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I'm just starting my search for a 996tt. Thought I'd post here and see if I can take advantage of the collective, so to speak. I'm looking for a driver, not a garage queen, would actually prefer something with 60k miles or more on it. Want something with a complete service history, modded cars are ok, but don't wan't a big turbo dyno queen car. Don't really care about exterior color but don't want a grey interior. 6MT only, don't want one with the wood interior.
I'm in Denver CO and would prefer to find something close but for a car with a good service history I'll travel. Appreciate it if you guys can send me any decent examples!
Josh, whats your target price range? It's getting really hard to find a decent Turbo for less than $45-50K. And by decent, I mean not only looking clean and minimal known issues, but not absorbing $5K-$8K in initially undiscovered issues year 1-2. The 996 turbos are super robust cars overall, but there are PLENTY of common issues that aren't inexpensive to fix, like spoiler rams, clutch slave/accumulator, boost leaks, worn suspensions, unevenly worn or old tires, etc, And then you have some MORE expensive potential problems like 2nd gear pop-out, popped coolant lines, full clutch replacement.... Even if you do all your own work.
IMHO full service documentation or even a PPI doesn't inoculate against many or even most of these issues.
In the past year or so, I can think of no more than 1 or 2 really nice 996 Turbos that sold for really competitive prices in the Denver market, and the nicest one, while right down in CO Springs, never even hit the market before it was snapped up.
Unless you want a convertible or tip, which I'm sure you don't.
On the wood interiors, I agree they are pretty hideous. But unlike real deal-breakers like tip, cab, beat cars, you can fix that problem without too much cost or difficulty. Replace the steering wheel with a $100 used wheel, and wrap the rest of the wood in something like a 3M DiNoc black or carbon-fiber look vinyl. Cheap, effective, and they can look great! Hard to look past when your evaluating the car, but wouldn't be a deal-breaker for me when I know I could make it look like this:
That's a good point on wrapping the wood trim and replacing the steering wheel. Easy and pretty cheap to do. That's a sobering assessment on the health of cars tho, this is a pinnacle purchase for me. What I mean by that is it's something I've always wanted but it's also a lot of money for me to spend on a car, it's replacing my M3 that I have far, far less into, so I'll be bringing money to the table. If I have to spend another $8k on top of the purchase price that'll be rough.
I plan on spending a few thousand, there's always issues that pop up and there tends to be at least one expensive repair in the car that's' the reason the previous owner decided to sell it.
I bought my 2002 996tt with 172k miles for $30k and it needs another 10k to make it perfect. Until then, its a daily driver after the intial 5k for tires, tran leak and plugs
your going to spend. no way around it. But, once you finally do get all the things fixed, it is second in reliability only to the camry.
one other point i would like to make. I have learned to manage what needs to be done with the car. A mindset that requires a long game philosophy. You dont have to fix everything all at once. Get the car to base line and then drive it and chip away at the other stuff over time. When you get the car, it will take about 2 months to let the dust settle and get to know the car. I have learned that i dont really need suspension after all for example
Mine is a tip and its faster than any car in the world.
I see you are a 951 guy. For comparison, I just spent $6,000+ on my 951 (that I've owned since 2011), doing TB/WP, clutch, fuel lines, fuel filter, belts, OEM motor mounts. I bought my 996TT not quite 3 years ago and maintenance-wise have spent almost nothing.
I had a spoiler actuator leak, so I upgraded to the Rennkit eRams to replace the OEM hydraulic system, which cost me about $1,700 for the eRams with all of the options (there is now an option from Kevin to repair the OEM system that's a lot cheaper, although I still prefer the eRam as it is really freakin' cool). Had to replace the wastegate actuators on my turbos (one broke), but 32krazy! here in the 996TT forum set me up with a new set for around $200 and it cost another $200 or so to have my indy install them. Other than that, it's just been regular oil changes.
I've spent $$ on optional mods (updated stereo head unit, LED taillights, etc), but you can't count that stuff.
My 996TT has been the cheapest and most reliable car in my garage over the past 3 years. And mine wasn't a high-dollar, pristine example, more of a "track rat" type car.
Last edited by FRUNKenstein; 06-19-2018 at 12:33 PM.
That's a good point on wrapping the wood trim and replacing the steering wheel. Easy and pretty cheap to do. That's a sobering assessment on the health of cars tho, this is a pinnacle purchase for me. What I mean by that is it's something I've always wanted but it's also a lot of money for me to spend on a car, it's replacing my M3 that I have far, far less into, so I'll be bringing money to the table. If I have to spend another $8k on top of the purchase price that'll be rough.
I plan on spending a few thousand, there's always issues that pop up and there tends to be at least one expensive repair in the car that's' the reason the previous owner decided to sell it.
Looks like you've been around P stuff enough to know they could hit your wallet hard anytime, so get the one with the most done already. What I've seen on here over the last 3 years are lots of cars in the middle mileage (say 50-90k) area selling that require some of these:
Clutch related
Coolant fittings/radiators/hoses
Transmission noises/rebuild on horizon
Suspension refresh/upgrade
Front diff worn out
P/S reservoir not yet replaced with 997 updated one
If you can find a driver that has had most if this done selling on the high end of current asking $ it could be worth paying now vs later as the saying goes. Or get one that needs some of the above and budget accordingly. The Camry comparison is funny when you can buy a couple for the cost of a turbo transmission completely rebuilt with upgraded internals.
Similar to KC my car has been trouble free and cheap. Other than a new maf, rennkit rams, oil changes, and tires this car has been the most reliable car I’ve ever owned. Get a we’ll sorted car and enjoy it. By spending a little more you will save in The long run.
Yeah, I'd prefer to pay now vs paying later. Some of the stuff I can creep up on, don't need to put coilovers on it right away if it doesn't already have them. Sort of the same thing with the coolant fittings, I'm not sure I'll do them until one starts to leak or the motor needs to come out for something else. Can they be pinned with the motor in place? The front diff wearing out is a new one, hadn't really heard of that. It's really that common? Suppose that would lead me to just do a RWD conversion...
Yeah, I'd prefer to pay now vs paying later. Some of the stuff I can creep up on, don't need to put coilovers on it right away if it doesn't already have them. Sort of the same thing with the coolant fittings, I'm not sure I'll do them until one starts to leak or the motor needs to come out for something else. Can they be pinned with the motor in place? The front diff wearing out is a new one, hadn't really heard of that. It's really that common? Suppose that would lead me to just do a RWD conversion...
Sorry, but my opinion is that there is no guarantee... doesn't matter (in my opinion) how much P.O. spent, you could just as well have to replace another $5k in stuff just because it hasn't presented itself yet...
moral: find one you like, if it needs work, fine, at least you know what needs work already, instead of someone whom may have just replaced 10 things and at that moment, doesn't show anything until...
Wyo, that black '04 looks really nice! I may have to call on that one.
Yes, obviously you don't know what's going to happen in the future, however the truism of "Buy the best one you can afford" is in play here. I also have to tell myself to be patient, I may miss out on this driving season but it'll result in me getting what I want.
Are stock (or mostly stock so tune/exhaust) cars selling for more money than more modified cars? Seems like the cars that have had turbo swaps aren't really selling for a premium and sometimes are less than ones with very mild or no mods done.
06-16-2018 | 12:43 AM
My search starts...
