dryadsdad

What size kid?

I think many of your questions will be answered by looking at a 993 in person. There should be a few for sale within a day's drive radius of you there in VA.

I'm new to 993 myself. My wife just got the bug one day and next thing I knew I was arranging a PPI. Now we've got a low miles 95 993 white cab in the garage. I found this place to be enormously helpful in answering my newbie questions then and continues to be to this day.

I have solid experience with Mustangs and now some in the 993. IMO, there isn't a single comparison that's valid. That is, everything from how it feels to get in to the cars to how they handle to their power characteristics are utterly different. It's not like the 993 is a Mustang with more steering feel or with a different torque curve although both are true. They just are not comparable.

One huge difference is how long it takes you to 'get' the car. Put someone in a Mustang whose never been in one and he's off and doing ok, fairly comfortable and feels well oriented to the vehicle. Not so with us and the 993. It took us each over 500 miles of driving to start to really 'get' the car but we're not close to really understanding it yet.

This is truly a driver's car but the car 'needs' the driver to work well. A good counter example is the Corvette. Few Corvette owners are under 60 but the car can perform pretty well even with a corpse driving it which maybe is why it's the senior citizen's choice. A Porsche is capable of more, but it needs you to be as good as it. It will not just run around on its own self correcting as you screw up.

OTOH, when you get it right in a P-car, the satisfaction is enormous and well worth the learning effort.

dryadsdad

Mustang tradition. The Ford folks have managed to engineer things pretty well despite this chunk of solid iron out back. In a way it's like Porsche engineers have done wonders with the newer 911's despite them still having all that mass hung out back.

What is the rationale behind having two oil filters? Seems to me like an example of 'over' engineering in the sense that to get a 1% better outcome, you increase complexity 100%. I see that as a German trait and one I first encountered disassembling a carburetor from a mid 60's Benz.

Also a good deal of how well one can work on autos is how well one can get under them. On bikes, it's the opposite - how high can you get them. Frex my comfort in working on our bikes soared when I got a bike lift. Unfortunately, a car lift is out of the question for us so a good deal of the access to even simple things like getting to the oil filters will be, I suspect, a bit annoying.

Mike J

Second oil filter is for the oiling circuits for the oil-fed lifters. Its doubtful if the second oil filter would have much debris in it, but I like to get all the old oil out I can.

I used to work on the ground, but now have a full-size two post lift. Makes it MUCH better!

Best of luck.

Cheers,

Mike

2L8IWON

Again, thanks guys! My daughter is 2 right now and should be around 3-4 at the time of purchase and if my wife has her way (she’s pushing hard) we may have another fresh little one around the same time. Good to know that the seats are useful though.

I am pretty competent with a wrench and have some good buddies that also enjoy a challenging automotive task (we just installed long tubes headers and did a cam swap on my Stang).. I think that if it can be done we'll do it. And with resources like Youtube, this website and Pcarworkshop we should be good to go.

More questions;

PPI - is that something that only a dealer can do or can the local indie guy do it?

Warm up- how long in the morning (summer and winter) does it take for the car to warm up before one should drive it?

Mods- what is the mindset of 993 owners on this? The Mustang Community is constantly doing something to their car to tweak every last HP out of the car to help with ¼ mile times, etc. Rarely do you see a Stang owner that tracks their car. With that being said, what mods should be done to make the 993 “better”. Understanding that this is a driving car with far more depth than the Mustang has.

Mileage- I’ve seen lots of members say these cars are their daily’s, but most examples I see for sale have less than 80k on the clock. If I buy a nice low mile car and do drive it all the time am I screwing up the value of the car?

Safety- How safe are these cars during wrecks? If I am carrying my daughter in the car I am really worried about her safety.

murfysflaw

Welcome to the insanity! I started out with an 84 Targa and moved on to a 993 when I stumbled across a perfect on here in Rennlist. Some folks search for a year or more depending on what they want, so don't get discouraged.

I bet there are some rennlisters in your area that you could meet up with to chat, check out their cars, etc. They may not let you drive them, but just spending time chatting about them, going for a ride, etc., will give you some feedback.

On the maintenance, I did most of the easy things myself and while the oil change with 2 filters was more involved than our American cars, it wasn't crazy difficult. Just took a bit more time and frankly, I enjoy that time in the garage...looking the car over, listening to some music and having a few adult beverages.

Good luck! Great forum here to learn.

edit... oh and on the kids... I had my 7 year old son and 4 year old daughter in the back of my 993 all the time. There are a few booster seats that fit well back there (I actually have 2 of them if anyone is interested).

Steve 96C4S

I would recommend finding an ideal color combo and type (for me it HAD to be the 4S) and just search for that one car. It makes it a lot easier!!! I used cars.com and autotrader almost exclusively (next to Rennlist of course). MANY more cars on the general websites though than Rennlist.

I like the 4S as I live in the Northeast and when it rains hard, the roads are really slick and I like the mental knowledge of having that AWD potentially saving me in a bad situation like slipping on the road.

Also, the 4S logo ROCKS!!!



If you type in the topic you're interested in, like "colors" on the 993 "search" forum, you'll find many threads on different colored cars to choose from, visually. For me, it had to be silver/black, nothing else would do.


I never wanted a car with a rear spoiler so that narrowed it down more too.

I read back pages and pages of threads and learned as much as I could.

Good luck. When the right car comes up, even if you're not totally ready to get it, you might want to consider pouncing on it anyway, finances be damned! Be irresponsible like me. It's awesome

dryadsdad

Understood. I am not all that nutso about oil mania, though. IIRC, the 993 holds, what, 10+l of oil. I doubt 400 cc left in the secondary filter will make any difference in a change, but I do understand your POV. I do similar. Frex, when I do an oil change, I also get rid of any spooge around engine seams. Doesn't help anything except my peace of mind.

ble2011

Be patient and exhaust every possibility. I came across mine on eBay and wasn't too sure I wanted to venture into that arena. But, finding it was for sale at a legitimate BMW dealership and after many, many phone calls and emailed pictures, I flew out to buy it. The salesman was extremely honest to the point that the vehicle was better in person than what was described. The purchase process was delightful. I cannot say that about many of my daily drivers.

dryadsdad

Kid should be fine. Car seat may not fit well due to seat shape and getting the kid strapped in may be difficult, but size will be fine. Even ideal....


I used an indie. We have two local who have better reps than the dealer. From previous exotic car purchases, I think it important to establish a good relationship with the shop you'll use for the non-DIY stuff. A PPI is a good kickoff for this.
We drive off easily immediately and feel ready to do anything when the oil reaches working temp (see gauge).

Beats me. I want to keep ours stock. The joy we have in this car isn't related to how fast we can go in it - especially in a straight line. I think our 993 is rated at about 0-60 in 5 sec and 168 mph top speed. We've never approached those numbers or tried.

Top down, winding road through high desert grasslands traversed a good speed kept strong on the corners....great feel for the road....great sounds that's what we use this car for. Not for blistering fast runs down Central at midnight.
We get mid 20's. I got high 20's (IIRC, 28 mpg) at altitude running from about 50 to 90 mph.

I'd guess there are gov't stats. I haven't a clue.

IXLR8

If you are serious about a 993, you should invest in a couple of books:

Porsche 993 The essential Companion

The Ultimate Buyer's Guide

And if you never end up with one, you can always sell them.

Its fun dreaming, isn't it. I did for 42 years.

7S5

Hi Jesse,

I'm pretty new here and am in a similar situation to you in that I hope to be looking seriously at a car in the upcoming months. I have spent a lot of time on Rennlist looking at the 993 forums over that past few months. I was wondering about the insurance rates/safety a bit as well. A few weeks ago I found this from another 993 Rennlister:

The full forum discussion can be found here:
https://rennlist.com/forums/993-foru...93-safety.html

Hope this helps.

Thanks for all the work you and others in the service do for our country!



Eric

Bruce SEA 993

Welcome!

I found the Acronym List I started a while back:

https://rennlist.com/forums/993-foru...rworkshop.html

I will look around and add to it if I find anything new!

2L8IWON

A W E S O M E!

Mike J

So I guess the conclusion is the 993 is built like a tank...given its only slightly worse than a full-sized 3/4 ton pickup!

Porsche70T

Interesting, I bought a Mustang when my first Porsche was totalled, still have it and now have a 993 to enjoy as well. Here's kind of the process I followed. Read, read, read. Join the Rennlist community and look for any local Porsche get togethers to talk to owners. Start an information file and save info that peaks your interest. I started with general information on what to watch for in a higher mileage Porsche. I read The Used 911 Story to get a feel for the characteristics of the different model years before deciding on the 993. Decide your top 3 or 4 color preferences and the options you have seen and like. Options/mods already on the car add a a fraction to the cost compared to adding them later. Drive different cars , no two are alike. If you are considering the retail route, check for past experiences on this board - some less than stellar characters out there. Don't hurry. I lost out on 3 cars then found one on my top 4 list when I checked Craigs List as an after thought before heading to a small town out of state for a golf weekend. Make the best deal you can then get a PPI. Someone on this board will know a good shop close to the car. Chalk it up to good luck if you find something major and decide to walk away or use it to make a reasonable final offer. Owners don't always know that this and that needs attention and will probably be willing to work with you. Oh, and everthing everybody else said. Good luck and let us know how it goes.