996 or TTs or?

[wadsy]

I thought I'd homed in on a 996 as ticking all the boxes for me, but (carrying out due diligence!) thought I'd check what else crops up for the money in a newer car. Hence the TTs or maybe an E46 M3? as for similar money it would be slightly newer than the 996.

Please discuss

Cheers

[Maldini35]

The M3 is the best all round car of that lot but like the 996 it can be ruinously expensive to maintain.
The 996 is a 911 and they have a habit of getting under your skin. (I had an old left hooker 964 5 years ago and still think about it today).
The TTS is a much better car than people on these forums would have you believe but is hardly cheap to look after either.
That said, it would be a lot newer than the E46 or 996 so would be the less risky option.

My vote would be the 996 but buy a later 3.6 or a 3.4 which has had a corrective engine rebuild and fork out a couple of hundred to get an expert to give it a thorough going over.

Good luck

Edited by Maldini35 on Friday 21st February 11:31

[Jim909]

TTS is very good everyday car, I do around 500 miles a week in mine, its been bullet proof, a great all rounder, but if you want a fun car that wont do many miles i would choose between the other 2.

[mikal83]

Theres an M3 on ebay now for around 5k.......it looks efffin tasty

[Parsnip]

Cayman?

I'm in the boat of looking at them at the moment - my sensible head is saying newish Cayman S, my silly head is saying an older 911.

[turboteeth]

Parsnip said:

Cayman?

I'm in the boat of looking at them at the moment - my sensible head is saying newish Cayman S, my silly head is saying an older 911.

At the end of last year I thought I'd done the sensible thing part exchanging my 7 year old faultess TT Quattro Sport for a Cayman S on the basis of it supposedly being the best handling car for the money (something the TT QS was certainly not) and allegedly well built. I have to say so far it has failed to start, let in water and rattles more than any other car I have driven in recent years - and whilst the handling is clearly epic, the overall performance is not. 2 weeks ago I was even embarrased by a Clio 182!!!

[joema]

mikal83 said:

Theres an M3 on ebay now for around 5k.......it looks efffin tasty

Maybe. But the problem is they are now affordable however their running costs havent decreased. So fiesta money but M power costs of ownership so be careful what youre going into.

Tyres are the best part of £1k
Brakes are the best part of £1k unless you can DIY
Rear subframe has issues with cracking
SMG pumps cost £800 alone
VANOS can go and that is another £1k
Inspection 1 is £400, Inspection 2 is £700 without parts, Oil change is £200
And it does low 20's mpg.

I think a lot of people will buy them thinking great and get the first bill and do a runner so the examples available are just going to get worse and worse.

I love mine but I have that Porsche itch!

[kambites]

If you can afford the running costs, I'd go for the 911 unless you intend to use the back seats for adults. It's in a different league to the others (especially the TT) in terms of how it drives, IMO.

[monthefish]

kambites said:

If you can afford the running costs, I'd go for the 911 unless you intend to use the back seats for adults. It's in a different league to the others (especially the TT) in terms of how it drives, IMO.

I'd agree with the above, but also thrown in that running costs for M vehicles can be fairly eye watering too.

[RonanF]

A 996 all day long.

[Ozzie Osmond]

911 is everyone's knee-jerk reaction.

But you need a long hard look at Boxster/Cayman as well. They are astoundingly good sportscar value. In many ways 90% of the 911 for 60% of the cost - with the bonus of proper mid-engine layout.

[T1berious]

monthefish said:

I'd agree with the above, but also thrown in that running costs for M vehicles can be fairly eye watering too.

+1

I budget 3k to running an M (insurance and tax alone is 1400)

Anyone looking at an M as a performance bargain is "aving a larf"

Wouldn't part with mine and have kept it main dealer for everything bar tyres. Cheap it aint though!

T1b

[trickywoo]

If your budget could stretch to the price of a 996 Turbo (ideally manual in nice colours and spec) I don't think the overall running budget would be any more than you are looking at with your current options.

[kambites]

Ozzie Osmond said:

911 is everyone's knee-jerk reaction.

But you need a long hard look at Boxster/Cayman as well. They are astoundingly good sportscar value. In many ways 90% of the 911 for 60% of the cost - with the bonus of proper mid-engine layout.

Given his short-list, I was assuming he needs the back seats.

[LordHaveMurci]

I test drove a couple of E46 M3's before purchasing my 3.4 996 Coupe, the M3 just didn't do it for me which was a shame as I really wanted to like it.

The TT didn't, and wouldn't, appear on my radar.

[JG93]

TTrs?

[JG93]

TTrs?

[aka_kerrly]

Maldini35 said:

T
The TTS is a much better car than people on these forums would have you believe but is hardly cheap to look after either.

I agree with the first part of your sentence but certainly not the latter.

I'd still pick a Porsche though and budget for higher maintenance costs but make full use of independent specialists and do as much as I can myself to reduce costs were possible.

PS: my dad has owned a TTS since 2011 and I am very familiar with what it can do but a 911 is something else.

[wadsy]

kambites said:

Given his short-list, I was assuming he needs the back seats.

Not really, just needs to seat two, but needs a reasonable space for luggage

[aka_kerrly]

wadsy said:

kambites said:

Given his short-list, I was assuming he needs the back seats.

Not really, just needs to seat two, but needs a reasonable space for luggage

This and servicing/parts cost was the main reason my dad opted for a brand new TTS rather than couple year old 911

Try this with a 911