996 C2 - Import?

[R1_JON]

I've seen quite a few posts referring to making sure a 996 is of the C16 variety.

I looked at a 996 today and it wasn't a C16, although the clocks had been converted and there was a letter from an OPC to confirm this.

My question is what issues are there in owning an import or why shouldn't I buy one?

Also, how much should this affect the price?

Thanks

[TKD]

It would have to be very cheap. Re-sale will be very difficult, unless you can give an equally good saving to the next buyer.
This has been my experience with other kinds of imports. I would imagine this is even more important when buying a Porsche.
When someone is buying a Porsche, money is not as big a concern as is the known history and re-sale prospects of the car.
I too am in the market for an early 996, but I wouldn't dream of buying anything less than a UK car.
Unless I was saving in excess of 10k on the UK equivalent, I'd leave it well alone.

[Harris_I]

Cheers TKD. As long as there are people in the market like you, I will continue to buy LHD imports and feel good that everyone else is paying too much.

My philosophy is condition is everything, where my car came from and which side I sit are of secondary importance to me. Each to his own, I guess.

[grant3]

I'm with TKD on this one, LHD or RHD surely it's all relevant to re-sale, yes you pay less for a LHD car but you also get less when you sell it. When the pound was strong against the Euro LHD made sense because the savings were so big, now they aren't, so what's the benefit?
But I think the query was probably about a RHD non-C16 car. The problem with buying a non-C16 car is you don't know exactly what you are getting, because Porsche are very coy about revealing specification differences for each country. So you could end up with a different radio, or find out the car hasn't got full leather, aircon & has the wrong underseal & alarm for this country. I am also told that most OPC's won't buy non-C16's so this reduces your options come re-sale.
It is only worth considering if it is CHEAP & you are prepared to fully check out how & where from it was imported & have a full OPC check over.

[AC79xxx]

TKD said:

It would have to be very cheap. Re-sale will be very difficult, unless you can give an equally good saving to the next buyer. This has been my experience with other kinds of imports. I would imagine this is even more important when buying a Porsche. When someone is buying a Porsche, money is not as big a concern as is the known history and re-sale prospects of the car. I too am in the market for an early 996, but I wouldn't dream of buying anything less than a UK car. Unless I was saving in excess of 10k on the UK equivalent, I'd leave it well alone.

Sounds like you've been listening to franchised dealers too much…

What's the difference between a UK spec 996 that was bought from a UK dealer and a UK spec 996 from bought from Porsche direct? The one and only thing is the price - it's not going to be any less reliable, any slower or less comfortable.

The dealer network are entitled to be sniffy about personal imports, they eat into their profit margins, which is why they try to manipulate the market in this fashion.

Ever heard of a franchised dealer refusing to service a car due to the fact it's an import? No, neither have I, they'll always be happy to take your cash.

[lance robinson]

I have a secondhand UK spec 996 that was originally purchased from Belgium.

Porsche happily service it. I have had warrantee work done on it without any difficulty and as far as I am aware there is no difference between it and a UK sourced car.

I did save a few quid when I bought it though!!

[TKD]

Not all manufacturers are as welcoming of imported cars.
I own an Impreza STI Type R, as some of you may know, this is the fastest Impreza ever made and was only available in Japan. This has a positive impact on re-sale in the UK because they are rare.
But, when it comes to servicing, Subaru UK will not touch them.
Standard Impreza's that were available in the UK but impored from Japan are very difficult to sell and excahange hands for far less than the UK equivalent.

I would have thought that for the most part, prospective Porsche buyers would be far more discerning and as such it would be harder to sell a non UK car or trade in at a OPC or specialist.

Having said all that, if you are happy with a non UK car then go for it, however, you must realise that you are in the minority and that most people will be looking for a UK car. This WILL affect your chances of passing the car on.

[kamal_raza]

I have found Porsche UKs assistance under the goodwill scheme invaluable. When my used UK supplied 1999 Boxster was 3 years old it sprung the dreaded rear main seal leak and also there was a problem with the ECU that kept making the car stall when standing in traffic. The total bill including a new clutch was £1600. Porsche paid for £1450 of this. £1450 is about the amount I would have saved on a used imported car..now where would I have turned when I had problems? Porsche Belgium or Finland or wherever the car was sourced from?

[grant3]

Ac & lance,
I think you missed the point on this one, we all agree that there isn't an issue with an import if it C16 Uk specification. It's the imports that were built to a different country's spec.(e.g C98 etc) that are the potential problem, as per my earlier post.