Went this weekend and checked out a 2001 turbo with 34k miles . Sunroof, no carbon, no nav, sport seats. All seemed well, service records including rear spoiler fix . No 2nd gear issue , tested multiple ways. Only issue is the carfax shows "very minor accident" in 2007, rear bumper was repainted but nothing else.

My only other Porsche experience was owning a 2000 model C2 so I am not as versed in what these are worth as I would like to be.

Tia,
Jonathan

 

How do you feel about the damage/accident?

It's likely that the next potential purchaser will feel the same should you decide to sell the car in the future

 

I feel like it's obviously a negative but if the price reflects it then when I sell i can discount accordingly too.

 

Rear-end fender benders are so common, that if you're certain that it was just a rear bumper with no structural or engine damage, and you like the car otherwise, I wouldn't let it bother me. If you're planning on not keeping the car for long, I might worry about what the next buyer will think of the "accident damage"; but if you think you'll keep it for at least a few years, over time that "minor damage" will become less important.

Of course, I would still use it as negotiating leverage!

 

That's my basic thoughts on it, Just needing some help deciding exactly how much leverage-$$ that should be.

 

Sorry I can't help with pricing over there, but I concur with Alpha's comments

 

Going to make an offer this week, any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

What I can assume what was repainted is the rear bumper cover (the bumper itself and bumper shocks are behind the bumper cover and if replaced would indicate a more serious collision). Painting the bumper cover is abolutely no big deal if is it done properly. I'm surprised it even showed up on car fax. If all the records are available, get the body shop record on the rear bumper to see if anything else was done. Many dealer's that sell CPO cars have both the front and rear bumper covers painted if they have any dings, scrapes or chips which they just consider "detailing". If this is a private party car get a PPI just to be sure everything is ok. If it is a dealer car they should CPO it.

 

Correct, bumper cover. I've decided to buy it, PPI has checked out. What I'm searching for is advice on what price to pay.

 

Start in the mid 30s, stop at 40-ish

 

The market has been soft of these and the recession hasn't helped. Consider the car cost over 100K new (and has low milage) mid 30s to low 40's seems like a good bargain.

 

Yep that's about the right range currently

 

I can never get over how cheap cars are in America

The price I paid for mine would almost have gotten me in a 997 GT2 over there

 

FWIW...one of my cars (non-P) was dropped off of a non-moving flatbed. The damage was minimal and included the replacement of the rear bumper. If you can get a copy of the body shop invoice and confirm that nothing else was replaced...I think mid-30's to low 40ish is good like the other poster said (maybe even more if you really like it). If more was repaired, my friend has bought 996TT at dealer auctions with about 80K miles for under $30K.

My mechanic has always told me that there's nothing wrong with a repaired car if you can't tell it was repaired (probably not 100% true...but it helps put things into perspective).

Hope that helps.

 

Have a trusted body/paint man inspect the car to ensure there is no sign of (sloppy) body/paint work. He'll feel for paint tape ridges under the rubbers along the glass, around the doors, wherever rubber stripping is.

He'll feel the door jams and body areas where the doors fit for any roughness/overspray.

And so on.

If he finds nothing scary then you're almost there.

If you have driven the car long enough and you have done a thorough 'used' car inspection/check out of the car to the point you have a high degree of confidence the car is sound and worth owning then arrange to have the car checked by a very experienced tech.

Among the usual things he'll want to verify the alignment looks right (he can tell a lot by the way the tires feel (he'll rub his hands over the tires to feel if there is any feathering of the tread blocks), and with the car in the air he'll look for any signs of major work underneath, or unrepaired damage, or poorly repaired damage.

What he finds, or doesn't find, will help you decide what to do next.

If you find the car a good one, and get it for a reasonable price, and then take care of it, the fact the car had a minor accident counts for less and less as the car ages. What counts for more is that you bought a good car, have taken care of the car and can show this with work/service invoices, and the car's condition when you go to sell it clearly reflects this.

Sincerely,

Macster.