PK911

All,

I'm a new member of the Rennlist family, living in SoCal (this is my first thread!). I've been a Porsche enthusiast since my childhood and I'm finally ready to buy my first Porsche, which will be a 996TT.

I believe I've done my homework (I spent a lot of time on this forum and on 6speed for the last 6 months) so I'll try not to bother you with questions which have been answered in other threads.

I'm pretty interested in the following car: http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-s...gIndex=1&Log=0

I have seen the car and test drove it. It is in great condition inside and out: the paint is in fantastic condition (it is so good that I suspect a paint job has been done), there are just a few hardly noticeable stone ships on the front bumper and the rims are like new. The interior is flawless.
It drove very well and I did not notice any weird noises.
It has a clean CARFAX, 3 previous owners, has spent all its life in CA and has always been serviced by Porsche dealerships.

Now, I have a few questions:

1- Since the car is being sold by a Porsche dealership, it has been checked by Porsche mechanics (the salesman showed me the invoice). Does it still make sense to have a PPI done?

2- What would be a reasonable offer for that car (excluding taxes and fees)? I think it deserves a 1.5k-2k premium since the clutch accumulator has been replaced and that it has 4 new tires.

3- What do you think about the interior/exterior color combo? Is this going to be a hard sale in the future?

Thank you very much for your help guys!

The NSX dude

A PPI is only as good as the dealer who performed the work. I live in NJ, bought my car in L.A. and had my PPI done by McKenna porsche. I paid $325 if Im not mistaken. They say the car is PERFECT! Intercity drops off the car and 5 miles down the road it starts misfiring.

Needless to say, I have the car being serviced now at another Porsche dealership. Getting a new fuel pump, plugs, coils have hairline cracks, and my tires are bald.

My advice, look and drive the car yourself. Price seems fair on yours and looks like its been well maintained.

Silberwolfen

+1

I think many of these PPIs are overrated. I've known of three (3) recent cases where people have had them done and experienced problems (minor) within 48 hours of driving the car home. But, you have nothing to lose by having one done...just don't make it 100% of your decision. NSX is right...they are only as good as the person performing them. The best thing you can do is go drive the car thoroughly and go on your instincts. Check for the 2nd gear pop-out, leaks, strange noises, smells, fluids, etc. Also make sure there is a PCM Code Card with the radio if it is a PCM1.

Nice looking car.

JG 996T

Buyer Beware - Caveat Emptor.
Aftermarket rear wing. What else has been modified?
Dealer wants you to buy the car - its not in their interest to perform a complete and thorough inspection (plausible deniability).
Light grey interior will be hard to resell IMO.

PK911

Thanks guys.
I have heard good things about Callas Rennsport in Torrance (mainly on this forum). I'll probably ask them to do a PPI and I will also test drive the car on a long distance just to have my own opinion.

I agree with JG 996T, the aftermarket rear wing (and to a less extent the clear front turn signals) raises some concerns about other mods. The best thing might be to ask Callas to check this.

The NSX dude

I should have went there, I hear nothing but good things. Stay away from McKenna!

mdkelly1

Good advice from everyone. This one has relatively low mileage, so it's hard to tell what you might find. They are great cars and generally very reliable.

Items that may ultimately require attention are the spoiler rams (aftermarket wing on this one), coil packs (hairline cracks), clutch accumulator (already replaced) & slave, headlight switch, variocam solenoid brackets, second gear pop-out, the clutch itself (depending on how it has been driven) and maybe the coolant pipe fittings (happened to me at least).

The suggestion on getting the radio code is a good one. It'll save you some hassle/time later.

Warning! The boost is addictive. It'll be hard to go back.

996TWINS

+1 for Callas Rennsport. A friend of mine had a PPI done for his 996 TT and 997 GT3. Very thorough inspection in his opinion.

laturbo

I just bought my 2003 996 turbo in Sept. I looked for about 6 months also in the LA area for the right one for me. I was looking for a low milage 2003. Most of what I saw in LA were rough so much so I just looked at them and walked away without even test driving!

The wait was worth it. I found mine in the Sacramento area. 2003 30,000 miles mostly stock except for 19' wheels and GT2 style front bumper both of which I really like. Its the same colour (silver) but has black interior which looks much better.

If I was you i'd hold out. With your budget you should be able to find a 2003 with similar milage which will be better when the time comes to sell on!

Good Luck and happy hunting. Keep us posted.

2K7TTMIA

Looks clean. In order to confirm original paint( if it is), an experienced body guy or paint guy and a paint meter would be a good start. Since car is local, check under hood and door seals, door jambs around the hinges, pull back the carpet areas.
Aftermarket wing may indicate the spoiler ram(s) failed at some point . Does the rear wing raise up when you activate the dash button or at speed(75mph+)?
Talk to dealer about an independent PPI and pry have to leave some sort of deposit so you would be able to take it to Callas or whomever for inspection, if the dealer allows.
IMO, still a bit overpriced, depends on your market in SoCal. I'd say closer to low to mid 40's would be a better deal.
The graphite grey interior isn't for everyone, and if it isn't what you are willing to pay, knock another couple grand off. You'd have to make some changes there to get it where you'll be satisfied.

2K7TTMIA

laturbo, if you don't mind, could you disclose what price you paid for yours?

Lance 4c

Tony at Callas is awesome and with high integrety! On two separate occasions I had PPIs done at Callas. Tony knew what I was looking for at the time. Of course both cars were "all original, no paint work", etc, which is what I wanted. The first one a 993t, Tony called me before proceeding any further after noticing paint work. The second one, a 996t, which I was so sure was the one, that I had planned on him doing the plugs, etc, and some mods if it passed his inspection. Well this one also had paint work. This saved me much woe, and from 1000 miles away. A good PPI, is worth double what you pay.

Macster

Would you really reject an otherwise nice Turbo because of the grey interior color?

Man that's pretty near the same as rejecting the car because you do not like the scent being emitted by the car freshener hanging from the rear view mirror.

PPI? It never hurts to have a PPI done unless you are confident in your ability to check out the car. Even then...it never hurts to have a PPI done. But you have to be sure you are buying added peace of mind.

Price I can't help you with. I am totally not up on Turbo market prices.

About all I can do is point out that if the car is in truly good (to very good) condition all you should pay for it is good to very good condition money. You should not pay excellent condition money for the car. Well unless you want to overpay for the car.

While the clutch accum has been replaced (what about the clutch slave cylinder?) and the tires replaced and the car aligned that doesn't mean that something else won't go amiss. All that that work did was to address obvious shortcomings in the car's condition.

Be aware the longer you wait the more chance someone will come in and while he might not buy the car he could take it out and zing the engine. So you want to be sure after you check out the car and if you believe you can buy the car for an agreeable price and you then have the PPI done and it comes back with two thumbs up buy the car. If you wait a week.. someone may have been joyriding in that car when you return to buy it.

Oh I almost forgot. Locking diff? Is that right?

laturbo

@ 2K3TTMIA I paid $49,500. I had dealer up north do ppi for $350. I spoke to Service guy and he went through what they found and emailed me and the owner a copy.

I then negociated with the owner. He orginally wanted $54000. He had it 6 years and drove it 4000 miles (That has changed its my DD). The car was kept in a heated A/C garage. The paint is showroom condition. He also had the clutch replaced and pads and discs replaced under used warranty when he bought it. He replaced the tires which have 75% left but it turnes out they are wrong for the car.

I bought a Southwest ticket next day and he met me at Sacramento airport and me and my wife had a fun road trip home. I was very lucky not to get any speeding tickets that day!!!

I think with a $50,000 budget the op can get a better deal/car just my 2 cents!!!

le3

IMO the car is way too expensive. I hate to say that considering I own a 2002 996 silver turbo (with a GT2 wing). Funny thing is that dealer would probably only offer you $35 to $37k if you went to try to trade that car in to them. Buying from a dealer is irrelevant since they are not offering any warranty.

I know PPI's can be flawed but I still would get one done, that I paid for, by a recommended shop in the area. Even if they find just one problem it can save you a bit, considering I am having my clutch done for $4K next week.

The goal is to buy your dream car that doesn't turn into a nightmare, so choose wisely and beware of the modifications.