bella1

Yes I would say a max of $20K

Topaz330ci

People usually buy TIP new. After that, they are VERY hard to sell.

6speed only. I think everyone I know would kill me if I bought it as a tip!

ivangene

PasPar2

tip vs 6speed comes up alot. 96% of the comments are pro 6speed. I own a tip and, for now, I am happy with it. Its a personal decision really... I like having the tip in NYC for obvious reasons but the 2 or 3 times a year I take it to the track I half wish I had a manual. Since I track it much less then I drive it otherwise a tip works for me.

FYI 2002+ 996s have a much better tiptronic transmission. If you are set of getting a tip, look for a 2002+ model.

DRW79

My G35 is the 6MT. I love it, wife hates it. Not a great reason to switch to auto I know.

The only other one I'm looking at is an '03 with 48k, but it's a Carmax car with no history and they want a fortune over book for it. ($30k)

I'm going to drive the '01 tomorrow and will post some thoughts after that.

I'm trying to make a rational, considered decision, and not let the fact I've wanted a 911 for as long as I can remember impact my judgement!!

racer

Be sure to check the Rennlist classifieds for cars too.. I recall seeing a C4 coupe tip posted recently for around $22k

DRW79

Thanks Peter.

OK. So the dealer just called me, they sold the '01.

However they have an '03 C4S that they just took in. Again was sold and serviced by the dealer since new. 45k miles. Tiptronic. They are asking $36.9k.

What do you guys think? Obviously I'm not paying close to $37 for it, but would appreciate anyone's thoughts.

racer

C4S is perhaps my favorite looking 996. Wide body, no gaudy rear spoiler like the TT (or those big sugar scoopes in the rear fenders ). $38K sure sounds a bit high though.

Peter 642

Well, unfortunately, you might. As the owner of a 2003 C4S that price is high for a tiptronic, and slightly high for the mileage (actually, yes, it's high for the mileage) but not high for a dealer-priced car. Excellence price on these tops out about $35K, and so if you add a few percent for the "low" mileage and several obligatory percent for the "dealer special pricing," you're right at $37K.

I'm biased clearly but the car is drop-dead gorgeous, and I agree that the 4S is a great-looking 996. Racer's got it: all the best features without turbo extras. I dig the wide hips plus extra body parts but it's the red calipers that get me every time It is argued by some (me) that the 4S is the most desired of the 996 non-turbo models, so you may pay top dollar, which is why if you compare a C2 to a C4 and then specifically a 4S, you're watching the price jump more than you would think. You're also getting a newer car; there's absolutely no guarantee that the '03 won't have a catastrophic failure, but again some argue that things got better after 2002.5. Certainly the car is different after that point.

To give you a sense of price, I looked at a 2001 C4 prior to the 2003 C4S. Packages and mileage similar in both cars (leather, sound; otherwise stock). Prices I saw were >$10,000 apart. And the C4 was a dealer car.

I'm curious, though. If you're already driving a G35 6MT, I understand the spousal issue but I would think twice on the tiptronic. That you absolutely love the G35 manual means you'll love the 6-speed even more, but that you may not love the tip quite as much as you hope to. I'm now completely making stuff up here, but I would ponder your transmission choice another minute. If you were driving a recent G37 tiptronic, and you wanted the upgrade, I'd think, sure....but (and I'm absolutely not an expert) arguably the G35 is a better car (more fun anyway) than the extremely recent 2010 G37, and again, if it's manual, why downgrade?

I probably could have put that in a PM, come to think of it....

DRW79

Thanks for the thoughts.

I actually drive a new G37 auto and wouldn't swap it for my G35 6MT. The 996 is another matter though. I liked the '01 C2 that they sold, but really like the '03 C4S (Seal Grey, Grey Lthr, Bose). It looks so sorted, and as Racer said, it's the wide body, but clean.

The dealier called and said they'd go to $35.9k for a quick sale, so I think there's room to work a deal. I think I'm going to see if I can push them to CPO it for that price. I'd be more comfortable at $35k though. Maybe I'm being unrealistic, but you've got to try, right?

Peter 642

Go for it. I failed miserably, but got an aftermarket warranty as a consolation prize.
There are likely a few grey/grey cars out there; take your time. That price is dealer-reasonable, but still high. It's unlikely a dealer will give you a CPO on an '03, but as you said, not impossible. The issue is one of the definition of what "CPO" means to Porsche. For what it's worth, I've heard mixed reviews on the CPO, but the negatives tend to come straight from the dealers (only), who likely make a few bucks (or more) on the aftermarket warranty they sell. You may find that simply, Porsche does not CPO an '03, which means you're stuck with Fidelity or other.