Driving IMIA's extraordinary air-cooled 911s

[200Plus Club]

Imia was also very generous to me as a complete stranger advising me about buying a 993 and also letting me drive his awesome turbo. A lovely guy and genuine car nut :-)

[IMI A]

200Plus Club said:

Imia was also very generous to me as a complete stranger advising me about buying a 993 and also letting me drive his awesome turbo. A lovely guy and genuine car nut :-)

You nicked that car Chris - similar cars up for £70k now - unbelievable!

[Richie200]

braddo said:

anonymous said:

[redacted]

But if you want a car in such underused, rare condition, you'll need to pay a premium (just like IMIA did, I'm sure!).

And obviously, if you paid £15k for such a 996 it would almost certainly work out cheaper than tidying a tired cheap one (and be more pleasurable to own in the meantime).

Great write up cmoose, and IMIA I take my hat off to you for making this happen

cmoose I have a UK RHD Silver, red leather 20K mile on a full Hartech engine, manual cable throttle '98 3.4l, M030, PSE... and I wouldn't sell it to you if you offered me £30K. You may feel I am stupid but I feel my car is a far better than a 993 which would cost me £50K for a clean manual C2. This idea of the car you describe for £10K is not happening and as far as I am concerned, a Full Hartech rebuild, would add another £10k onto the price. Good luck in your hunt for one, they really are a delight.

I absolutely adore this car. Here she is doing exactly what she was built for; about to take on Stelvio

[mollytherocker]

White is rare but what is going on with the black on the lights? And the reg?

[Richie200]

anonymous said:

[redacted]

That is furking horrendous, suits the house number though Wheels aren't doing it any favours either and it could do with some 15mm spacers to make it sit a little better...

Surprised to hear there are so few 996's for sale. I'm sure when I bought mine about 4years ago there were about 90-100 for sale on 911UK.

[Richie200]

Fuel tank and small front boot might take a little longer than a few hours to convert to RWD Then there is the sealing off of the gearbox and I guess a little playing around with front hubs...

[thegoose]

I'll lend you my slightly tweeked 996.1 C2 coupe to do a similar article on the proviso that I cover up the mileometer (and keep the price I paid secret) until you give it back. Oh, and before anyone else says anything, I may be a dealer but it's most definitely not for sale!

[ras62]

It was only a matter of time before the 3.4 996 saw a boom in demand. Not only a great car but also a great 911 and importantly less engine worries than the 996.2 or 997.1
I don't think this preoccupation with mileage is wise on a car 15-17 years old though. As always its buy on condition...

[braddo]

anonymous said:

[redacted]

This one has always stuck in my mind when I was considering one a couple of years ago. Not that I've been looking in the past year, but this is the only one I've ever seen for sale in the kind of condition we're discussing. It was up at around £15k.

http://www.odaviscars.com/stockdetails.asp?StockID...

[boxsey]

ras62 said:

It was only a matter of time before the 3.4 996 saw a boom in demand. Not only a great car but also a great 911 and importantly less engine worries than the 996.2 or 997.1
I don't think this preoccupation with mileage is wise on a car 15-17 years old though. As always its buy on condition...

There's a spooky synergy between the 3.4 996 and 964C2 going on right now. Going back 8 years when I started looking for my 964 it was generally the unloved model. High milers like mine could be had for between £10K and £12K. The best ones could be had for £15K. It was at the bottom of its depreciation. Today it's the same story for the 3.4 996. So, maybe it too is a the bottom of it's curve and will be on its way up in the near future (although the numbers produced might restrict the increase to something less than what has happened with the 964).

[ras62]

anonymous said:

[redacted]

I PPI'd just such a car for a friend a few months back. The interior's wear very well if not abused. Mechanically it needed the usual, new front brakes, AC rads, new exhaust bolts and a few other bits, other than this it was in superb order. Even had a new clutch.
I take your point on miles but its never that simple is it. The car above would pass for a 50k miler no problem...I guess Goose is implying a similar thing when he mentioned covering the mileage on his 3.4, Well serviced these engines are capable of huge mileages as can be seen in the classified adds

[ras62]

I don't know about better but certainly no worse. Even the dual row bearing on the pre 2001 cars are seldom an issue. As an ownership proposition they are tough to beat imo and as good as the 986 is with it's shared dna it just doesn't drive like a 911.

[edc]

ras62 said:

I don't know about better but certainly no worse. Even the dual row bearing on the pre 2001 cars are seldom an issue. As an ownership proposition they are tough to beat imo and as good as the 986 is with it's shared dna it just doesn't drive like a 911.

.

So what if it doesn't drive like a 911? You say that like it's a bad thing. For some it's quite the opposite. You could say the 986 drives every bit as good as or even better than a 911, it's just different.

[ras62]

All correct Henry but in defence of the C2 offset pedals are found on the RHD RS and all other aircooled cars, you do get used to it, its not a big deal for most. The seats are a great compromise if you don't want hardcore buckets, very supportive and comfortable, not a word that enters into the RS conversation to be fair. A well set up C2 is a far better road car than the RS, add in a few choice RS parts and they are superb.

[IMI A]

ras62 said:

All correct Henry but in defence of the C2 offset pedals are found on the RHD RS and all other aircooled cars, you do get used to it, its not a big deal for most. The seats are a great compromise if you don't want hardcore buckets, very supportive and comfortable, not a word that enters into the RS conversation to be fair. A well set up C2 is a far better road car than the RS, add in a few choice RS parts and they are superb.

What aftermarket goodies would you recommend that do not ruin the magic carpet ride in a 964 C2? I actually quite like the fact that on our roads my 964 is beautifully comfortable. Maybe I'm getting old! Its funny you rarely see a good 964 C2 for sale whilst there have always been numerous RS for sale over the last 10 years. I bought my 964 before it even came on the market and had missed it twice before because I was pontificating about whether Hairpin were asking too much for her. Same story with my black 3.2C which has also been through Hairpin Co's hands a few times.

[ras62]

Maybe just me but I like a mix of RS and C2. Love the response of the light RS flywheel and the subtle difference at RS shift and engine mounts bring to the party. What I don't want is a car that is too hardcore on the road (some would say my 964 already is!). Good modern suspension gives a nice ride while being well controlled and the absolute key to the car driving well is good ride height and geo. Maybe see you soon in N.Wales...keep your eye on the usual forum

[IMI A]

Slippydiff said:

ras62 said:

All correct Henry but in defence of the C2 offset pedals are found on the RHD RS and all other aircooled cars, you do get used to it, its not a big deal for most. The seats are a great compromise if you don't want hardcore buckets, very supportive and comfortable, not a word that enters into the RS conversation to be fair. A well set up C2 is a far better road car than the RS, add in a few choice RS parts and they are superb.

Morning ras ! True, the pedal set up in the RHD cars are all the same. But at the risk of alienating RHD RS owners, I've never really considered the RHD versions to be the "real deal". A large part of the RS's appeal is the unassisted steering, something the RHD cars missed out on.
None of my RS's were used as daily drivers, I always viewed them as hardcore hooning cars, so the fact they were more physical/harder work to drive was a large part of their allure. I had no expectations of them being comfortable, refined or cosseting, though the bucket seats are some of the most comfortable I've sat in.
I willingly accepted the car's shortcomings (over a C2) as the price I was prepared to pay for the engagement, tactility and focus the RS offered.

IMI A said:

What aftermarket goodies would you recommend that do not ruin the magic carpet ride in a 964 C2? I actually quite like the fact that on our roads my 964 is beautifully comfortable. Maybe I'm getting old! Its funny you rarely see a good 964 C2 for sale whilst there have always been numerous RS for sale over the last 10 years.I bought my 964 before it even came on the market and had missed it twice before because I was pontificating about whether Hairpin were asking too much for her. Same story with my black 3.2C which has also been through Hairpin Co's hands a few times.

How many times have I told you I ? Step away from the recreational pharmaceuticals ! ! !

Show me a good 964 C2 for sale. Close to concourse pls with ultra low miles. If you want a good RS all you have to do is give Thomas Schmitz a call and you can buy a minter.

[IMI A]

And there's nothing wrong with recreational pharmaceuticals..

[boxsey]

Slippydiff said:

If the RS were driveable, you'd be welcome to have a drive of it, alas it's now being readied for a photoshoot and then it will be going up for sale

Selling it! Surely not!

[GreatGranny]

OP - Loads of 3.4 C2s for sale :-)

http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C108646

http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C623136

http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C540591