Had a 02' c4s traded into my dealer I work at. (BMW) I am not a Porsche guy but have always wanted one. This one has 31k miles. Also 2k miles ago a new Vertex shortblock was put in because of what the indy stated as rod knock. At that time they did a new clutch and slave along with a front control arm. All oil changes and such are up to date otherwise. He also had the front bumper resprayed not to long ago due to rock chips and such. Tires need replacement and thats about all I could find wrong. Had a carfax done on it. NO acciddents or such found. I am offered it at $32k +tax. Is it worth it? I plan to keep it a year or 2 and sell.

 

Hmmm good question, 4s has strong resale, close to turbo money. They were usually well optioned, all had full leather, check the sticker under the front bonnet for options, all the little three digit code are equipment options. I don't know who vertex is but if it's a quality motor that's a huge bonus. Gotta figure it's got good bearings and seals and with the new clutch be good to go for another 50 K or more. It's not a bad price but you should work on them a little bit if you could get it for under 30 I would shoot for 25 personally �� I would say pretty dang good deal. There are a lot of us who really like the widebody nonturbo car should hold it's value for a long time to come. Great color combo silver accounts for a very large number of Porsche production so easy to sell too.

 

They took the car in for $31k so I am getting it for 1k over. Thats as low as they will go. Will look at the options. I am getting service records for when the car was in warranty and such tomorrow. It was a previous certified P car also.

 

at $32k-ish, for a few G more I would get a 997 but that's just me.

 

The trade valuation doesn't mean much they will have a tough time getting that for the car you will be doing them a favor by buying it. Maybe let them do recon and have it set on your lot for 90 days and they will be singing a different tune.

 

I doubt they paid 31k for it. They are just trying to make you feel good about only paying 1k more. They paid 20-25 for it. (Dare I say lower)

You have Porsche envy, I don't blame you they are great cars.

Take a step back and check the market, and also try to educate yourself on the 996. 32k is top dollar for a c4s so it better be immaculate.

Only plan on keeping for a year or two.... until you realize how great a car it is. The c4s is close to max depreciation, so you shouldn't a huge hit if you decide to sell.

 

Or a turbo

 

+996

It depends on what your priorities are in deciding between C4S, higher mileage 997 or 996 turbo. All of them are in the same ballpark price wise.

As to Vertex, they've been in the business awhile now and rebuild porsche motors all the time. However, their philosophy uses roller bearings which may or may not sit with some stubborn types that automatically brush it off based on pure theory. Research it more if interested in buying it.

 

I have done research as far as the horror stories go about the m96. I don't work on Porsche's, I am a bmw guy. But even with me doing all the labor if a motor goes bad these cars can get expensive quick. Which is why this car intrigued me. With the new short block all those problems are pretty much taken care of already. I searched ebay and the FS section here. Didn't really find anything to compare it to. I was just hoping I could keep it for a year or 2, drive it maybe 10k miles at most and sell for what I bought it for a a couple thousand less. But that's not looking like its the case here. Also im not interested in a high mileage turbo and maintenance costs will kill me.

 

Turbo motor is solid and maintenance costs would be on par with c4s if both were well sorted cars. I don't understand the idea of buying a car just to flip it a year later esp with a car as great as the 996.

 

I go through cars like underwear I don't understand why people don't do it? I've managed to drive some pretty exceptional cars and almost without exception for free or gotten paid for it. It never hurts to ask, but I will say I used contract with a lot of car dealers and even though I had an excellent reputation with them I was shocked at how badly they treated me when I tried to buy a car from them. They were very dishonest treated me maybe even worse than a regular customer. I hope that is not happening to you but as stated above I would be surprised if they paid 31 they wouldn't be in business long if they were taking trades like that.

 

My advise, don't buy it. You seem like a solid BMW guy (nothing wrong with that) so you'll be bothered with every little thing we take in stride. Yes they are expensive to repair, but if you can do some things yourself you will save. I've been driving a 2003 C4S now for 3 years and it's solid, no issues, others haven't been as fortunate.
just my 2 cents.

 

Love my C4S and highly recommend them to anyone. My mechanic says they are bullet proof and for the most part I guess he's right however I was never more shocked at price for repairs, within a few weeks if buying it my spark plugs and coil pack needed replacing along with a few incidentals the bill was around $900. 2 weeks later a hose went and dumped coolant, flatbed the car to Indy for repair plus hose and coolant $450, replaced the clutch assist spring $200, month or so later had to replace 2x rear tyres plus alloy weld $800. I know some of these things you can do yourself but in 8 months I've done around $2500. That's more than I've spent on my lexus in around 4years. Now I need my aircon fixed, both condensers plus labour etc another $700+.

They aren't a cheap hobby or addiction but they are something quite wonderful. Check autotrader and even ebay for comparisons and see what spec and mileage you get for your buck and if something better or cheaper appeals go for it. If not leave it on the forecourt for a while then see what they want for it. Buy it if you can afford it and the repairs too. Drive it like you stole it, they're one heck of a drive.

 

Repair costs are very manageable on the smaller issues. Parts Are even reasonable. I have done all the general maintenance on my boxsters and frankly it's one of the easiest cars I've ever worked on. I couldn't imagine paying somebody $120+ bucks an hour to change the oil and spark plugs when all you have to do is back up over a curb and crawl under there for about 10 minutes, at least that is true for boxsters. Clutches and Ims bearings probably better left to pros but still look easy/straightforward

 

I absolutely love my C4's!!! Honestly, if your going to buy the car to beat on and just sell, I say let someone buy it who will love the car. For what you spend you want find a better porsche.