Agreed, but should I take it without CPO or any warranty over the 08?

 

It would be a risk, but not a huge one.

 

Please elaborate on how much of a risk...again, anyone here is more of an expert than I am, I'm just joining the Porsche family.

Thank you.

 

I wouldn't think anything major would happen, but any failure is costly out of warranty. My '09 has only had two failures, a control unit for the luggage compartment light and whatever was replaced so my side window would lower and raise as you open and close the door. Both covered under warranty.

 

Got it, thank you...at least it's not a $20k engine...hmmm...I have some thinking to do...I'm going to sleep on it and most likely make a decision tomorrow.

Thanks again!

 

Question guys:

I found an 09 that I'm about to pull the trigger on...it's got 36k miles...is this considered too high of a mileage? I know many Porsche's can be found in the 20k-30k mile range, but I really like this car.

 

What is "too high" to you? Hopefully the price has been discounted to reflect higher mileage than comparable cars. If not, use the mileage to negotiate it down. Does it have CPO or extended warranty? If not, you might want to negotiate for it. But if you like the car, I wouldn't let the mileage be a big factor. Consider it nicely broken in. Good luck.

 

Typically for me too high would be anything higher than 12k per year, which this car certainly doesn't have, so I'm ok with the mileage...I just wanted to know the community's perspective in terms of value. Yes the car has been priced appropriately for not being CPOed and having slightly higher miles than comparable cars.

I'm torn between this car and an 08 which has other options such as full and supple leather, red stitching and seatbelts, a thicker steering, and sport ebrake/shifter. I like both cars equally, but in terms of value, will the 09 retain it's value better even though it doesn't have full leather, supple, thicker steering wheel etc?

 

I would expect the 09 (997.2) to hold value better than 08, although of course the 08 should already have experienced more depreciation than the 09, so has less far to fall. But I would value the added power and better PCM in the 09 over the 08. Full leather is a big deal to me, but not to everyone. But if you want it, you need to find a car with it. Other things like steering wheels, sport shifter etc. can always be swapped out later, so I wouldn't worry about things like that. I've swapped steering wheels, shifters, wheels, sport exhausts, cats, struts etc over the years, but things like leather can't be changed practically.

 

Thanks!! Makes sense...full leather adds a touch of class and elegance to the cabin that is always welcome. To me, however, is not a make it or break it factor...but I did get to appreciate while test driving some cars. The only other factor is that the 08 has one more year of a CPO, and the 09 has factory warranty until July. Could I add CPO warranty when July comes around to the 09?

And agreed, I'm leaning towards the 09, because like the leather option, if I get the 997.1 then the power will always be what it comes with since I don't plan on tinkering with the engine. A sport exhaust is definitely in the horizon!

 

CPO can only be applied by a dealer on a car being sold by the dealer. Another alternative is to purchase a 3rd party warranty. Just before my CPO expired a year ago, I purchased a Fidelity Platinum warranty. You can choose between numerous options for length of coverage etc. Also, they can be purchased anywhere, not just through Fidelity or a Porsche dealer. Some folks have found the best pricing through a Honda dealer, but you need to call around for the best price. Do a search on forum for more info. The newer the car, the cheaper the price, although I believe mileage factors in as well. You could try to negotiate having the seller obtain the warranty, or discount the price by the cost of it if you think it is negotiable.

 

Cool, thanks for the info! At this point I've negotiated to the point that I think if I ask them for anything else they may refuse to sell me the car haha

I'll look into 3rd party warranties once July approaches.

 

A few other questions:

1) The 09 car is a 1-owner car that was purchased as a lease. Then the dealer I'm purchasing from acquired it from an auction; should this be a reason for concern? It appears to be in phenomenal shape and I will be checking it out this weekend.

2) Upon reviewing the carfax report, it all looks great with the exception of a replaced clutch assembly right before being listed for sale by the dealer. Again, reason for concern? How common is it for a 36k-mile 997.2 to have the clutch replaced at this mileage? I know the clutch is a wear item and there is not concrete answer since it depends on how it was driven.

 

If you buy, please consider joining PCA, as it will add a lot to your enjoying your car.

 

1) lease return - The leasing company took it to auction when they took it back. No problem here. Leases are the best thing in the world for those of us that buy used, as they allow those who buy new to easily move out of their cars at he end of the lease term and into another new car without the hassle of selling or worrying what they will get. Without leasing, the original buyers might hold longer because they don't want the depreciation hit. Going into the lease, they know the deal and the decision at he end of the lease becomes do they want to buy an older car at that point that they have been driving for the past three years or go lease something new. Car is turned back, the leasing company (a leasing arm of PNA) auctions it, Dealer buys it at auction and one of us guys get the benefit of increased inventory available at 36 months. Look at he 991 forum, there is lots of talk about the lease deals out there.

2) 36,000 on the three year lease with a clutch replacement. The lease probably allowed for 36,000 miles and the guy got his miles out of it and returned it when he hit the mileage limit. The clutch going out might indicate that he drove it hard, but you are getting a CPO. Is that as good as a warranty? Maybe call Costco's auto warranty get a quote and check with the dealer on a warranty ready to see if they will match Costco. In all likelihood the previous owner just puts a lot of mileage on it. Have you looked at the car's DME for over revs? That may give you comfort in knowing how the car was driven before buying. The dealer should hand you that free of charge when you ask. Also look closely and ask if they can have their chip guy take care of an rock chips for you.

I hope it works out for you! For the money, less miles are always better, because the car that you buy with less miles will always have that many less miles when you sell. For dependability, the miles are not as important. Check out the thread on high mileage 997s here and on the other board. If you maintain it properly and drive it you should be ok.