elmohongzito

Thank you in advance for any feedback you can give. I would like to find a 997 I can purchase and resell in a few years without losing my behind.

Is there a guide, link or just suggestions you can point me to so I can do my due diligence? I know that the best deals involve saving or making money at the time of purchase, but in order to so I need to know where to look, what to look for, and recognize when I have found a good deal. Would also be nice to find a reliable independent shop in my area (I live in Miami) that I can go to for pre-inspection, maintenance, and unexpected repairs.

Looking for a convertible with the small rear bucket seats so I can take the wife and kids for a spin.

Thank you again for any guidance. I will read all the responses and take good notes.

Balr14

A 997.2 C2S cabriolet with the PDK and about 60k - 70k miles is probably your best bet. You won't have to pay the premium for low mileage and the expensive 60k service will have been done. Depreciation should be tolerable.

elmohongzito

Thank you for that advice. That's the type of strategy I was looking for. Now, when you say 997.2 C2S, where does the "2" come in play. I assume you are referring to a 911 Carrera S Cabriolet between 2009 and 2012. Is that right?

mike cap

Good advice. The biggest depreciation haircut percentage wise is the first five years after the new P was delivered. After that it is tolerable and may be price stable for your time period. I’d look for a 2014 or older the best you can find and with desirable options. The “2” means rear wheel/two wheel drive.

Balr14

997.2 refers to 2009 - 2012 models. C2S is rear wheel drive Carrera S. A C4S (AWD) is OK too. But, you don't see many AWD cabs and it is needless weight and complexity you won't want to pay for as it gets older. Most of the 911 models sold since 2009 came with the PDK... over 80%. So, you will have a pretty fair selection. Manual transmissions are much less common so you may pay a premium. In the real world, they may be harder to sell.

Any form of aftermarket updates will decrease the price, too. But, that works both ways (buying and selling). If you have the resources to restore a modded car back to stock, you can realize a bonus when you sell.

Carerra

Whatever you do, find a good 3rd party garage to inspect it before you buy!!!! Especially with a 997.1 - many of them leak at the rear main seal, not the end of the world, but a fairly pricey fix.

(I would go for a manual over a PDK myself. The PDK is objectively better, but the manual is more fun)

elmohongzito

Thanks for clarifying. I did a quick search on car gurus within 200 miles and the highest mileage I could find was about 50k so to find one that already has that expensive 60k mile service you mention I may have to wait a while. I am not in a rush. I want to make sure I do my due diligence and find the right deal as well as a garage that I can count on. Do you think it make sense to look at the 996's as well?

elmohongzito

Good call. Do you know if there is somewhere on this forum where I can find feedback about garages in my area (South Florida - Miami/Ft. Lauderdale)? Unbiased word of mouth will be key.

Pbrad

After going through process recently. A quick tip.
Google "Buyers guide Porsche 997", you will get a lot of hits and insights such as below, which gives some insight on bore scoring etc.
http://www.revolution-porsche.co.uk/...ed-porsche-997
keep reading this forum and others, keeping your eyes open on the classified sections.

Happy Hunting.

SpeedyD

Best tip I can give is to not geographically limit your search. Shipping costs can be worth it as some markets with greater supply have better pricing and some markets with less supply have higher pricing (for equivalent cars). So while you can't enjoy an arbitrage easily (shipping costs!) you can at least widen your choice. Obviously requires a PPI and selectivity in who you are dealing with.

jamesinger

Also, do research on all the different models and options to narrow your search, which has been eluded to above (i.e. C2S cab, 997.2 but then all the options...alllll the options, OMG, so many). For example, this is controversial but I wasn't going to buy a C2S without full leather. On the other hand, my friend who got a GT3 around the same time specifically did not want full leather but wanted the more "track oriented" options (LWB/roll bar/fire extinguisher...). Some of these options are cheap to get after the fact, and some are prohibitively expensive. What I found is even with the C2S (for example), there were 100s of little ways 2 cars with similar mileage AND price could be vastly different options wise. I was looking for a (more fun but cush) daily to replace a super (super) cush (but boring) Audi Avant. I wanted something more fun and more sporty but I wanted to retain the comfort of my Audi rather than going back to an EVO or something similarly brutal as I had before. The C2S I ended up with was a .1 completely loaded. I passed on a bunch of more stripped down Carreras that were newer even but missing tons of options. Last, your comment about the PPI/Service is also important. The better the PPI and the better the service history on the car was documented, the less of a hassle selling the car will be + a bit of a premium can be asked pricewise with that provenance.