As much as I'm enjoying my 997, as I've learned more about the brand I find myself wanting a 993 coupe. I'm interested in anyone's eperiences with these. Specifically, If I want to get back into the occasional DE weekend is the 993 a reliable specimen generally? Thoughts regarding Turbo vs base or S are welcome too.

 

The 993 is a classic, the last of the air cooled 911's.

I have heard that they are more expensive then a 997 to maintain.

I would suggest that you put a post in the 993 section as they will be more up to speed then most of the 997 people.

 

Yes, the 993 is a very emotional car. I am also in love with the 993's. And yes, the maintenance is significantly higher than the 996 or 997, but the question is if the actual "cost" of a 993 is not even lower than nowadays models, because doesn't fall in value that fast as the 997. I am convinced that a 993 4s in good condition would be a good investment for my retirement .... which is still 30 years away.

 

[quote=mseligson;2804883]As much as I'm enjoying my 997, as I've learned more about the brand I find myself wanting a 993 coupe. ..........quote]

I'm with you! I almost bought one last Summer (even though it was a damn cab ) but dicked around too long and it was gone. They are readily available, of course with the caveat emptor proviso, and I'm going to start looking again next month. Depending on year and model $25,000 will buy a pretty decent one.

One thing I found was that after starting a thread on the 993 forum I got a # of nice, well informed tips and pm's from the members there. fwiw it appared that those who responded were much more mechanically competent and hands on than the majority of the members on this forum, and none complained about maintenace costs.

 

I had a 1995 993 and then a 1996 993 Turbo. They are amazing cars and in many ways the best traditional Porsche I ever had . From the quirky offset pedals, to the simplistic 5 dials , and 1960's style interior it has this basic interior but the quality is so visible. Close the door and it sounds like a vault, and the leather in the seats is top quality. The 993 Turbo was eons ahead of almost anything of that time .

The problem is that the car is dated. It's Hp can not compete with modern Porsches and it will need repairs. I had to replace the wiring harness in my NA car. The Turbo was very trouble free and to this day i still miss that car. In fact the Turbo woild be my pick of the two. It can be modded and has so much character.

 

had a 993 tt and a NA cab. The tt is a torque monster, and I wish I never sold it

 

If you get a chance to get a decent one with good service history, don't wait. There is a market for them.

Mine has been generally bulletproof with exception of 2 recalls (wiring harness, premature valve guide wear). Part for part, I would say it is probably a tad more expensive to maintain than a 997, but you get a connection with the road that is absent with a stock 997/S.

There are many who track the 993 successfully, though most seem to prefer the lightest weight 2WD NB variant. The turbo is generally more expensive to maintain especially if they haven't been rebuilt. For the weekend warrior, I would go with a 2S or 4S as they are unique enough (froggish) to turn heads. No question that the turbo is the mightiest power pusher of the bunch, and mods on the NA models are quite limited.

The hunt is always the fun part.

 

I had a similar lust recently but set the wayback machine even further (I'm in my 50's so it probably makes sense) and bought a 930. However while doing the search, I did find out a few things.
In general, the older cars are incredibly well built. As note, the doors close like they are from a vault, the constuction techniques are much more traditional and the cars are well assembled. If you like to do maintenance on the car, you'll really enjoy it. It's little wonder that they were going out of business. It seems incredibly expensive to build.
But on the maintenance front I've been told that they are very solid cars with few problems. Parts and experts who know how to work on them are getting more scarce, and thus more expensive but they are dependable cars.
At this point, if I were buying a 993, I'd go for a 2S or a turbo and leave it bone stock. It's a collectable to be, and a fun weekend driver.
If you can spare the change, I'd go for a lightly used one and save yourself a bunch of grief. My 930 had 9K miles on it, it's like a new car, and that's something I could never 'put back' in to it.
So go for it and enjoy the search. Keep us all posted too.

 

Had a 1997 C4S. LOVED it!

 

Thanks for the great advice. You all probably just cost my wife about 50 thousand bucks!

 

the 993's are my favorite porsches of all time, especially the turbo....... in another year or so i may entertainer one, i know they run in the upper 60 -70's.....alot of money for a used , but classic car though...

 

you'd have a hard time finding anything but strong endorsements for a 993. go for it and don't think twice.

 

Seems to me though the value is with the NA models. The prices on the turbos are hard to justify when you can get into a new 385 hp S coupe for not much more.

 

They're pretty different animals in terms of feel, build, and power delivery. This is one of those cases where numbers don't really tell the full story. I would encourage the original poster to drive a few variants and draw conclusions.

 

there's a guy over at rennlist selling his track/street 993 narrow body. he's asking 35K. can't link to the thread for some reason. it's in the 993 forum as well as for sale forum.

I think i'd give a kidney for this RUF conversion though: