roguiethegiant

I'm looking at buying a 2003 Targa as a daily driver. Does anyone have buyer tips and daily use experience to provide? Things I should look out for as part of ownership and PPI tips? I do know the targa motor was recently replaced, anything else I should look out for?

Arch1t3ct

03 Targa daily driver here. Make sure to keep the track for the roof lubricated with good clean grease, and drive it as much as possible. I believe that the targa and cabriolet have softer suspension from the factory than the coupes, which was great for road trips and cruising around, but I wanted something with a bit more feedback.

roguiethegiant

Thanks Arch1t3ct. Any testing tips to check if worn?

Arch1t3ct

I'm not sure if any unusual symptoms would exhibit themselves, but at 57k miles on mine I've had no issues in 9k miles of ownership with the roof open any time it's above freezing outside. If you take a look at the car and anything seems suspicious, let me know and I can compare it with mine.

roguiethegiant

Appreciated. It's in chicago (I'm in boston) but I'm there in 2 weeks on business and am driving it then.

twebb

A PPI is highly recommended. Look carefully at how the top opens and closes. It may need to be lubricated/cleaned as mentioned before, so make sure it functions as it should and slight noises can be remedied easily. Fixing the top can be expensive I'm told, so it's important to look at carefully. As for the rest it's just like non targas except for the 4S. A new motor can be a good thing depending on who replaced it. Was it a used motor or a rebuild? The best scenario is a Raby rebuilt motor or Porsche factory. My '02 Targa has been great for the past 30K miles I've owned it. It has 55K now on the original motor, IMS replaced at 30K. I've owned for 8+ years and been very happy with it. Best of luck with your purchase. The Rennlist crowd is an amazing groups of folks and resources. Most issues and questions can be solved DIY with a quick search of the forum.

porsche951

I've owned my 2002 Targa for 4 years now. Driven it about 25k miles with no issues. Currently 86k miles IMS upgraded to dual row ceramic last spring. PPI is absolutely critical. If seller is asking top dollar for the example you're looking at use PPI results to bargain down unless car is 100% sorted.

Jas hunter

can i check anyones spring part number against my 03 996 targa? wondering if the targa springs are a different part number to coupe?

JayG

To my knowledge A Targa has the same suspension options as other 996's. Mine has the stock suspension and there was a "Touring" suspension that was available that is softer,.

In looking in PET, it appears the Cab and Targa share some springs and some springs are the same as the Coupe.
As the Targa and Cabs are a little heaver than a Coupe that makes sense

DTMiller

Targa uses cabriolet springs.