Hi there, one of my first posts, i've been watching for a couple of days. So all of a sudden i have this crazy desire *obsession* that wont go away-i want a porsche..the main issue is in reality i can't afford the Porsche which i want ( i like new-clean-slightley modded cars) ....So i found a 1999 (with the ugly yellow amber on lights) with 105k very clean-just had the big dealer service done- i think i can get it for $15,500-

its Basalt Black / black clean interior with white guages It has the GT Aero kit (which i dont really like, looks too "Goddy" & outdated imo-and i sure dont like that huge spoiler-looks too macgyver 80's) also has the new 997 wheels & tires + very clean interior- I drove it, it drives great...(i'm gonna do a full ppi inspection ofcourse)

My hold back is that the car looks a bit outdated - i hate the amber lights so much- i will have to pay all Cash for the car since an older car like that can't really be financed- so i'm thinking maybe i can get a 2002 MK2 for around $24,000 and get it financed-

What i really would want is a 2002-2003 C4s 6 speed *cuz it has the wider body and more HP- but now were talkign around $30,000- oh and i'm also super picky about the color must be Black + Natural Leather*dark brown* or Black Interior* 6 speed ofcourse no way an auto!

for the past week this is driving me crazy any advice! i dont know if i should buy this one since its a good deal or if i should wait and get what i actually want- i already have a BMW E60 which i've done some mods to (pic is my avatar)

Here are some photos of the one i'm looking at now

 

A few things to consider:
- Apart from the headlamps all 996's have the same basic shape regardless of year
- Even the 997 shape isn't *too* far removed from the 996
- Widebody is a personal preference, and you're right, it'll run about 30K

The long and the short, this isn't a bad looking car (the amber lights can be dealt with very cheaply - there was a diy post on it a few months back) and if you don't like the whale tail, you can get rid of it.

The bigger issue to me is that this doesn't seem to be the car you want. I personally would be tempted to hold out for the right car - especially as this seems to be a bit of an opportunistic impulse buy....?

Btw no worries, lots of black on blacks (very popular colour combo).

 

Yup, impulse that i can't get rid of..lol- literally can't stop looking at deals for porsches! i think what got me was teh drive when i test drove this one, just an amazing drivers car!

But true this isn't exactly what i want but then its the closest i can afford to reality of owning a porsche at this time in my life- hmmmmm....what to do - what to do...

ps: the DIY is for ones that you can remove the amber from, this one you can't, believe me i've scoured the net-lol- The only solution is new mk2 or above lights!

as for that ugly whale tail mcgyver spoiler i think if i remove it i wont have a spoiler at all- i think this spoiler replaced the one that comes out of the car!

 

The other way to look at it is that those options are actually quite desirable (by others at any rate). They may grow on you ;-)

 

I believe you have answered your own question.

 

Patience. Fall->winter is a great time to get a deal on a 996. Just when you think you'll have to settle on 100,000 miles, one will come along with 50,000 and you'll be glad you held out.

 

don't buy it out of impulse...u may end up regretting later....there's a lot out there w/low prices...just have patient & u'll find the 1 u really want.

 

Thanks for the input guys! i test drove an 03" today with 40k at the dealer, loved it, when we arrived back to the dealership the coolant was spewing out! lol...i dont think i can afford an 03- i believe i will have to just pay cash, need to wait and find one i want for close to $15,000 --- or maybe i just need to face it that right now i can't afford to pay cash for the type of porsche i want!

 

The '03 with approx 40k miles on it wasn't a silver targa, was it??? I've talked via email with a dealer near Scottsdale (where I see is one of the areas you're from) on a similar sounding car...they were asking just under $31k for it...

 

Yup that was it, cars engine is PERFECT, and overall a great car, now since your a fellow forum member let me tell you the things WRONG with the car.

1-Front bumper repainted + when you feel the hoods edges it also leads you to think it may have been repainted as the edges are rough!

2-Very nice interior with silver parts, and has a beautiful silver + leather steering wheel however the little button on the hand brake that you push in- shoots out and fell off- Radio isn't working- couple of scratches on the silver center counsole ( its that silver thick plastic counsole-very nice also)

3- both the salesman and myself drove the car hard, corners great, pulls great, little vibration around 65mph *he said probably the tires or from sitting*

4-Something definitley wrong with the coolant / Radiator either something very simple like a leaky hose or a cracked bottle or something serious (it was leaking like a SIP, literally the lot boy parked it over the drain after we arrived from the hard drive)

5- Targa top works great and retracts perfect, however when we arrived he had to push the plastic piece back in and it popped right back in (the plastic railing thing outside on the roof of the car-its nothing i think- just popped out and he popped back in)

*****SO THERE YOU, YOUR OWN PERSONAL PPI from me..hehe...i couldn't get the car as the year is too old for my credit union to finance so now i'm back looking at that 99" with GT Aero kit which i can just afford cash.

They are a good dealer though, and the salesmans name was Dave & he said they would fix all thats wrong with the car, remember this car is priced very well, if i coulda bought it i would have 100%

if you need anymore info or help i live right behind the porsche dealer, 3 minute walk- 10 second drive!

 

Thanks for the info!! The more I come across this type of situation, the LESS I trust dealers (not that I did before...) Almost want to eliminate dealers from the search entirely and focus on private sellers... They just cross their fingers that we're dumb enough to take the bait and buy a smashed and fixed pile of $#!+ excuse for a Porsche.

Looks like I'll continue the search for a nice (un-violated) 2002-3 Carrera...

Thanks again and good luck with your search as well!!!

 

Well i wouldn't say this car is violated, at all! may have a few hiccups but for the price an 03" with 40k i think its great, and you could probably get another $1500, $2000 offi think, and if they fix the stuff i told you about then its really an amazing deal, i have been looking EVERY DAY ALL DAY ONLINE AND ALL OVER FOR THE PAST WEEK - THE SEARCH IS CONSUMING ME lol...and this is one of the best deals on an 03" plus this is a reputable dealer that will at least haev some kind of accountability! the cars engine was AMAZING- GREAT INTERIOR * even though i've eliminated that light grey color from my search, this one looks GREAT cuz of all the SILVER ACCENTS specially that amazing steering wheel which i haven't seen on another porsche yet

 

I'm not necessarily passing total judgement, I'm just saying that I would have thought that somewhere in my countless emails with the dealer, they would have possibly mentioned that the Targa top has an issue, that there may be more paint work done than previously thought, it spews coolant to the point where it needs to be parked over a drain and the radio doesn't work... I told them I'd have a thorough PPI done because I'd be coming from Kentucky and they just said, "Sure, we welcome a PPI." Do I have the technical know-how of some of the PCA tech people? No. Do I have a pulse? Yes. I mean, come on...

 

I've talked to 2 '03 Targa owners, and neither one ever opens the Targa due to buffeting of wind, so it might not matter if it has a problem.

The orange color on the lights can only be eliminated by replacement of the whole lights, which runs about $1000. Seems to me it would be possible to slice the orange part out very carefully, file the edges, then replace with clear material (in the way replacement plastic lenses are sold for 60s/70s 911s; then you must mold it into the housing), but I've never seen it done.

 

Tarek...
1st rule: buy with your head
2nd rule: drive with your heart
3rd rule: see 1st rule

Be patient, the car you want is out there.
I started looking on and off for such a long time.
Believe it or not, I found exactly what I wanted on ebay and it turns out the seller lived only 5 miles away from me.

DESTINY!!!!

hang tough and look for YOUR CAR!