urquattro20Vt

Hi Fellas-
Just a quick intro on me and some questions about the 993tt - please bear with me. And Thanks in advance for any info. I live in CO and I've been a long-time Audi turbo quattro guy - currently daily driver is a lighly modded (software, exhaust, Stasis adjustable coilovers) S4 (tt) and toy is a 1984 ur quattro into which I've transplanted a more modern (3B 20Vt for those who know Audi stuff) powerplant - puts out around 300.

I'm thinking about selling one or both of the Audis and finding a good driver 993tt for daily use. Fairly short and slow commute and I'm talking slap on some Nokian snows and drive it all winter. Any thoughts on these cars as DDs would be appreciated. How are they in a couple inches of snow?

How about DIY? I'm decent with a wrench - did the motor swap in my urq myself with some friends' help. How daunting are the basic maintenance procedures?

I've been trying to find all the basic 993 faq stuff - so have been reading this site - but what are some of the big things to watch for - besides dripping oil?

Thanks again in advance for your input - I'll try to keep the stupid questions to a minimum.

Brandon

pstoppani

In general, the 993TT is a great daily driver. In the rainy Northwest it has been great. Never drove mine in the snow because I only have summer tires; and it snows about 2 days a year here But I'd imagine with some winter tires it should serve you very well.

Just don't get one with a lightweight flywheel if you spend a lot of time in slow stop and go traffic; it gets tiring...

troppo

Your only problem driving it every day is that you will be spoiled!
Where are you located in Denver?

urquattro20Vt

Thanks for the initial responses - please keep 'em coming. All input appreciated.

In addition to my above questions - also curious if many of you came from earlier 911 turbos. The 993tt having both Motronic and AWD is very appealing to me - my experience with Bosch CIS mechanical FI in the older Audis turbos was not so great - although I assume it works a little better in the 911 - its still CIS. I'd still MUCH rather have Motronic...

And Greg, I live in Park Hill - where are you?

Thanks again

Brandon

troppo

Hey Brandon,
I'm in Lowry, sent you a pm!

TT Surgeon

I think a medium mile one would make a great DD, why not?
The only issue would be the cost of maintenance over the long haul. I know they're not in the same league, but some killer deals can be had on 996TT's, which are probably cheaper to maitain over the long/DD haul.

pstoppani

Curious, why would a 996TT be cheaper on maintenance than a 993TT? I would have expected just the opposite; with all the extra doodads and water cooling system...

TT Surgeon

The parts just seem so much cheaper, more abundant. I think they are just more reliable, a lot of the issues with valve guides and the like were sorted out. I know of several that have hit the 100K mark without any major repair whatsoever. I've never heard of anyone having to do a topend rebuild , or SAI on a 996tt either. Perhaps somebody like Kevin can chime in with some real time numbers/stats. JMO of couse, not trying to start another 996 vs 993 battle

pstoppani

No battle intended; purely curious. Thx.

lthatch

I've had 2 successive NA 993s as daily drivers for nearly 10 years and, for the last 4 months, a 993 turbo. Loved them all, found each of them to be reliable and, knock on wood, quite cost-effective in terms of maintainence, repair and depreciation. I would be cautious about recommending the 993 as a winter driver, even the awd tt. I, too, live in the Rockies (7200 ft Santa Fe), and, before that, in the snowbelt of West Michigan and am happy to drive my current Toyota or, earlier on, my beloved 93 urS4 or 95 S6 Avant (sigh) on snow days or up the mountain.
Now, I've never put Nokians on any of the 993s, so I don't speak from real experience, and I know that tires are everything in the snow. But the absolute worst driving experience that I have ever had was coming back from San Francisco to Santa Fe in March 2004 with my lovely newly purchased 98C2S and first getting sandblasted in the Mojave Desert and then getting caught in a complete white-out blizzard in Flagstaff on Dunlop Sport Race tires. The car felt like it was skating on freshly Zambonied ice with no edges.
All subsequent fantasies involving Porsches in the snow and ice have, for myself, generally been exorcised.

stedge

all tires. With the weight distribution I think it ought to go great with winter tires. However, if you get a big dump, remember it is a low car. No matter what tire you have, it won't go through deep snow - it'll start under it!

I am only guessing, but if I could drive daily in snow and cold rain/sleet/freezing rain on snow tires with my S2000s (and handle similarly - or worse - than your car with the stock rubber in cold crappy weather), I know the Pcar would be able to handle light snow very well with good tires.

DM993tt

Buy a cheap pick-up truck for the snowy days. AWD does not make a TT (or any porsche) good in snow. imo

urquattro20Vt

Thanks again for the replies so far. FWIW in terms of winter driving, we actually get very little, unfortunately, snow that sticks on the streets in Denver - really only a few days a year. I wish we had a lot more, frankly. And I don't ski (the blashemy!) so winter mountain driving isn't in the cards. But all that said I would still get some sort of Audi beater for the big dumps and for the kiddie seats. Or Keep my S4....

Any feedback on the reliability/ livability of the older CIS FI turbos?

How about DIY stuff?

I need to check out a local car ( I don't even know of any for sale locally) to see how the creature comforts are for daily use - overall comfort, heated seats, yadda yadda yadda....

Thx again-

Brandon

TT Surgeon

Again, from your requirements, you may wanna look at a 996tt, esp re creature comforts as the 993 interior is right out of the 70s. jmo of course, I still think the 993tt is the best tt they ever made.

Streetfighter

Hey Brandon,
I to am a big Audi fan, just sold a 2001 S4, a lot of fun. A tank in the snow. My suggestion to you would be to purchase a clean 993 Turbo and drive when weather permits. I would not drive it in snow, I have seen a lot of Porsches wrecked in the winter months here in Chicago. You my friend will be getting a lot more snow then I. Buy something cheap for when it gets really nasty. Otherwise if you are good with a wrench than you should be able to work well with the Porsche. Good luck to you.