rbc123

Hi folks. I am new to your forum and Porsche.
I have hit my midlife crisis at 70 yrs old and have wife's approval to buy a Porsche!
I usually research the heck out of major purchases and this seemed to be the best place. I have pretty much decided on a 2002 996 Cabriolet for numerous reasons. Money available and reliability part of decision and of course the thrill of driving this beautiful car.
I am struggling with the fact that this car is really not available within 500 miles and will have to buy sort of sight unseen somewhere else in the country. I understand the use of a PPI and realize that is no guarantee. I would pretty much have to negotiate price by phone before making a plane trip to pick up car. How do people do that?
I don't mind travelling with a lot of cash as long as I am also armed. But these days that is hard to do. how do you convey money to seller and be able to drive away that day?
I have successfully purchased 2 trucks on E-bay but they were Toyotas and i really was not worried about reliability etc. Pics told the story.
I have located a car I like that has all the goodies including PSE. What is your opinion of that system?
Thanks to anyone that replies.
rbc123

Dennis C

I bought my C4S from a seller in California. In my case, each of us had an account at Wells Fargo. I arranged a PPI and the seller took the car to the mechanic for that. Ther PPI turned up a few issues, and they were repaired before I flew out to inspect the car. Once I saw it and I was satisfied, we went up to the local branch of Wells Fargo together and I simply transferred the money into his account. After that, I enjoyed a nice road trip and got to know the car.

wellcraft290

not sure where you are but most pcar owners are pretty trusting and honest.

I bought mine from a dealer but have in the past bought from a pcar individual. what I did was drove/fly to the car after ppi picked her up. the owner I bought from sent me the title and held onto the car so I could get plates and insurance to drive it home unless your state allows you to get temp tags etc.

also keep in mind with banks all over the place the seller just set up a bank account so we had matching banks and we went to the bank together and I deposited the money from my account to his so he knew it was in his account and good as gold.

wellcraft290

lol dennis just posted the same thing regarding the account.

unfortunately I had the issue about not being able to get a temp tag to drive home so the seller was nice enough to send me the title so I could get plates before I paid for it. I guess possession is 9/10th of the law.

Dennis C

Tags can be an issue. You need to understand the laws of the seller's state as well as your own state. Typically, you'll have to pay sales tax in your state of residence when you register the car, but I've heard that some states require you to pay tax when you purchase the car. California had a law that allowed me to purchase the car and transfer the title to my name for $15 as long as I took the car out of state within 24-hours of the purchase.

Dstutler

As for transferring the money you can go to your bank - even in the city the car is in, and get a cashiers check. And your choice of a 2002 996 Cab is a good choice - see Avatar.

rpm's S2

Where are you located? Many of us spend our spare time searching for cars we will not buy simply for the fun of it. Let us help you look!

Cuda911

How about using a vehicle broker??

rbc123

Hey thanks for all the replies. I value them all.
RPM's S2 - thanks for the offer. I live in fl. Keys. I would probably travel about 1500 miles for the right car.
Cuda911 - how does a vehicle broker work?
Randy

Barn996

GL with your purchase. I would be resistant to leaving the keys for anything but a hurricane. As mentioned, there are lots of Rennlisters who might be able to do a vehicle once over, to help you know more about a possible purchase. PPIs aren't fool proof unless they are VERY thorough, and even then certain components could still fail.

Hurdigurdiman

You living in Florida probably have no need for a hard top but all Cabriolets come with one so ask about that. If it doesn't have one then knock $1500 from the price. My advice is for you to read this link. https://rennlist.com/forums/996-foru...96-thread.html

Get your PPI to check that your model does exactly everything that it is supposed to do. Each model is different. Porsche parts are really expensive and it will cost you down the road to rectify anything that is missed on the PPI. Do not let the dealer or the person selling, do the PPI. Get an independent person to do it for you. When you see the one you like, show us the sales details so we can see the car. My advice would be for you to go for something that has not been highly altered/modded in any way. There is less chance that the car was molested by the wrong hands. Some of these young guys don't bother on how it runs as such. They are more interested on how LOUD IT SOUNDS and how BAD *** it looks. You need to be looking for a stock car as it left Stuttgart. I am 72 and got my first Porsche at your age as a birthday gift from my dear wife. Just my two pence worth. Good luck with your searching.

5CHN3LL

^ Bah.

Sounds like OP has found the car he plans to buy, so this is veering dangerously off-topic...but any chance to argue with Hurdi must be exploited. If you want an aerokit car, why buy an "unmolested" car and then spend $10K on the aerokit? Buy a car that is finished the way you want it. $10K in aerokit will add very little to the sale price. If you want a modded car, get one that's been done right.

A "stock car as it left Stuttgart" can be interpreted as "lovingly maintained" or "thousands of dollars in deferred maintenance." Like everything else in life, caveat emptor.

> My advice would be for you to go for something that has not been highly altered/modded in any way.

This from a guy who has $30 worth of Home Depot gutter guard screwed into his front bumper...

rbc123

Yes I am not looking for a modded up 911. Stock is fine with me, leaving me with option to do what I want.
Here is write up from ad for car i am interested in. i am planning to talk to seller tonight. Let me know what you think.
Price
$26,900
Mileage 61,256
Body Style Convertible
Exterior Color Silver
Interior Color Black
Transmission Automatic
Fuel Type Gasoline
Doors Two Door

Options Installed

CD Player
Cruise Control
Heated Seats

Leather Seats
Power Mirrors
Rear Window Defroster

Side Curtain Airbags
Tilt/Telescope Steering Wheel

Seller Comments

Spectacular Condition, Heavily Optioned, Meticulously cared for and Extremely Clean. Four New tires, Frt. and rear New Brakes and Rotors. Fresh Mobil One oil change. Newer battery. No accidents ,No damage , No dents or scratches, No rim rash, Well optioned in Classic Arctic Silver Metallic. Advance Technic pkg. (High pressure headlight washers, eleven speaker Bose audio system with remote CD changer, Projector beam Xenon headlights) AM/FM radio CD player. Heated seating pkg, Full power driver/ passenger memory seat pkg, 18" Light alloy wheel Pkg ( Updated to 2009 Carrera Classic IV wheels). Design Pkg. ( Stainless door sill plates. White instrument gauge cluster Aluminum handbrake and shifter trim. Porsche Stability Management System. Colored crest wheel caps, Crest in headrests, Flared rocker panels, Porsche lettered Mats, This car also has rare PSE (Porsche Sport Exhaust). M.S.R.P. $95,880.00 New for 02 is a smooth running 3.6 liter 320HP. engine. New five speed Tiptronic from the Turbo. Redesigned Turbo look front and rear bumpers fenders headlights and taillights. Bose audio system. Turbo instruments ,Cup holder and a Glove compartment.. Glass rear window with defrost on cabriolets. Looks runs and drives like new. This car is in Way Above average condition at a below average price. Must see.

Wausau 911

Certainly there must be lots of 996's in Miami / Tampa / St Petersburg area that you could see in person and have PPI performed at a place of your choosing. Just my 2 cents.

rbc123

There don't seem to be very many 2002 911 cabriolet automatics that are not black in Miami area. I use autotrader, cars.com,car guru and Ebay and rennlist
The car that I mention above is in Washington, Michegan which looks to be a sublurb just north of Detroit. Any Rennlisters in that area?
Randy