Ian964

So I've been a member of the forum since 2002, I had a 1991 964 Turbo that I ended up selling around 2006? I bought it for 37, sold it for 40. Now I'm looking at prices of 964 Turbo's and they are going for over 100k! I was blown away.

I was an idiot kid back when I owned the 911 Turbo. I could afford to purchase it but I really couldn't afford to "own" it. I felt like I was ALWAYS checking for oil under the car or checking to make sure everything was ok. I probably spent 5-10k in service while I owned it.

Fast forward 15 years, married, kids, career ....

I was looking for a new car that was "fun" with a budget of 40k max. I looked at the WRX STI, Focus ST, Golf R, etc. All of them were ok, but nothing gave me the feeling of driving the 911 Turbo. (Yeah I know it's not even fair to compare them, but for me it was all relative).

I'm looking for a 911 to use for my very short commute daily driver and weekend touring. I expect to put about 4k miles per year on the car.

There are some 997's in my price range but I think I could get a better serviced, lower miles, 996. I am aware of the IMS issue and have been doing a lot of research on the 996.

My local, and very reputable Porsche dealer has a 2003 C4S 90k miles for sale. All service completed, new tires, full PPI, completely gone through. The car is in great condition. Even the interior is good. I've seen 50k mile cars look worse. When I first saw it online I completely dismissed it. Now I'm starting to consider it due to the low price (29k)

So my question. Given that I plan to put 4k miles on per year and given that the dealer has gone through it completely and shown me all that's been done. They've told me what services are coming up,etc. I feel like they have been extremely upfront.

1) Should I be afraid of the miles? At 4k per year, I could own it for 4 years and only put on 16k miles. Leaving it approaching 110 miles

2) I feel more comfortable buying from a dealership than a private party or "used car" dealer. I know there are some very reputable high end used car dealers, but then again, a lot of them are not.

3) I could probably get a lower millage example for a similar cost, but I feel like I'm buying some peace of mind, knowing and trusting that it's been gone over really well.

Any feedback would be appreciated

FRUNKenstein

At $29k for a 90k mile C4S, it's overpriced unless there's a bag with at least $7,000 cash in it in the trunk.
Disagree that buying from a Porsche dealer is the best option on a 13 year old car. I'd strongly recommend buying from a private seller who can give you detailed history on the car plus receipts plus you can get an idea of how it was treated. Plus, it will save you probably $4,000 at least over buying from a franchised dealer.
I wouldn't be afraid of the miles as long as you have good service history. And that you understand that when it comes time to sell, it will be much, much more difficult to do so with a high mileage car. Hence the advice that the car is significantly overpriced at $29k. You can get a very nice low mileage C4S for that. At $29,000 for 90,000 miles, you are getting into the bottom end of the 996 Turbo price range.

johnireland

I think you could do much better on the price. Do you actually like the car? If not, keep looking.
The early generation 1 996s will be more like your 964 in terms of mechanical feel. I bought my 2000 cab for $23k and it needed nothing and had only 46k miles. I bought it from an indie dealer who specialized in Porsches and had his own service department. Have you driven lots of 996s? If not, do so before thinking of buying one because it will give you a wider sense of the cars and their conditions.

5CHN3LL

Since you've done a lot of research, you know that the pre-2000 cars are the most reliable vis-a-vis the IMS, right?

90K miles isn't necessarily a lot - it would matter to me how much track time it's seen and where the car has been located. A higher-mileage California car with 0 track miles would be preferable to me over a lower-mileage rust-belt car or one that has done substantial track time. Since "OMG bore scoring" became a thing, warm-weather cars may be preferable to cars from places where winter is actually a thing.

I won't say you're wrong, since only you know what you're comfortable with. However, a dollar says nobody at that dealership has been working for Porsche since that 996 was new...I doubt they have any 996 "experts." If I was trying to find a good 996, I would call the indie mechanics in my area to ask if any customer 996's are for sale, and if so, what they can tell me about the car...

A dealership is going to be concerned with one thing when it comes to a car that old: getting it off the lot, preferably making a few bucks in the process. If it came in as a trade, there was NO money to be made at wholesale on that car; selling it at (in my opinion) a price appreciably higher than what the market supports and spending as little money as possible is their only hope for a profit. Expecting an honest pre-purchase inspection from the dealership selling the car just isn't realistic.

Unless it's CPO - which it won't be - I don't see the benefit of purchasing it from a Porsche dealership.

alpine003

Your Budget = T U R B O

Slakker

Test drive a '99, you might be surprised. From there, the newer the car, the more of the driving it does for you. And with the left over money you can do some really cool mods or just enjoy it how it is. Or even buy a second one to track. Ha!

RngTrtl

get the turbo. much more reliable motor and a hell of alot of fun to drive.

FRUNKenstein

'99 aero coupe is a fantastic car. Here's Neto's car, which I think is one of the best looking 911's of any year that I've ever seen:

5CHN3LL

Do this, or buy a less expensive car (like a '99) and bank the rest if you're worried about repair costs.

groovzilla

Due to my BMW Airhead motorcycle addiction returning and my desire to by some older vintage bikes, i might be persuaded to sell my beloved 2002 996 C4S. Will take many dancing girls and really good vodka.

Silver/full supple black leather, 6 speed, 110K miles, Brombacher level 2 kit with sport mufflers.($8,000). Clean CarFax. Clean Title free & clear in my name.

Excellent condition(1 very tiny match head sized mark on front bumper). Newer Michelin tires. 60% brakes. Previous owner replaced windshield due to rock chips 5K miles ago - $1200 OEM original glass w/receipts.

Many service records. No BS, no stories car like my others

PPI done 7 months ago prior to my purchase - slight seepage in steering rack. i have replacement and didn't get around to doing it yet. (no drips, no sign of anything so it still puzzles me why this came up on PPI)

new IMS with serial number sticker, new clutch & flywheel done at 107K miles which is 3K miles ago.- all service receipts for this work totaling $5,000

$25,950 Firm

kromdom

Ian,
Gonna make this as simple and easy as possible: BUY GROOVZILLA's car.

groovzilla

^^thx Krom but i'm not 100% sure i'd sell just yet - have some short trips planned and i got to say it is a nice/tight example

FRUNKenstein

Buy it, fly out to Seattle, bring a friend/family member, pick it up, spend the night in Seattle after an evening of heavy drinking with Groov, epic drive cross country back home. Easy peasy. It's a better car than what you'd buy at the local dealer plus the money you save will more than pay for the road trip. Memories to last a lifetime (except for the ones of Seattle - those will be quite hazy, no doubt).

Ian964

I would honestly consider it (if he wanted to sell) but we couldn't really live any father apart in the continental US.

I just talked to another guy. 2005 C4S 60,156 miles, $33,991. 60k service done.

Same dealer has a 2005 Carrera S Coupe with 80k miles for 34k. I'm going to drive both when I go.

RngTrtl

ill repeat myself just in case you glanced over my post. Since you got 40k or so to spend, get the turbo. There are a million reasons why.