Hello everyone, I've always wanted a Porsche and I think I'm finally about to pull the trigger on one in the next few months. I'd really like to get the best value possible, I think the 2011 is great because I can get it for considerably cheaper than new that hopefully won't break the bank too bad. I don't want one too old cause I MUST have the integration with my iphone in the car. I'm so done with radio, I want to use my playlist on my phone. If you think I should look at a different year, let me know and why, 2012 is completely out of the question since that would move the price way beyond what I can afford.

I really want to get a 2011 C4S with PDK. I drive ~10-12k per year and this will be my daily driver, which I expect to love every mile of it

Anyone have any thoughts on the car? I've done some reading and it seems CPO is the best way to go. What should I expect to pay for one with 20-30k milage? Any thoughts on when the best time of the year would be to get one for the best price? What should I look for at the dealership? As in, what things should I verify have been done or that are common issues or gotchas with a CPO. Should I consider private party to save on taxes and such? Any tricks or advice you can give would be awesome.

Am I going to have any issues with this being a daily driver other than the 40k and 60k maintenance? On this forum I read that 40k maintenance is about 1300 and 60k maintenance is about 3-5k. If you have any insight on these that would be great.

Also what about insurance? Anyone know when insurance companies lower the rate on newer cars? As an example a 2012 or 2011 would increase my premium 336$ more than I pay now, but a 2010 would only increase it 258$. Just wondering at what point in 2013 does the 2011 get the price decrease?

You guys have a lot of great resources on this forum, after reading a bunch of posts on here it's obvious there are many people on here with extensive experience. Any advice you can provide to a 1st time buyer would be great! Any advice you can give me so I can avoid the "well I wish I would have done this a bit differently and save X dollars". I'm not a super rich guy, till now every car I've driven has been sub 25k except my G35. Just looking to get my dream car and not break the bank more than I have to

 

C4S is a Great Car, I would expect to pay around $80K for a 2011 with those miles and CPO, problem is not many 2011's have that many miles. I would open up to all the 997.2's, that would mean 2009-2011 in your case. What is your budget? We could answer your questions more accurately if we knew that. When I bought CPO was a must for me, I did not mean paying a premium for it. The search is the fun part, take your time if you can. I did not think prices were lower in the Winter, but some will tell you they are. I bought this past winter and the prices are no higher now than they were then, but those are just asking prices. Keep in mind a budget for tires, based on your mileage you will need rears every 12-18 months and fronts every 18-24 months, they are not cheap.

Good luck!!!! Keep us updated and use the search function on here and Rennlist, both offer a wealth of information.

 

I agree that any 997.2 will fit the bill here. My brother and I both bought '10's with less than 10K miles and they were both 4S's his a PDK and mine a 6 speed. Both were in the mid-70's.

 

80k is my spending cap, but cheaper is better as long as im not sacrificing a lot on the car. I guess if I included 2010 that would be good and I can save 5-10k? Any thoughts on daily driver for a c4s? Warranty for a 2011 I am looking at appears to be 2016 which seems good.

Also anyone in SoCal have suggestions on Porsche clubs ? I'm looking to take it to the track. If others here track their car are there any concerns on that? I know new brakes, tires and oil are normal for a day at the track. Anything with that in mind that I should take into account when looking to get the car?

Thanks for the replies, my search continues!

 

BTW, since you guys have both PDK and manual, any thoughts ? I've been leaning to PDK cause it shifts faster than manual, are there any advantages to manual?

 

A few points -

1) Typically the AWD 4S is ideal for regions with rain or snow and its not to say that it can't be driven anywhere I just see that you are in Orange County and the roads are so ideal there for the more agile C2S . If a widebody is the draw then a GTS is also a great choice .

2) Price -Depends on miles and year - Figure 75 -83K for a low mile car . I realize you asked about a higher mile 30K type of car but my feeling is that the price difference is only about 5 grand and the mileage does matter on these cars .

3) Insurance - Two many factors --Age. amount of coverage , driving history , etc A guy over 50 who has never been in an accident or citations can pay a fraction of what a 23 year old might pay and have quadruple the coverage .

4) Maintenance - Tires are the biggest expense . A flat for example might lead to replacing two tires . Oil changes and routine service isn't too bad . Rounding up and including tires I'd estimate 2K a year for tires and service with 10K miles or so.

5) PDK Vs Manual - I like both and have owned both . I do feel that the 991 PDK is so much improved over the 997 that i sold my PDK 997 the same day I test drove a 991. Also note that the 7 speed manual in a 991 is NOT as space gaped like the 997 .
IMO --Manual is the way to go with this car. It's the last 6 speed manual 911 too.

 

If you're gonna go w/o a CPO, I'd stick w/a stick. Out-of-warranty PDK repairs are gonna be pricey. Personally, if I were to get back into a 911, it'd be a GTS - more power, widebody, lighter up front and no wing. Only negative are the centerlocks. You can probably get a 2011 GTS w/less than 20K mi. for under $80K. Plus, I think they'll hold their value better in the long run.

 

This is all great information! I think I'll have to test drive a GTS then. Man... Now I'm really torn about manual or PDK, I thought the solution was simple since PDK gives you the best performance (due to faster shifting). I'd really like to hear other peoples opinions on 997 PDK vs manual.

Also good to know, another supporter for looking at the GTS. I don't plan to change out the rims, so I think centerlock won't be a problem for me?

Also, since I am possibly looking to expand beyond C4S, any thoughts on GT3? I really like the back end of the GT3.

If I don't go CPO, do I have any warranty at all? IE is the existing warranty transferable?

Thanks again!

 

When I bought my PDK car it was 2009 and PDK had just come out. One of the first things I loved the car's ability to rev match on downshifts . The fact that the car can not over rev adds an extremely important engine saver .

What i did not like is the jerkiness in sport mode shifting from 2nd to 1st .
I also detested the boring "normal" mode where the car was in 6th gear at 35 MPH or so .
So i drove the car in manual mode almost 90 percent of the time and accepted it and was still happy with the PDK positive features .

UNTIL I DROVE A 991 !!!

The 991 had none of these complaints and all of the good features . It was night and day compared to the 997 and in my opinion would deter me from a PDK 997 (unless it were a Turbo --only because PDK maintains boost on upshifts giving enormous efficiency) .

That's my opinion .

One more thing .. One of the complaints with the 991 is the 7 speed manual gearbox . This is a huge strength of the 997 which is 6 speed .

The decision would be easy for me .
991 in PDK !!
997 in manual !!

 

I bought the 6 speed because my wife likes to shift. It is her DD and she has a short commute - 8 miles one way. So a 6 speed was no issue. I like shifting too but would not commute in it as my commute is pretty hard with lots of bottle necks.

My brother wanted the PDK and I really like driving it when I get the chance. If I were to buy another one, like a 991 it will probably be a 991 4S PDK coupe in about 3 years.

 

Dude buy a 2009 PDK and save the rest of your $ on some needed mods like Exhaust, springs and new rims. I bought my 2009 for $58K at 38k miles and it was in perfect condition. Check out STA sales online they have some great stock 997.2's. good luck!

 

OK, So I did some reading up on 991 and 997 and now it all makes perfect sense. So I test drove a 2013 991 C4S with PDK and I agree, PDK on it was awesome! It shifted seamlessly and really made me fall in love with it. Now that I know a 991 started production in 2011, I think that decides it for me that I'll be going a 991 with PDK and not go older than 2011. It will cost me a little more, but I really like PDK and have wanted to have one for a long while now. I never drove a 997 PDK, but your explanation makes sense, if I decide to go 997 (only because of cost) then I'll probably look at a manual.

So now I am left with the question of... 991 what?

I like the C4S because of the all wheel drive and additional handling, also in the past (with far inferior cars) I've had bad experiences with RWD and the back end fish tailing.

What are some of the pro's/cons with going with other models other than C4S? Is your rear fish tailing not really an issue on a C2S? I don't know that I am going to have time to test drive every single model out there right now. I can do 80k for the car, so as long as I can get a 2011 for around 80k I think I am good. So any of the models that are 80k or lower would be eligible. What are the advantages of the GTS? I like the idea of a wider rear, seems good. Although I did some checking and GTS seems WAY rarer! I'll almost for sure take time to test drive this model prior to making a final decision. GT3 2011 I think is probably too expensive, any thoughts on other models?

Thanks for the response firstmovado! I'm not really into modifications on my car (at least right now). I really just want to have the car for a long time (at least till warranty is over) then I can make decisions on if I want to modify it. I've always been deterred from modding my car because I can't stand it when it doesn't run right or if something goes wrong or whatever. I'll definitely keep it in mind though.

 

The 991 did not arrive until midway through 2012 and was called "the new 911" (to make the disctinction between 2012 997 cars and the newer 991)

Also note that the 2012 cars had a brief cycle of only about 6 months and several recalls . The 2013 cars have the kinks ironed out .

Thus if a 991 PDK is the car .. we ought to be discussing 2013 cars .

The days of the fishtailing 911 are long gone . The cars have come a long way in weight distribution and handling . A C4S is a very nice car but ideally it is best suited for rain and snow . Look at any video of the Porsche Winter Driving program and every 911 used is AWD . Yet in terms of track and agility use Porsche selected a Gt2 and Gt3 (rear wheel) configuration.

A 991S has the the blend of agility used for track with some of the comfort amenties needed for street use . If you lived in Colorado where it snows or Seattle where it rains then the AWD 4S would be a must. You may be asking why does someone in a dry region buy an AWD 4S ? Some like the wide body and rear light styling . Some like the AWD for those rain days . There are even a few who feel it handles great but I am not in that viewpoint even though i have an AWD Turbo .

One of the cars you did not discuss is a Turbo . The Turbo lacks the seamless normally aspirated throttle precision but trades it off for sledgehammer HP . It truly is a monster !! 80K wil buy you a 07/08 Turbo (manual) . 100+K gets a PDK 997 Turbo which has the inferior (than 991) PDK but has unreal acceleration efficiency in its stock form .

Each model has its own character and each driver faces the sometimes tough decision of which he prefers the most for his needs . That's why some of us have ended up with two of them at the same time (which can be a bit impractical but yet very satisfying ).

Conclusion --In my opinion the car which offers the all around useability for the price is the 997 and 991 "S" . Its not as fast as a Turbo . Its not as precise as the Gt3 . But its fast enough and precise enough for the average guy who just wants a fun car with some user comfort to get from place to place daily with a smile on his face.

Good Luck.

 

OK, I understand now. So I am only looking at 997 then since I can't afford 2013

That means the oldest I would want to go is 2009 and I'd really rather have 2010 or 2011, mostly because I need the warranty to last as long as possible since I won't be selling the car for 8+ years.

Turbo I didn't mention because I know those are way expensive.

I think my options are C2S, GTS, possibly GT3 or C4S

Do you think GTS would be a better track car than a C2S? Does the GTS have all the phone integration and such? Any other issues other than the different rims?

Is GT3 out of price range?

 

A Turbo is cheaper to buy than a GTS because the car's first production was model year 2007 . It was refreshed in 2010 but many Turbo purists debate whether the Gt1 dry sump engine in the first gen (07-09) 997tt was the last of great engine platforms . The Gt1 engine has the potential to modify and if you look at some of these fastest cars on the forum they are in fact Gt1 engine cars . Porsche BTW did retain the Gt1 engine in the Gt2 RS as well as the 997 Gt3 and Gt3 RS .

70-80 K gets a low mile Turbo and it does not take to much more to modestly upgrade the peformance but even if left stock it is a sub 4 second 0-60 car and very comfortable and luxurious.

Back in 2007 I came across this youtube video .. the next thing I knew I had a black Turbo and still love the car !!!