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First post in awhile. Thanks for starting this registry. I was surprised I couldn't find one. I have #4 as a guest in my garage. 99K miles. All stock, IMS/RMS at 93K.
I've been calling it "The Good Deed 996." Here's the story: It belonged to Dan, a good friend of mine who lost his courageous battle with cancer just after Christmas. He was 51 with two boys, both a year younger than my own (16 and 12). Aside from his sons, it was his pride and joy. He had just put $24K into the engine and was going to drive it forever. Then he got sick.
As his “Porsche buddy,” I decided to take the car on as project to teach my boys about vehicle maintenance but more importantly, doing nice things for other people. By helping me fix little things and super detailing it they will be helping out Dan’s boys by (hopefully) adding more funds to their college account.
After sitting in his garage for over a year, it has undergone quite a transformation in the past few months with the generosity of both Porsche dealers near me, PCA friends, and my family. Park Place Porsche in Dallas donated over $500 in labor to replace the battery, plugs and ignition coils. Porsche of Plano balanced the tires, installed a new tire, and did some diagnostic work at no charge. They found the hard to find ChromaFlair Violet touch up paint. PCA friends offered advice, encouragement, and detailing products to test. My boys and I cleaned it up a little at a time as our schedules allowed.
My oldest learned how to check the oil and fluids on a car in the last 911 with a dipstick. We changed burnt out bulbs. He and I cleaned the leather, sauna style, after letting the car sit in the sun one Saturday to open the pores of the leather. My youngest learned the difference between a wheel and a tire. He vacuumed the interior to perfection. He and I applied $75 worth of leather conditioner to bring back hydration to the acres of leather in that interior. While he complained the whole time to me, I saw him making his friends feel the seats the next day to show off his handiwork when they hit the garage fridge for Gatorade. My wife spot treated the floor mats over and over until they were spotless. She drove me back and forth to the dealers, and shared her side of the garage. My mother-in-law even blue taped the window moldings one day so I could go right to the buffer that night when I got home. I did lots of research and spent many nights fixing little things and buffing the paint one panel at a time-- usually with a Scotch nearby and Dan appropriate tunes in the air. And I loved every minute of it.
I put a new mass air flow sensor in it yesterday after lurking here for answers. What a difference-- night and day. Now it pulls like crazy. It's on Dallas Craigslist, but I may be bugging you guys as I chase down a few other gremlins.
These were supposed to be with my last post...
#4 Millenium Edition, Dallas Texas
Thanks for sharing! That is a sad but sweet story. I'm sure Dan would be grateful that you are taking time with his family during this tough time. The car looks great and I hope it provides the family the extra support you all are hoping for.
Btw that's a really low serial number you got there. Wonder if we'll ever see 007? :-)
Yeah, I thought it was cool it was #4, I wonder if it was part of the auto show circuit or has any interesting history. The only have receipt I have is for the engine work that was done (RMS, IMS etc.)
Does anyone know a way to get info from PCNA? I know about the Certificate of Authenticity but that's not really what I'm looking for. I can't believe all of the dealers don't share VIN info.
These are great cars... I've owned two of them personally.
The faux wood interior is the first thing to go, then the coating on the wheels... Both of the ones I had were purchased after having a cracked cylinder head (Y2K syndrome) and I kept them for a while, then sold them. They have every option known to man!
Jake - The car in your avatar looks like kinda the same color of my ME when it's under shade. Is that one of your former ME's?
If not, I'm thinking some shade with metallic mixed in that takes the deepness out of the black... What's it called, Bassalt Black?
Regarding the wood, the German literature about the Millennium Edition that I have read includes the words "Ahorn-Wurzelholz" which literally means "maple rotwood" and thus leads me to believe that Porsche used very thin sheets of stained veneer under lacquer, not faux wood-looking plastic. It's the same wood as used on the steering wheels and the cracking in the lacquer layer comes from wood expansion and contraction in heat and cold over time. Cars that were parked ouside a lot, or live in areas with wide ranging temperature variations would have this issue moreso than cars parked regularly in garages in consistent climates.
I also remember having seen literature using the word "edelholz" used describing this wood, which is less specific to the wood type but generically means "noble wood" with the implication of exclusivity and expense. Pretty sure thats real wood under the lacquer, not fake. There's just not a lot of it... This could be verified if there are ever two ME's in the same place, check the wood patterns up close.
Also, check out the Millennium Edition brochure and look at the 2nd column on pg.3 that mentions "... interior is replete with dark burr maple woods, hand-fitted for an exotic appearance..." http://coochas.com/brochures/Resources/996MillEd.pdf
Last edited by jaetee; 04-28-2017 at 03:04 PM.
Reason: more supporting info
These were supposed to be with my last post...
#4 Millenium Edition, Dallas Texas
Sorry to hear about your friend, but what you have organized for that car and for the benefit of his family is truly awesome! Please let us know how things work out with the eventual sale of the car. Have you considered trying to sell it on BaT, or maybe at one of the Barret-Jackson, or Mecum style auctions? With that story and the low "number" of the car, it will surely collect a premium with all of the fantastic work done to put it into such good shape.
That auction would be would be especially fun to watch on BaT or TV, for that matter!
Since 2012 I own 996 Millenium #018. Located in Stavanger, NORWAY.
Current mileage 58K km (or 36K miles).
Purchased from my friend whom imported the car from Germany to Norway in 2006.
All original except for the rims which I changed due to flaking of original chrome coating (common problem).
Since 2012 I own 996 Millenium #018. Located in Stavanger, NORWAY.
Current mileage 58K km (or 36K miles).
Purchased from my friend whom imported the car from Germany to Norway in 2006.
All original except for the rims which I changed due to flaking of original chrome coating (common problem).
Originally Posted by Chris Kottnauer
Mine was bought in Vancouver, Canada and is currently in Prague, Czech Republic. 108km. Number 627.
Thanks, Gents. List has been updated and actually looks like a legit list now. Glad to see a few cars from across the pond. Out of curiosity did either of your cars come with the mobile phone?
Chris, any backstory to how your car got from Canada to Prague?
Btw, after looking at more pictures I realized that a previous owner of my car replaced the dark burr wood door compartment armrest covers with what looks like Savannah leather covers. Must have been due to the wood going bad. Not sure how I didn't notice before. My brain just thought well, its an old car, the different pieces of leather must have faded differently. But now its the most obvious thing to me.
I am still original owner. Moved from Vancouver to Prague. Have had some issues with EU spec parts on the car but otherwise running well. I have seen a few milleniums for sale in Europe. The latest one is this one from France https://www.leboncoin.fr/voitures/1131411933.htm
Seeing those asking prices makes me want to ship mine over and sell it. I know the old saying about the difference between asking & selling prices..., but I could undercut those prices significantly and make a killing!
Haven't forgotten I owe y'all pictures of my steering wheel and wood trim bits - will try to remember!
J
Wonder if he'd trade me his wood armrest covers??
By the way, I bought a nav disc on ebay to see if it would work on my PCM1. It didn't. It just kept saying "Initializing Navigation System". Oh well. It was only $20.
04-24-2017, 12:12 PM
