gatech94

Here it goes... I've seen one of these go up weekly and I've been looking for some time but so far no such luck and trust me that I've looked! I'm looking for a good 993 c2 with medium miles, below 65K mikes due to budget constraints. This is my 1st Porsche and I am eager to be part of the club and hopefully I can be soon.

My criteria: Must have records and a clean history, color preference white, silver, or black. I know my budget is a little tighter then some of your have posted on the board but after much convincing my wife gave me the "green" light and therefore has to be close to the $27K range. Not sure if this is realistic??? but anything above that and it will be a tough sale. I live in the Tampa Bay area so the closer in proximity the better but again could be wishful thinking. Look forward to your replies...

deadhead1960

coupe/cab; manual/tiptronic...the more specifics the better.

@$27k might be a bit low to find a nice 6 speed coupe with those mileage constraints. I'd suggest either upping the ante to low $30's or consider a higher mileage (70-90k) example that has been well cared for and has had top end, new clutch, etc. If you're looking for a cab and/or tip, you're fine. Good luck.

gatech94

Sorry after your reply I agree need to have more specifics - so it needs to be a coupe and has to be manual. After looking for some time I am probably able to up to ante a bit on price or as you suggest maybe up the ante on the miles criteria. So there is wiggle room but as everyone out there I want to best of both worlds a combo between best miles and price. But having the right car is definitely the priority!

Again thanks for the replies and look forward to finding the right car!

goofballdeluxe

Keep in mind that even if you find the car within your budget, it is normal and expected that you probably will need to spend a few thousand extra to get the car sorted out. It would be a mistake to think the car you buy will not need anything additional.

These are 15 year old cars, and they are Porsches. While they are well made and reliable, unless you can wrench the car yourself, it takes money to keep them maintained properly.

Good luck on your hunt.

e9stibi

27k for a well documented and issue free car would be a steel which means you will not likely find it. Spend more at the beginning and safe on repairs later ... Another option could be to accept accident damage that has been repaired well. There are only a few cars out there that have been driven (~60K Miles) that are not repainted somewhere. And forget carfax. My 993 4S had a clear carfax but at the PPI we found a repainted rear panel. The panel was original and we did not find any filler. Could have been some scratch that was repaired properly. Not a big deal for me because it was done ok and the car was priced right.

gatech94

agreed... What I meant by clean History was that it did not necessarily have to be accident free (prefer it), again depends on the type of accident or perhaps repaint as you mentioned in your reply. I just want to feel that I'm purchasing an honest car and has records that come along with the history of the car. This for some reason has been difficult to find. As you mentioned CarFax helps but having records is what sells the cars and a car with "0" records is a tough buy in my book. Thanks again for your replies.

Gunter

So true and often overlooked or clouded by wishful thinking.
In fact, you'd be lucky if it were only a few thousand ??

Porsche is only fun to drive if it's well maintained which means:

One has a lot of money for shops,
or a lot of mechanical skills for DIY,
or both.

Even with DIY, the parts are very expensive and the 993 has a lot of components for extra performance.

For a first Porsche, consider going with a nice '87-'89 Carrera 3.2. It has DME and a G50 transmission. A lot of fun without financial strain.

dave morris

[QUOTE=e9stibi;8475828) And forget carfax. My 993 4S had a clear carfax but at the PPI we found a repainted rear panel. [/QUOTE]

I disagree. Carfax is a valuable tool. It provides lots of potentially valuable information. I've never assumed it was going to flag painted panels.

Keadog

This is so true and so important, I wanted to quote it again. I'm one of those guys who can't/won't do my own work and the above is sage advice. If you aren't going to do your own work, check out the hourly rates at the shop you plan to use. If you are on a tight budget, the on-going costs are something to consider before you spend most or all of your budget on buying the car. If I were you, I would make sure your wife is on board with the after purchase costs also. But that's just me; I'm sometimes a slow learner but after 4 911s and 36 years of "togetherness", I realized that was a good way to approach it. Now she just ignores the Steinel's receipts...

dave morris

Sounds like you haven't had a terribly positive experience with your 993. Suspect you are the exception to the rule.

Gunter

Amazing what people assume.

Au contraire, love my 993 and my first 5000 Mile trip to UT/AZ was a blast.
This seafoam green beauty was so unbelievably clean with all records from day one available that I didn't hesitate.

I'm offering advise on the basis of having owned a number of Porsches with lots of DIY. Being a hands-on ME, with decades of technical experience, I've build a couple engines including the SS 3.2, suspension, brakes, alignment etc. because I also have facilities and lots of equipment and tools plus disposible income.

Have witnessed a lot of relationships go sour because of financial strain due to unexpected bills for the toy.

I'll say it again: The 993 is a marvel but, unless someone has the means to maintain it properly, it's no fun to own. Tight budgets are tightropes. Why not aim a little lower to make things easier financially?

What do you read into that?

dave morris

I'd say you expressed your views more clearly the second time around.

BTW, what's a SS 3.2?

Gunter

SS 3.2 is a Short-stroke engine made by replacing the 95 mm P/C's on a 3.0 with 98 mm Max/Moritz P/C's keeping the 70 mm crank. With 964-cams and SSI headers, it loves to rev.

The OEM Carrera 3.2 engine has a 74 mm crank giving it more torque than the 3.0 liter SC.
A nice '87-'89 would be my recommendation for a first aircooled Porsche.

timothymoffat

Gunter I also LOVE the 3.2 Carreras, G50 or not, but I have to disagree with your statement. Given that a 3.2 is, at the very least, 5 years older than an early 993 it is more likely to show age related problems. I am fully aware that the 993 is, in many respects, a more complicated machine but it does have it's advantages. No valve adjustments to be done comes to the top of my head.

Another factor would be finding the right 3.2. They are getting harder to find and as such good ones seem to be going up in price. Same could be said for a 993 I guess.

Just a counterpoint you understand.

Mark in Baltimore

IMHO, it is very possible to find a 993 that doesn't require spending a pile of money every year. I've had mine since 2002 and have put on about 20,000 track miles of the hardest type of driving that you can imagine. To date, IIRC, I've only had to replace a broken third gear shifter fork, and I chased a soft brake pedal issue, the latter requiring a master cylinder replacement. That's it. Everything else that I've spent on the car has been related to performance mods or regular track maintenance such as oil, rotors, pads, etc. The car does not burn oil and seems tight enough to be fairly competitive on the track, at least in my average hands.

If one is not a careful buyer or if one is careful but is exceptionally unlucky, a 993 can be a money pit. However, most of the 993 owners that I know simply are not opening their wallets on a regular basis.




Dave, was this sort of what you were inferring with your post to Gunter?