Larry Cable

The CPO is probably worth a few $$'s ... but I agree it's interesting how the private seller gets nickeled and dimed ...

In the case of my car, the RL'er that bought it I think got a sweet deal at a price that I would have been happy to sell privately ... but including CPO, new tyres etc ... they lucked out ... esp given its sticker which was some 18k over what I traded it at!

maybe next time you sell a car mooty you should "talk to your sales manager" before agreeing the price ... or try to sell some paint protection and extended warranty products...

Wilder

Stick a plack on the dash that says something like "mooty sanctioned" or "mooty was here" and charge an extra $10k.

Larry Cable

Mooty Inside
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mooty

LOL, ha now you can't even give it away.

Serge944

Mooty's got jokes.

ADias

Do you plan to track your car? if yes, use it most for tracking? If you answer yes to both questions then a GT3 makes sense, if not, not so much.

If you do not track much, a C2S coupe might make more sense. A cab is a softer car and a 4 is a heavier less fun car to drive. My 0.02.

Yoops Racing

Yes there are a lot of them available with low miles....this is why I bought a 2008 with 3600miles. Most are available, because bored rich folks upgraded. My advice - buy one with a CPO and enjoy how you want. I do not plan to make my a track car and let me tell you this car will make the spirited driving experience awesome, much more than any boxster.

keno

As Mooty and Larry pointed out... I missed Larry's his car by a mere week! Sure, I was searching Rennlist, but for some reason missed his original FS post. I bought it from the dealer he traded it to about two weeks later. From the dealer it is CPO'd, four new tires, new battery, new carpet, etc, plus their profit for holding the car for two weeks! Neverthless, I happy to have acquired the car ... it's clean (thanks Larry for that)!

One point to consider, whether you want CPO or not is a judgment call. The few grand you save by not going to a dealer can go into a "fund" for fixing problems that may come up. I was undecided about this until a bit later in my search. I could have narrowed by search a bit and even saved some expense (PPI on private part car) if I had decided I wanted a CPO car earlier on.

Good luck with your decision!

tcsracing1

alot of 997 GT3 owners are either moving for something more tame or something more exotic.

the reason it is all happening fast now is due to warranties coming closer to an end as well as leases maturing.

prosper

The reasons are :

1. Main Reason, The 998 models are coming out next year

2. Secondary Reason, The owner of 997 Mk1 GT3 with 3.6 liter engine,
feel that their car is NOT the most special anymore since there are the new 997 Mk2 GT3 with 3.8 liter engine. so 997 Mk1 GT3 owner
have double reasons to sell their car.


Yes, I understand that the next 998 GT3 will not be available for another 2 year,
but the window for selling the 997 GT3 at a this current price is closing fast.

as soon as the 998 (basic 998 carrera) come out, the value of 997 GT3 will surely get another hit.

because no matter how you look at it,
the 998 will be the car that look "NEW".

and the 997 will be the car that look...
well,... like a previous generation car.
even it is a 997 GT3 it is still a 997 not 998.

I am not saying the 998 will looks better,
because we do not know at this point...
but 998 will have that "new" look.

jimxyz

IMHO (in addition to the leases coming up and people wanting to move up to the .2) lots of the cars are up for sale b/c the owner got the car home and after the honeymoon was over they realised that the GT3 takes some effort to drive. It's lower, louder (especially with the bypass), stiffer ride than most cars, and it has no back seat or some of the creature comforts you expect from high end cars... As such, the cars probably sit in the garage for months on end until something new comes along. With that said, I love my GT3 and do my best to drive it at least once a week (it was a DD for about 3 months - but traffic and parking squashed that idea)

Before purchasing I'd get the usual PPI for mechanical issues and have a body shop or pro give it a once over for repair work.

winkingchef

Thanks very much for all the excellent advice!
I'm actually quite touched by the well thought out recommendations.

I am still quite young (30), so I'll probably be a bit more tolerant of the "rough edges" on the car, especially since I have another as a daily driver. I am expecting this to be a more "special" car for my "weekend meditation sessions" which involve lots of uninterrupted concentration and challenging roads.

However, I do like the ability to dial back the harshness on the car, especially when the GF accompanies me on my blasts through the local hills. I was hoping that PASM would help with that, but it seems that the GT3 PASM on the "soft" setting may still be harsher than my Cabrio's "hard" setting.

Therefore, a few options are:
- C2S coupe (may not be exciting enough)
- Boxster Spyder (love the look and the "harder cabrio" aspect and I may not need the performance if I'm mostly on-road)
- 997.1 GT3 (may be too harsh)

I think I have a lot of test driving ahead of me...always the fun part anyways.

savyboy

The Spyder is much more supple in the ride than GT3/RS. Handling is of course awesome. Wife and I just did a quick blast across the mountains to have lunch at Northstar in Tahoe. The Spyder is perfectly flat handling and not harsh ride. Also, MUCH quieter inside cockpt than RS even though it is nothing but a canvas roof.

The Spyder does have cowl shake on frost-heaved roads. But then the GT3 would beat the living hell out of you on those roads as well.

We found a couple big empty parking lots and with PSM off the Spyder is a lot more fun to horse around with than the 911 variants (no pendulum).

PSE on the Spyder is just perfect. And can be flipped quiet when you want to. If I didn't track regularly, for the price/performance/looks/cheaper tires, I would have only the Spyder- hands down. A GT3 is will never get close to limits on public roads. Just so capable you need track to give it a real workout.

A C2S is a very fine choice as well. Although Sport PASM option will result in, again, a harsher ride than the Spyder.

Larry Cable

You could of course also try a 996.2 GT3 ... arguable the "sharpest" tool in the box ...

AllanJ

Not sure if that's the best car for him in this situation....but driving these cars sure is a blast!