Lance-AR

Year: 2005
Make: Porsche
Model: 911
Mileage (numbers only please): 125000
Options (Please check ALL which apply): Airbags, Air Conditioning, Alarm System, Antilock Brakes, Cruise Control, Foglamps, Intermittent Wipers, Leather Seats, Power Brakes, Power Door Locks, Power Steering, Power Windows, Sunroof, Traction Control
Color: Seal Grey
Price (no $ sign please): $23500
Private or Dealer Listing: Private Listing
Location (Region): South
Body Style: Coupe
Transmission Type: Manual - 6 speed
2 or 4 Wheel Drive?: 2 Wheel Drive
Engine Type: Fuel Injection
Stereo System: AM-FM CD

Hello everyone,

My local autocross season just ended. My seal grey 05 base with 125k miles ended 1st in its SCCA class this year and now it's time to sell so I can begin prepping for next season. While it's never been tracked, it's eaten many cones throughout the course of 21 autocross events over the last 21 months. That comes out to about 2 hours of autocross time which I suppose is equal to 2 track days of three 20 minute sessions if track days were done in the 40-70 MPH range. In Arkansas we don't have race tracks so autocross is as good as it gets.

I've daily driven it for 47k miles but I've always thought of it as my racecar. This means mechanically it's perfect and needs nothing. It is well maintained by a local Porsche shop that is highly recommended by the local PCA. Their shop is 2 miles from my house and I usually stop in a couple of times a week just to chat. We autocross together and as you can imagine, they look after the car meticulously. I'll provide a prospective buyer references to verify everything from my local Porsche shop, my local PCA chapter and my local SCCA region. The clutch is stiff but I can still take off in third so it still has some life in it. The IMS bearing is original. I've always planned to replace it when the clutch went but the clutch just won't die. I've done oil changes every 3k to 5k miles and everything else consistently according to maintenance schedules. Cosmetically, the front bumper needs some love, there is a 2" scratch on the passenger seat but the leather is not cut, the wheels have a few scratches and there are a couple of rock chips on the hood that were touched up the last time I had the car detailed.

The previous owner was a retired Porsche master mechanic who grew up in Germany and was a childhood friend of Hans Peter Porsche. The Porsche family always included him in whatever they were doing and the only way he could think of repaying them was to go to work for them. The stories he told me when I purchased the car were just fabulous. When he retired he was over all of the Porsche dealerships in Florida and the number of cars Porsche had assigned him over the years was staggering. He said they would give him a car and tell him things like, drive it to 100k miles while changing the oil twice and send us the motor for examination. Visiting with him that day was truly a treat. He named the car Ferry after Hans Peter's father Ferdinand (Ferry) Porsche.

I added a GT3 front sway bar, Tarrett drop links, a Numeric Racing Competition shifter and a Fister Motorsports ceramic coated exhaust to help keep heat out of the engine bay to ensure longevity of the engine. The original sway bar, drop links and shifter and center console will be included in the sale. As you can see, the car looks good but there are scrapes on the underside of the bumper. I took a straight on picture of the front bumper to show how they’re not really that noticeable in real life but if you look from beneath the car you’ll see the scrapes. In the side view from the driver’s side you’ll see the front inner wheel liner is sticking back a couple of inches. This is not a problem with the liner but a problem with the bumper and how it attaches to the liner. I usually hold the two together with a nylon wire tie but took it off so you can better see the full extent of the problem.

To use the car as a daily driver, I believe it’s fine as it is. If you want the car to be perfect, I think you’re looking for a new front bumper. There’s one for sale on the Reenlist classifieds for $800 but you’ll also have to pay shipping and have it painted which is why I’ve listed the car so low. For an occasional show off car you’ll probably want to respray the existing bumper. I’ve held off on replacing the bumper myself in case the next owner wants to put on a GT3 bumper instead or further develop the car into a full race car. The front bumper has marks on it from hitting numerous traffic cones in autocross and the front left radiator is pushed slightly back. The radiator still works fine but it’s slightly out of place and if you want to turn the car into a concourse winner Pelican Parts has a replacement for $248.50.

I recently replaced the center console with a new one from a 997.2 to take care of some interior scratches over time. The factory finish on the original console was a little soft and didn’t hold up well. The new console doesn’t yet have an airbag indicator switch installed so there is a small rectangular hole in it that you can see from the interior pic. I’ll include the original console in the sale if you’d rather have it refinished instead. The car includes an original 997.1 key and also a newer style 997.2 key that was purchased as an additional key.

I’m a perfectionist so I see a lot of flaws in the car and I want to sleep well at night so I’d rather be honest about every one of them. The interior is in very good condition aside from the scratch on the passenger seat and a small amount of wear on the driver side door handle. My big issue with the interior was the scratched console and I replaced that this week. For a 125k mile car you can definitely tell it was very well taken care of but then you see the outside of the car and you can tell it was autocrossed. For example, the front bumper has wear marks where the front edge has little lines of black primer showing below the grey paint. There is a black mark from cones on the driver side hip on the clear plastic protector guard but I think it would buff out. Worst case, the clear plastic guard could be replaced. Please keep in mind up until a week ago this was my race car. You can buy a full set of both stone guards for $90 from http://www.clearguardforcars.com/xpel-catalog/

With all of this said, when you walk up on the car it looks to be in really good condition. Washing it made me realize just how good of condition it still is. Since it’s a decade old, if you look for blemishes, you’ll find them. But if you just want a car to enjoy, a car that will put a smile on your face every time you drive it and a car that you can drive and drive and drive and not worry about putting miles on it, this is by far the best value there is. Honestly, it blows my mind that this car is only worth $25k. It’s still a beautiful car.

The tires are 3/32” on the front and you'll want to plan on replacing them soon. If the car doesn’t sell quickly I’ll replace them myself before the next Autocross event on December 5th and keep the car racing. The rears are good at 6/32”. 911 front tires last twice as long as a set of rear tires and that's been my experience as well.

I honestly have no idea how to measure the brakes but I’ve taken some pictures which I think will alleviate any concerns. The brakes occasionally make a noise but in a sports-car sort of way, not a using the brakes and now the wear indicators are wearing against the rotors sort of way. The only time I ever hear them are when driving slowly in a parking lot occasionally after using the brakes gently to slow down. I honestly have no idea how much they cost to replace but I don’t think they need replacing now. In the 50k miles I’ve driven the car I’ve not had to worry about them at all. I think the pictures will demonstrate they’re fine. The rotors have a very slight lip so they should have plenty of life left in them. I generally use the brakes very little and downshift to use the momentum of the engine braking to slow the car. The clutch is tight but it’s no tighter than it was 50k miles ago. It’s never slipped, even in autocross shifting under max power so you shouldn’t have any issue with it.

In looking through the car in the morning light I found a total of 2 door dings. One is on the driver side on the rear hip and the 2nd is on the bottom side runner of the passenger side. Neither have broken the paint and could be removed with paintless dent repair. I also found wear on the lower door runner on the driver side. I’ve included a photo and took a close-up photo of the driver side wheel liner bumper attachment issue. I’ll nylon wire tie it back together tonight where it will no longer be noticeable.

Please feel free to reach out to me with any further questions. I used this thread on Rennlist to estimate a fair price for the car if you want to read it.

https://rennlist.com/forums/997-foru...25k-miles.html

I've been doing regular oil sample analysis with every oil change on a 4k mile average and just received my best report yet. I literally have page after page documenting perfect oil samples. On the most recent report, Blackstone Labs even mentioned the engine is so impressive its condition won't be changing "any time soon."

Given the excellent engine report, I think $23,500 is a great price and will allow room for the next owner to decide if they want to respray the front bumper, drive it as it is now or replace it with a GT3 bumper for better turn-in and to counterbalance a GT3 wing.

Zeus993

Wow. This looks like a steal. I'll pass it on to a Florida buddy. GLWS.

P.s. And there's a couple of nice 987.2 Spyders for sale on the market. ****** one up!

Lance-AR

Thanks, Zeus. Looking forward to a quick sale and then I'll be moving on to the Spyder!

street rod

Looks like a solid deal for someone just getting into the Porsche market. Do you know for a fact that the IMS bearing is the older replaceable version?

Lance-AR

While the transmission has not been dropped during my ownership to know for sure, the build date is early 2004 and it was a launch car with corresponding launch code on the certificate of authenticity. In my mind, the early build date practically guarantees the smaller serviceable bearing which corresponds to why it would still be in such great condition due to it's regular heavy use.

ATSR

This is the best deal on a 997 by far. A car that was driven as it's supposed to accompanied by meticulous maintenance from a passionate owner.

GLWS

Madturk

As I said before too bad I just purchased another car few weeks ago. Otherwise I'd be all over this one.
Glws.

theporscheguy

Sending to a friend. GLWS.

ehuggins

Would you sell the license plate frame separately?

soltino

Hey! no Mothers.

Is my mind in the gutter or is that just nasty? (-%

tino

ehuggins

My wife gripes about the sound from my 06 997S every time she rides in the car.

bullet6236

What is the exact mileage? Thanks.

studlee

or does it mean she snores loud?

Lance-AR

If you don't know what it means you'll have to ask Mom

The license plate frame will go with the car but perhaps the next owner will part with it. The current mileage is 125,119. If it's still for sale by Wednesday I'll run another tank of gas through it and drive it with a For Sale sign to Porsche Palooza which is a local annual event that brings in about 250 Porsches from across the US. You can read more about it here http://pca-palooza.com/

I believe Porsches maintain best when driven and future mileage will accumulate at a rate of at least 500 miles a month.

soltino

What's her number? and don't be nasty and say 6 and 9.

tino