991 GT3 - Buying Advice

[Rchamps]

Hello all,

I'm after a bit of advice and though this would be a great place to get it as everyone really knows their stuff.

There is a 991 GT3 listed on Autotrader and is up for £109,980 (bargain, right?!?). It is being sold by a Jaguar dealer (Marshalls), so does not come with the OPC warranty. The car itself fits within my budget and they will do a deal to part ex my current M4. The figures work for me, but I'm absolutely clueless as to whether this is a great day and I should be gunning for it, or whether I am being a fool for considering buying a car from a dealer that isn't Porsche...

This will also be my first Porsche after five M cars, so any advice on what I should be asking / looking for would be most appreciated.

I've added a link to the ad below:

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

Many thanks in advance!

[MartinRS2K]

That seems very cheap for a GT3 even with 13,000 miles.

You can take it to Porsche and get a 111 point check and then extend the warranty if you wanted to.

What colour is the car?

Ask if it has the PCM Sat Nav included and Bluetooth handsfree

[red997]

I suspect 5 + owners might be off-putting.
looks to be a pretty basic spec too

[Rchamps]

That's a good point re the 111 point check. I didn't realise you could do that. I'm trying to get the seller to put at least 12 months warranty on it.

Car is White. Spec isn't the highest, but considering that it is £10k cheaper than the next car would mean I could live with it.

Did consider that it might be a press car, but with so many owners, I don't think that's likely.

Porsche Leeds, where the car was last serviced, have confirmed that the car has been subject to two recalls (one being the engine, I assume?), both of which have been completed.

Really tempted by this. Have put down a £500 holding deposit to give myself 48 hours to have a think about it.

[v8ksn]

In my opinion it would be a VERY risky move buying a 991 GT3 without a Porsche warranty.

If you really want it then you should buy the car (after a 111 point inspection) stick it in the garage for 3 months and dont drive it and then you can buy an official Porsche warranty from an OPC as the new owner ........... and then thrash the living daylights out of one of the best contemporary GT 911's ever made.

[Matisse]

The fact that if buying from trade outside of the OPC network you can't put a new Porsche warranty on for three months can be a tricky one. I went this route once, the car got through the initial 111 point check fine, but then failed on a couple of things when re-tested after the three months. It took some time and persistence to sort out who should pay the several £k for the remedial work, as the trade seller's warranty company initially rejected any liability (such vendor warranty coverage typically being more restrictive than the Porsche one). We found a pragmatic solution in the end but it would make me think twice about doing the same again, compared to buying from an OPC, or private with transferable remaining OPC warranty, or the SOR route if that delivered similar protection of allowing the Porsche warranty to remain continuous. I hadn't previously considered the "stick it in the garage for 3 months and don't drive it" additional option suggested above...

[cormeist]

im a current 991 GT3 owner and id stay WELL clear, sod buying one without warranty, and £109k is to low, the old saying buy cheap, buy twice springs to mind.

Current cars selling for between £125-135k

[Rchamps]

Thanks for the replies. I understand the view that it's a bit on the cheaper side. But, is the fact it's being marketed by a jaguar main dealer (Marshalls) who are putting a "specialist" 12 months warranty on the car a good mitigating? They did also say that they would pay for an inspection from a local Porsche specialist (although don't think there is an OPC in Peterborough). My thoughts is put it through the 111 inspection if I buy it, if anything is found then claim on the warranty. If not, put a Porsche warranty on it before the 12 month "specialist" warranty expires.

Really torn on this as this car is within my budget and is a dream car. Although at 36, there will probably be plenty more options in the future...

[Matisse]

I get your dilemma, and know what it's like when you find a car you really want to go for...

If you are planning to go ahead, I would at least get the 111 point check done before you unconditionally commit to buying the car, even if you have to pay the transport costs to get it to the nearest OPC for this. At least that is what I did with the example I referred to above - I agreed to buy it conditional on the 111 point check, on the basis that if it failed on anything then we'd either revisit the price or I could walk from the deal. Whilst most things can be fixed if they fail the check, some aspects of the 111 point check mean you can never put the official warranty back on it, although that is probably more common with overrevs on a manual. Even with this route, you are still subject to the quality of the "specialist" warranty for the intermediate period, so I would read the terms of this very carefully (as per my example above where the third party warranty company sought to exclude the things picked up in the second test, whereas the OPC said they would have been covered under the official warranty).

If you get the chassis number you might also be able to get a helpful OPC to run it through the system to show up anything of interest, e.g. servicing / workshop campaigns undertaken on time, approved repairs or other work, etc, unless you already have comfort around such points

Good luck, anyway, whatever you decide!

[rog007]

It's a car from a main (other marque) dealer that has said they'd put on a 'warranty' on top of your already substantial rights under the 'Sale of Goods' act. They've also said they'd pay for a pre-purchase inspection which I'd convert to the Porsche inspection (get them to trailer it to the nearest OPC).

Or pay a bit more and buy direct from an OPC.

Do you know how it ended up where it is (outside of main network)?

Good luck!

[kev.RS]

If you could get the OPC inspection and their warranty (to cover the 3 months without Porsche warranty) included within the asking price then I would go for it as worse case you sell it for a profit.
I would check with your OPC to see if it has a live warranty on it which I would be surprised if it hasn't as if it has the the dealer may be able to get you in touch with the previous owner and swap the warranties over as by my understanding you can swap a live warranty PRIVATE to PRIVATE ( trade voids extended warranties) straight away but have to wait until 3 months of ownership to put a fresh warranty onto it.

[pmac32]

I don't get it, it's a car that's done 13,000 miles, as long as it passes an inspection and has all the history you'd expect I cannot see any issue with purchasing it. Are they that fragile that after 13,000 miles they're suddenly going to break and bankrupt you?

[v8ksn]

pmac32 said:

I don't get it, it's a car that's done 13,000 miles, as long as it passes an inspection and has all the history you'd expect I cannot see any issue with purchasing it. Are they that fragile that after 13,000 miles they're suddenly going to break and bankrupt you?

It's a 991.1 GT3. Say that to the owners on their second or third replacement engine.

[supersport]

Nearest OPC is Nottingham, Leicester or Cambridge so a bit of distance.

There is a local indie in Peterborough but don't think they see many of these so possibly wouldn't use for an inspection.

[kilarney]

v8ksn said:

pmac32 said:

I don't get it, it's a car that's done 13,000 miles, as long as it passes an inspection and has all the history you'd expect I cannot see any issue with purchasing it. Are they that fragile that after 13,000 miles they're suddenly going to break and bankrupt you?

It's a 991.1 GT3. Say that to the owners on their second or third replacement engine.

Exactly. I suspect this is going to be the same story as 997.1 vs 997.2 only problem is hartech cant fix up a blow 991.1 GT3. Who is going to want to own one outside the opc warranty. Really think about whether you want the risk of failure and resale, the 991.2 will further seal its fate. Quite simply porsche have totally redesigned the top end on 991.2 as the 991.1 GT3 was a step too far on hydraulic valve gear so they gave up with it.

[79TurboS]

As others have said highly risky manoeuvre without warranty. My 991 gt3 is on its third engine now which is a bit of a joke. Dread to think of the cost of a new engine, so you 100 percent need a comprehensive warranty.

[short-shift]

Rchamps - I pulled together a summary of the 991 GT3 engines saga (based largely on extracts from Rennlist postings); if you want a copy drop me a message or an email address - it seems that you can't be contacted directly from the forum. Would allow you to confirm which spec of engine is now fitted to this car and will give you some background to the problems that Porsche seem to have taken four generations of GT3 engine to finally resolve...

James

[LaurasOtherHalf]

Is this really true about them? I honestly never knew their was so much of an issue such as the poster above being on his third engine.

And people are clamouring to pay over list for them-the mind boggles...

[isaldiri]

LaurasOtherHalf said:

Is this really true about them? I honestly never knew their was so much of an issue such as the poster above being on his third engine.

The Ring taxi 991 gt3 was on it's 4th or 5th engine mid last year and the RSR rental one wasn't doing any better. By contrast their 7gt3 was at 60+k km iirc and still going fine.

[Cheib]

I don't think it's that cheap OP. OPC Silverstone had a red 991 GT3 in the showroom at £115k for a good three or four months which they couldn't shift....it was about the same mileage at this one, Guards Red and a low/comfort spec car. Given the amount of time they had it I am sure you could have bought that car for £112k.

I'd wait for a Porsche Warranty car or pay more to get the dealer to have a proper warranty on it. I'd speak to a few of the specialist dealers and tell them you're looking for a car...911 Virgin, JZM etc.