True, but only during the warranty period. They don't last forever. CPO also doesn't cover everything, but does cover everything major. The snorkel thing on the air intake is held on with two plastic tabs and costs $160 to replace if one the tabs break. Plastic "trim" such as this is not covered as an example.

 

How many 911's do you know of with 100k+ on the clock? Maybe 10% of 996's out there??

 

For most 911's the clock runs out before the mileage limits on the warranty. I think CPO's will cover out to 6 years from the in service date. Mine is an '03 with 39k miles and went into service 12/02. CPO expires the end of this year.

 

The only problem with that is if you want to keep the car past the CPO, since most CPOs are low milage and the problems seem to start occuring at 35k +. At least if you have a PPI, you will know for sure if it has been overheated, overreved, etc.

 

One word – Warranty!

it's a safe bet in my opinion, and since i've had mine for the last 6 months it's already had a RMS and a gasket leak.

 

Well, that sucks, I have the exact same car, color wheels, everything with 38k miles on it, and so far only the coolant tank replaced at 32k (by PO), a series resistor on the drivers side fan, and the HVAC LCD screen. Dry as a bone underneath so far. What gasket leak was it? BTW, the last 4 digits of my VIN are 2236. What are yours and what build date? My car had the build sticker removed, and I'm trying to find out the build date. THANKS!

 

Oh and is yours a 6 sp or tip and has it ever been tracked?

 

If you're looking at a 996, I'd recommend buying as new as you can afford. The newer they get, the more reliable they seem to be. Last year I stretched a little to get the 2002, the first year of the MKII 3.6, which resolved a number of issues with the MKI 3.4s.

I haven't put a dime into it, aside from maintenance and modifications.

I think my PPI was around $300.

 

Pretty much the same here, but look above, his is a 2002 with only 18k miles on it and he's already had an RMS and gasket leak! I've had mine since March and only have put about 1500 miles on it (at 39k miles), and so far nothing, but that really means nothing at his point, eh?

 

99 C2. 95k miles. 6 spd. DD with no track time. i got the car with 34k miles.

1. coolant tank
2. pass side window regulator
3. broken pass side rear bumper muffler heat shield
4. recharge A/C
5. Regular items changed out - clutch, poly-rib belt, spark plugs and tubes, fuel filter, brakes, etc.

overall reliable car. Maybe alternator and water pump are next.

seems to me that older low mileage cars have more problems. these cars are meant to be driven regularly.

mods - fabspeed mufflers, IPD plenum, F-1 filter, OBC hack.

g/l

 

last digits of VIN are 0229

the gasket i had replaced was the sensor gasket. it wasn't major, just leaking a little and it was dripping onto the muffler giving a slight scent of burning oil. The RMS was actually a blessing since i got to get a new clutch plate installed for parts only.

Dont get me wrong, i love my p-car and have no plans on selling. That said i wasn't naive about getting one either so i made sure that the one i purchased had a rock solid warranty. My warranty is a TotalCare with zero deductible until 9/2011. I knew going into the car that it wasn't going to be like our Lexus, and lo and behold, i was right!

I take it back, i have considered selling it, to get into a turbo!!!!

 

It's an MT. it hasn't ever been tracked to my knowledge, quite the oppostive, i think it was a garage queen and didn't get driven enough.

 

I have my car worked on at RUF here in Dallas, and they said that the RMS issues on the NA 996 is very common. BTW, i highly recommend the RUF guys if you're in DFW, they're a class act and very knowledgeable.

 

I cannot believe that not much has been said about 3.4 vs 3.6 cars. The 3.4 cars seem to be much more likely to suffer catastrophic engine failures as opposed to the 3.6 cars. Although fairly rare when taking the entire Porsche population into account, the occurence is more common with 3.4 cars.

 

true dat pha - if i were in the market again looking at 996s, if the 3.4 doesn't have a remanufactured engine in it, i wouldn't buy it and this is coming from a guy who's done his reading about this subject matter.