C4 or C4S
 

Looking at a couple similarly priced 996s to be considered for my first P-car. Do I go with the custom C4S or the stock C4? I know my thoughts, but am interested to hear the opinions here.

oh ... and cab vs coupe ... c4 cab vs c4s coupe ... this is planned to be a DD.

Next post may be "Looking for winter wheels" ...

IMHO, this is a no-brainer. You live in a cold climate area of the country; therefore, I'd recommend the C4S coupe. Cabriolets are seasonal unless you don't mind the hassle of installing the hard top (if there is one included) twice a year. The C4S is a wide body car compared to the base C4 and so you need to take that into account. I would imagine the maintenance to be a little more than the base C4. Both cars are M96 engined cars with the C4S being a little more HP, but still got to consider serious wear items like IMS bearing. Personally, the C4S with it's turbo body and rear center reflector is the most sexiest 996s out there. Cheers!

the c4 cab has a HT ... I like the c4s, but the c4 has better history ...

Well, that's information that I don't have access to. My opinion is based on the average C4 and C4S. A good PPI on both cars is the best form of insurance when buying these cars. Why not post images or links to these cars and we can offer more informed opinion?

I was holding out sharing what I found, research would find them both anyway ...

C4

C4S
- previous listing has more info here

Very different cars and both have appeal to me for different reasons.

Obviously, both cars are beautiful, but tastefully modified from the factory stock setup.
Here's my opinion:

Carrera C4:
Positives
1. The C4 past owner(s) have added the OEM GT3 front bumper, side skirts, and Carrera Rear Spoiler (That's probably more than $7-8K worth of stuff)
2. Overall, it seems the C4 was well maintained and taken care of.
3. Owner offers PPI documentation and it passed with flying colors
4. Appears to have a complete service history on the car.

Negatives:
1. GT3 front bumper was NOT paint matched perfectly.
2. Front Xenon headlight enclosures have some serious oxidation
3. Chip on the corner of the front fender (near the driver side headlight enclosure)
4. The GT3 bumper is missing the "eyeliner" bumper trim of both front lights. Unfortunately, you can see through the bumper. ugh.
5. The GT3 front bumper is heat flexing.
6. The GT3 front bumper is missing the lip spoiler
7. Wheels have some curb rash
8. minor driver side bolster wear on the seat
9. minor scratches and a paint chip on the console
10. LN bearing was installed in 2012, but we don't know how many miles.
11. Exhaust diffusers are drooping a bit, may need new motor mounts

Carrera 4S
positives:
1. Nice bumper and rear wing upgrade by Techart and Misha
2. 3.8L M97 motor upgrade
3. Paint match on bumper and rear wing look dead-on perfect
4. Lot of suspension upgrades
5. Forged wheels really make the package look awesome!
6. Fabspeed exhaust

Negatives:
1. Seller doesn't mention any service history documentation
2. No PPI
3. Does the seller have the original stock front C4S bumper and Turbo Twist wheels?
4. Higher miles, but no mention of miles on the M97 motor or reasoning behind engine swap.
5. Highly modified cars can become very problematic to service down the road.

Both cars seem to be priced within fair market value, but I'd lean towards the C4S, especially if the seller will come down on the price a little. Remember, it's not what you put in a car, but what you can get out of it. No matter what you do or put into these cars, they'll still be high mileage 996 cars.

thats a good price on the C4S, but has a lot of mods, and if I was buying it I would want a lot of details regarding the engine swap.

I've asked for records on the C4S, but the dealer doesn't have them. Tracked down the owner that modded it on this forum and they haven't been active since listing / selling the car 4 years ago. The C4S looks good, but that lack of info concerns me and the question about how much headache the unknown mods will drive in the future is a concern.

The C4 Cab ... lower miles and history make it more enticing. I've had several convertibles and the hardtop is the way I'd go for more usability.

I don't think either is a bad option for an entry level in P-car ownership. Just not quite ready to drop the $$ for the Turbo I've been coveting yet.

I paid only $17K for my '03 cabriolet with just 69K miles. I've seen many C4S in the last year go for low 20s with low miles. Patience is the trait of a good fisherman.

Find a regular C4S and stay away from custom jobs.

There are far more than these two cars in the USA to pick from.

I just picked up my first 996, a pristine 03 Guards Red C4S with 52k miles. LN IMS/Clutch/AOS/RMS all recently replaced by previous owner. Perhaps I paid a little bit of a premium even after talking the sale down $3.5k from his asking price, but I sleep well at night and the car drives and looks amazing. I actually prefer the way it drives over my 06' 997 C2S that I used to have. Its just a hair more exciting and raw which is what I prefer. The 997 was slightly more comfortable with regards to the road.

Check everywhere, including Car Guru's, Autotrader, Cars.com, and Ebay. Be patient and find the right one. Buy the owner, find one that has been serviced properly and well taken care of.

I will say during a recent two month search, all of the super nice lower mileage C4S were in the low to mid 30's, depending on services updates and mileage. Some were even higher. Car Gurus tracking average price for an '03 911 is up over $3k from this time 3 years ago. '04's are up $2k.

Good luck and keep us posted.

Still searching ...

Decision made ... Turbo :)