what is an 'early' 3.4 996?

[ferrisbueller]

roca1976 said:

Nice!
https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/14259334...

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

[n3il123]

nunpuncher said:

Maybe even more as that one sold a whole back. I noticed they've managed to sell the 2 yellow ones for 42k and 30k

3 speed yellows, 2 x 4s and 1 x c2

[ATM]

James76G said:

Do 4 wheels (with tyres presumably) even fit in a 996?

No chance

I gave away a pair of 265 rear tyres last week. I managed to squeeze one into the back of the 996 and then the other one on the passenger seat. A 265 fills the passenger seat. This was tyres only. I don't carry the space saver as it's 23 years old anyway so no way I'd drive on that. Even with an empty frunk one 265 will not fit as the bonnet sits proud by 3 ish inches. You might get a 225 in the frunk - never tried.

[IanG1]

roca1976 said:

I wouldn't be surprised if Luke isn't already in discussion with the owner! He was easy to sell to and doesn't request a bore score survey, IMS inspection advanced PPi...

A chap I know was interested in the car and was arranging to go down at the weekend. Had a call today a buyer with a trailer turned up and bought the car and paid over asking price and took it away? Watch out for it turning up at FGP within a week or so for 26K I reckon.

[ATM]

IanG1 said:

roca1976 said:

I wouldn't be surprised if Luke isn't already in discussion with the owner! He was easy to sell to and doesn't request a bore score survey, IMS inspection advanced PPi...

A chap I know was interested in the car and was arranging to go down at the weekend. Had a call today a buyer with a trailer turned up and bought the car and paid over asking price and took it away? Watch out for it turning up at FGP within a week or so for 26K I reckon.

You snooze you lose

[rfn]

ATM said:

IanG1 said:

roca1976 said:

I wouldn't be surprised if Luke isn't already in discussion with the owner! He was easy to sell to and doesn't request a bore score survey, IMS inspection advanced PPi...

A chap I know was interested in the car and was arranging to go down at the weekend. Had a call today a buyer with a trailer turned up and bought the car and paid over asking price and took it away? Watch out for it turning up at FGP within a week or so for 26K I reckon.

You snooze you lose

Luke's publicly stated he's bought it on his Instagram story.

[Baked_bean]

What I find fascinating with the 996 market is that some cars that seem like good buys linger on AT for months yet others will be snapped up by FGP et al. And sell in days- there is very little in between.

[ATM]

Baked_bean said:

What I find fascinating with the 996 market is that some cars that seem like good buys linger on AT for months yet others will be snapped up by FGP et al. And sell in days- there is very little in between.

Perhaps that's the secret sauce Luke adds to the story. Perhaps he is good at sniffing out the better cars or cheaper or which the market likes. Or perhaps the opposite is true. Maybe he gets a bad feeling about a car unnecessarily and therefore it lingers. Who knows. He is clearly snapping up some cars quicker than a ....

[nunpuncher]

Second car I've heard going for over asking price this week.

[1602Mark]

Just caught up on this thread as (hopefully) soon to defect from 30+ years of BMW ownership to a late 996. I've spent 2 days reading and watching anything and everything IMS and bore scoring related in an effort to allay any fears I may have of finding myself with a money pit. Mind you, I quite like modifying my cars but some of the numbers I've seen recently make the BMW M tax seem like a bargain! Bottom line is that I have always wanted a 911 though and if I don't do it now I never will. Unless I win the lottery of course. I nearly bought a manual C2 from a dealer in Exeter about 2 years ago at £17k and that same car would be 20+ today.

[jonny996]

The best mod for any new 996 owner is to turn the stereo up, otherwise you’ll be a nervous reck with all the strange rattles that come from the back & we’ll not even mention the fear you get until you see it’s the transit van behind you at the lights.
Don’t worry to much, the web has far too many scare stories

[ATM]

The biggest expense with mine was the gearbox imploding. Now I know what to listen for I hear all the whining from the box in the early videos of mine. All the research I did about engines and suspension and rads and clutch and whatever else and no one mentioned the box. So now I am soap boxing about it whenever I get the chance. I also spent about another 2 or 3 thousand getting every pipe and tube on the car replaced. My car is 23 years old but for now the old girl is working well. It's far from perfect but it makes me happy. If you want perfection then do not buy one. It will cost you a fortune to get perfect. If you can enjoy a car which is far from perfect but still gives and gives then you'll love one of these.

[1602Mark]

Thanks guys.

The one I'm (hopefully) going for has been pretty well maintained, with yearly servicing etc and higher mileage. I know any old car is a gamble (I rebuilt the engine in my E30 M3 twice) but I just wanted one that had obviously been cared for. I tried to watch out for signs that it hadn't been run on a shoe string, such as LingLong tyres and a seller who wouldn't mind a proper inspection. My budget is at the lower end of 911 ownership but it feels like now or never.

[ATM]

I dont think there is ever a good time or a bad time for a purchase like this. If you want one then you buy one if you can. Keep it simple.

[shalmaneser]

ATM said:

The biggest expense with mine was the gearbox imploding. Now I know what to listen for I hear all the whining from the box in the early videos of mine. All the research I did about engines and suspension and rads and clutch and whatever else and no one mentioned the box. So now I am soap boxing about it whenever I get the chance. I also spent about another 2 or 3 thousand getting every pipe and tube on the car replaced. My car is 23 years old but for now the old girl is working well. It's far from perfect but it makes me happy. If you want perfection then do not buy one. It will cost you a fortune to get perfect. If you can enjoy a car which is far from perfect but still gives and gives then you'll love one of these.

Same happened to me with the gearbox but lucked out (relatively) by finding a decent gearbox place nearby that rebuilt the thing for £800. A minor bit of man maths later and a quaife LSD was added to the rebuild cost. Other than replacing basically the whole suspension system for M030 stuff which I would describe as a nice to have rather than a necessity there has been fairly minor servicing and odd fixes for the last 18 months - Y-cable and header tank the two biggies. An ARB bush is starting to squeak which is annoying but a cheap and easy fix.

I would recommend however anyone buying from a dealer get a camshaft deviation reading. Greater than 8 degrees indicates the variocam sliders are on their way out, mine is right on 8 degrees and I'm thinking about fixing this sooner rather than later which is a major job. Might even hand it to a local indy to do the job.

[oddman]

1602Mark said:

Thanks guys.

The one I'm (hopefully) going for has been pretty well maintained, with yearly servicing etc and higher mileage. I know any old car is a gamble (I rebuilt the engine in my E30 M3 twice) but I just wanted one that had obviously been cared for. I tried to watch out for signs that it hadn't been run on a shoe string, such as LingLong tyres and a seller who wouldn't mind a proper inspection. My budget is at the lower end of 911 ownership but it feels like now or never.

Right attitude. There are cars are out there. My attitude was - budget for 997.2. Spend 1/2 to 2/3 on a good 996.1. Get a PPI. Then there's a contingency for the worst, but funds available to do a suspension refresh, new brake lines cosmetics etc. My aim/daydream is for 'better than new'.

[SidewaysSi]

oddman said:

1602Mark said:

Thanks guys.

The one I'm (hopefully) going for has been pretty well maintained, with yearly servicing etc and higher mileage. I know any old car is a gamble (I rebuilt the engine in my E30 M3 twice) but I just wanted one that had obviously been cared for. I tried to watch out for signs that it hadn't been run on a shoe string, such as LingLong tyres and a seller who wouldn't mind a proper inspection. My budget is at the lower end of 911 ownership but it feels like now or never.

Right attitude. There are cars are out there. My attitude was - budget for 997.2. Spend 1/2 to 2/3 on a good 996.1. Get a PPI. Then there's a contingency for the worst, but funds available to do a suspension refresh, new brake lines cosmetics etc. My aim/daydream is for 'better than new'.

Definitely with you on that. I have recently joined the club and initially was budgeting for a 997.2 but to be honest preferred a 996 as I think the later car is lacking some rawness for me.

Found a cracking 996 so jumped at it. They are out there...

First problem with my car - the lights seem to go off completely when I put on the main beam. Turning them off then on again seemed to solve it but didn't the last time it happened.

Any thoughts? Maybe the light switch?

[Baked_bean]

I was in a similar situation to you Mark and went for mine last May, it had plenty spent on it, but still required some expenditure. Some of the expenditure is by choice (suspension refresh) and some is not, like the waterpump. Overall it is a brilliant car and I can recommend getting one though, but don’t go hunting for perfection as everyone else has said.

What are you doing with your 1602? I have a massive soft spot for them as my grandad helped deliver those to customers in period.

[shalmaneser]

SidewaysSi said:

oddman said:

1602Mark said:

Thanks guys.

The one I'm (hopefully) going for has been pretty well maintained, with yearly servicing etc and higher mileage. I know any old car is a gamble (I rebuilt the engine in my E30 M3 twice) but I just wanted one that had obviously been cared for. I tried to watch out for signs that it hadn't been run on a shoe string, such as LingLong tyres and a seller who wouldn't mind a proper inspection. My budget is at the lower end of 911 ownership but it feels like now or never.

Right attitude. There are cars are out there. My attitude was - budget for 997.2. Spend 1/2 to 2/3 on a good 996.1. Get a PPI. Then there's a contingency for the worst, but funds available to do a suspension refresh, new brake lines cosmetics etc. My aim/daydream is for 'better than new'.

Definitely with you on that. I have recently joined the club and initially was budgeting for a 997.2 but to be honest preferred a 996 as I think the later car is lacking some rawness for me.

Found a cracking 996 so jumped at it. They are out there...

First problem with my car - the lights seem to go off completely when I put on the main beam. Turning them off then on again seemed to solve it but didn't the last time it happened.

Any thoughts? Maybe the light switch?

Light switches are known to be dodgy. Can be removed and doused in wd40 for a quick fix; if that doesn't work a second hand one from eBay will normally do the job.

[nebpor]

Snap - my 996 turbo had same light switch problem, my indie cleaned it up and it's been fine ever since