flyspy

I'm sure that you see this all the time, but I need help with my first Porsche. Looking to spend in the low 40's. 993 996....need a "backseat". any help will be appreciated, and I plan to keep the car a good while.

Thanks,

Drew

Van

We get lots of questions - but yours is a little vague...

Have you owned Porsches before? Do plan on driving the car a lot? Year round? Do you know that one is air cooled and one is water cooled? Are you a collector looking for resale value? Do you plan on driving it on the track?

Tell us a little more about why you might want a 911 and I'm sure you'll get useful feedback!

flyspy

Sorry about that...I didnt want to praddle on. Its for my wife, we have never owned a Porsche before. I am familiar with the model changes. We will drive it year around (Texas) and put maybe 5-6K per year on it. I have always bought LOW mile cars, they seem to be more inline with our tastes of keeping car for a long time (8-10yrs). I love the wide body cars, but the older 993's seem to be vary high compared to 996's. Love both, but love technology even better. Thanks for the help.

D

Barn996

I'd say drive a 993 and then compare it to a 996. If price is an issue my guess is you'll do better with a 996.

Van

The old rule of thumb is buy the newest Porsche you can afford - in the long run, that will serve you best.

Good luck!

pat056

I would suggest posting cars you might be interested here and let us help you compare components and options.
I have an air cooled 964 and a water cooled 996. Look on the cars to sale here on rennlist and familiarize yourself with the differences. Take your time looking. . Careful of "garage queens" that never get driven as they my have seals, gasgets that dry out from lack of use.
The more high speed AM components, the better chance it's been on the track and the less the resale. For me, I'd want one as stock as possible.
On the other hand, these cars are made to be driven and hard driving isn't bad in itsself.
Just ask questions. the dumber the better, that way I might be able to answer them

flyspy

Thanks for your opinions! Im not in a rush and hope that this site will be the key to information and ultimately our perfect car.

Drew

Miller_arch

I owned a 993 for 2 years and loved it, broke my heart when it drove away. But I just purchased a 2001 996 with very low miles and am very happy with the "upgrades". Based on your "cultural" criteria you will like the 996 much better. For your budget you will find a nice 2002+ 996. For that budget you will also get the options that will make this a nice ride for you and your wife. The 996 is the best bang for the buck, don't let the lower price fool you, its very artificial. I would also expect you and your wife to like the 2002 plus cars over the earlier 996’s. Also, if cabin and wind noise are a concern then stay away from cabs and targas. You will find mid-year 996’s on many dealer lots that you can test drive.

flyspy

Congrats on the car miller, looks like a beauty. Any clues to what part of the country offer the best cars/prices. I am thinking LA and other high saturation markets....?

Duane993

If it's a weekend car, and you want to experience the old school quirkyness of a classic Porsche...get the 993. A 996 is a better value, they are consistantly less expensive than comparable 993.

hwk72

Although I'll probably not get a sales commission , I think that Tim's car would be perfect for you.
http://mall.rennlist.com/scripts/fea...uery=retrieval

- It's in your price range (low 40s)
- It's a very late model 996 (any 993 is an oldtimer compared to his car)
- It has slightly higher mileage for the MY than the average but if you plan to drive it only 5-6k / year this works out well in the long run and
- It's an enthusiast's car; well maintained and loved

gota911

hwk72, thanks for the recommendation.

BTW, I wouldn't necessarily rule out a commission of some sort!

Miller_arch

I ruled out the coasts because of the long distance so perhaps your assumption is correct but it’s more about the history of the car that I am concerned about.

I sold my 993 to a Rennlister and it was a great experience. That same 993 I bought two years ago from a dealer that took the car in on a trade and thought enough of the car and the owner to fix it up and sell it on its own lot. My recent 996 purchase was a similar situation. In both cases it would have been easy for the dealer to put the car up for auction. Both of my 911's were one-owner vehicles; the 993 had over 150,000 miles on it the second one a little over 10,000 with all records. Both of those situations are different but yet similar…the Owner’s obviously cared about their car in different ways.

Some people just don't want to take the time (nor need the money) to sell their car so they trade it in, if its a decent ride a reputable dealer will put it on their lot and sell it. It's not too often that this happens, so when it does I tend to look favorably on that scenario.

Then there are the guys who want to sell their car to someone who cares about it; they want their car to go to a good home. They sell it because they want to try something else, not because there is something wrong with it. Those are the kinds of sellers you will fine here on Rennlist…that's the kind of seller I was when I sold my 993. This winter I did not advertise it anywhere else but here.

PJorgen

I would suggest staying away from California cars. I bought an '02 C4S in 2006 out of Chicago - I live in the SF Bay Area. While I was shopping around I found that in general California cars were higher mileage and the owers wanted more $$.

In California, we can drive our cars year 'round and many people (myself included) use them as daily dirvers; that explains the higher mileage. As to the higher cost? Everything in California is more expensive.

pl

low 40K will bring u a very nice 996.
whatever u buy, make sure you do a PPI before handing over $$