Hi All,
I've been a lurker for quite a while and finally decided to join a few months back. I'm a proud owner of a '78 930 (purchased at $32k in 2005) and have been bitten by the 996 TT bug. I recently had the opportunity to drive one at my local shop in Huntington Beach and am now seriously considering getting one for a possible investment. Clearly, my 930 is here to stay but I see so much value in these 996s that it's difficult to imagine a scenario where they don't steadily increase in value over the next years (especially clean California cars). The two questions I have:

1. What do you all think of a purchase with the educated guess the value will increase?

2. What are the most desirable years, color combos, etc.?

Thanks in advance, really looking forward to learning on this great forum.

 

the only potential for increase in value eg monetary gain down the line will mean you cant tack any significant miles onto the car, and where is the fun in that ?!

couple that with the fact that as of this moment it is nothing more ( on paper that is ) than a "used" car and as such is a depreciating asset. it's possible you'll not even live long enough for the obverse to become true.

as to color combo's ext/int i won't even bother other than to say that the white w sunroof delete in that light chocolate int is about as nice as it gets for me.

if i were shopping for a 6t i'd pick up 911 AL's white one and just be done. i wouldnt even test drive it. you shoulda seen his blue 996ruf car. insane. the guy that makes csf rads wisely bought it.

 

Any cherry X50 car will be more collectible in the future as they made less then 1300 of them, also a 2005 Turbo S is also a good choice if your looking for future value, but as said by the previous poster, your going to have to keep the miles off. If you want a drivers car I'd find one that has been owned by someone for a while with a good service history and maybe some light mods, as they really wake these cars up. If your just looking for something to put a few thousand miles a year on, then find a X50 or S in a rare color with low miles.

 

There is potential that it gains value in the future. I will have to pay income tax on a capital gain from trading in a non-running Carrera 3.2 for my 996 Turbo... I owned the 3.2 for 8 years and it gained more than twice it's value. The car market is filled with cars that people said wouldn't gain value because of xyz and then the demand grew stronger and the tides changed. The 996 Turbo has great features that makes it stand out. The different headlights (I see it as a plus), the Metzger engine and not even mentioning the performance figures... but besides all the variables and the likes of trends, the fact it's one of the most different 911 turbos makes it a candidate in my book.

Don't worry about using the car and adding miles... if my Carrera 3.2 can serve as an example, I made a 277% gain in value and the car wasn't even running at the end with 254500kms. Gotta love them Pcars

 

i'm sorry but having owned as well as watched the 996 turbo market now for a decade i must respectfully disagree vis a vis "mileage" and it's negative impact on monetary "value"

i don't EVER see that changing. i agree with most everything else you've said. the lights have certainly grown on me, for example. highly unique and weren't they ( sorta/kinda?? ) borrowed from the 917? or one of em...cant recall which exactly.

but my 993 would today sell for its cost when i drove it away from the showroom floor in '96, so point taken. gotta love em is right. as long as you acquire the "right" one!

 

Thanks lads, please keep those opinions coming!

 

I'm a bit bias because I think that buying cars as an investment is almost always a very bad idea.

Aside from that, I don't think the 996tt has a lot of upside. It's a great car and I love mine, but you're looking at an entry point in the 50s for a low-mileage stock example with the right pedigree. Will a car like that end up trading in the 70s at some point in the future? I doubt it, but even if it does, you eat up a quarter of the appreciation just in sales taxes, and you're gonna have a non-insubstantial cost of carry if you want to keep the car as sweet as when you bought it.

So at the end of the day you're looking at maybe $10k-$12k profit over who knows how long, and who knows if at all.

The 930 is a different story. All the aircooled were absurdly underappreciated for a long time. People are telling me there was a time when you could buy a longhood 911S for five thousand dollars. That was just stupid. Today's 996tt prices aren't stupid like that.

 

In 10 years we will all be talking about how dumb it was that the last of the mezgers were so under appreciated for so long.

I am up 10k in my car in a year....

 

No question miles matter but I would pay more for a 50k X50 with rarer paint and other nice options than a 20k more middle of the roader. Just me but that's the point. There's a bell curve of buyers weighing these factors. Next, look at the diff in current price between these 2 cars, actually lets take two even optioned cars, one 20k and one 70k. What's the value difference all things equal
I'll give you $20000 to be generous. That sounds like a lot but not really if the model/trim doubles in value. Lots of variables in these questions

 

I just bought an early 996tt for this reason. I think at some point it will catch one that these cars are beautiful, well built, and currently under valued. Mine has lower miles, but miles don't seem to matter that much for Porsche (unlike Ferrari).

 

Except the last of the mezgers was the 997.1...

Is the 10k in a year net of sales tax? Did you pay for any service to the car?

 

You got #1 covered pretty well here.

#2 is a matter of opinion, but paint to sample will usually top the list, which will be driven by rarity. There was a Signal Green example on the market a while back that the owner thought was worth an 80% premium.

Tastes vary, of course, but Zanzibar Red would be a polarizing color - beyond consideration by a segment of the market, and a super premium color to some.

If there was one color the largest market segment would consider 'premium,' I believe it is Grand Prix White.

Unique among Porsches, the 996TT looks good in Guards Red. I'm partial to Speed Yellow, as you might guess. There are several blues in the standard color list.

I'm in the minority, I believe, in disliking silver.

Interior colors - again a matter of taste, but I'd put black and natural brown at the top, depending on the match/contrast to exterior.

 

I hate to be one of those, but it's a car.
And it's not the one that the majority of potential 911 purchasers want.
Lack of demand does not equal rapid appreciation, even if they starting to trend on the upside of the depreciation curve.

If you want to make $ over the next few years buy some oil stocks and don't look at them until 2018.

By the time you put $ in maintenance on a TT I suspect your ROI will be negligible.
Now fun quotient OTOH, that's a different story...

Oh and I'm partial to dark greens. It's an uncommon color for sure.

 

diasgree on your being in the minority in NOT favoring silver. they just built a plethora of them and worst still in arctic. I've had arctic ( current ) and polar. polar wasn't as polarizing lol. i hate em in silver which is why I've stickered mine half to death.

agree w you though on interiors. best color combo I've seen is white X cinnamon or that natural brown ( whatever its called )

..and wood doesn't work at ALL for me in these. it's not a jag!! then its burled walnut all day long. ( i grew up w many jags in the house )

 

#2) For investment purposes definitely look for a Coupe/6spd with the X50 on the low mile side (2005 Turbo S also). Sport seats, no mods and all maintenance history are key. Colors are personal preference but rare colors (PTS, White etc...) are desired and will fetch a solid premium. Nice unmolested, examples get swooped up fast so be ready to move quick. I recently missed a 03 White/Black low mileage example with sport seat by 5 mins. The car was listed for 1 hour.

Good luck with your search.