Living with a turbo a 6 month recap
07-02-2015, 01:28 PM
#1
Living with a turbo a 6 month recap
After what I consider a good amount of time living with this car I'd like to give my general summary for those looking to buy, or reaffirm what the veterans may also still feel.
I've worked since I was 15 (34 now) and after time in the military, school, a path that lead me to a successful corporate job, a wonderful wife, a great daughter, a family home, and financial security I figured it was time to follow my dream of owning a Porsche. I've always placed the 911 as my end all be all ride and other than the occasional sighting of one I never really gave it much more thought. Well the bug hit around August of last year when I suggested to the wife maybe I'd like to have a sports car and she was like "go for it". (Paragraph break typing on an iPhone makes proper grammar difficult)
So the next phase was the obsessive Internet search on 911's. To my shock I was seeing literally hundreds of what I thought were stupid cheap cars. Looking at the 996 and 997 models exclusively I decided I liked the 996 better and a huge reason was the headlights particularly on the later model 6's. So in my internet research I stumbled upon rennlist and 6speed and quickly started diving into the threads and google searching anything and everything 996. Step one was understanding what made the 996 variations unique and figuring which suited my needs the best. I've never been a convertible fan so the search pool seemed to cut in half rather quickly. My first real we have a winner was seeing a c4s and that wide body rear end. The ims discussion came up enough to concern me that maybe these cars were not as user friendly as I initially thought. Without making this an ims thread as I'm well aware that the failure rate is low and its preventive maintenance to fix on 12 plus year old car anyway.
Cue the metzger, nothing but praises of reliability and immune to the ims issues I started making my car search even more refined.
Problem number one is that when I first started looking I had shown my wife a handfull of cars in the $25k range. Turbos doubled that number and wife was not thrilled. That itch though....man I couldn't scratch it. After about 5 months of searching, I found a turbo that was somewhat local (4hrs away) and I took a trip to see what a turbo really looked and felt like. So here I am waiting in a mall parking lot for the owner to show me the car. Then I saw it and it was spectacular and I drove it and I was sold. I'm telling you guys I feel in love with a car and it sounds ridiculous but I swore that turbo was mine. So I set up a ppi and the news was not so great. When I called the owner he was understanding and was unaware that the front diff/ planetary gears needed to be replaced. Moving on and feeling dismayed but relieved I continued the search and found what I own today.
Very glad my wife was rational supported yet another $300 for another ppi. This car was it. All I can say is if you are on the fence about buying one, it's normal but if you can find a well sorted car it's totally worth it. I have 0 regrets and still enjoy this car as much as I did my first test drive on the car I didn't buy. A big thanks to those here that freely offer informative advice as without this community I probably wouldn't have ended up with the car that I did.
Im learning about this car and it's needs, but it's still a car I get in and it's worry free. Oil changes, brakes etc are actually fun to change. Washing it isn't a chore, and I could care less if my daughter gets finger prints all over it and eats crackers in it like she's the Cookie Monster.
That being said buying a car shouldn't stress you're marriage, exacerbate financial issues, or define who you are. At the end of the day it's still just a car, but oh boy is it a car. Joy and happiness can be hard to find in the normal stress of life, but being in a car that transports you to a fun factory and puts an ear to ear smile on you is absolutely worth it.
It's been a learning exp esp since buying and owning this car can make you feel 16 again.
I've worked since I was 15 (34 now) and after time in the military, school, a path that lead me to a successful corporate job, a wonderful wife, a great daughter, a family home, and financial security I figured it was time to follow my dream of owning a Porsche. I've always placed the 911 as my end all be all ride and other than the occasional sighting of one I never really gave it much more thought. Well the bug hit around August of last year when I suggested to the wife maybe I'd like to have a sports car and she was like "go for it". (Paragraph break typing on an iPhone makes proper grammar difficult)
So the next phase was the obsessive Internet search on 911's. To my shock I was seeing literally hundreds of what I thought were stupid cheap cars. Looking at the 996 and 997 models exclusively I decided I liked the 996 better and a huge reason was the headlights particularly on the later model 6's. So in my internet research I stumbled upon rennlist and 6speed and quickly started diving into the threads and google searching anything and everything 996. Step one was understanding what made the 996 variations unique and figuring which suited my needs the best. I've never been a convertible fan so the search pool seemed to cut in half rather quickly. My first real we have a winner was seeing a c4s and that wide body rear end. The ims discussion came up enough to concern me that maybe these cars were not as user friendly as I initially thought. Without making this an ims thread as I'm well aware that the failure rate is low and its preventive maintenance to fix on 12 plus year old car anyway.
Cue the metzger, nothing but praises of reliability and immune to the ims issues I started making my car search even more refined.
Problem number one is that when I first started looking I had shown my wife a handfull of cars in the $25k range. Turbos doubled that number and wife was not thrilled. That itch though....man I couldn't scratch it. After about 5 months of searching, I found a turbo that was somewhat local (4hrs away) and I took a trip to see what a turbo really looked and felt like. So here I am waiting in a mall parking lot for the owner to show me the car. Then I saw it and it was spectacular and I drove it and I was sold. I'm telling you guys I feel in love with a car and it sounds ridiculous but I swore that turbo was mine. So I set up a ppi and the news was not so great. When I called the owner he was understanding and was unaware that the front diff/ planetary gears needed to be replaced. Moving on and feeling dismayed but relieved I continued the search and found what I own today.
Very glad my wife was rational supported yet another $300 for another ppi. This car was it. All I can say is if you are on the fence about buying one, it's normal but if you can find a well sorted car it's totally worth it. I have 0 regrets and still enjoy this car as much as I did my first test drive on the car I didn't buy. A big thanks to those here that freely offer informative advice as without this community I probably wouldn't have ended up with the car that I did.
Im learning about this car and it's needs, but it's still a car I get in and it's worry free. Oil changes, brakes etc are actually fun to change. Washing it isn't a chore, and I could care less if my daughter gets finger prints all over it and eats crackers in it like she's the Cookie Monster.
That being said buying a car shouldn't stress you're marriage, exacerbate financial issues, or define who you are. At the end of the day it's still just a car, but oh boy is it a car. Joy and happiness can be hard to find in the normal stress of life, but being in a car that transports you to a fun factory and puts an ear to ear smile on you is absolutely worth it.
It's been a learning exp esp since buying and owning this car can make you feel 16 again.
Last edited by Atrox; 07-02-2015 at 01:52 PM.
07-02-2015, 11:35 PM
#5
Three Wheelin'
I'm about 7mo. into my 996TT ownership and echo your sentiments. My 2 year loves riding in "Papa's Car" and has about a dozen different sized P-cars to play with. He still prefers sitting in the driver's seat pretending to drive and shift!
07-03-2015, 02:38 AM
#7
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Nice post, my sentiments exactly. I bought my 2001 996tt about 10 months ago and I do enjoy owning this car. Even at our PCA events I seem to be somewhat of a celebrity because I seem to be the only one to show up driving a turbo.
After 22 years of owning the same 1986 Porsche 944, I finally stepped up to 911 ownership. At first I too was considering an early 2002 or later 996 Carrera but after researching the dreaded IMS issue I also decided that the turbo would be a better choice. Yes the turbos may have other issues, my rear spoiler does not work but I new that was one of the issues of the 996 turbo and I knew this going in. But at least I won't have the IMS ticking time bomb hanging over my head. Even though it may only affect 5-10% of the cars, I didn't want to take the chance.
IMO the 996 Turbo is the best performance Porsche "bang for the buck" bargain of the century, plus the advantage of great aftermarket upgrades for more power if so desired.
My 13 year old Son really loves riding in the turbo, every time he rides with me he always quotes the saying"there is no substitute".
Enjoy your turbo
After 22 years of owning the same 1986 Porsche 944, I finally stepped up to 911 ownership. At first I too was considering an early 2002 or later 996 Carrera but after researching the dreaded IMS issue I also decided that the turbo would be a better choice. Yes the turbos may have other issues, my rear spoiler does not work but I new that was one of the issues of the 996 turbo and I knew this going in. But at least I won't have the IMS ticking time bomb hanging over my head. Even though it may only affect 5-10% of the cars, I didn't want to take the chance.
IMO the 996 Turbo is the best performance Porsche "bang for the buck" bargain of the century, plus the advantage of great aftermarket upgrades for more power if so desired.
My 13 year old Son really loves riding in the turbo, every time he rides with me he always quotes the saying"there is no substitute".
Enjoy your turbo
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07-03-2015, 04:19 AM
#8
The mutual feelings we all share is another testament to how great a car it is. I still can't wrap my ahead around the original purchase price compared to what I paid. Even if I was a multi millionaire I probably wouldn't even buy a new one then. (Ummm yeah I guess I would).
!["02996ttx50's Avatar](data:image/svg+xml;utf8,<svg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 50 50'><circle class='avatar-circle-default' fill='%23759d7b' cx='25px' cy='25px' r='20px'></circle><text class='avatar-text-default' x='49%' y='53%' fill='white' text-anchor='middle' alignment-baseline='middle'>"</text></svg>)
07-03-2015, 09:25 AM
#10
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Could not have said it better myself! I have to force myself to drive my daily driver, because it's such a temptation to drive it more. I especially love it after the modifications I've done to it myself.
07-03-2015, 09:27 AM
#11
Rennlist Member
Brilliant review... I am 50 next week and my missus thinks I am a 15 year old kid...
I have owned and/or driven 100s of cars over 34 years and the Porker Turbo is the most fun (and that counts for a McLaren, Lotus and Ferrari or 2)
I have owned and/or driven 100s of cars over 34 years and the Porker Turbo is the most fun (and that counts for a McLaren, Lotus and Ferrari or 2)
07-03-2015, 11:57 PM
#13
Don't ever change this, too many people get too old too soon....life's too short, stay young at heart and mind.
07-04-2015, 12:02 PM
#15
I'm about two months in with my '02, this car is my DD and has to be reliable. Time will tell but it seems that the only real issues are what I call the ancillary systems. Stuff like the micro switches, rattles, seats that creak etc. Most of it just needs cleaned up or looked at and you can fix. Loving this car so far, only wish there was a little more cargo room.