Is it possible to buy a descent 996 for £12,000i just

Is it possible to buy a descent 996 for £12,000i just

Author
Discussion

bababoom

Original Poster:

351 posts

117 months

Wednesday 17th September 2014
quotequote all
Or would just be buying a money pit.
Ideally would like a black car with under 100k.
Anyone know for any?

mollytherocker

14,365 posts

208 months

Wednesday 17th September 2014
quotequote all
bababoom said:
Or would just be buying a money pit.
Ideally would like a black car with under 100k.
Anyone know for any?
Decent? Yes, probably. Money pit? Depends on how carefully you inspect it and a little bit of luck.

Richair

1,021 posts

196 months

Wednesday 17th September 2014
quotequote all
Most definitely. A good friend has just bought a nice 3.4 that has been very well maintained for £10k, it's a lovely example and I'm picky. A private sale though which seems to make a difference.

Arguably they're all money pits!! Any porsche driven properly attracts porsche sized bills. The elephant in the room will always be the possibility of engine issues, but I've noticed the internet seems to have gone quiet on this so I do wonder a) actually what the real percentage of cars suffering major issues actual is and b) whether the issues affected a number of cars that had their card marked from day one and suffered the issues early in their life, I.E. fewer higher mileage cars will present major issues moving forwards. But I could be wrong and companies like Hartech et.al. may well be churning out 996 engine rebuilds at a rate of knots...

Sorry to bring up the old 996 engine cliche! They're still very good value for 911's even if you are hit with a big bill, just make sure you can afford one before running the risk. Unfortunately this is the reason why I've not been able to buy one to date...


stuckmojo

2,954 posts

187 months

Thursday 18th September 2014
quotequote all
Yes, you can get a good 996 for less than 12k.

I'm waiting for the scaremongering posts about chocolate engines.

My advice: buy an early 3.4, Carrera 2, manual, if you can find it. There aren't so many around, and they are wonderful to drive.

billy964

301 posts

174 months

Thursday 18th September 2014
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not 12k but 16k.. but i bought it and love it!!


thegoose

8,075 posts

209 months

Thursday 18th September 2014
quotequote all
You can definitely buy a good 996 for £12k, or even under £10k.

Hiwever, it's much easier to buy a bad one, even at £15k, so do your research and choose carefully (and accept the risks or do something to cover them).

stuckmojo

2,954 posts

187 months

Thursday 18th September 2014
quotequote all
thegoose said:
You can definitely buy a good 996 for £12k, or even under £10k.

Hiwever, it's much easier to buy a bad one, even at £15k, so do your research and choose carefully (and accept the risks or do something to cover them).
Good comment.

My personal experience. I bought mine 2 years ago for less than 9k and spent less than a couple of grand on it so now I know it's in good nick:

- updated IMS
- thermostat
- suspension bits refresh


bababoom

Original Poster:

351 posts

117 months

Thursday 18th September 2014
quotequote all
Ive been reading up about the IMS bearing and it does put you off a bit as basically its going to right a 12k off.
Whats the cost in fitting the uprated bearing?
I would have thought any car having a new clutch fitted would have made sense to do the bearing at the same time?

thegoose

8,075 posts

209 months

Thursday 18th September 2014
quotequote all
Prices for everything on www.sportsandclassic.com but it may depend whereabouts you are. Mike isn't the cheapest either but the fact that he's so busy and has so many satisfied customers speaks volumes.

bababoom

Original Poster:

351 posts

117 months

Thursday 18th September 2014
quotequote all
Says from £700 for the ims job witch compared to a new engine is worth it for the peace of mind.

medieval

1,499 posts

210 months

Thursday 18th September 2014
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There could be an argument for buying a very cheap one as there is less value at risk .....he said tentatively

Just a thought ......

bababoom

Original Poster:

351 posts

117 months

Thursday 18th September 2014
quotequote all
Ive read that the 3.6 is less likely to suffer from IMS failure?
Whats the differences in the models
C2 C4
Cara, 2 Cara, 4 and so on?

Ideally i would like a 2wd manual.

Jivaldinho

9 posts

114 months

Sunday 21st September 2014
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I purchased my '00 996 C4 for around £8.5k about 10 months ago, although it did have 129k on the clock. Other than a Major Service and a change of brakes all round, the car has been fault free. The car is on 139k at the moment and to give you some perspective I am not one of those soft drivers babying the car around just below the speed limit on a Sunday afternoon wink

Edited by Jivaldinho on Sunday 21st September 20:10

skinny

5,269 posts

234 months

Tuesday 23rd September 2014
quotequote all
i'm looking at the same budget and same car as you (996.1 C2 or C4)

it looks perfectly doable for £12-14k, I've even seen one with a new Porsche engine and one with a full £8.5k Hartech rebuild in budget.

I have been advised to consider putting aside £1.5 to £2k a year for maintenance and servicing.

I thought IMS upgrade was more like £2000 at a specialist though, £700 is a lot more palatable.

stuckmojo

2,954 posts

187 months

Wednesday 24th September 2014
quotequote all
skinny said:
i'm looking at the same budget and same car as you (996.1 C2 or C4)

it looks perfectly doable for £12-14k, I've even seen one with a new Porsche engine and one with a full £8.5k Hartech rebuild in budget.

I have been advised to consider putting aside £1.5 to £2k a year for maintenance and servicing.

I thought IMS upgrade was more like £2000 at a specialist though, £700 is a lot more palatable.
I had the IMS done for less than £700 including parts.

But out of those cars, I'd surely go for the Hartech one.

skinny

5,269 posts

234 months

Thursday 25th September 2014
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yeah the Hartech rebuild would definitely have been my preference
I was led to understand that the Porsche replacement engines at least had the stronger IMS design (but i'm not sure if they ever truly resolved cylinder cracking / D chunking or bore score / ovalling)

anonymous-user

53 months

Thursday 25th September 2014
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I'm after a 996 next year, budget is around 10k but I can spend a bit more if needed. I know they have a bit of a bad rep for engine probs but I'm going to hold out for a car that has had the IMS/RMS done already plus most definitely getting this chap to do an inspection http://www.porscheinspections.com/index.php. Initially i wanted an Esprit Turbo however I'd like to have a car I can tour Europe with and has space for my for my 2 year old daughter in the back. A 911 is perfect smile

mollytherocker

14,365 posts

208 months

Thursday 25th September 2014
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Fella, the 996 engine problems pale into insignificance compared to an Esprit Turbo!!

biggrin

anonymous-user

53 months

Thursday 25th September 2014
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mollytherocker said:
Fella, the 996 engine problems pale into insignificance compared to an Esprit Turbo!!

biggrin
I agree they are certainly more temperamental than a 911 however it's only going to be a second car and not required as a daily driver. Engine rebuild on an Esprit Turbo (Giugiaro shape) is about 4k (99% have been rebuilt by now). On a 996 it's about 8k plus I think?

skinny

5,269 posts

234 months

Thursday 25th September 2014
quotequote all
anonymous said:
[redacted]
Thanks for the clarification, I mistakenly thought the last of the M96 engines got the larger single row bearing. I guess as the 3.4 changed to the small single row towards 2001, all the 3.6's also had the same small single row?