3.2 Carrera

[ruskee]

I want to buy a 3.2 Carrera as a first venture into Porsche ownwership with 12 to 14k set aside.
I have come across a couple of Companies that do all the car searching and inspections on your behalf. Phil Raby was a name I saw and also some guys in East Anglia.
I was wondering if anybody had bought a Porsche this way and what their opinion of the service was.
I have read alot about these cars but I am not sure I could pick a good one from an OK one. My mechanical skills extend to detecting the presence or absence of an engine and counting the number of wheels!
Thanks

[rich 36]

You might have a look at this nottingham based outfit
and give Tim Fretwell a call
he can show you what to look out for and save a bit of wallet-ache later maybee
www.fuchs.co.uk/

Is Banbury to far for you, if not;
www.francistuthill.co.uk/home.htm

Paul has always been very helpfull, especially with older cars

[rubystone]

Autostrasse at Coggeshall will help you out - 01376 562922 - tell 'em I sent you (oh, sorry, lapsed into Melv mode for a minute there...)

[popov123]

Good choice!

I was just perusing the garage stocklist where I bought mine and they have this:


Its an 84 car with the 964 bumpers - right sort of money for your mentioned budget!

Good luck, and enjoy! (See my profile for what I came home with when shopping at Portiacraft (www.portiacraft.com)).

[ruskee]

Thanks for the photo
Its a good looking car. I'll look into it.
I was wondering if the bumper modifications would detract from the resale desireability?
Cheers

>> Edited by ruskee on Wednesday 15th June 07:29

[rubystone]

ruskee said:

I was wondering if the bumper modifications would detract from the resale desireability? Cheers

Of course they will (but I'm not criticising Popov's car, which does indeed look very pretty). The engine lid/motorised spoiler swap isn't straightforward and certainly in the late '80s involved some surgery to make it fit. Perhaps someone's come up with a different solution now that doesn't require such extensive mods?...Popov - do you have a (working) 964 spoiler on yours?

[ICSD]

ruskee said:

Thanks for the photo Its a good looking car. I'll look into it. I was wondering if the bumper modifications would detract from the resale desireability? Cheers >> Edited by ruskee on Wednesday 15th June 07:29

Definitely - please, please let's keep these lovely cars original.

I have to say that the car finding services are probably a bit of a waste of time - 3.2s are quite sought after so dealers will already grab what's grabbable - all they avoid is the private cars that they can't afford to mark up because they're already at a premium. These are normally the best cars as the seller knows he has a good one and will be a genuine enthusiast.

You can definitely buy privately with confidence as there are plenty of tell tale signs to assure you that it's a good one and then you can have that confirmed by a specialist inspection - most Porsche Specialists will do this and any decent seller will allow it before purchase - obviously you have to be reasonable about what they find as any 16-22 year old car will need some work unless your lucky enough to find someone who's already done everything (like me.

To help you locate the right car and inspect it yourself - in the first instance - I've used and can recommend Adrian Crawfords buying guide which can be found at www.performance2and4.co.uk/.

Feel free to ask me any further questions - I've bought 2 good ones so far and have a reasonable idea of what to look for. Do note though that you'll rarely find a bargain when looking for a 3.2 - if it's cheap it's probably not very good. Also, Targas are cheaper than Coupes, so if you can keep it in a garage and live with the wind noise then that's not a bad route to go - but they are noisy, which is why I switched to a Coupe.

[ruskee]

Thanks ICSD. This is good to know.
I'll study a buyers guide and take it from there. I had some reservations about using as a professional buyer in the same way I don't using like mortgage brokers (they just tell you what you could have found out yourself by spending a few hours online and reading some magazines) No Offence to Mortgage Brokers intended!
I will be looking for a Coupe although I did look at a Targa Super Sport recently which made me smile but he wanted 20k for it.
Am I right in assuming that if well looked after (and without a global economic collapse) these cars will not depreciate?

Thankyou to all for your advice

[ICSD]

ruskee said:

Am I right in assuming that if well looked after (and without a global economic collapse) these cars will not depreciate?

Bought an '88 Targa in Sept 03 for £12,500 with 64k miles and sold it in March 05 with 82k miles for £12,250. Buy well and it'll work out the cheapest car you ever owned - it's almost sad that the running cost of these cars come into the equation as they're such a great car to own, but it really is the icing on the cake!

[rubystone]

This sounds like a good car

www.pistonheads.com/sales/43959.htm

But also there's a good cabriolet on PH too for reasonable money

[Dakkon]

Just to add that I bought mine in January and love it.

Got it inspected by Peter Morgan who is very thorough.

[ICSD]

rubystone said:

This sounds like a good car www.pistonheads.com/sales/43959.htm But also there's a good cabriolet on PH too for reasonable money

Agreed, look for cars that have loads of info with them - this is what you get from owners that have loved their car and will have looked after them. Look for loads of documentation - ensure that there is a data sticker in the service book and on the underside of the bonnet (and that they match), FSH with Porsche or specialists and preferably long prior ownership. Also, and I'll wait to be shot down on this, look for originality as it suggests a car that has been loved and looked after. Also, check when it was last serviced, who by, and what was done. Also ask what major work has been done in the last 20-30k miles. It's also good to ask for the VIN number as you can then go away and check if the car is what it's supposed to be (Porsche VIN numbers are very informative).

Have fun - looking's definitely part of the experience.

Iain

[rubystone]

Yeas, Iain's right on originality. Also make sure you check that all VINs on the car match - the one stamped behind the fuel tank and any tags on the windscreen pillar, on the sticker under the bonnet, any stickers in the door shuts etc etc

[ICSD]

rubystone said:

Yeas, Iain's right on originality. Also make sure you check that all VINs on the car match - the one stamped behind the fuel tank and any tags on the windscreen pillar, on the sticker under the bonnet, any stickers in the door shuts etc etc

Yes, definitely check all this on viewing, plus loads more - mine was a list of things to check on the phone so you won't need to travel miles to look at a pile of sh**.