Two similar C4S's in my area. This one is at a local porsche dealer now for $35.9k

http://denver.craigslist.org/cto/5738955656.html

And then this one:

http://denver.craigslist.org/ctd/5733496957.html

Which as far as I can tell has been reduced 1k recently.

Thanks

 

First one... too much money and if you notice, the airbag module (steering wheel) has been replaced. That could mean an accident or faulty air bag, but still, over priced.

The second one, is a much better deal for the miles. I've seen these cars list for the low 20s and so maybe you can shave off another $5,000 on the price. But at $29,000 for a low miles C4S, that's not bad at all.

 

I don't know why all these newbies pay a premium for low mileage ones as those are the ones that will most likely blow up or need quite a bit of work. Just my $.02

 

Second one seems about right. First is 2013 pricing.

 

If you're on FB, maybe join the RMR PCA group and see if anyone there knows the history of either?

 

look at nada prices, look at the dirtest trade in value, and never buy a car untill you have it completely inspected and look at carfax and dealer service history

 

First one: New listing.

Second one: Has been listed for over year, started in the high 30s. Never looked at it due to price and being at an unfamiliar dealer lot.

That's all I have.

 

Low mileage cars blowing up??? You don't really believe a mint low mileage C4S (or any 911) is really going to blow up and need more work than a high mileage car do you? Thats absurd. Miles, options and condition are everything regardless what it is. If you want a pristine low mileage car, your gonna pay up for it. Nice clean low mileage PCA cars are not as cheap as dealer auction cars.

 

I recommend to keep looking. Any time a dealer (2nd one) says you can trust them, you can't trust them. Look for a car from a PCA member that has at least 2 or 3 years of service history. There are no guarantees when buying a 12yo+ German sports car but this will decrease your odds a little of buying a nightmare.

 

On Rennlist, there does not appear to be any ability to differentiate between cars that are low mileage because they were parked and not started for a decade vs. cars that are low-mileage but still normally maintained. There is another Rennlist mantra that goes something like this: "It's much better to buy a ragged-out POS that has been beaten on so hard that it leaks at every gasket and clamp than a carefully maintained, low-mileage vehicle. Everyone knows that low-mileage vehicles are destined to fail catastrophically."

I don't understand it.

 

30 years of 911 experience and 15 years of PCA regional board member and I don't understand it......????

 

I received the carfax from the dealer for the first one, 2002. Shows 8 owners! (is there anyway for me to post it? It's a .pdf). It's hard to decipher what was a real sale and when it may of been passed from one dealer to another. It only shows one "repair", but notes it as an emissions inspection. It's been through MI, CA, ND, AZ and finally CO.

At this point I think this is really just a fact finding mission for me, I don't think I'd consider this one for several reasons, not the least are which the potential accident b3freak pointed out or that I am unlikely to get this dealer to go down 8k.

I am leaning heavily towards 997's, but wanted to give the 996 a fair shake before I rule them out. I did have a roommate with a 996 cabrio we drove the **** out of, so it's not a total unknown to me, but that was already a while ago and enough things are different to want to check it one last time.

Thanks for the advice!

 

You'll have to take photos or screen grabs and post as jpegs.

 

 

If you haven't already, YOU MUST SEE THEM IN PERSON. It is absolutely impossible to try to gauge what a car like this is worth from 3 fuzzy pictures. There are so many 'little' things that are either in great shape or not and they can add up to cost thousands and thousands. Even the price difference between the two, although it seems like a lot, can be a drop in the bucket if you get into the cheaper one and start replacing things.

The IMS being replaced could be a good sign, it means the previous owner knew something about the car and was willing to invest in it. Getting the service history for each will help tell the story a bit better.

That being said, it feels like the black one is definitely on the high side. I bought my C4S in the in the very low 20s but it also had 94k miles and no service history (it was from a Porsche dealer btw).

Go drive them, decide which feels the best for you and talk to the seller about price. If it seems like you're in the same ballpark, get a pre purchase inspection done.