Palting

Important difference: the C4S and the C4 are NOT the same car. The C4S has the wider butt, the C4 does not. The C4S has the same brakes, similar suspension, similar headlights and front end, and similar body panels as the turbo, the C4 does not.

Dion Houng-Lee

Also to consider, do you like your eggs runny or soft boiled (headlights)

Mike Murphy

Working on these cars, IMO, is pretty easy. Since you stated your abilities with your other Bavarian brethren, you will be a-ok.

Sure, find the color combo you want. I wanted silver - boring I know - but a triple black I found was just too good to pass up. My tattooed hip buddy wth the M3 has a red one. I'm fine being boring with mine. You will find the car the suits you. Plenty out there, and the more you look, the more you'll find. Make sure to drive a few to make sure you know the way a good car feels.

KoB

Good advice right there ... and don't necessarily rely on the pictures, go out and look at cars. IMO, there are some 996 colors where the pictures just don't do them justice. Meridian Metallic, for example ... which looks like any other gray until the light hits it.

I became the King of Beige after being convinced that Mirage (actually sort of a platinum gold) was the dopiest color in the world to paint a Porsche. But I went to take a look at it anyway. And bought it. I love the color, and so far I've seen very few like it.

The other reason you might want to look at a number of cars is to understand the different interiors, both in terms of color and finish. My car has the base interior, which is pretty much high quality German Tupperware -- lots of plastic. That's fine with me because I have a cab and drive a lot with the top down. So the dash and door panels get dusty and dirty, but the plastic is easy to clean. If I had a coupe, I would want the "full leather" interior.

Also, I have a black interior. Obviously, any interior will age well or poorly depending on maintenance, but I think the black may generally fare better with age. It's just my opinion, but I think the gray and tan require a little more care to keep from getting beaten up over the years.

That said, I know someone whose 996 -- Zanzibar Red, another rare color -- had a full leather interior in cinnamon leather. It had been well cared for and looked great.

More good advice. These cars are 13 - 18 years old, and there's bound to be a lot of variation. If you've driven one 996, you've driven one 996.

808Bill

I love the Mirage! Can't stand silver...

AnthonyGS

i got my m030 red 996 over black with ims and clutch done for 18. It's possible but you have to look around. The car was for sale for quite a while too. Not many people shopping 996s really.

Docs car is a steal. It was a bit outside my price range and I do prefer the black over savannah. His car has all the cool bells and whistles including a limited slip diff. His car is awesome for the money. I didn't want to low ball him at 19 or 20, but I thought about it long and hard.

Volkert

3.4 versus 3.6, yes it's got more HP and torque but the Mk.2 is heavier as well. So with my Mk.1 C2 I am below 1300kg, a C4S is 1450+kg. So for HP/weight the C4S would need 350HP to compensate. 3.4 "rev" really nicely. I don't think it makes a lot of difference and you can flip the argument anyway you like. I initially liked the C4S a lot but in silver it just did not work for me; black is nice but I don't like black cars. Any other colour is hard to find. I ended up with a silver early C2 and I like it a lot.
One thing mentioned before, make sure you drive a number of cars. That I actually found harder to do then one would think because there are many cars that look nice in pictures but once I got there it was a waste of time. Also, make sure you drive 1-2 997 models, just for comparison. Once you buy a 911 you will sink money into it so you'd better make sure this one is the one you really want and you did not compromise. I initially wanted to buy an early 997, I did not like much the 996 look or the horrorstories but once I got to visit different dealerships and driven a few I came to appreciate the simplicity of the 996 interior. Also, although I had the money I preferred to buy an early 996 and spent the money to get it technically right.

MSGGrunt

It really appears the best course of action would be finding a car with good history first and foremost. The Mk.1 and Mk.2, C2/C4/C4S all have their strong and week points over each other I guess it's time to go out and get some seat time, drive and look at the differences between the Mk.1 and Mk.2 to see if I have a preference.

Are 996s still found used at dealerships? I would rather conduct my test drives at a dealership rather than waste a private sellers time just getting a feel for the cars.

I would rather buy an older model below my $20,000 - $22,000 budget and have funds available to base-line the car with new RMS, IMS, clutch, water pump, belts, hoses, plugs, coolant flush versus being at my max with less cash for preventive maintenance, have to put these things off and then have a failure, as unlikely as that may be.

Volkert

If you want a red one... this one is even in MA and although it is private it is owned by a Rennlister that will/should understand you need to drive a few before making a purchasing decision.
https://rennlist.com/forums/vehicle-...-original.html

MSGGrunt

I actually ran across that this very car in my searches. It didn't come up under a search for Porsche 996 but rather Porsche 911. I guess I need to start searching both.

docmirror

That is the sister of my car, except I have 030, 014, and a few other gewgaws plus Aero. Of course, I did the IMS and clutch already. Very clean example, should sell soon.

Volkert

And a close nephew of mine then, all you mentioned except the Aero!
The seller does err on the builddate, that car has X in the VIN which is a MY99 (build Aug 98-July99) with a very late serial 20565 which would indicate a June/July99 build date. Still a proper 99-er, all good. And I actually like the original orange indicators on a red car, looks good.

Dennis C

The 996 C4 cars do not have a wide body. The 996 C4S cars have a wide body, and share other components with the turbo (bigger brakes, suspension, bumper design).

In my opinion, the 2002 - 2005 C4S is the best looking 996 variant. My C4S was a very enjoyable car to own, and I would buy another one if I was shopping for a 996. I would probably buy a 2004 C4S cabriolet.

On another note; the AWD system in the 996 was not designed for winter conditions. The PSM and traction control systems in the 996 are quite intrusive, and they intervene before the front wheels get any traction. It was designed to allow the driver to power out of corners more aggressively than a RWD car.

Dennis C

I agree with the comments on color in this thread. Every 911 that I've ever purchased has been a color other than black, silver or gray.

The history of colors for car manufacturers is actually quite interesting. Back in the early days of automobile racing, colors were assigned to each country by the Automobile Club de France for the Bennett Cup race from Paris to Lyon. The colors were changed a little bit over the next few years, but essentially they ended up as follows:

Italy: Red
France: Blue
Germany: White
Belgium: Yellow
Great Britain: Green
United States: Blue and White

Many companies still honor this original color scheme, which is the reason we see so many red Ferraris or green Jaguars. I've never seen a Ford GT in any color scheme other than blue and white.

docmirror

I don't get the statements that seem to oppose each other. If the PSM and TC take over before any torque is allowed to get to the front wheels, how does that help power out of the corners better? I think there's some design interaction that must allow some slip to occur due to the different radii of the tracks of front vs rear wheels. I admit that I don't have any idea how the front diff torque is applied, but I can't for the life of me figure out why the front wheels get no traction if the PSM limits the power to the rear wheel(s).

Not that it matters to me, I have zero interest in any AWD variants of the 996, but wondered about the statement. Would seem that PSM then makes AWD superfluous. As for the looks of the Mk2 cars, the differences are so subtle(ex for Targa) that I can't tell them apart. I do like the targa top, but not so much I would change over from my 99 AeroSport.