000 miles a year. I already doubled that this year in the 993. So, if your figures are hard set and that's what your basing your yearly maintenance costs on, please be flexible. On the plus side, if you spend more than what you thought on maintenance, you'll do it because you love the car so much.

Just over 11 years of ownership and 28,000 miles: Maintenance (fluids, tires, belts, repairs, etc.) = $5544.36 Upgrades (PSS9/sways+install, mufflers, rear wing avtivation kit, hollow spoke wheels, = $5570.39

Interesting how close the maintenance and upgrades costs are...

for a purely street driven car that has no daily use experience-
mandatory service used to cost me 200 per year.
things that broke or needed replacing were expensive, like an alternator or tires, but few and far between and averages to 400 per year.
upgrades are big; exhaust, sport cats, suspension, shifter...they add up quickly. fancy pedals, which look way better than the black rubber, can be 500 bucks, so be careful.
I need a yearly inspection and also pay yearly property tax although they call it registration. that's another 150 per year.

on an interesting note, the indy I found out here has been doing more and more work on newer porsches and has had less interest in my 993. by 2007 I was doing oil myself and just did the 30k(plugs and such) myself.
I've spent 1,842 on tools since '07. I'm guessing that puts me down on money saved paying for labor and higher parts prices. figure in driving to a shop, my time waiting or needing a ride and I'm ahead plus I have cool tools and more fun playing with the car.

Allen, NEVER count up the slippery slope stuff!

I have spent more money in upgrades then 4x the cost of upkeep.
2x Traffic Pro radio
PSS10's
996 TT wheels
Dach X-pip
Fisters STG II
Euro corners X2
TTS ducts
Clear bra, full front end
CF winglets
iPod adapters X2
wide ovals NB
Auto-X alignment (C4)
Alm handbrake & shifter
GT3 steering wheel/airbag
DAS rollbar
Perfect power strut brace
Other things I forgot.....

Impossible to generalize about this stuff. Lets say you have a sudden oil leak. Could be $200 in DIY gasket replacement, or a $4,000 engine reseal.

"Typical" yearly maintenance expenditures are probably something like this:
$400
$400
$4,000
$200
$2,000
$400
etc.

And performance and appearance replacements & upgrades are another matter altogether!!

I've had my car for a little over three years, and have put 35,000 miles on it (79K-114K). Other than tires, oil changes, and routine maintenance, I've had virtually no mechanical problems of any kind. I did the clutch over the summer, replaced a couple of shifter bushings and a power window switch, and am doing the brakes soon. Did an AC recharge a couple of years ago and replaced a burned-out instrument light last year. That's all it's needed.

I would estimate that 90 percent of what I've spent on it has originated in my own foolish need to upgrade and improve...