Is RAC inspection essential?

[amare32]

Was at the Edinburgh OPC and was tempted with an 03 plate GT3 with the following spec:

Basalt/Black
Clubsport spec with leather buckets
Red belts
PCCBs

The car looks absolutely immaculate, however I'm intrigued as to why it had 2 owners in such short time, plus the mileage is very low for the age. Not so sure about the ceramics after hearing so many stories about it failing costing £££ (obviously was told by the sales guy it would last 'a long time'). The only other issue would be the ride height. The car does look very mean though.

The car seems very well priced at £63k (that's before haggling), I might be tempted with it but just want to know if it's worth getting an RAC inspection on the car if I want to go for it? Don't want to purchase a lemon afterall. :scratchchin:

[sundiver]

You're going to get a Porsche warranty aren't you? Doubt the RAC chap will offer much.

Two owners is pretty common - Porsches often have quite a few owners in a short period of time as lots get ordered by the must-have-it-nows and then sold swiftly after when they're bored and a newer model is on offer...

A

[diver944]

I would steer clear of an RAC inspection. You really need someone who knows these cars and most AA or RAC men will never have been in one. There are a few people who advertise in the Porsche mags and Peter Morgan himself does a very good inspection (though you'll pay a fair whack to get him up Edinburgh )

Surely an OPC sourced car will come with a cast iron warranty anyway, so if there is anything that needs doing it will be done before it leaves the showroom - that's why you pay an OPC premium?

[amare32]

Good point about the Porsche warranty...so I guess a lot of buyers trust that the warranty would cover most eventualities. (PCCBs excepted...)

[rob05]

I would forget about the inspection,my view is the market is awash with gt3's and i would'nt be wanting to pay anymore than 56-57k private or 60k tops at a dealers,for a 03 model.

[paulburrell]

Knock money off for the ceramics as they are a big no no come resale time.

Some lovely MK2's around on EBay for mid 50's, with OPC warranties. If buying privately make sure you get it inspected by an expert(preferably not an OPC)

Whatever the outcome, buy one, they are bloody fantastic cars.

[turbobloke]

I'd go along with the majority view here which is to forget the RAC. An inspection by an experienced independent will adda lot more value [to the purchase process not the car]. RAC inspectors won't see enough of each model to do as good a job. It would be down to pot luck as to whether the person you got knew enough about teh car, but a pork flavoured indy with a good reputation would be a much safer bet. No disrespect to the RAC

[DanH]

Porsche do an RAC inspection anyway. They don't like to do it themselves in case they get accused of covering up faults etc. At least East London do and thats what they told me.

Speaking of East London they had a good value GT3 mk2 for sale the other week.

Whats the mileage on the one you are looking at? Also can't they tell you who owned it etc and why its changed hands so much?

Regarding ceramics, I have them on my RS as well. They will last fine if you only intend road use. If you intend to track it then don't worry either as you need to replace steels on a GT3 for track use anyway, so the costs really aren't very different whichever you start with! So don't worry.

>> Edited by DanH on Thursday 6th October 23:33

[gfreeman]

DanH said:

Regarding ceramics, I have them on my RS as well. They will last fine if you only intend road use. If you intend to track it then don't worry either as you need to replace steels on a GT3 for track use anyway, so the costs really aren't very different whichever you start with! So don't worry. >> Edited by DanH on Thursday 6th October 23:33

????? I thought ceramic discs are around £5k per corner as opposed to around £250 for a front steel disc????

[DanH]

gfreeman said:

DanH said: Regarding ceramics, I have them on my RS as well. They will last fine if you only intend road use. If you intend to track it then don't worry either as you need to replace steels on a GT3 for track use anyway, so the costs really aren't very different whichever you start with! So don't worry. >> Edited by DanH on Thursday 6th October 23:33 ????? I thought ceramic discs are around £5k per corner as opposed to around £250 for a front steel disc????

To clarify. For track use, whatever your car starts with, you will want to end up on AP or Alcon steel disks. They last orders of magnitude longer than OEM drilled steels despite only a small premium. Combine these with RS29s and you are set and will have an absolutely incredible braking system.

Only bummer is that floating disks can rattle.

[Slippydiff]

I was told the RAC inspections were s**t by a well known Porsche independant.
I was selling a car (not a Porsche I hasten to add)
The inspector was extremely knowledgeable. His inspection lasted 2 1/2 hours included an HPI check and also the use of a paint depth gauge over the whole car. For £185, an absolute bargain.
I've worked within the OPC dealer network as a subby and know they have regular quality audits by Porsche GB (and fail them.) Their standards leave a lot to be desired IMHO and the introduction of the RAC into the process will only improve matters.

[amare32]

Thanks for the advice people. For your info, the GT3 in question has 4500 miles on the clock.

I'm aware the market is saturated with 2 year old GT3s. Most are around the low £60k so I'm bound to be able to chip a few grand off the price. I might get in touch for a testdrive first before making a decision.

[DanH]

amare32 said:

Thanks for the advice people. For your info, the GT3 in question has 4500 miles on the clock. I'm aware the market is saturated with 2 year old GT3s. Most are around the low £60k so I'm bound to be able to chip a few grand off the price. I might get in touch for a testdrive first before making a decision.

Do so. Don't look too kean and wait for them to tell you theres room in the price!

[DaGinge]

Don't bother with an RAC inspection, waste of money on a porsche.

The OPC warranty is good and all used cars get an inspection, so shouldn't be a problem.

Unfortunately OPCs know f-all about GT3s, I'm close to Edinburgh opc, if you want me to come and have a look/drive to see if all is well (and offer some advice on living with a GT3) then drop me an email.