Porsche 996 Turbo
Discussion
What's your budget as I can't see it. I'm currently selling my 105,000 mile 996 turbo. I would say I've spent probably the average of 1500 a year on it. A couple of years ago I had an expensive couple of months when I had the water pump changed, a turbo replaced and all 4 discs and pads done. Needless to say I was not very popular with my wife. My clutch was done at 55,000 or so but I have no evidence of slippage. I had the rads and condensers done when I first bought it 4.5 years ago. Remember that some things will go irrelevant of mileage, I.e. water pump is always running. My interior is in fantastic condition.
chriscoates81 said:
What's your budget as I can't see it. I'm currently selling my 105,000 mile 996 turbo. I would say I've spent probably the average of 1500 a year on it. A couple of years ago I had an expensive couple of months when I had the water pump changed, a turbo replaced and all 4 discs and pads done. Needless to say I was not very popular with my wife. My clutch was done at 55,000 or so but I have no evidence of slippage. I had the rads and condensers done when I first bought it 4.5 years ago. Remember that some things will go irrelevant of mileage, I.e. water pump is always running. My interior is in fantastic condition.
What are you looking for? What colour? What, if any, add on spec? I'd echo the comments so far on running costs. I've been running a very late 2005 Turbo S for the past five-and-a-half years, from 55k to now 75k miles. Generally it has cost buttons to run, but now and again you get a spike in cost that has probably rounded out at a couple of grand per year (£1700 per year for servicing, now I go back and look at my blog on here).
Examples would be about £1000 spent at 9e sorting out boost leaks, diverter valves, etc when I bought it, despite it flying through a Porsche 111 point check with no issues. That transformed the drive of the car, giving it back 100bhp or so, so felt like money well spent.
I then had a few cheap years of routine servicing, with the main costs being a shiny 100 cell sports exhaust from Speedtech and a new water pump, before a big year two years ago. In that year I had 4 new tyres; aircon pipes replaced; new condensers; refreshed suspension (front top mounts, 4 shock absorbers, coffin arms); replaced all the exhaust manifold bolts; clutch accumulator; and a service - all in the space of a couple of months. That added up to around £5k, but again the tyres and suspension work really transformed the car back to "as new" feeling, so didn't feel poor value. They're all known weak points too, so would be looked on as a decent investment if I ever come to sell.
Compare and contrast with the much newer McLaren I've been toying with replacing it with, which would cost a fairly predictable £4.5k per year for warranty and servicing, and the 996 is still far cheaper to run. I'm fortunate that I bought near the bottom of the market, and the S has become somewhat collectible, but even if you bought now you'd have the benefit of very low depreciation and relatively low running costs compared to anything with similar performance.
On the fun point, you have to drive one for a while. Yes, the 996 Turbo is astonishingly capable and gets criticised for that, but it's also very analogue compared to most of today's performance cars. I swapped from a series of mad TVRs and a 997 GT3 to the Turbo S after a short break, and although it doesn't have the incredible steering feel or top end of the GT car, it does feel "alive" on the road. The only problem is the lack of theatre at low speeds, but that can be a positive thing depending what you're using it for.
Best of luck with choosing!
Examples would be about £1000 spent at 9e sorting out boost leaks, diverter valves, etc when I bought it, despite it flying through a Porsche 111 point check with no issues. That transformed the drive of the car, giving it back 100bhp or so, so felt like money well spent.
I then had a few cheap years of routine servicing, with the main costs being a shiny 100 cell sports exhaust from Speedtech and a new water pump, before a big year two years ago. In that year I had 4 new tyres; aircon pipes replaced; new condensers; refreshed suspension (front top mounts, 4 shock absorbers, coffin arms); replaced all the exhaust manifold bolts; clutch accumulator; and a service - all in the space of a couple of months. That added up to around £5k, but again the tyres and suspension work really transformed the car back to "as new" feeling, so didn't feel poor value. They're all known weak points too, so would be looked on as a decent investment if I ever come to sell.
Compare and contrast with the much newer McLaren I've been toying with replacing it with, which would cost a fairly predictable £4.5k per year for warranty and servicing, and the 996 is still far cheaper to run. I'm fortunate that I bought near the bottom of the market, and the S has become somewhat collectible, but even if you bought now you'd have the benefit of very low depreciation and relatively low running costs compared to anything with similar performance.
On the fun point, you have to drive one for a while. Yes, the 996 Turbo is astonishingly capable and gets criticised for that, but it's also very analogue compared to most of today's performance cars. I swapped from a series of mad TVRs and a 997 GT3 to the Turbo S after a short break, and although it doesn't have the incredible steering feel or top end of the GT car, it does feel "alive" on the road. The only problem is the lack of theatre at low speeds, but that can be a positive thing depending what you're using it for.
Best of luck with choosing!
pete said:
I'd echo the comments so far on running costs. I've been running a very late 2005 Turbo S for the past five-and-a-half years, from 55k to now 75k miles. Generally it has cost buttons to run, but now and again you get a spike in cost that has probably rounded out at a couple of grand per year (£1700 per year for servicing, now I go back and look at my blog on here).
Examples would be about £1000 spent at 9e sorting out boost leaks, diverter valves, etc when I bought it, despite it flying through a Porsche 111 point check with no issues. That transformed the drive of the car, giving it back 100bhp or so, so felt like money well spent.
I then had a few cheap years of routine servicing, with the main costs being a shiny 100 cell sports exhaust from Speedtech and a new water pump, before a big year two years ago. In that year I had 4 new tyres; aircon pipes replaced; new condensers; refreshed suspension (front top mounts, 4 shock absorbers, coffin arms); replaced all the exhaust manifold bolts; clutch accumulator; and a service - all in the space of a couple of months. That added up to around £5k, but again the tyres and suspension work really transformed the car back to "as new" feeling, so didn't feel poor value. They're all known weak points too, so would be looked on as a decent investment if I ever come to sell.
Compare and contrast with the much newer McLaren I've been toying with replacing it with, which would cost a fairly predictable £4.5k per year for warranty and servicing, and the 996 is still far cheaper to run. I'm fortunate that I bought near the bottom of the market, and the S has become somewhat collectible, but even if you bought now you'd have the benefit of very low depreciation and relatively low running costs compared to anything with similar performance.
On the fun point, you have to drive one for a while. Yes, the 996 Turbo is astonishingly capable and gets criticised for that, but it's also very analogue compared to most of today's performance cars. I swapped from a series of mad TVRs and a 997 GT3 to the Turbo S after a short break, and although it doesn't have the incredible steering feel or top end of the GT car, it does feel "alive" on the road. The only problem is the lack of theatre at low speeds, but that can be a positive thing depending what you're using it for.
Best of luck with choosing!
Thanks- more interesting reading. So many thinks to consider in such a short space of time. Examples would be about £1000 spent at 9e sorting out boost leaks, diverter valves, etc when I bought it, despite it flying through a Porsche 111 point check with no issues. That transformed the drive of the car, giving it back 100bhp or so, so felt like money well spent.
I then had a few cheap years of routine servicing, with the main costs being a shiny 100 cell sports exhaust from Speedtech and a new water pump, before a big year two years ago. In that year I had 4 new tyres; aircon pipes replaced; new condensers; refreshed suspension (front top mounts, 4 shock absorbers, coffin arms); replaced all the exhaust manifold bolts; clutch accumulator; and a service - all in the space of a couple of months. That added up to around £5k, but again the tyres and suspension work really transformed the car back to "as new" feeling, so didn't feel poor value. They're all known weak points too, so would be looked on as a decent investment if I ever come to sell.
Compare and contrast with the much newer McLaren I've been toying with replacing it with, which would cost a fairly predictable £4.5k per year for warranty and servicing, and the 996 is still far cheaper to run. I'm fortunate that I bought near the bottom of the market, and the S has become somewhat collectible, but even if you bought now you'd have the benefit of very low depreciation and relatively low running costs compared to anything with similar performance.
On the fun point, you have to drive one for a while. Yes, the 996 Turbo is astonishingly capable and gets criticised for that, but it's also very analogue compared to most of today's performance cars. I swapped from a series of mad TVRs and a 997 GT3 to the Turbo S after a short break, and although it doesn't have the incredible steering feel or top end of the GT car, it does feel "alive" on the road. The only problem is the lack of theatre at low speeds, but that can be a positive thing depending what you're using it for.
Best of luck with choosing!
I picked up a 996 turbo with the x50 kit from a dealer who didnt know what he had, and was also my first porsche!
Issue with the car is actually the speed of it, which prevents you having fun in the car - it breaks the speed limit in 2nd gear.
I used it in germany and the power was insane, but it was never actually fun, and dont forget there is very little sound to go with it, its more whoosh than roar - but im sure that can be fixed for a princely sum on a new exhaust.
I dont regret owning it, but the fear of big bills was always in my mind. The guy who bought it from me had an independant inspection done, but called me 3 months later saying both turbo's needed replacing and did i still have my warranty direct cover on it - luckily i did as i forgot to cancel.
In short.... bloody quick, looks great, but not that fun.
(As an aside, i replaced it with a 2.7 987 boxster which was more fun to drive!)
Issue with the car is actually the speed of it, which prevents you having fun in the car - it breaks the speed limit in 2nd gear.
I used it in germany and the power was insane, but it was never actually fun, and dont forget there is very little sound to go with it, its more whoosh than roar - but im sure that can be fixed for a princely sum on a new exhaust.
I dont regret owning it, but the fear of big bills was always in my mind. The guy who bought it from me had an independant inspection done, but called me 3 months later saying both turbo's needed replacing and did i still have my warranty direct cover on it - luckily i did as i forgot to cancel.
In short.... bloody quick, looks great, but not that fun.
(As an aside, i replaced it with a 2.7 987 boxster which was more fun to drive!)
AES14 said:
What are you looking for? What colour? What, if any, add on spec?
I was hoping for £35,000 but I'm flexible. It's silver with black interior, pics I will try and post later (am currently on my mobile and it's a pain to do) spec wise it's got Cruise control, Top tinted windscreen, Parking sensors, PCM (Since replaced with pioneer Avic F960bt which has navigation, Bluetooth with support for reversing camera and microsd card slot for music), Heated leather sports seats and stainless steel entry panels with model type face. Is currently ‘sill naked’ as the kick plates are not attached (but are included with the sale). The centre console has been painted to colour match the exterior colour. Also has a certificate of authenticity from Porsche. Turbos come with pretty good spec as standard and I'm willing to include a set of winter wheels and tires in with that sale price which I would deliver (wheels not the car) a reasonable distance. I live near hull for reference. I've attached a link so hopefully it will work https://1drv.ms/f/s!AjYR6IkxRdDEmz_URBt7AqO589fJchriscoates81 said:
I was hoping for £35,000 but I'm flexible. It's silver with black interior, pics I will try and post later (am currently on my mobile and it's a pain to do) spec wise it's got Cruise control, Top tinted windscreen, Parking sensors, PCM (Since replaced with pioneer Avic F960bt which has navigation, Bluetooth with support for reversing camera and microsd card slot for music), Heated leather sports seats and stainless steel entry panels with model type face. Is currently ‘sill naked’ as the kick plates are not attached (but are included with the sale). The centre console has been painted to colour match the exterior colour. Also has a certificate of authenticity from Porsche. Turbos come with pretty good spec as standard and I'm willing to include a set of winter wheels and tires in with that sale price which I would deliver (wheels not the car) a reasonable distance. I live near hull for reference.
Afraid 3k over our budget and the one we were looking atI've had a 2000 Manual Turbo for 8 years and counting. As has been mentioned earlier on in the thread, some years I've had nothing to pay other than a service and MOT.
In those 8 years I've only had one surprise bill which was the rads, one leaked but I replaced everything while at it......can't remember the final cost, £1500-ish?. All other big bills have been purely voluntary, where I've decided to carry out preventative work i.e. Heat sheilds / bolts, coolant / oil pipework etc etc.
Great cars, just make sure you buy a good one and have spare money in the bank ready for if something goes wrong. If nothing does go wrong still spend every so often on preventative measures.
In those 8 years I've only had one surprise bill which was the rads, one leaked but I replaced everything while at it......can't remember the final cost, £1500-ish?. All other big bills have been purely voluntary, where I've decided to carry out preventative work i.e. Heat sheilds / bolts, coolant / oil pipework etc etc.
Great cars, just make sure you buy a good one and have spare money in the bank ready for if something goes wrong. If nothing does go wrong still spend every so often on preventative measures.
stuttgartmetal said:
A lot of wannabe 911 owners get fed the line two grand a year to maintain.
It’s true some of the time, but not a rule.
Keeping on top of things costs.
Turbos even more so.
Everything from Porsche costs an arm and a leg.
Believe me.
Bills start at a grand
Brakes,clutch,suspension
Ouch
On a 100k+ Car with that power, they’ll all want doing about now.
911 specialists
Once again, ouch.
Sounds like you’re under pressure to buy quickly, then walk
That car may look great, however it’s a whole ball game away from a new/ish BM
It’s not the buying it, it’s the running it
Entry to the 911 buy it now,and the only way the cars value will go is up club is now closed.
The best advice I can offer is to take the car down to Ken at 9e near LGW and have him take a look at it. He’s a turbo specialist.
Don’t buy it blind.
The 997Turbo is far better
A whole different ball game.
If it hasn't had a gearbox overhaul it will definitely need one. Budget about £8k all in, parts (gears, bearings, syncros, clutch etc. etc.) for that.It’s true some of the time, but not a rule.
Keeping on top of things costs.
Turbos even more so.
Everything from Porsche costs an arm and a leg.
Believe me.
Bills start at a grand
Brakes,clutch,suspension
Ouch
On a 100k+ Car with that power, they’ll all want doing about now.
911 specialists
Once again, ouch.
Sounds like you’re under pressure to buy quickly, then walk
That car may look great, however it’s a whole ball game away from a new/ish BM
It’s not the buying it, it’s the running it
Entry to the 911 buy it now,and the only way the cars value will go is up club is now closed.
The best advice I can offer is to take the car down to Ken at 9e near LGW and have him take a look at it. He’s a turbo specialist.
Don’t buy it blind.
The 997Turbo is far better
A whole different ball game.
Having run a (lower mileage) 996 turbo, it often feels like they have two of every component that can require attention; turbos, actuators, wastegates, intercoolers etc. etc.
They are a hugely capable car, far, far better than their reputation, but you would really need to do the odd Eurohoon or trackday to see the benefit of the cars full potential. In some regards, if it weren't for GT3s and GT3 RSs, people would rave about quite how capable a turbo is, but the limelight is stolen by the GT cars, because they're so supremely good.
The thing to remember, and to console yourself with, when the bills inevitably arrive, is what an utterly brilliant bit of kit the 996 turbo was, back in it's day.
I took mine to the Nurburgring, driving in convoy with a mate in a 5.2 V10 engined Audi R8 GT and, on the road, even the open autobahn, you'd barely put a fag paper between them, in real world driving.
I took mine to the Nurburgring, driving in convoy with a mate in a 5.2 V10 engined Audi R8 GT and, on the road, even the open autobahn, you'd barely put a fag paper between them, in real world driving.
popeyewhite said:
g7jhp said:
Great cars in all weathers.
Yep, great snow scoop in wintry weather, and in heavy rain you're just the right height for every other bit of traffic to blind you. 
The same could be said unequivocally of other small sports cars though.I've had other performance cars and 4wd cars but the 996 turbo is in another league and does it without any drama.
stuttgartmetal said:
A lot of wannabe 911 owners get fed the line two grand a year to maintain.
It’s true some of the time, but not a rule.
Keeping on top of things costs.
Turbos even more so.
Everything from Porsche costs an arm and a leg.
Believe me.
Bills start at a grand
Brakes,clutch,suspension
Ouch
On a 100k+ Car with that power, they’ll all want doing about now.
911 specialists
Once again, ouch.
Sounds like you’re under pressure to buy quickly, then walk
That car may look great, however it’s a whole ball game away from a new/ish BM
It’s not the buying it, it’s the running it
Entry to the 911 buy it now,and the only way the cars value will go is up club is now closed.
The best advice I can offer is to take the car down to Ken at 9e near LGW and have him take a look at it. He’s a turbo specialist.
Don’t buy it blind.
The 997Turbo is far better
A whole different ball game.
Or Matt at Fearnsport if he's closer.It’s true some of the time, but not a rule.
Keeping on top of things costs.
Turbos even more so.
Everything from Porsche costs an arm and a leg.
Believe me.
Bills start at a grand
Brakes,clutch,suspension
Ouch
On a 100k+ Car with that power, they’ll all want doing about now.
911 specialists
Once again, ouch.
Sounds like you’re under pressure to buy quickly, then walk
That car may look great, however it’s a whole ball game away from a new/ish BM
It’s not the buying it, it’s the running it
Entry to the 911 buy it now,and the only way the cars value will go is up club is now closed.
The best advice I can offer is to take the car down to Ken at 9e near LGW and have him take a look at it. He’s a turbo specialist.
Don’t buy it blind.
The 997Turbo is far better
A whole different ball game.
jimPH said:
Digga said:
f it hasn't had a gearbox overhaul it will definitely need one.
Absolute rubbish.At around 70k miles.
1,300 Euros in parts alone - not for all the bearings, just the failed pair and a couple others replaced as a precaution, some bearings cost 400 euro each. And related seals also replaced as a precaution.
The full set of bearings and other bits for a full rebuild of parts that wear, I calculated, IIRC would have cost around 5k, excluding gearsets.
Interestingly? Some bearings I replaced don't appear anywhere on Porsche's catalogue, not even OPC could id. Just not on the drawings, so impossible to source officially. Thankfully shared with older models, going back to the G50 box so with some serious sleuthing and also measurement it was possible to find a supplier (FVD).
Shortly after, the diff internals lost a couple of teeth... and this part does not even have a part number, apparently you can only buy complete with gearbox... for something like 10k+. Luckily sourced one from the States. Alternatively, an aftermarket LSD would have gone in.
jimPH said:
Digga said:
f it hasn't had a gearbox overhaul it will definitely need one.
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