Ezkill

Bah, stupid magic mouse scrolled back when I went to post and lost what I typed so I'll keep it uncharacteristically short in the re-type.

Will you break the bank? Depends. No matter how much it depreciates or what the current value is the repairs will be that of car that cost north of 100k. Realistically you're looking at 2,500-3,000 a year in basic maintenance at a bear minimum with 25k miles. Couple oil changes and tires. I don't know yet personally as I have 3k on the new tires that came with my car but people have quoted 10k miles for rears and double for fronts. Of course you could incur 30k a year in repairs in your first year as well. Rare but it can happen.

yashagrawal

I have a 2009 C4S, being used as a DD. The miles are being racked up, 18000 miles now. I live in Nevada, so the commute is pleasurable, as someone mentioned, I start the day right, and after work the Porsche awaits. I bought the car for driving enjoyment and I reckon it will be 5-6 years before I hit 100K miles. If I maintain it well, I might still retain a resale value around 15-20 $K in 5-6 years time. Driving pleasure, priceless.

So far, I have had one nail in a new PS2 tire (cost 600$ installed, ouch), rest has been standard maintainence. I would however not use it as a DD, if I had a lot of stop n go traffic.

Bruce In Philly

Get yourself an alignment and take out all negative camber in the rear.... I suspect you will get at least 25% more tread life back there. I suspect, but not sure, that I am about to double the mileage on my Michelins by doing this. I commute at least 45 mnts to an hour each way and with this type of driving, you will really extend rear tire life with this change.

With the Porsche spec in the rears, you will blow through tires and be really ticked off.

Also, do you own oil changes as dealers are a big expense for nothing.

I have had two Porsches as daily, all year drivers for 14 years and swap snows out each year.

Peace
Bruce in Philly

MY997

I bought my 997 C4S a couple of months ago and I daily drive it...my trip is about 30 miles round trip and it is in a garage both at home and at work. With vacation & holidays I should keep my commute miles to around 7K a year...I have only been doing this close to three months but have enjoyed every second...like another said after a bad day at work as I enter the garage to get my 997 and see it sitting there waiting for me I get a big grin... bad day over!!!

utkinpol

It is not camber in rear that kills tires longivity, it is toe. Set toe to 0.10 and it will help tires.
Camber of -0.5 deg or -1.5deg will not have such a dramatic difference as stock who knows what toe or properly set minimal toe.

wem

Is a triptronic advisable over a manual for a commuter? Never tried one. Never really wrapped my head around it to be honest. Maybe it protects the motor from over rev or other abuses? Filters out tracking? PDK does sound better but might push the price beyond "fun experiment" zone.

Hella-Buggin'

I wouldn't do this. If you're going to be carving through the Santa Cruz mountains on a daily basis you'll want the cornering capabilities that that camber provides. If you're having uneven tire wear it means you need to drive more aggressively in the corners. I live in a similar are as the Santa Cruz mountains and have never had issues with the inside wearing out.

utkinpol

Tiptronic or pdk is probably wise if you going to stand in traffic every day. 997 clutch is heavy. 1.5hr or 2 of start stop moving will make you hate this car. Especially if you go over hills and have to start/stop on the upward slopes.

So i actually would say a 997.2 c2 cheapest car with pdk is a best choice here for daily commuter but i understand it can be out of price range.

Hella-Buggin'

Tiptronic is a compromise. PDK is, by most, considered a performance improvement. Just wait. The 991 cars are filtering into the market and the 997.2 cars will come down on the second hand market as a result. I've seen about 5 new 991 cars in my neighborhood lately.

ogun228

Some way out answers here: $2,500-3,000 p.a in maintenance peryear? Change camber?

I would respectfully suggest that you just drive the car and maintain it as per Porsche schedule while shortening the oil change interval to 5- 7k miles. Tires on a 997 last longer than a 996 and on a C2 last longer than on a C4. Figure rears every 2 years and fronts every 3 if you dont track. They may even last longer if one swaps them for winters as I do. Mine is a DD and I enjoy every bit of it and dont worry about depreciation or resale value. I'll deal with that if and when the time comes. 997's are superb DD's. Heck my 2 grandsons love riding in the back ( 10 and 7).

Oil changes at the dealer will set you back about $300, about $200 at an Indy. If you don't go the "mod" route, your main expense will be for gas as you'll be hard pressed to match the official 19mpg city with such a car that practically urges you to used the loud pedal. On hwy expect about 28 if you can restrain yourself and run it in normal mode.

FullThrottle64

???? I don't find my clutch to be heavy at all, and I drive in traffic every day. Now, it's not as light as my wife's Mini, but it isn't as heavy as my old F-350 diesels were, either.

yashagrawal

But you probably dont drive in CA traffic, having driven manuals, I never understood the big deal about automatic transmission, until I drove in LA traffic...

Petza914

I actually don't think the 997 clutch is heavy at all. They do get stiffer as they wear and get closer to needing replacement. For a commute, PDK would be the right choice though.

SpeedyD

I agree, not a really heavy clutch -- but I think he meant relatively speaking. For hour+ stop and go, yes it can get heavy. I've made the mistake once to leave Manhattan in rush hour........ afterwards was as if I just played a 2 hour drumming session (drummers will get this)

Geros