Ive been searching for a 987 given my budget of roughly $40k, but was wondering if anyone has seen nice 997's (base or cab) in that same price range? Ive done a little searching and it seems Id have to pony up at least $50-60k but not sure if Im not looking hard enough?

 

Depends what you mean by "nice". You can get a lightly optioned 2005 997 for 35K, I'm sure. But max'ing out your budget on a 997 isn't the best move in my opinion, because these cars are mucho dinero to fix. Given your budget, you'll end up with a higher mileage/older car, on which something will snap sooner or later. Simple things like a new starter harness will cost you up to a grand to fix. Or a leaking coolant reservoir which is common on older 997's, will cost you close to $700. Just to name a few things.

 

Was thinking the same thing a few days ago. I've been searching for a clean 2001 turbo for months. I've been searching USA wide as I live in Hawaii, and have very limited options here. I then started to look at 997 base as well just to see what I could get, as all the 996 in my price range ($45k) were 80K miles or more.

I looked at some pretty beat down cars in that price range, then realized I'd have to up my budget. I ended up having to go to $50K to get a quality used 997. I would have gotten a carrera, but it would have needed to have all the options, as that is what really makes driving a Porsche worthwhile.

I ended up with a 2006 997 4s CPO fully optioned out with everything except exhaust and full leather. (Full leather was what I wanted but in the end, I was happy with what I got) I searched for 6 months and bought my car 2 days ago. could not be happier that I waited and paid what I should have. Be patient.

 

Just like the above poster, I've been looking around for awhile now with a budget of roughly $45K. My target is more in the Fall 2013 range to make a purchase though, because I'd prefer to pay for a majority of the car in cash, so I'm going to have to sell a couple of toys first (starting with my modded S2000) and put a little money away.

I haven't seen much of anything work looking at under $40K, but for ~$45K I've seen more than a couple 997 C2s nationwide that would fit the bill. I'm talking well-maintained, well-optioned, reasonably low mileage cars. Obviously you have to be willing to be patient and to travel, and you have to also recognize that once you buy the car you'll have to fuel it and maintain it (so don't go spending every dollar you have).

 

I've got my 2005C2 with 22k last August for 37k. It has navigation, Bose, sports seats, bixenons and another few extras. Clean DME scan. It was a private party buy from Autotrader. So far I've put 9k on it with just oil change. So I guess you just have to look for it. Good luck!

 

you can find a nice 2005-2008 c2 between 40-45g's. i did. i also had to put about 6g's into it for new tires/brakes/clutch within the first year. it runs awesome now but i'm starting to think the alternator cable needs to be replaced.

TL;DR- yes but things add up quick.

 

no :-)

 

Guess I have my answer. Sounds like with the exception of the odd deal that Id have to go $45-50k to find a nice car (good miles, mint body/paintwork/leather, no mechanical issues and moderate options). I could go $50k just not sure I want to, but I plan to put about 50% cash down on whatever I buy. I'm by no means rich, but have enough income to properly / repair a car like this. I guess Ill do some shopping and see what pops up.

 

50K should get you something pretty cool! Looking forward to what you might end up with

Have fun with the hunt!

 

I just picked up a 997 S for under $40k. It had higher miles (59k) and is a lower option car. With higher miles expect to shell out some $$$ for maintenance. I've upgraded the IMS, put in a new clutch, and replaced the RMS for piece of mind.

If you plan on only driving the car on the weekend I'd pay extra to pick up a clean example. If you're going to drive it daily I'd find a higher mileage car that has been well maintained and throw the money saved into routine maintenance.

In my case I wanted a daily driver, so imperfections wasn't a deal breaker.

 

Im not looking for a true DD, but something that could be a 50% DD so I'd want a pretty mint car. Just cant quite wrap my brain around $50k, I may be better off with a 987 and work my way up from there. I did find an 07 997 at a Carmax for $43k. We dont have Carmax in MI so I dont know much about them.

So the 997's have the same RMS / IMS issues as the 986/987 up to 09? I thought it was only on the little 2.7's. Ive seen people talk about replacing 986 engines for anywhere between $7k - $15k, would it be the same cost, or more, in a 997?

 

You really seem to be in the same or similar boat that I'm in. I want to put down at least 50% (preferably more) in cash, am looking to spend in that $45K range, and want something that I'd drive maybe half the time... not a weekend warrior, but not quite a daily driver either.

My solution is to wait about a year. This will give me the time to shop around a bit more, put closer to 2/3rds down, and decide between a relatively low mileage 6 year old C2, or a higher mileage 7 year old C2S. If I kick it up $5K more, that'll get me a year newer on each. Yeah, $45K on a 6 year car seems kind of insane, but it's a 911... I've had newer "lesser" cars, but I know what I want, and I'm sure you do too. Be patient and you'll find your car!

 

I just recently purchased a high mileage 06' 997S CAB (91K) fully optioned - full leather, Adaptive sport seats, Self-Dimming Mirrors, Heated Front Seats, Sport Chrono, NAV, Bose High End Sound, Remote CD changer 6 Disc, Sport Shifter, Sport Exhaust System - interior and exterior mint. 1 owner car fully serviced at P dealer. newer tires and brakes, new clutch at 54K. most all routine maintenance wear items taken care of. Car was DD and that is what I wanted. Paid $39,995. Clean PPI with good DME report.

So, it really depends what you are looking for. If the car has been well maintained, the high mileage isn't a big deal especially if you intend to drive the car on a frequent basis. I think if you are looking to drive the car more then 50% of the time, you would be better off with a higher mileage car that has been well maintained then a garage queen that hasn't been driven much at all. Reason being is that you will end up paying for much of the routine maintenance that hasn't been done yet on a very low mileage car.

Just my opinion.

 

35k? I don't think so.

But it also depends on where you live. Toll and I live in CA, which has a surplus of 911s.

Maybe you could get the 991S that Lindsay Lohan crashed for 35k. I kid of course.

 

For a C2 I think that $40K is absolutely in the ball park. You'll need at least $45K for a good C2S unless you just find a amazing deal somewhere.


There was a low option 05 C2 for sale locally with around 55K miles that was in pretty decent shape for $39K. It needed a little reconditioning but nothing too bad. I bet $35-36K would have bought it.