Go for broke?

[skyhighsi]

First timer alert!!

Having convinced myself to finally treat myself to a version of my dream car I have decided that a 997 would be my best bet. It will be, pretty much, used daily, sometimes only local and sometimes a 50 mile round trip commute on country lanes, and not garaged. The small dog will be slung on the back seat a lot too []. I would plan on keeping it for a long time.

Having read and looked extensively at what I should get and what I can afford I seem to be getting close to a final decision.

What I need to decide is do I go for broke and beg and steal to get an early, possibly higher mileage, Gen 2 and stay open minded about Manual vs PDK or do I get a late and low mileage manual Gen 1 and have enough funds to, possibly, get a 1 or 2 year Porsche warranty?

Is my fear of a Gen 1 founded - as a first timer I want to play as safe as possible and dont want to end up with big bills and a false economy? Also, If Porsche need to do a 111 check to determine eligibility do they then need to make it eligible, if things need doing, in order to get the warranty (ie it could cost many 100's or more to even be able to spend the 2k on the warranty for 2 years)?

Many thanks and, please, nothing too technical []

 

[Dylan1]

Always best in my experience to go for best and latest you can afford
if I was you I’d get a gen 2 for peace of mind as it has the newer dfi engine and PDK I’ve found great
good luck and enjoy

 

[skyhighsi]

Thanks for telling me what I want to hear hahaha

 

[PAG ZERO1]

Agree with Dyllan, the DFI engine is the way to go with no worries about IMS + PDK is a great gearbox especially for short journeys around town. I use mine daily on very short journeys with some longer runs on the weekend when I have the time, and the car still puts a smile on my face every time I get in it.

regards

Pete

 

[skyhighsi]

Thanks Pete. My instinct has always been Gen 2 but didnt want to naively assume that a late Gen 1 was not an option given the circa £7k saving.

 

[DrSimon]

I'll back up what's been said on here already. I'd go for a gen II, if the money allows. That way you have no worries about the dreaded bore scoring. I'd also go for the PDK option. If it's going to be a daily then the PDK is easy when you want it to be and great fun when you open it up a bit - I'd recommend going for the paddle shifts, rather than the steering wheel buttons.

After those options you then have to decide on which model. I had a C4S and loved it but many 911 fans would argue that the 2-wheel drive version is the purer 911 tail-happy drive. To be honest, I bought the 4S for the wider rear end, rather than the extra traction.

Let us know how you get on.

Simon

 

[Rodney Naghar]

Thanks Pete. My instinct has always been Gen 2 but didnt want to naively assume that a late Gen 1 was not an option given the circa £7k saving.

+1. 100% go for the gen II.

 

[Peter_Bull]

Don't forget if you buy privately or from an independent car dealer you will have to own the car for 3 months before Porsche will let you purchase an Approved Warranty.

 

[jonathanw]

I have owned Gen 1 and 2 997s bought from new and without doubt the Gen 2 was a significant improvement on the 1. Would definitely recommend the PDK box which was only available on the 2.
Good luck and enjoy.

 

[jonathanw]

PS. See my post on the 991 forum regarding the Porsche warranty and how I was treated by the OPC who I had been a customer of for many, many years.

 

[skyhighsi]

Thanks all. A resounding Gen 2 then. After considering what I have read I am aiming for the base Carrera 3.6. I am keen to keep the body narrow (re C4S comment) to minimise chances of scraping in case I do get round to clearing my garage out and the extra power is of little interest - I am sure the 3.6 will be plenty for this rookie. The higher spec on the S is tempting and I wont rule it out if my options on the 3.6 become too limited.

I will check out your post Jonathan and thanks for the heads up on the OPC warranty status Peter.

After I have paid the tax man in Jan I am looking at scraping £33k together and have found only 3, 3.6's currently for sale. Unfortunately I dont think the shape works in Black (not trying to start a fight) and Silver is my preferred colour but its 7k miles higher than the Black which is at 70k miles AND has PDK and sports chrono (has anyone dealt with Dove, Spencer James or Ashgood? (whole new topic I know!!) as I am considering an independent inspection for extra piece of mind as beyond kicking the tyres I know nothing

 

[DrSimon]

A base C2 is a good choice. I strongly advise going for the sports chrono package, if possible. It sharpens up throttle response when you want to have a bit more fun.

And an inspection is a very wise idea. I've used Porsche Inspections several times and their reports are incredibly thorough. The link is below:

http://www.porscheinspections.com/

Simon

 

[skyhighsi]

Thanks, that is exactly who I have been in touch with. Glad Im doing something right.[8|]

 

[DrSimon]

I don't know the dealer you mentioned but walk away if they refuse an inspection. Porsche Inspections have a good relationship with all the good dealers out there and vice versa.

Best of luck with the purchase. I only bought my first Porsche in June 2016 and I'd say research and a good inspection is the key to a happy ending.

A couple of pointers also worth noting: firstly, don't be put off by the number of owners a car's had. My first car (a Boxster S) had had 10 owners since 2006. At first I was shocked but then found out the average length of ownership for cars such as this is approximately 18 months. Indeed, I sold my one after only six months, having decided to upgrade to a 911. This I only had for 8 weeks before upgrading once again!

Secondly, a good service record is vital. A thorough inspection should be able to highlight any discrepancies or gaps. If there are gaps then it's probably worth walking away. This is important if your car is higher than average miles. With the gen II there are few related issues when compared to the gen I. A 70k mile car with a perfect service record should be fine, especially if you buy from a reputable dealer offering a warranty (I've bought two cars now from RSJ in Slough and found them to be excellent).

I'm sure some of the other members could offer some other useful tips but the forum will have lots of advice about buying so it's worth having a good look on this site.

Once again, best of luck and keep us informed of the outcome.

Simon

 

[flat6]

...have enough funds to, possibly, get a 1 or 2 year Porsche warranty?

Is my fear of a Gen 1 founded - as a first timer I want to play as safe as possible and dont want to end up with big bills and a false economy? Also, If Porsche need to do a 111 check to determine eligibility do they then need to make it eligible, if things need doing, in order to get the warranty (ie it could cost many 100's or more to even be able to spend the 2k on the warranty for 2 years)?

Yes that is correct. You do then need to have all defects rectified before they can apply the warranty. I guess that is logical as they can't start writing bespoke exclusions into each individual policy (or I guess they could write a clause saying 'excludes any defects found in the 111 point check report', but then some defects could cause further associated defects if left unaddressed, so I guess it would get complicated). But yes the rectification required covers everything. In the past I have had to rectify the horn because it had become single tone instead of 2 tone, before the warranty could be applied. The labour involved in accessing the horn is not insignificant.


So I just wanted to say be cautious of the 'going for broke' approach as any car needs some TLC over the years of ownership & you need to be able to adapt your budget for what you cannot forsee, such as a failure in the future that is not covered by the warranty.

 

[skyhighsi]

Thank you for the tips Simon - well worth knowing as instinct would see high volume of owners as a negative.

Still looking for the right car....

 

[skyhighsi]

ah, Flat6. The voice of reason. I know, of course, that you are right but if I was being sensible I would not do it at all.

Whilst this is going to be a purchase of the heart I know the head needs to have some say.

 

[guitarplayer63]

Hi,
I'm thinking of selling my 997.2 - get in touch if you're interested.
Jo

 

[skyhighsi]

A quick update.
I read (a lot) and, hopefully, learned a little along my journey and yesterday, we took delivery of a Silver 997.2 Carrera manual from Dovehouse. We are thrilled with it and its everything we had hoped for so thanks to all who made comments and helped steer me to where we arrived.
Manual Carrera's were a bit thin on the ground so choice was not huge but luckily Dovehouse had a couple and the one went for was in budget and the colour we coveted. It lacks a few bells and whistles that I read so much about (no Sports chrono, PASM or PSE) but to be honest I love the simplicity. Its pure. Mileage a little higher than I had hoped for at 77k but it has been very well cared for so not concerned.
The whole experience at Dovehouse was excellent and I could not recommend them highly enough. As a nervous first time buyer I was probably a bit of a pain but Harvey was patient and I feel reassured that what I have is a great car (managed to get 6 months warranty included for piece of mind). When we turned up to pick it up yesterday the previous owner happened to be there with his new Boxster so we had a chat and I felt even happier that the car was a good purchase (the sceptic says he was a plant but I need to relax a bit haha).
Many thanks to Guitarplayer63 for allowing us to test his car - that was a thrill and good luck with your sale.

I am now in the market for the collapsible spare wheel with relevant tools and roof bars if anyone has these to sell?

Simon

 

[JMR]

Nice to hear you got what you wanted skyhighsi []