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Love the responses. Thank you....I definitely have mixed feelings about coupe vs. cabriolet but the fact that he has the hard top is making me think "best of both worlds?" I also love the seal grey/black combo(It will match my beloved 01 330xi).....We shall see how our next meetup and the PPI goes. Assuming that the previous owner did not replace, I definitely see a clutch AND IMS bearing job in the near future. It all checks out, I'm gonna shoot for $18k-$20k.
Ps- My buddy has a 99 coupe and yes, it's an awesome strong car. We will see how this pans out but i will shop carefully. That ocean jade 99 is bad assssss!
So, I didn't think I needed/wanted another convertible, but the '99 that found me was a cab with the hardtop. So I got it. I live in California so it will have much top down time.
To note - I believe they are rather noisy compared to coupes when the hardtop is on. Mine groans and creaks quite a bit. But I can live with that.
So, I didn't think I needed/wanted another convertible, but the '99 that found me was a cab with the hardtop. So I got it. I live in California so it will have much top down time. To note - I believe they are rather noisy compared to coupes when the hardtop is on. Mine groans and creaks quite a bit. But I can live with that.
I wanted a cab, and got one, expecting to drive it primarily from April to October (upstate NY). I was OK with the soft top, figuring that it would be mostly a fair weather, mild temperature car anyway. Then I found a hard top listed on Craigslist for $400, complete with stand and cover.
The hard top pretty much transforms the car. Mine has the old style bayonet mounts, yet it fits tightly and doesn't creak or groan. It rattles a little over bad pavement, but no more than my Acura MDX -- we have some lousy roads around here. In November or December I put on the hard top and snow tires; we usually get some dry, clear winter days where the car is quite comfortable with the hard top.
That said, I don't think the hard top really makes the cab into a coupe. Bottom line? If you *really* like top down driving, the cab-with-a-hard-top setup is hard to beat. If your attitude toward the whole top-down thing is more lukewarm, take-it-or-leave-it, the coupe will have better performance and fewer mechanisms to break.
Friends,
Took the test drive and had car inspected today with my mechanic. Super clean car overall with detailed service records. Drives beautifully and gear box shifts tight. I certainly love the car. Oh, and owner doe not have hard top...bummer but i would just be on the lookout for a CL find.
Two major concerns that i am looking for advice on...
1.) There is definitely some oil where trans and motor meet. Not a massive amount but it's there. (See photos)
2.) Coolant leak... Seems to be a slow leak but i can smell it and see it (See pic with flashlight)
End of the day, I am pretty much assuming I will have to get a new clutch and IMS bearing job done and would have to tackle the coolant leak issue, which that could be a simple loose hose clamp or a whole new water pump.....Is this a car you run from or what? Estimate on repairs / Fair offer price? Thank you in advance and sorry for the over-sized pictures.
Friends,
Took the test drive and had car inspected today with my mechanic. Super clean car overall with detailed service records. Drives beautifully and gear box shifts tight. I certainly love the car. Oh, and owner doe not have hard top...bummer but i would just be on the lookout for a CL find.
Two major concerns that i am looking for advice on...
1.) There is definitely some oil where trans and motor meet. Not a massive amount but it's there. (See photos)
2.) Coolant leak... Seems to be a slow leak but i can smell it and see it (See pic with flashlight)
End of the day, I am pretty much assuming I will have to get a new clutch and IMS bearing job done and would have to tackle the coolant leak issue, which that could be a simple loose hose clamp or a whole new water pump.....Is this a car you run from or what? Estimate on repairs / Fair offer price?
- Was your mechanic unable to answer your questions?
"a car you run from" - Let's keep in mind you are looking at a vehicle that is 14 years old and has been on the road for 75k miles. It's not going to be perfect by any stretch. You mentioned the car is "super clean" comes with "detailed service records" drives and shifts "beautifully." Sounds pretty good to me. The price seems fair.
Here are my rules of 996 ownership:
If you can't enjoy the car due to reading this forum - do not buy a 996
If you don't have $5,000 in cash ready to burn in a moment's notice with no regrets what so ever - do not buy a 996
Well, Although I trust my local mechanic, he would have to sit down and price me out, plus I probably would have a mechanic who works on Porsche more regularly do this job. I think both of these comments are right on the money and ball is in my court now. Thank you all.
Friends,
Took the test drive and had car inspected today with my mechanic. Super clean car overall with detailed service records. Drives beautifully and gear box shifts tight. I certainly love the car. Oh, and owner doe not have hard top...bummer but i would just be on the lookout for a CL find.
Two major concerns that i am looking for advice on...
1.) There is definitely some oil where trans and motor meet. Not a massive amount but it's there. (See photos)
2.) Coolant leak... Seems to be a slow leak but i can smell it and see it (See pic with flashlight)
End of the day, I am pretty much assuming I will have to get a new clutch and IMS bearing job done and would have to tackle the coolant leak issue, which that could be a simple loose hose clamp or a whole new water pump.....Is this a car you run from or what? Estimate on repairs / Fair offer price? Thank you in advance and sorry for the over-sized pictures.
Does this car blow your skirt up? If so, the stuff I see is fixable and nothing I would shy away from. RMS leaks are common failure items, there's lots of plastic in the cooling circuit so that leak's not strange. While you are in there later, do the clutch and maybe IMS.
Things to do now: Remove the oil filter, and cut the media apart so you can inspect the pleats for metal particles. If none, drain oil through a cloth and look for debris in the cloth. If none, remove oil pan(20 min job) and inspect down there, and look for the little plastic chain guide bits. If none, button it up, fill with oil and then test the living spit out of the top raise and lower mech. If that passes, write the check. Shop for a hardtop on ebay or CL.
Does this car blow your skirt up? If so, the stuff I see is fixable and nothing I would shy away from. RMS leaks are common failure items, there's lots of plastic in the cooling circuit so that leak's not strange. While you are in there later, do the clutch and maybe IMS.
Things to do now: Remove the oil filter, and cut the media apart so you can inspect the pleats for metal particles. If none, drain oil through a cloth and look for debris in the cloth. If none, remove oil pan(20 min job) and inspect down there, and look for the little plastic chain guide bits. If none, button it up, fill with oil and then test the living spit out of the top raise and lower mech. If that passes, write the check. Shop for a hardtop on ebay or CL.
These cars are not cheap to maintain but they are awesome to drive and well worth the cost to keep them running. Good luck with this one! And yes, get a dedicated Porsche indie to do the work on it.
Except in a case where you are getting a smokin' deal that you could flip. I just bought a plane about $15k under market cuz I was in the right place with cash and the seller is facing a huge tax bill. Then, you can drive it or fix cosmetics until you flip for some $$$, and always keep looking for your sweetie.
Here is a pragmatic thought: When you get ready someday to sell the car with well over 100K miles on the clock remember that a cabrio will never be of interest to an enthusiast as a racer or track day car. Porsches are one place where the saying "when the top goes down the price goes up" is not always necessarily true.
08-08-2016, 07:32 PM
