Hey its my first time posting on the forum, im a bmw guy, but love and respect the Porsche. Ive been thinking about getting a 993 for quite some time now but im not to educated with them. my question is this, i couldnt find anything when i searched, how many people drive their 993's daily, and would you recommend it as a daily or a weekend car. and for the people who drive them daily (if any) what upgrades do you have done? thanks in advance.

 

I purchased my 71k mile '95 1 year ago and have been driving it daily. No issues at all. I have debated about selling it for a 996 Turbo but I just can't pull the trigger. I know the turbo is way more fast, comfortable etc...., except I really like the old school ways of the 993. The AC and heat both work well compared to some previous gen 911's I have owned. I am still looking at Turbos, but I don't know if I will.
I sold my BMW 740i sport after I got the 993 and have not regretted it for a single minute.

 

Daily drove my 993 for almost 5 yrs. Ran like a top the entire time. No issues at all except for the trips to Costco or home depot. 993's aren't exactly made for hauling stuff. lol.

 

One of my DDs is a '98 C4S Aero. A quick topline of my experiences:

1. Car is an absolute thrill to drive. It's superior styling and bulletproof workmanship are simply remarkable. The car's truly one of life's better joys.

2. As previously mentioned, the storage space is, naturally, "not so much." If you typically travel with passengers, carry things, etc. you may want to rethink your ride.

3. Car can be tough in rain and is simply terrible in snow. (Granted, I'm running factory-spec performance tires.)

4. The HVAC in a 993 works, but it's not like my old Lexus.

After a year of having a 993C4S as a daily, I went out and got an S4 Avant for the winter time, for runs into the city, for shopping at the supermarket, etc. The 993 will still be my daily when its two passengers or less and the weather is clear; however, the S4 Avant is my car for the foul weather.

All in all, it depends how badly you want to DD a 993

 

I wouldnt sell for the 996T, the things you mention are what I found I love about the car after having a 996TT. Its brutal fast but, I swear these are more much more fun. Of course I used both as weekend rides so that may make me a little bias.

 

I have owned my 993 for 12 years now.

Out of that, it spent 1.5 years as my daily driver (40 mile round trip) on mainly local roads, and in the last 8 months returned into rotation as daily driver (22 miles round trip) mainly on freeway.

In the first stint, it was factory stock, but the second stint was down to RS height with pretty stiff PSS10 settings.

Here are some of my observations:

1. The PSS10 makes the ride that much more enjoyable, but less on local commute tracks than the freeway. I have a pretty boring commute.

2. I tend to start the day better if I use the 993. Case in point, I was only promoted at work in those years when i was using it as a DD. No kidding.

3. It's a bit hard to drive a 993 in anything higher than ankle boots.

4. I save gas because I can't take co-workers out to lunch.

5. It's really a terrible drive in stop and go traffic. What's your commute like?

6. Do you live far enough from the freeway where you'll get at least 15 mins to warm up the aircooled engine before embarking on some fun?

I don't consider storage, AC, snow to be issues given where I live and my lifestyle.

 

Ain't that the truth. Not that I'm complaining or that it isn't what I was expecting but all fan speeds and temperatures seem to produce the same lukewarm trickle of air from the vents.

 

thanks for the replies. my commute is like 50-60 miles a day mostly highway, yea i dont care about storage i actually don't want to drive anyone anymore so the car seems to be the next one in my future, but has anyone driven it in snow? ide imagine its not to good, but is it that bad? one more thing, how much maintenance work do you do a year, on average, and what/if any common issues with the car, like on my car the oil level sensor always goes bad, and window regualtors. thanks again

 

As a point of reference, I have covered 60K in my time of ownership, and here are the big ticket items.

1. Check Engine Light caused by secondary injection clog, which is probably the biggest known issue with the 1996-98 cars. I was fortunate (subjective) enough to have it hit me before 7th year of ownership, and was addressed under emissions warranty. There are some advanced techniques to fix the problem, but my heads were replaced.

2. Tires are about $1.5K every 2 years with my driving style.

3. I have gotten lazy about oil changes, so spend about $350/yr on this.

4. Major services are about $1K, I have gone through 2 of them in my ownership.

Overall quality of the 993 is really up there. No creaks or weird noises on mine. I am still on original clutch, so that's a $3.5K job with lightweight flywheel. Mine has been good so far at 72K.

And do fill that piggy bank for the upgrades. The original shocks would be pretty much done with by now.

Good luck, the hunt is always the most exciting part.

 

I have been driving mine in the snow recently with Z rated summer tires. Not that good, but manageable. I would not want it to be my only ride if the snow was deeper. I am sure with a set of snows on the rear at least, it would be substantially better. I have been thinking about sell it recently to acquire a 996TT, but I just can't seem to pull the trigger. I really enjoy the car and I feel that I may regret changing to the newer more powerful car.

 

My first post too!! Since you are in NY you have to consider the snow if the car would be a DD, in which case a C4 may be a better choice. I don't have any experience in driving my C4 in the snow as it is a weekend/nice weather car but I am certain it is much better than the C2.

 

My 95 C4 is a DD & now has just under 100,000mi, got her with 70kmi. The car has been rock solid!

It's a awesome DD, my only gripe is lack of space. The 993 is really a small car, smaller then a Mini Cooper.

 

dd, 63K with almost no problems. Upgrade stereo!

 

The clutch is SO hard to manipulate in daily driving. Pain in the butt. I'm getting old!

 

993 C2S...Great in the summer when its dry. Not so good if it's too cold, rain or snow. A 993C4S would be better if you have a set of winter tires/wheels. Otherwise the car is pretty much bullet proof. Good suspension mods available. Affordable engine mods are a bit more limited to bolt ons. First MY1995 do not have OBD2, a plus if you want to delete cats. Downside is they only come in narrow body. 1996 and later have OBD2, variable length intake, and better first/second gear synchros from the Turbo. Stock sound systems suck in all of them but you're stuck with a single DIN slot.