ChrisF

Ok, found a really odd but attractive one: an '05 with 400 miles. Options are as follows:

Slate Grey Metallic paint, Adaptive Sport Seats, Heated Front Seats, 19" Carrera Classic Wheel, Rear Window Wiper, Wheel Caps with Colored Crest, Sport Chrono Package Plus, Navigation for PCM, Bose High End Sound Package, and Remote CD Changer.

If the car checks out, is there any real premium for the low mileage?

wetstuff

Not from my perspective. It raises the suspision the car sat (duh?!) without any of the condensation boiling off the crankcase. In airplanes: you don't want 'zero hours between annual' because you'll likely have funky cylinders..tho' there may be a difference between air-cooled and WC'd boxer engines, enviroments, etc. ..and the opposite seems also true: too many miles make it look like a printing salesman's Impala.

I felt comfortable with the 10k on the 05 997-S I got at Cleveland Porsche in all regards.

j i m

ChrisF

Any other opinions on a car sitting being necessarily a bad thing?

Edgy01

The clock is always ticking on the Porsche Warranty. Whether you can get all the bugs worked out by 4 years is up to the driver. If the car sits for 4 years and doesn't get a work out is up to the owner. I suspect Porsche thoroughly enjoys the buyers who baby their cars and never accrue mileage on them before the warranty expires (based upon years, vice mileage). It's all good for them. But it's a waste of money.

Paul523

That car should probably sell for at most $75K with the low miles, if it had 10K miles maybe a couple $K less.

I would request the overrev readout if you're serious, make sure the 400 miles weren't demo hellrides.

ziege

Is this a private party sale, or a car that has been sitting at the dealer?

Seems quite strange to me. I once bought a 1999 VW that was 3 years old and had 6K on it. It had been totaled on the dealer lot, went to auction, passed through a couple of owners, etc, etc. Nobody had time to drive the thing. Had some problems, but I ended up making 3K on it when I sold it 4 months later.

Alan Smithee

What's the build date? That car could have been built 2.5 years ago...NOT good to have only been driven 400 miles in that time...among other things, the seals need to be kept lubricated. If it's a late 2005 build, it's not as bad...but it's a desirable color and option combo...there has to be a story as to why it's been sitting. Wrecked? Flooded?

ChrisF

Yeah, all my suspicions echoed. I spoke with the owner and I would surmise that he dreamed of owning a 911, got one, realized it wasn't for him and let it sit. Money doesn't seem to be a big factor to him. He is the orig owner; purchased from a dealership nearby. I think if the car has ever seen over 4k RPM's, I'd be shocked. He is asking below $75K and thus why it's attractive. Carfax is clean and shows nothing other than purchase in 4/05.

Is there any way to check the seals to see if there could be damage from lack of lubrication while sitting?

Queram

Well overrev does not mean anything in my oinion if the car is warmed up and everything. We are advised to floor it out of the showroom floor. I think they do have a break-in in USA for the driver and to pretoect themselves from lawsuits.

On the otherhand, 400 miles is extremely low and for a 2005 and I would make sure that the car was driven periodically rather than let it sit for more than a year. I assume that the car was manufactured at least 2 years ago given the original purchase date. Whatever the case it seems very weird to me. Are you sure about the integrity of the owner?

Going over your data again. If he realized that it was not for him and he drove 400 miles in the 20 months of ownership, I am pretty confident that the car was not driven for very long time periods or the car was driven occasionally for very short drives that it did not even warmed up and lubricated itself. Get it checked out intensively. It may still have more than 2 years on warranty coverage (you guys are lucky we only get 2 years) but if you are a person that would lose your connection to the car for couple of problems that might come out later, pass it.

Good luck, I think it is like a coin toss.

Alan Smithee

Overrev means sending the motor past redline when downshifting into too low of a gear.

andre5

Go get a pre-purchase inspection and get it fully checked out at your local dealership. They should have the history on the car, from a dealership perspective that is. That would give me a little peace of mind - I'm up for a good bargain.

Alan Smithee

ChrisF, I'd interview the owner further regarding how it's been driven and serviced. If he drove it every month or so for 20-30 miles, and had the oil changed after a year, I wouldn't hesitate to buy the car at that great price.

On the other hand, if he drove it 400 miles in the first month and then let it sit for the duration, I'd skip it.

ChrisF

When it comes to spending a chunk of cash, the only thing that means anything to me is the results of a PPI. I have several other choices right now. This one just happens to be in the same state, saving me the costs of an E. coast airfare and transporting it back. All things being equal, I want a car that I can drive a lot and that will be reliable. That's part of why the low miles are so attractive. Based on my past history, I expect I'll do 20K miles in my first year of ownership

PS: Thanks for the good advice guys. I should know more after speaking with him later today.

Alan Smithee

Unfortunately, a PPI isn't going to give you any info regarding degradation as a result of non-use.

All a PPI is really good for on a car with 400 miles is to verify that it hasn't been damaged.

If you do buy it, if it didn't have the oil changed by March of this year, I'd have it done before I even drove it around the block.

Likemystoppie?

Go get an inspection, and talk to the tech who performs it. After all, it's 400 miles AND it's fully warrantied.

Sounds like a great deal.