mdude

Not being a DIY-er, I've enjoyed this board and its wealth of technical info but am not in a position to contribute anything serious.

That said, I wouldn't want to find out post-purchase there is a cylinder w/ very different compression that the other five.

How much are we talking about? Of course everything has a price and most PPIs run between $200-$400. I'd do the test even if 'stealer' wants $500-700, considering you're willing to part w/ many times more to buy the car...

FabianS

The indy's price for PPI and compression test is $400. Dealer wants $300 just for PPI, and another $400 for compression test...not going to happen.

FabianS

Wouldn't a compression test give me the numpers for all 6 cylinders? The only thing it won't tell me is the leakdown % and even then I read that it's not a guarantee of valve guide wear anyway.

matt777

I saw that add too. It looks like a pretty good deal if there are no major problems. There was some good points made here already. Having bought a stock 993 and then upgraded the suspension, mufflers, gearbox, clutch, ECU, shifter, stereo, gearbox, wheels, etc. I can say that buying an upgraded car is something to consider.

The other point to consider is that you will pay a premium for a lower mile car so driving it a lot will just wipe that value out. Six of one and a half dozen of the other.

Importing a car from the US isn't cheap. I think I paid $4k to bring mine in considering GST, duty, RIV and all of the other costs to get it here. The other reason Canadian cars are expensive is because they were $100k new when the US cars were $60-$70k new. There are a few listed in the Vancouver area that are all $35k+

ps we did email back and forth last week re: my 993 and yes, I was asking a lot as it has lots of upgrades that most won't want to pay for and because I don't really want to sell it that bad

matt777

I paid $250 for a PPI in Phoenix in '08 and watched the guy do the leak down test. It took 1/2 hr to do the test.

inkatouring

Bingo. Valve guides are the real issue, which on a OBD II car would probably need to be done at some point. I would consider having them drop an exhaust manifold and check for excessive oil, which could be a sign of guide wear....

The price of mods, as said earlier shouldn't be ignored, but neither should clutch and/or guides....

pirahna

90k miles is hardly high miles for one of these cars but I would budget for a clutch at some point in the future if it really is original.

FabianS

A clutch would not be my worry, it's the possible $8-10,000 top end rebuild. All of the local shops said that by 180-200,000kms I would be looking at a top end job, and lowest price quoted was $8000.

Seamless

Well if it is the car in wpg i know the can and owner. Nothing but good things to say - I have personally driven the car - it wasn't for sale at the time but it was the reason I bought my C4S so quickly.

I am in Wpg.

gaby1088

i bought my 95 with (that i know of) no top end rebuild with 112,000 miles. It runs fantastic, everything mechanically checked out. It has 115,000 (2 years later) and it is a solid car. THe only thing i had to get replaced was the AC evaporator. I would definitely recommend getting it if you like the car and it is solid mechanically.

FabianS

Thanks for that adam (Seamless) I have spoken with the owner quite a bit, and he seems very honest and direct. I guess I'm just worried that if I buy a car with 140,000 kms on it, and within 2-3 years have to put another $10,000 into it I'll regret it. Otherwise the car looks great! It wouldn't be my daily driver, but I suspect I'll put at least 5,000 kms on it a year.

solomonschris

For what it is worth, I wasn't going to have a leakdown done on the TT, after all it only had 24,000 miles. I was disabused of that notion by Quad and numerous others of the 993TT forum. My car passed compression with great numbers but one cylinder was only 70% or so on the leakdown test due to a badly worn exhaust valve guide. The seller paid for the top end job. The biggest mystery of the 993 engine is why some experience early valve guide wear and others seem to go forever.

Another way to look at this, if after every test but the leakdown is performed and you still want to buy the car, would you pay $300 more it. If so, do the leakdown. If it fails it will be the best money you ever spent. Finally, I wouldn't feel too comfortable about having a PPI done on a 993 by a shop that couldn't perform a leakdown test. Good luck

FabianS

Well, Canada is a little different that the US. Case in point...the City where the car is located only has one Porsche dealer, and one indy shop familiar with 993's (from what I've been told, and looked into). The price the Dealership wants for a leakdown is astonomical! That plus the PPI, and compression test is well over $1000. I just don't want to swallow that much on a car out of town. If it was local my indy would charge about $500 for the whole deal, plus I'd get to be there for it all.

Tango Foxtrot

IMHO, if you get this car for $26k as you stated you could, even if you have to do a top end and clutch for another 10k you are still not upside down on this car (if the ppi is good). Theoretically, $36 k for a car with a new top end, clutch and already overhauled suspension and brakes doesn't seem like an unreasonable value for Canada. And if it doesn't need the repairs in the near future, bonus.

But it all comes down to what are you willing to spend/afford.

FabianS

Well, $30K ish is what I'm looking at.