Hello there to all you Porsche enthusiast. My name is Danny and I'm interested in purchasing my 1st Porsche. I'm currently teetering on the 50/50 line. I have questions concerns about quality/reliability and prices for basic maintenance. I've found a BEAUTIFUL 02 911 (996) with 45,000 miles (private seller). I am a HUGE Porsche fan, but I've never owned one. I am 33 and I'm a Tech Support manager as well as a Road Comedian (When time permits). No wife or kids, so the time is now to get my Porsche on LOL!!! That being said, I'm a one car guy (I also have a motorcycle but I cant ride that everywhere). So if I purchase this, It will be my daily driver. I know basic maintenance will be more than my current car (Acura TL), but of course I don’t want to break the bank as I am not famous…….yet. So any suggestions on what to expect would be great. I really want this ride so I'm looking forward to you guys convincing me. I've read consumer reports etc to get a basis of what to expect, but I feel there's nothing like hearing from current owners. Oh yeah, I'm also 6'6, so I hope I can fit in a 996. I fit in a 997 pretty well (as a comedic friend of mine has one and I drive anytime he allows me to). Sorry if these questions seem stupid, but I am a Porsche virgin, so take it easy on me lol.

Thanks,

Danny

 

Hi Danny,

My 03 has been *very* reliable. While it's my 'for fun' car (not dd), I do drive it quite a bit during the summer months.

I take my car to a knowledgeable indie and his shop rates are not outrageous. Parts might be somewhat more expensive, but you get what you pay for. I'm 6'1" and I fit in my cab with no problems whatsoever (yes, top up too). My brother is 6'5" and he has a little trouble - but he's all torso, and I *think* there's more headroom in the coupe.

The only thing to keep in mind is that you *are* looking at an 11 year old car. I firmly believe that these cars are generally at least as reliable as other cars of their vintage - but obviously not as reliable as a brand new car.

Do your homework. Budget to get the IMS bearing retrofit done and get a PPI regardless of how the car looks. As a rule Porsche owners are fairly particular about how their cars look and this masks the age of the car.

 

Hello,
Well the most important thing is doing a PPI (pre purchase inspection) look for RMS, IMS, clutch gearing make sure she is running smooth and strong before you make a purchase. Next research the parts and labor if you can't do the work or have the time its going to cost you. For example I just had the front brakes done a few weeks ago total cost over $700. This includes new OEM rotors, brake pads, and sensors installed. I bought mine with 39,000 miles now she has 62,000 miles roughly she runs fierce, if you want to play you have to pay.

One more thing I am a little younger than you being not married is great but a 911 996 WILL PULL THE CHICKS If your not used to attention get ready. GL

 

I'm almost 6'7", 210 pounds, legs proportionate (not all legs) and fit ok in my cab. When pushing it, I do not have the seat all the way back or the steering wheels is too far for my taste. I'd be in trouble if I needed to wear a helmet with the OEM seats, but I do not track the car or I would get lower mounting brackets/aftermarket seats

 

Do you have financing in place or are you paying for the car out of pocket? Because if you are financing we might be able to beat your rate here at Maverick Financing. Thank you.

 

I have a 2002 C4S that has been my daily driver for years. I've got about 105,000 miles on it now. It has been one of the most reliable cars that I've ever owned. That being said, it can get expensive when they do break, even at an independent mechanic. This year, I've had to replace my water pump, as well as my radiator cooling fans. I think those repairs added up to about $2,200. I also had my strut mounts and bearings replaced, and that was about $2,000. 2011 has been my biggest maintenance year by far. Roughly 1/3 of my total maintenance costs have come this year. Repairs don't happen too often, but they can be big when they do. As long as you have some cash stashed aside for repairs, you'll be fine.

Over the nearly 10 year life of my 2002 C4S, I've spent $16,734.80 out of my pocket on maintenance. This is over 41 service appointments (for any reason at all). So, my average mileage between appointments is 2,540. My average cost per appointment is $408.17. I hope this helps.

 

My 2002 C4S has been one of the best cars I have ever owned. It is a weekend play car for me and now has 42K miles.

I bought it in 07 with 30K miles, but it had just had the major service done with new clutch, IMS, RMS, Brakes and rotors. It was like a new car.

Get the PPI and check the previous maint history to see what has been done.

Expect some routine things to need to be serviced.

Good luck and enjoy.

 

Welcome to the club Danny, its my first P-car aswell, 02 Targa Stick, so far 3 weeks, and cant get enough Bypass tips, K&N Kit.....Gotta love it!!!

 

deft get the K&N air intakes, if you get it, the $ Porsches I've owned have all been very very reliable, thats one of the main reason why I have not left the family, even though I have thought about it in the past, but when you get the best performance out your car, without worrying about it being in the shop all the time, it a plus plus. Porsche are so daily drivers, as well great performance vehicles. I swear by them...... glw everything and hope you cross over, like i did, and never looked back once...

 

Welcome to the 6 Danny. Mine is a 2002 C2 with the X51 engine. It's my "other" car so I don't drive her much. But everytime I do it's a blast. Have not seen the mechanic often except for routine maintenance (oil change, brake flush).

Oh, but those ignition and headlight switches are cheap crappy parts that might break on you.

 

I purchased my 02 a little over two years ago with 44k miles on it. It is my daily driver and I've put over 35k miles on it since I purchased it. So far I've replaced 3 camshaft actuators ($150 ea.), all 4 rotors and brake pads (normal maintenance), and both window regulators ($200 ea.). I've also had the electronics in the keys replaced and reprogrammed ($500) and gone through two sets of rear tires and one set of fronts (the fronts still have about half their tread.)

I think for a 9 year old car of any make that's pretty good. My best advice is to pick one with a complete service record so you can see what has been replaced and how well everything has held up. It will also give you an idea of what parts may be nearing the end of their service life.

If you do your own maintenance you will save a lot of money. Of course if you have only one car that may be difficult unless you rent a car or take off work if it breaks down. However, none of the repairs I've done were especially difficult and were all done over a weekend. The window regulators took about an hour each and the camshaft actuators a Saturday working by myself and doing it for the first time.

FWIW I think if you were to do a search on any make of car you would find similar issues and parts that fail as can be found with Porsche. It's a mechanical device just like every other car ever made and things will go wrong.

Good luck.