So I've had a base '07 328i sedan and I love, its comfortable, fast and overall fun and good at everything, maintenance was pretty affordable ($90-$110) for an oil change. I have recently came upon an '08 911 Carrera with 23k miles, it is a salvage, before you say salvage cars are ****, I want to say I'm not rich, and this is the only way I would get to experience a driving machine like this(well at least in my current situation) or I could get a fully loaded '11 328i coupe with 13k miles. Anyways the only thing the car would need is a new front bumper and maybe aligning the hood a little but other than that its perfect. I have never had any experience with Porsches before, especially a high performance car like this. I have heard many scary things about owning a car like this.
I know 23k miles is nothing for an "average" car but what about a 911 carrera, i mean its still somewhat on the borderline of exotic and average, so is 23k miles a lot for this car?
Any particular problems with this year and model car I should worry about, especially at this milage?
What about maintenance? I've heard rumors that all maintenance for newer Porsches has to be done at dealerships. Can I just do the basics on my own (oil, oil filter, air filter) ? What about things that require machinery like the coolant, is that a dealership only job or could I go to a local european tune up shop? My main issue with this car would be the maintenance, I don't want to lose an arm and leg for it, how much more than a 3 series bmw would it be?

 

Don't buy a salvage car.

There are also issues with the early 997, Google IMS bearings. 2009+ is where you want to be, unless the seller has documented proof that they did the fix for the IMS.

You can maintain the Porsche, but when the car requires repairs, you are still buying parts for a $100,000 car.

Stay away from a salvage car.

 

I agree w/beemer. I have recently purchased a lower cost 911 and it is inexpensive to maintain. There are plenty of 911's out there with 100,000 miles from any year I would rather have than a salvage. The vehicle was deemed a total loss by an insurance co and whoever recked did not think it was worth buying back. Do not buy a salvage Porsche; it should be used for parts only. There are plenty of inexpensive well maintained Porsche 911's out there. Most of the fun is the search....

 

Salvaged title doesn't always mean the car has been completely destroyed or flooded. Salvage title only means it has been deemed a total loss from the insurance underwriters. In other words, the insurance company wrote the car off. A lot of insurance companies would rather write off a car a few years old that need work that would out weigh the blue book value or the payoff is low enough to justify. If you buy a new car for $100k and 5 years later get into a accident that will cost $25-$30k to repair, if you only owe $20k, most likely the insurance will write you a check and "total" the car. However if the car is relatively new and get into the same accident, the underwriters are more willing to pay for repairs than eat the total price of the car.


REMEMBER!! YOU GET WHAT YOU INSPECT, NOT WHAT YOU EXPECT!!!

 

You did not include a price for the car. Familiarize yourself with the older models of 911 that would be same price. You may find you can get a pristine example of a more classic 911 for the price of the salvage 997.

 

I will agree with everyone else. Don't be impatient and wait for a deal. I got caught up in my purchase and after doing more months of watching the market I see which are great cars and which are not. What options I can live or live without. I thought I bought a somewhat we'll sorted car and still ended up paying another 6-8k in just parts maintenance and restoration even before I added 1 mile to it. With even more still to do before I can consider any other mods.

An 08 salvage sounds like it really could have some challenges. Don't be afraid of a 100k car if properly maintained and documented. I have def seen some very very clean high mileage cars. And these cars are hardly rare they show up all the time. Just be ready when yours shows up