Sorry ahead of time for sophomoric question. If I found 2 seemingly perfect 997 c2s's and only real differences were ext color, navigation, and 10,000 dollars... what should I do? I plan to buy one tomorrow morning.

I'm very excited to get a 997S six speed. Here's specs:
2005 c2s
14k miles
navi, memory seats, sports chrono
ext leather
2007 c2s
14k miles
sport chrono
std leather

So, I love both colors. I like 05 already having pcm module. Of course, the 10k lower price is nice too. However, I'm thinking the 07 has many of the "bugs" worked out that were present on the 2005. '05 has full service history. 07 at non-porsche dealer but newer.

Any thoughts? ideas? suggestions?

 

That's a tough call. I think the full leather interior of ghe 05 feels much classier, and the "sport" in sport chrono can be added fairly easily. To the contrary you can never add full leather to the 07. Check build date and if the 05 is prone to ims failure, plan on the ims fix asap, especially in a garage queen. There goes a few grand of the 10g savings.

 

I would go 05, but make sure it is fully inspected (PPI) and you give thought to getting the IMS replaced. The early 05's had issues that have caused some engine failures. Pretty low probability of it happening, but......I too like full leather interiors and am a sucker for them. The price differential is nice as well, but as stated above, the IMS retrofit will take some of that away. However, while they are in the engine it could be time to do some nice upgrades with the rest of the savings and you could end up with one sweet ride.

Good luck with it.

 

I'd get the '07 simply because it is newer... but $10k is $10k, so that would be the biggest factor for me..

 

I had the IMS upgrade done and it cost less than $1200. So the OP will have more money for mods!

 

Get the '05. Give me the $10K and I'll pay for your engine when it blows up. any other owners want to do this . Vegas wasn't built on losers.

 

I would buy the 07, it is newer, and therefore will always be worth more. The 05 could be a M96 motor, which has more weak points the the M97, plus a car that hasn't been driven runs the risks of having more long term issues.

 

I am with NorthVan . Get the 2007 with a throughout PPI and get an aftermarket insurance. 2007 Models seem to have less IMS problems. Full history is great but does not tell you HOW the car was driven, is tells you something about the wear and tear. Both nice cars for sure.

 

Interesting question. I've wondered if an '05 with the upgraded IMS bearing is better than a later 997.1 where the IMS bearings can't be changed. Any thoughts?

My goal would be to beat them down $5,000 on the '07.

 

Put that 10k in your pocket. No brainer. Get an aftermarket warranty.

 

Thanks guys. Well actually all this good information brings up another question... What is a M96/m97 motor?

does that mean 996 or 997 engine? these are both 3.8L from 997's and the 05 was built in 2/2005

 

Generally speaking - yes. How long to plan on keeping the car? Some people drive the heck out of these cars and leave the deferred maintenance for the next owner. And some baby them, only to put many short trips to the grocery store on the engine - not good. Generally speaking, I'd take a higher mileage freeway driven car, than a low mileage commuter. 14K miles is not a lot of miles to even get the bugs worked out and there are a few - more so on the 05. That said, I bought one of the first production run 05s with the M96 engine. It has 56K miles now and it is running great. I purchased an 05 because to try out a water cooled. Almost two years later, I still don't know what version (911, 964, 993, 997.2) I want. Lately, I've been thinking about a 997.2 Turbo S. Good luck.

 

Go for the 2005. IMS failures occur all the time on Internet message boards, and almost never in real life (almost certainly in well under 1% of the susceptible models out there; just check any of the reliable unbiased publications if you need proof of the model's reliability). You can buy an extended warranty for a lot less than $10K that will cover IMS and a lot of issues that you might actually encounter.

I would avoid the IMS upgrade that a lot of people will push here. There's no real evidence that I've seen that it works better than the stock IMS bearing, and that money is much better put into an extended warranty, for the reasons above.

Seriously, the 2005 sounds like a much better optioned car and at a better price too. Assuming the Carfax/PPI doesn't reveal anything of note, it's the way to go. And then block all threads on these boards that mention IMS.

 

Not so. Each brand / car has some quirks and technical limitations. The RMS / IMS is the one for the 996 and 997 so you ought to know about it. It is not the bearing as that- that could be a replaceable / wearable item. It is the fact that it might ( and most likely will) affect your complete drive train and ending up costing you more than the total value of the car should it fail. So you need to know about at and protect your bank account. Hence the PPI and suggestions to get an aftermarket warranty / insurance. I just compare it with the requirement to pull the engine out of certain model Ferrari's to change the belts at a cost of $15K every 5 years. Or the F1 clutch / bell housing of the earlier Maserati's potentially every 5 k miles to the tune of 7-10K dollars. Also, looking at it as a long term keeper and counting on the fact that you might have to replace and engine and or the gearbox, I think it is now also worthwhile to consider in the purchase decision(s) that the 3.6 Liter car is a better purchase because there are many more potential " donor cars" available to get parts from, both sheet metal and drive train parts, even little things like the MOST radio cabling in the 2002 and later cars that is totally incompatible with anything earlier.
So buyer read up and ask questions.

 

My point was not that the consequences of an IMS failure are minor, but that the odds of it occuring are extremely low. By the same token, you could buy earthquake insurance for your house in Michigan, there's always a chance one could hit and it would be devastating if it did because the homes aren't as likely to be seismically sound, but your money is much better spent protecting against other, more likely forms of damage.