Back in the late 80s early 90s, it was my impression that the 911 market stayed artificially high for this reason - owners became sellers when a new engine was due soon. The car is sold, the new owner drives it enthusiastically and all of a sudden the new engine or rebuild is needed. The new owner with the new engine wants to get his money's worth and drives the car until a new engine is due soon, he sells and the cycle repeats.

Nothing ever changes. (grin)

 

Exactly ! Look at all of the 500hp Mercedes that can be bought for less than $20k. Another $20k in repairs can happen in a 12-36 months and almost always do.

Why can't OEMs just build solid cars that aren't on the edge once out of the warranty period ?

 

Clutch kit (including flywheel) shouldn't run more than $5.5K parts + labor installed by a Porsche dealer.

 

It may cost 30k now to buy in, but you bought a 100k car. You are repairing a 100k car, not a 30k car.

 

Every time I drive mine I feel like I should buy another just because it's so fun.

 

Oh I've been there. Way too many times.....

 

Agreed!

 

 

FWIW.....on my third 997 now and the only .1 version I had was the most reliable. It was an -06 C4S that I put almost 45K miles on. To the best of my recollection, other than the usual wear and tear items the only things I ever had to repair on that car was the frunk switch in the door sill and the cable for the door handle. About $250 for each item I think. More issues and much more expensive issues on the two .2 cars that followed.

 

Amen to that.

 

Great post (only because it reinforces what I already believed )

My 997.1 08 c4s (w RWD conversion) has been one of the most reliable car that I have ever owned, from about 30 used cars. I know people get spooked into paying tens of thousands of dollars extra for a 997.2, because they want the insurance that the .2 engine supposedly provides. But, if you work out the math, the premium paid should be about $2k to $5k, not in the tens of thousands.

When I purchased my car I had two options:

OPTION 1
08 997 c4s
white exterior
manual
sport seats black leather
carbon interior
other nice options (like red seatbelts)
$50k CAD

OPTION 2
09 997 c4s
Launch car
Atlas grey
upgraded steering wheel
sport buckets stock(are you kidding me!!!!)
PDK
LSD rear OEM
Talked them down to about $60k CAD

On paper, the 997.2 made a lot more sense. I mean, when you factor in the buckets, you are already even money wise. But, I chose the 997.1. Why? Carerra White was nice plus the manual. You cant convert those later without a huge expense. Everything else you can.

Looking back today, I am very happy I chose the 997.1 over the .2. Unless your engine blows, which is a very small percentage, you would barely notice the difference between the two. And if it does, treat yourself to a flat 6 engine upgrade, courtesy of Jake Raby, with the money you saved. And then youll have something truly special.

PS. Finally found a set of sport buckets for the 997

 

 

Honestly, that should mean that:

• much more reliability engineering went in to it
• design validation planning was that much more rigorous and thought out
• reliability testing was executed at a much higher level than a $30k Japanese car
• control and inspection of materials into the plant are world class
• etc etc etc...

 

I went into my purchase with my eyes open and don’t regret it a bit. My sticker was $120K (just the spec I wanted) and got it for $40K. Not worried about bore scoring. Southern car with a 6-speed, and I take care of it. Could it happen, sure, but odds are it won’t. If it does, I’ll deal with it. In the meantime, I’ll continue to wipe the grin off my face every time I drive it.

 

Well, even the Turbos have their issues. Coolant pipes are epoxied in on the engine and should be welded or pinned (to be safe). That's if the car hasn't had that done already.

However, a $3,000 pinning is a lot cheaper than a engine.

Point is, every year and model has their issues, right on back to the air cooled 911s. Yet, there is no other high performance sports car that comes close to the durability of Porsche.