996 As a heavily used daily - would I be mad?

[911munKy]

I've had my C2 almost 9 years, it's my main car all year round but I do have a pickup and motorbikes which I also use and that keeps the mileage down so end up doing about 6,000m a year.

Averaging over 8 years it works out at £1250 p/a on maintenance (more in the early years, highest was £2500) including a full suspension refresh and a few trinkets and bits that didn't need doing, mind you nothing major has gone wrong. The body work is now pretty shabby & stone chipped from use and living outside all year, I imagine a respray will be quite expensive. I do 95% of the work myself which has allowed me to keep the costs low and apart from paint and a couple of small rust spots on the rear arches, which I will sort, the car is mechanically in top condition. I'm sure it's worth more than I bought it for, psychologically I devalue it by £1000 a year so even if it goes bang I'm quids in and have enjoyed owning a 911 before I got old.

The 996 can easily be a sensible daily driver as long as it gets a good regular run and not just very short journeys, you will need to start with a good one though and even then you can never be sure a potentially big bill isn't just around the corner but that's true of any car. Preventive maintenance and regular oil changes and oil sampling gives peace of mind. When I park it I still look over my shoulder as I walk away and give it an admiring glance, it puts a smile on my face when I get to an empty road and makes daily driving fun.

The ULEZ expansion is also going to cost me about £1200 p/a though which is very annoying as the company car park is only 1 mile into the zone!

 

[plavix]

I've seen a couple of really well priced C4S recently, and I would not hesitate to use one as a daily. I've used mine as a daily (997 C4) for the last decade and have no plans to stop using it as such. I do agree with Demon though, as usage in winter with salt roads is not kind to these cars and the more fiddly consumables.

As for maintenance costs, realistically it's broadly similar to any other car of the same age; costs tend to spiral when you start to tinker if you get the bug. Which is not so difficult to justify when the cost of a new car is considered. The new cars are great, as I've driven 991 varieties, not sampled the 992 yet. However, they're a bit asinine in comparison to the 996/997. 911munKy is right about use and oil changes too. Mine has had an oil change every 6 to 9 months, is warmed fully before pushing it, and anything that has started to wear or show signs of failure or require pre-emptive change has been done immediately. I am on my second clutch though and the same number of RMS. The engine has never skipped a beat and has been entirely problem free.

Regarding practicality, I've used mine with the roof bars to carry my bike across Europe; it carries the annual Christmas tree, and has been pressed into service to pick up plasterboards. Looks brilliant with a ski box on.

It is absolutely not mad to consider a 996 as a daily driver. Practical, fun, relatively inexpensive to run, great looking with a suitable amount of power and control which can be taken on track a couple of times per year, and won't look at all out of place. With a winter wheel/tyre combination, there are many places it will be able to go that a 4X4 with summer tyres can only dream of.

 

[nebpor]

Been using a 996c2 then a turbo as a daily for 7 years now, about 7k miles a year - go for it!

 

[PGN]

Did 23,000 miles in a year in my first Porsche, a 996.2. Faultless.

Just service regularly and look after it. And enjoy every mile