450knotOffice

Sure, it's a nice looking 911, but I don't consider it better looking than a 930, which I happen to consider the best looking factory 911 ever produced. No doubt, Niche's car is simply gorgeous, but his is not a stock looking car. The stock 993's, even the Turbos, just don't really get my blood boiling like an original bug-eyed 911 does - especially the 930. Lower a Triple Black 930 a bit, stick some 315's in back and 275's in front, and there's no Porsche that looks more purposeful, imo.

Again, I like the 993's, but I still am not a big fan of the front end. It's too rounded. Yes, the hips are nice, but the front end drags it down, imo.

htny

Javier always love seeing your car.

I personally think my favorite 911 variants in terms of aesthetics are the 935 in full moby dick mode(ok so that doesn't count), and on the street the 930 (turbo) flatnose. The 930 widebodies are all great, even with lamps! And a 964 widebody? I'll take it.

Myfavorite thing about a 993 is that it looks like a 959 from the front. They aren't my first choice at all. I do love the Ruf turbo 993 variants, as well as the factory turbo and turbo S. If I could get that sort of tailbase on a 996 997 I would. One day when I have a much bigger garage I will likely put one of the 993 RUF cars in it.

I do love the way the mk2 996 looks, so aggressive and modern (but I'm a slant fan), however I don't love the mk2 aero/gt3 rear wing. I think the 997 C4, turbo, and GT3RS look great as well, and wouldn't kick the narrowbody out of my garage either, provided I am permitted some body colored trim rings to sharpen up the lamps a little! But I don't think I'd ever sell my 996, that's me though, I don't sell things.

For those of you who believe the 996 has depreciated much more rapidly than the 997, you're out of touch with reality. No 911 has depreciated as rapidly as the 997. Run the auction numbers against the MSRPs, compare sales prices of 2005 997s today (not ask, settle, auction) against historical sales prices of 1999 cars in 2003, then depreciate against MSRPs. If you'd rather not do the math, there was an extensive, comprehensive and empirical post on this topic a month or two ago. If fashion is ephemeral, supply and demand are inexorable. That means that even though the 997 is in many ways superior in terms of creature comforts, engine options, and in the eyes of many interior and exterior styling, a mk1 997 will be worth 20K or less in 2015, 9-10 years old. CPO 997s like this one http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail...5&aff=national are settling for under 40, and out of warranty cars mid 30s all day http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail...5&aff=national. Don't believe me? Get a 1 day Galves subscription. In 2006, you could not buy a 4-5 year old Mk2 996 this cheaply, and the MSRPs on the 997 with the same typical options as the mk2 996 is generally 10% greater. So as far as I'm concerned, the 997 is technically the best value today for me, as I'm going to drive it a lot, care about warranty coverage, etc. Would I sell my 996? Not unless I had to, but then I have trouble selling anything.

And there are plenty of 993s, mostly the ones which were driven, which are incredibly affordable to acquire:
http://www.ecarlist.com/cgi-bin/show...10098&d_id=947

Well, on that note, I'm back in NY tomorrow, hope the weather cooperates with me driving the P! And I hope you guys have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Analog Theory

RUF 993 Turbo R = dream. Yours is simply stunning...

niche

Thanks guys!

I love them all! I would love a RUF CTR2 Sport one day!

JDSStudios

I like your post, but you are leaving out other exterior factors, like economic conditions, which extremely affect prices.
John

Schwabische Auto

I will second (or third) that. I agree the Mk1 996 headlights are the worst looking of all of them, but they are kinda of like a bulldog or pugs, so ugly it almost makes them desirable and unique.

htny

You can't leave them out, they're baked in, but so are other things like exchange rates which completely flip that argument over. But I agree, 997s would be worth more in contemporaneous dollars without a credit crisis than with, as would 996s. Again it's just supply and demand. Access to capital and credit affects supply over very long time scales, but impacts demand very rapidly. Which is why I got a 2009 5 series BMW for practically nothing in February. Either way, it's very easy to plot.

Basically both models depreciated almost exactly in line with their respective relative production volumes, and the acceleration in the Mk1 997s depreciation over the 996 on a years in service basis is attributable to the fact that they were released at the very height of the credit bubble, and are being returned at or near the depths of the bust. This doesn't mean that the 997 didn't depreciate faster, the asterisk doesn't change the dollars and cents of it, or the notion that buying a 2005 or 2006 997 today presents a better value than buying a 2002 or 2003 996 in 2006 did, and that's without adjusting for the value of the dollar, American or Canadian. I've bored enough of you already, but if you need a nap see:

https://rennlist.com/forums/6944571-post16.html

AndyK

I personally like the MKI lights better than the MKII, simply because the MKII lights are just MK I lights that drip onto the bumper, in an elongated oval instead of straight across.

If you must have traditional round headlights, both 996 variants fail, period! I personally don't care.

Meister Fahrer

Those headlights are also the last Porsche headlights to win Le Mans outright.

Regarding the body lines, with the 996 Porsche kind of brought back the "bathtub" lines of the 356.

-- Part of the reason for that is more room needed under the rear deck to support the water-cooling, so the overall lines really had to be modifed with the first 996.

(and yes, I love Javier's Ruf, too!)

Edgy01

I think they look similar.

AndyK

Awesome shots Dan! What are the odds of finding the same color 993 AND staying at the Overlook Hotel? You are the caretaker, you've always been the caretaker!

May I be so bold as to say the 997 has nicer lines?

Ahmet

I agree, I think the 997 looks better...

BruceP

What it shows you is that the design of the 997 was the work of the marketing department. I think it's a very pretty car, but I can't get past the idea that Porsche did this as a response to consumer whining. What I've always liked about Porsche is that they do pretty much what they damn please and don't pay much attention to focus groups. The 996, whether you love it or hate it, was their genuine effort to reimagine the 911. The 997 is a crowd pleaser.

RallyJon

Every time I see a 993 and 997 together, I'm amazed how huge the 997 looks.

Edgy01

The 997 has a serious J Lo butt compared to the 993, but if you look at them merely from the side, you can see the family resemblance.