Porsche 997 Carrera C4: PH Carpool
Inspired by t'other article into a used 997? Here's a PHer who took the plunge just last week!
Car: Porsche 997 C4 S
Owned since: Wednesday
Previously owned: 964 RS rep, R56 Cooper S
Not Hannah's first 911, unlikely to be last
"Ever since selling my 964 and regretting the sale I decided to buy another 911. I needed a new car after my R56 Cooper S had decided to fail again, so it was time to get rid. I chose the C4 S as I wanted something as a daily driver that could step in for some light track work if needed.
"I approached Porsche Retail Group on Twitter and my enquiry swapped from direct messages to email and phone before buying the car in person at the Hatfield branch. It was a pretty easy process and completed in about a week!"
What I wish I'd known:
"I knew exactly the spec I wanted before buying it; after scouring the classifieds I had found it, the perfect C4 S.
"The car is low mileage but just had the major 30K service, it's basalt black (pain to keep clean but worth it for resale), has Sports Chrono Plus, sports exhaust and manual gearbox with short shift kit. The kit was a circa £100 option at the time but rarely specced, no idea why as it transforms the way the manual gearbox performs."
Buying process kicked off on Twitter
"I love the feeling of being walloped in the back of my seat after giving the loud pedal a push, that naturally aspirated flat-six will definitely get me in to trouble. The four-wheel drive system on the C4 S may be too much for most 911 purists, but I have never ever had so much grip in a 911 before. It's mind blowing."
Things I hate:
"It's not a GT3. The connotation that it should be owned by a male who has just had a midlife crisis is also a pain, but something I can forgive the 911 for.
"I haven't had any other problems. Get back to me when I've owned it longer than a few days."
Costs:
"The car by itself from the main dealer with two years warranty, serviced, taxed and a Swissvax wasn't much more than some private ads of same age and condition. A lot of people think main dealer is much more expensive, but in this case it wasn't!
Hannah knew her spec; social media found it
Where I've been:
"On the first day of ownership I took it in to London, it's definitely a head turner but like parking a bus. I'm off to Spa and Nurburgring next week with work and then I'll use it as my daily driver."
What next?
"I have already bought a GT3 shifter in Alcantara and arranged to get the steering wheel retrimmed in Alcantara and made chunkier, it's just too small and bus-like in its current state.
"I might put on my BBS LMs from the 964, but I think it'll look a bit too gangster and try-hard. Besides, I quite like the standard 19-inch sport wheels. Mechanically, it's perfect, it wants for nothing. Though I realise that's the kiss of death isn't it. A bit like saying 'watch this'...
"I'm planning to keep it for a couple of years, enjoy it and then buy another 911 of some sort."
Want to share your car with PHers on Carpool? Email us at carpool@pistonheads.com!
I had a toss up between spending the extra 5k on a 997 C4S from Porsche Approved with FSH, clean bill of health* and warranty or saving 5k (would quickly go on petrol) and opting for 996 Turbo. Like I said, this is stepping in as a daily car for a bit of luxury on my short commute and I wanted reliability, warranty and no huge bills. So I went with my head.
- 4 days in to owning it, the key has locked me out twice, the sat nav refuses to read the disc, the fuel guage sensor has decided to read 0 if you top a dry tank with anything less than 30l of Shells finest.. Oh and it thinks it's got no oil in it, again I hope it's a sensor as no leaks and just had plugs/oil change. ACE! So, it's off to Porsche to see a gold technician (these guys have been working on 911s for 25+ years so hopefully they can sort it) and I've got a Cayman S PDK in the meantime.
Took the plunge to Porsche ownership myself just over 2 weeks ago with a very well-specc'ed 997.2 CS PDK (only 4500 miles on it) and have loved every minute since.
I had a toss up between spending the extra 5k on a 997 C4S from Porsche Approved with FSH, clean bill of health* and warranty or saving 5k (would quickly go on petrol) and opting for 996 Turbo. Like I said, this is stepping in as a daily car for a bit of luxury on my short commute and I wanted reliability, warranty and no huge bills. So I went with my head.
- 4 days in to owning it, the key has locked me out twice, the sat nav refuses to read the disc, the fuel guage sensor has decided to read 0 if you top a dry tank with anything less than 30l of Shells finest.. Oh and it thinks it's got no oil in it, again I hope it's a sensor as no leaks and just had plugs/oil change. ACE! So, it's off to Porsche to see a gold technician (these guys have been working on 911s for 25+ years so hopefully they can sort it) and I've got a Cayman S PDK in the meantime.
But you know that - happy motoring
But, if sensors were to go it'd be with customer in first week after it's been sat getting serviced/not moving.
Don't let a certain Geoff drive it either, he'll just try and make it go sideways.
ETA: I've got half a gallon of 0W40 oil in the garage if you want it - I'll bring it with me next time I head down your ways if you do.
I had a toss up between spending the extra 5k on a 997 C4S from Porsche Approved with FSH, clean bill of health* and warranty or saving 5k (would quickly go on petrol) and opting for 996 Turbo. Like I said, this is stepping in as a daily car for a bit of luxury on my short commute and I wanted reliability, warranty and no huge bills. So I went with my head.
- 4 days in to owning it, the key has locked me out twice, the sat nav refuses to read the disc, the fuel guage sensor has decided to read 0 if you top a dry tank with anything less than 30l of Shells finest.. Oh and it thinks it's got no oil in it, again I hope it's a sensor as no leaks and just had plugs/oil change. ACE! So, it's off to Porsche to see a gold technician (these guys have been working on 911s for 25+ years so hopefully they can sort it) and I've got a Cayman S PDK in the meantime.
Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff