Majdomo

I'm sure this one has been done to death elsewhere but I'm not finding it...looking to get into my first Porsche and wanted to see if anyone's got a point of view on this.

About a year ago I came super close to getting into a 40AE, but chickened out and went with a 335i instead. Of course, once bitten its tough to shake the Porsche bug, and have been trolling the 993 forum for a good driver-quality 993, but can't quite get my head around the idea of using a collector car for a DD. On the other hand, springing for a high quality 996 is still an option, but I wonder if it'd be a letdown compared to the air cooled Porsche experience...

Thought I'd throw this out there and see what happens. Any and all insight welcome. Thanks!

Kanwar Bagga

Same issue I had, went with a 02 TT 996. Will get a 993 next year.

Splitting Atoms

I purchased a 1999 996 built 3/98. I am very pleased with it. It was inexpensive, especially compared to a comparable 993. Plan on spending several thousand in addition to the purchase price, unless the car you are buying has had all the maintenance records (most don't) and the important preventative maintenance has been performed. You can drive the heck out of it guilt free.

champignon

All these buzzwords, Daily Driver, Collector Quality, various model series, etc.

There are people who drive 5 miles in a day, and other people who drive 100. Some people could literally walk as much as they drive in a day, and others drive long distances in rural areas. What's the weather like, over the course of a year? What is your toleration for being stranded? Do you drive through areas where being stranded could be a real challenge or even dangerous, due to a multitude of factors?

The whole idea of racking up the miles in a 15 or 20 year old (or even older) vehicle is not my idea of the best way to enjoy an older classic or semi-classic automobile. But then, that is just me.

At the moment, and this will change, there is no shortage of 5 or 6 or 7 year old fun-to-drive cars that one could use as a daily driver. But a 15 or 20 year old car? I'd buy the latter, in fact I have one that I like a lot, but I don't use it for transportation, I use it to enjoy driving it, in circumstances where a possible breakdown is an easily managed annoyance, not a disaster.

Majdomo

Thanks all for your insights - keep 'em coming! At the moment the 335i is great, and it's 4 years old and absolutely 0 issues. The idea of the 993 though, and this is admittedly weird, is that there's a bit more going on than just point and shoot simplicity in driving. It's certainly as fast as a 993 or stock 996, and it's a fun-ish car to drive, but I kind of want a little more out of it than there is on offer. It's good, great even, but kind of antiseptic.

That could mean modding the 335 maybe a bit for performance. But it's not really the same. I'm not too concerned about a breakdown as my commute is 20 miles of LA freeways punctuated with blasts out the Crest or Big Tujunga on the weekends. It could happen but I'm not too concerned about getting stuck, more about the associated cost of breaking down. And the BMW does deliver on all that in a pretty cost efficient way. But still...

On the 996. An early example is a good idea that I've played with a bunch and might be he best introduction? IMS issues are ever present until they are sorted, but at least I wouldn't be looking at a top end rebuild pretty much straight away. Any other issues you've run into?

Mark in Baltimore

Moving this thread to the 996 forum since an identical thread was moved to the 993 forum. If you prefer, I can easily move this to the 993 forum.

kromdom

Sell the BMW. Buy a Porsche.....a 993 or 996 (whichever your wallet and risk tolerance will allow).

gnat

With the 993 you may, at some point, find yourself regretting DDing it due to the impact in value. Not to mention if it gets in an accident or something.

You can find yourself a good looking 100k+ 996.1 in the $15k range. By that milage most of the major concerns have either been addressed or proven out to not be a likely issue for the car. You can also pile on the miles with little impact to value and if the worst happens, you can still by another one and still be less out of pocket than for a 993.

As far as differences, I haven't spent much time in 993s, but they are both 911s at the end of the day. By the numbers the 996 is lighter, more powerful, and faster. What little I have driven 993s says that I see very little difference for normal driving situations. They both get you from A to B with no drama until you start pushing things. I'm more comfortable hooning around in our 996 C4 than a RWD 993 (never driven a 993 C4), but that's likely knowing our's better so I know exactly how far I can push it in any given situation.

docmirror

This is a no-brainer(which is why I'm posting, lol). The 996 has all the comforts of home. It's like a modern car, with working AC and everything. As noted, the 993 will suffer depr if you DD for two years, plus risk of theft, damage, accident.

Buy mine, and I'll have the IMS bearing put in at cost. You can DD it for 10 years with just regular mx. I deliver to SoCal.

Majdomo

Great stuff!

I bet the opinions change if it gets moved to the 993 forum

jaetee

+1 on the 996, for the same reasons Docmirror mentioned.

Then, sell the Beemer and get a Cayenne for when you need a bigger ride.

TonyTwoBags

My 996 has been good for a little over a year as DD. I put about $6k into refreshing some vitals (IMS, AOS, coils/plugs, etc.) and it's been a reliable car on 500-1,000 mile road trips as well. I'm more focused on steady maintenance than anything else. Changed the oil last month & already have 1,600 miles on it since then!

A 993 would work well imo if you buy one that has a lot of miles and a rebuild under its belt. Lower cost of entry = lower risk of depreciation from commuting.

Majdomo

gnat - you were very helpful last year re: 40AE. Looking back I should have bought that damn car. Right around the same time I went back to see it in person again, and the door color thing that I thought was a problem really wasn't. The extra power on that car is great and the lower suspension makes it feel super dialed-in. And now every time a 40th comes up I'm like "ohhhh......" There's one in Long Beach with like 93K miles on it for $25K. Hell of a lot of car for the $.

My dream C4S got sold so need to look for another one, good news is that they are way easier to come by than the 993. In the end its tough to say no to modern conveniences, lower maintenance, newer safety tech and fewer worries about it being stolen or keyed or wrecked or whatever.

Wallet and risk tolerances are fine, though one big top-end rebuild and I'll be super pissed at myself for doing the 993. Anything other than IMS / RMS I should look for on the 996? Anyone worried about D-chunking (sounds rare) or anything else?

docmirror

I've owned both. there is just no way I would subject any of the air-cooled cars to a commute in SoCal traffic. Stop and go with the AC running all the time?

no - effin - way.

Get an early 996, put in the center(3rd) rad kit, 160F thermo, new WP, clean the rads and you are set.


ymmv, contents have settled, objects in mirror, and may cause **** leakage.

Woodman71

Don't forget the ice-cold AC blowing without overheating your water-cooled engine when stuck in LA traffic jams.