How much are mods worth when buying a car?

[paigow]

Thanks all for your input. I like the mods this car has and the way I look at it, I would have added the Wheels, exhaust, mininum, and like the aero kit. So I guess I would value the mods a little more than the average buyer since the absolute dollar I save from not having to mod the car myself is a lot more than what i may end up paying for a stock car. akionan: thanks for the offer, but I'll pass at this tiime.

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[yrralis1]

Originally Posted by Targa Tim

I have a stock car and I'm a doctor. Am I still allowed to go to the track?

Even if you take it to the track my guess is that you take care if it . Of course I am not claiming that doctors are immune to being wreckless however there is a certain level of dedication and maturity involved in attaining the degree and establishing yourself in that occupation . If I were searching for a used car I would hope that some of that same attention is given to your daily drives as well as carried over onto the track .

I have always said that if one buys a used car from someone he knows personally who took care of it --it's a plus . If that's not possible then the next best thing is looking over the car as well as talking with the previous owner .

Just reading these posts in the forum --there are some people whom I have never met or spoken to but guess just from their posts that their car might be well cared for .

[cibergypsy]

So, how much do you guys think a 2006 Carrera S with factory Aerokit, X51 Powerkit, adaptive sports seats, TPMS, Sports Chrono Plus, guards red gauges and seat belts, Porsche crests in headrests, heated seats, full leather black interior, 19" Carrera Classic wheels with 5mm spacers, stainless steel door entry guards, factory CD changer, Arctic Silver metallic paint, Dension iPod integration, airbag deactivation kit, Bose stereo and 21k miles should sell for? The car had an MSRP of $122k plus change.

[paigow]

I've spoken with the owner and he sounded like he took very good care of the car and was only weekend car. He's agreed to take the car to indy to have it checked out and will do an oil change for me for on his dime.

I live in Vegas and the car is in FL so if I do buy the car do you think I need to fly out there to test drive it and see the car first hand or assume that indy check up is good enough? Carfax came back clean.

[yrralis1]

Originally Posted by paigow

I've spoken with the owner and he sounded like he took very good care of the car and was only weekend car. He's agreed to take the car to indy to have it checked out and will do an oil change for me for on his dime.

I live in Vegas and the car is in FL so if I do buy the car do you think I need to fly out there to test drive it and see the car first hand or assume that indy check up is good enough? Carfax came back clean.

Drive any car before buying it. Especially a used car but even a new car. Have it inspected at a place of YOUR choice (not the seller) . However nice a car may sound , no matter how pleasant a seller may sound --buying a car is business .

[paigow]

Then I guess I better look into travel plans to Ft. Lauderdale. The seller was going to take it to Champion Motorsports to have it inspected, which I believe is very reputable company.

[yrralis1]

Originally Posted by cibergypsy

So, how much do you guys think a 2006 Carrera S with factory Aerokit, X51 Powerkit, adaptive sports seats, TPMS, Sports Chrono Plus, guards red gauges and seat belts, Porsche crests in headrests, heated seats, full leather black interior, 19" Carrera Classic wheels with 5mm spacers, stainless steel door entry guards, factory CD changer, Arctic Silver metallic paint, Dension iPod integration, airbag deactivation kit, Bose stereo and 21k miles should sell for? The car had an MSRP of $122k plus change.

You have some miles on the car.
You also have expensive options .

Had you kept the mileage under 10K it would be better for you .
If the car had less options with those miles --it would be better as well .

My opinion -- Keep the car rather than take a loss . Get the full use out of it because two years from now if the car has 42K miles your loss won't be as large .

[cibergypsy]

Originally Posted by yrralis1

You have some miles on the car.
You also have expensive options .

Had you kept the mileage under 10K it would be better for you .
If the car had less options with those miles --it would be better as well .

My opinion -- Keep the car rather than take a loss . Get the full use out of it because two years from now if the car has 42K miles your loss won't be as large .

yrralis, I think you are quite right in your assessment of my car. Now I regret specifying the car the way I did but it's too late for that. I think I'll keep it then for at least 2 more years and maybe then, once it's out of warranty, add a limited slip diff or sell it, if its value hasn't plummeted to the ground. My only regret now is that I also own a 1987 3.2 Carrera with 85k miles and it's in awesome condition with many upgrades, including an AC that needs to be turned down in Florida's Summers, and my son just asked me last night "daddy, why don't you sell the 3.2 and the 997 S and put the money together and get us a 997 Turbo?" I know I would have to come up with the difference in cash and I don't want to do that right now because of uncertain times, as I don't have any car payments at home at all!

[MartinJF]

Mods can increase the value, make a car more attractive, reduce value, increase performance, decrease performance…

From my point of view cosmetic mods seem to hold onto some of their value, e.g., wheels seem to be worth about 50% of retail on the used market. Other mods like Clear bras seem to make a used car a little easier to sell, minor cosmetic mods like pedals do not seem to make any difference. Body kits, harnesses, roll bars and the like make a car harder to sell and people seem to swap back to stock prior to selling and sell the parts, this makes the car easier to sell and generates more $. I would not pay much for a body kit unless I planned to do that mod myself, but I tend to keep stock bodywork on my cars (just my preference).

Performance mods are another issue since people seem to worry about abuse, warrantee… I have lightly modified a number of my cars for performance and did not have problems selling them or getting a little cash out of the mods, I seemed to get 15% to 20% the cost of the mod back, I could probably have got 50% if I removed them. My experience is limited to suspension (shock & spings) intakes, exhaust, headers, cats and software (except that you cannot remove and resell software!). I have never done a turbo or supercharger mod, but I tend to think that the market for that kind of mod is very limited. If I did that I would remove it before I sold it.

[Roller]

^What he said

[flash80]

Originally Posted by paigow

primary mod is a F77 package and RG5, RG19 champion wheels and aero package.

these sound like nice mods--ones I would consider. At the same time, I wouldn't pay more than 25% of what they cost. I purchased my car with a set of coilovers and RG5's--didn't pay much more than the stock cars out there.

Sounds like a sweet setup--pics are mandatory if you buy!

[paigow]

What do you guys think a C2S in excellent condition w/13K miles is worth? From what I've seen out there, I'd put it between $65 to $68K. Is that too high or not enough?

[yrralis1]

Originally Posted by paigow

What do you guys think a C2S in excellent condition w/13K miles is worth? From what I've seen out there, I'd put it between $65 to $68K. Is that too high or not enough?

I sent you a PM . I looked on auto trader since this is my region . That car looks nice !!! You still have to drive it though . I even test drive a NEW car just to be sure before buying .

I think you are spot on with price .

[yrralis1]

Originally Posted by cibergypsy

yrralis, I think you are quite right in your assessment of my car. Now I regret specifying the car the way I did but it's too late for that. I think I'll keep it then for at least 2 more years and maybe then, once it's out of warranty, add a limited slip diff or sell it, if its value hasn't plummeted to the ground. My only regret now is that I also own a 1987 3.2 Carrera with 85k miles and it's in awesome condition with many upgrades, including an AC that needs to be turned down in Florida's Summers, and my son just asked me last night "daddy, why don't you sell the 3.2 and the 997 S and put the money together and get us a 997 Turbo?" I know I would have to come up with the difference in cash and I don't want to do that right now because of uncertain times, as I don't have any car payments at home at all!

You see that forum member Paigow is pricing a car on this thread with the F77, wheels , springs in the upper 60's with less miles than your car . Even if I round up on your car to 70K --it's a big hit when it would drop about 12k more in the next two years . The only silver lining is that Turbo pricing on used cars has a few Turbo owners wondering how a 140K car is getting 110 K .

The wild card in all of this is no one knows whether or not the Gt1 engine in the Turbo will be replaced in 2010 for a wet sump 3.8 and there have been many posts on this subject .

So do you take the hit now and have the car you want OR do you wait and enjoy the one you have ? Economically speaking --I gave my opinion .
Emotionally speaking --a Porsche Turbo has no place in the same paragraph with saving money .

Only you can decide.

[cibergypsy]

yrralis, the only difference between Paigow's car F77 and my X51 Powerkit is that it is proven that the X51 increases hp and torque, whereas the article in Excellence magazine about the F77 did not find any increases that were documentable and were left with Champion's explanation that the increases are at high speed and more of a seat of the pants effect. To me the F77 is not a comparable option to the X51, is not a Porsche factory option so it adds only value to a car as far as someone would do the same mod to a car they would buy, doesn't cost the same as X51 and doesn't add the same value when it is time to resell, at least in my eyes. IMOHO, of course since I am naturally biased towards what I own.