Would you ever buy a PCar sight unseen no PPI?

 

Not a chance. Even if it was CPO certified from a dealer. Stories about these kind of adventures around here.

 

I would be OK with a CPO car and good images or video. My issue with a PPI is it doesn't tell you if you have bore scoring in a 9A1, and doesn't tell you how the car was driven. I have found CarMax is hard to beat, if you can't find a CPO. At worst case, it will cost you the transfer fee. Unfortunately, CarMax doesn't have much of a selection.

 

PCA long time member, service records, car fax, phone discussions, talk with shop that services car sure.

That said, no reason not to have a PPI done.

 

I bought my 2005 Carrera S in March, sight unseen, from a guy in Louisiana and had it transported to me in Ohio. He did provide service records and receipts from recent clutch replacement, IMS bearing, and RMS replacement but I realize there is still risk involved. So far, everything is great with the car!

 

Never had the opportunity to be around a 911 in my life although the dream has been alive for 15 years. Finally got the green light and purchased my car from CA -> MI. Purchased from Honda dealer, they sent me detailed pictures/videos of the car running and I still had a PPI done which caught a few things they didn't disclose. Thankfully they took care of everything in the report no problem and put it on the truck to me. Arrived unscathed. Absolutely have a PPI done, it is well worth the price if they find something major. We would have walked away from this car and kept looking had they not taken care of everything. Purchased it 'informed sight unseen' and am very happy so far.

TLDR: always get a PPI, it can save you from a nightmare car, and provides peace of mind/insurance. A few hundred bucks against the purchase price is nothing and always be willing to walk away.

 

No. Even a CPO car I wouldn't. Everyone has a different definition of what a clean car is. My CPO car was not as represented when I went to look at it in person, I ended up buying it though and then sold it about a year later. Always get a PPI for the mechanicals and inspect yourself for condition or have a detailer look at the paint quality.

 

I would never purchase a Carmax car. Crap cars end being dumped there or there cars are auction cars. Good quality 997s will not end up there. No reason for them to.

I have actually gotten Carmax quotes on 2 911s and a 2017 M3 ZCP manual and they are always the same or lower than I can trade in at dealerships where I can save on sales tax with my trade and much, much less than I could get selling on my own provided the car did not have needs that would be caught on a PPI.

 

SURE! Having purchased my current 997.2 from out of state, I spent time interviewing the owner/seller which gave me more info than any PPI could do (minus a borescope). He provided me with live video walk around, all service records, and I let a local relative of mine do test drive and overview of the car. That car purchase was better than expected, has had zero issues, and was a very good purchase and experience. Later, after I did an oil change, I took it to my Indi to clear the service due light, and he verified that it is excellent in every way.

Conversely, my previous 997.1 that I purchased from my local Porsche dealer with a CPO "certification", had a bunch of little nagging things about it that took me 5 years to finally sort out to "perfection". Yes, they checked all the boxes, and stood behind the car, but I never really knew its history, how it was used and cared for. CPO only goes so far, and many PPI's don't even go that far.

Now, neither car had an invasive PPI (with borescope, etc), and neither car had ever had any motor problems (as they both .1 and .2 have such good motors despite all the fear spread on this forum). The moral of this story is that you can learn more about a car from who drove and cared for it, than you can from any other means, if you know what to ask.

 

I did the same thing and bought a 2005 911 without a bore scope being done. Car was a trade in at a Lexus dealer out of state. Car ran great! Ended up it had terrible bore score on #6 cylinder. Engine is now being rebuilt! Hope to have the car back in a few weeks! My whole story is here on the 997.1 area...

 

Seriously think about this for a second, if you are penny pinching or stretching you budget that much you don't want to or cannot afford to pay for a PPI on a 10 year-old sports car that can be very costly to fix or maintain, you probably shouldn't be purchasing it.

Even though I do not believe in PPIs, I always pay f or one and I LAWYS fly to where the car is so I can inspect it and drive it myself. The last one I had shipped to me was a 2003 996tt back in 2003 with 4k miles and it showed up with paint issues and pitting on the bumper cover and hood that was not visible in photos and that PPI and not mentioned in PPI. The PPI shop later said they did not mention because they considered it normal for 911s out in the desert. The car was shipped from Phoenix.

 

All extremely solid points. I’m just torn on waiting till PPI gets done and I lose the car. I really like it but don’t want to get into a mess. Working on a refundable deposit but i dont know. There’s plenty others if I lose this one that’s for sure.

 

when in doubt, or if any hesitation at all, then get a PPI and pay the extra for borescoping.

 

If they won’t hold it pending a PPI, run far away from it. Far, far away!
.

 

The 2005 911 that I found at the Lexus dealer had several people ready to purchase the car! I had to move fast! In fact one guy showed up while I was completing the paper work! The positive side is I will have a beautiful 2005 with a rebuilt engine $$$.