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Why a 911 v's others

daz parker

Well-known member
Joined
12 Aug 2015
Messages
301
I don't know if this has been talked about before but as a potential buyer I'm interested to know.

Why did you buy a 911?

My budgets is 20-30k so going to put me in a gen 1 3.8 but when you look for that budget there are lots of fast cars you could buy, so why did you pick a 911?

I have read all the horror story's which do put me off a little BUT I've had plenty of cars that also have had horrors story's that never happened to me.

For me the 911 has been a dream car for a while put off for various reason but I've got to get one to tick the box.

One other thing been a bodybuilder I have quite a wide back and the last 911 I sat in had very narrow seats, is there any well more generous seats ha ha.
 
FWIW best value for money I have ever spent on a car and most importantly for me it's a Porsche every school boys dream
happy looking :thumb:
 
One answer - It's a 911.
 
Had one for going on 20 years.

Best value for money sports car.
Its an Icon
Use it everyday if that's your thing.
Most are reliable and can be reasonable to run.
Great looks without being over the top.

Oh and just stop going to the Gym, if that's not an option you should be fine with comfort seats.
 
Had them on my bedroom wall as a kid...
Something special about them
Heritage
Once you've owned one you will always want to own a Porsche
Up until the most recent 991 each car is a driving experience which is most unlike any other sports car.
They are surprisingly quick - more so than the paper figures tell you :wink:
 
Daz , firstly re the wide shoulders/lats look for a car with comfort seats not sports seats that will sort that for you , you can tell the difference as the sports seats have higher side bolsters and lateral supports at the top also hard backs . the comfort seats look like tomb stones lol.

I was the same as you and had tried a number of nice cars inc a DB9 which cost me a fortune to keep on the road and I lost 50k on it. I was looking about at what to buy next and decided I needed to see what all the fuss and hype was with the 911 as they had always been hyped most of my adult life. so did some research and decided a 997.1 was what I wanted . I had heard none of the stories about borescore IMS etc etc at the time . the first one I went to look at was a 3.6 which after test driving fell in love with and brought on the spot.
I only later started to read the internet etc and found the 3.6 engine was actually a stronger engine than the 3.8 but I had brought a tip not manual which seemed to be from the internet more likely to score than the manual.
but after reading various threads often on here I discovered there were things I could do to minimise any risks so I followed recommendations switched to millers nano oil 10w50 and understood the benefits of a thicker viscosity oil , I also fitted a low temp thermostat and stayed under 3000rmp until the car was fully warm approx 6/8 miles weather dependant.
I then started to mod the car just for my own amusement . the great thing about these cars is they look great stock or personalised.
I found the car very very reliable , maintenance costs parts etc very similar to any German car .
I had no idea these cars hold prices and what I had brought was at the bottom of the depreciation curve and was not going to loose any money on resale (that was a real bonus). I had the gen1 for 4 years and did 50k of the 89k miles it had covered . when I sold it recently it was borescoped and found to be perfect and just proved to me the internet panic re borescore was just the bull5h1t I had always thought it was. you must understand that many hundreds of thousands of these cars 996/997 were build and a very few thousand have had issues but those few have very loud voices on the internet no one says on the internet drove my 996/997 today and guess what nothing happened :floor:
the ims issue can be overcome by either buying a car newer than march 2006 with the newer ims or getting the newer bearings retro fitted cost about 1k .

I had no intention of selling my 997.1 but fell for an Aqua blue gen2 so brought that but I am now hooked on the marque as they are fantastic driving cars better than the DB9 by far they have ok to use rear seats if needed , they are a great daily or weekender . and brought well you shouldn't lose much and might even make a few quid. this shouldn't be a consideration when buying a 911 as you will start to get all panicked about depreciation and it will become a rarely used garage queen and you wont get to really enjoy everything the car has to offer . So my advise is use it enjoy it and assume it may lose money like every other car does and when you sell it you will be pleasantly surprised. by the way they are meant to be driven and the garage queens often cost more to maintain than the regularly driven cars.
You wont be disappointed about buying a 911 buy wisely get a ppi and borescope done do your due diligence like you would with any car. and unless you are very very unlucky you will have some huge grin fun.
as a note to consider if you are concerned about the internet worries most cars will lose a minimum of 10/12k over 4/5 years of ownership these shouldn't, therefore even if you are very unlucky and need a bore sorting it will still not have cost you the same over this period as any other car. hopefully my reasons for buying and owning a 911 and am now on my second will put your mind at ease.
buy it, drive it , enjoy it. :thumb: :thumb:
feel free to ask any questions or even PM me if you want to know any more about my experiences :thumb:
sorry about the essay lol
 
Why a 911 ? because it`s not like any other car :thumb:

I thought I`d get bored with my first Porsche, my Boxster S, within 6 months, but absolutely fell in love with her, so much so that I couldn`t bear to part with her to get a 911................so kept her and bought a 911 anyway :grin:

You`ll understand when you get yours :thumb:
 
And here endeth todays sermon from Porsche oil for blood Phil 997 nice write up mate :thumb:
 
mzmini said:
And here endeth todays sermon from Porsche oil for blood Phil 997 nice write up mate :thumb:

:floor: :floor: :floor: Thanks Chris, :thumb:
 
I've had a 911 in my life for the last twenty years, ever since I could afford one! Wanted one as a child and managed to make the dream come true! Oh and it has seats in the back for the children so I can claim it is a family car! :floor:

The boring reason for a 911 is the fact that mine have all been very reliable to boot. :thumbs:
 
If I'd have asked this question and read phill reply I'd be buying a 911 tomorrow :floor: he had me modding in no time 😂😂

Comfort seats will be fine!

I've had 3 911, for your budget I'd try a 2S and a 4S good luck with the search and ask on here for opinions!!
 
Thanks everyone for you honest answers.

@phil997 thanks for the reply it was a good read, I have read many of your replys while I search this forum.

I've seen the tombstone seats in the earlier Porsche cars and I fit some in my mk1 caddy so that's good to know.

Are they an optional extra or standard seat?

You have also answered one of questions I didn't ask as the gym trip is about 7 miles from home and I wouldn't want to be running start stop and the engine not getting hot enough.

For my budget I've found early 2005 cars with about 50k miles and some higher mileage ones that have had a rebuild.

As for modding I wasn't going to do much just exhaust hack, maybe air intake, wheel spacers and maybe gen 2 wheels, gen 2 led lights etc
 
Are you the all action Darelle Parker? If so, you will have no worries with a 911, you will fit in just nicely. :thumb: And welcome aboard. :welcome:
 
Had one on my bedroom wall in the early 80s and always promised myself I would have one.

Stopped dreaming and entered into BMW ownership over 12 years ago and thought the M3/M4 would be my dream car. Last year I decided life was to short and looked into splashing out on an M4. A big discount offer had me hooked and I asked for a drive and the dealer took me out in a 12 month old M4. While driving we discussed the price of the demo model and I was shocked at the price difference. I woke up to BMW depreciation and the car didn't feel special enough to warrant the cost of ownership.

I thought it would be fun to check out what sort of Porsche I could afford (still in dream land or so I thought) and OPC Cambs offered me an afternoon of hooning around with a C4S and a 718S. Fell in love with a 718S as I couldn't make the math work for me on a new C4S at twice the price. Older P-Cars didn't get a look in as I thought they were dated especially coming from newer well equipped BMWs. I told the dealer that a 997 was out of the question and it had to be 2013+.....

After many months of thinking about it and sitting on a build for a new 718S I asked the OPC for a 718S for a day to test. I really did like it but decided, with a heavy heart, that it was never going to scratch the itch for a 911. Another consideration was coming from a much larger car the cabin felt a little bit too cramped for my liking and couldn't see myself driving 400+ miles in it. I didn't pull the trigger and told the dealer I would restart my search for a 991.

I was working in Leicester and popped into the OPC for the fun of it and considered a moderately spec'ced C4S 2012 991 for similar money as my 718S build. But then it clicked....

Next to the 991 was a 2010 997.2 C4S for £20k less. It was love at first sight! :) Easy money maths considering what I was prepared to pay. I hadn't done a lot of research on the older models and the dealer suggested I took it out for a drive as I told him I would never consider a 997. It looked so good sat there that I figured it would be rude not to.

Within 5-10 mins of a spirited drive under the instruction of the salesman I was hooked. It frightened the life out of me and the adrenaline was pumping. It felt very special, it felt fast and that noise! I told the salesman that I would have it pending an agreement on the price.

Needless to say we did a deal and I haven't looked back. I don't desire a newer model and if anything I have since learnt to appreciate the value in the older models. Don't get me wrong if money was no object I would have a newer 911 or a GT model but at twice or three times as much money I don't think my smile would be proportionately bigger than it is when I drive my 997.

I now don't desire the technology that I thought I would miss. I enjoy driving again. I don't need the technology of iDrive or Harmon kardon to enhance the driving experience. I have all the technology I need and more very firmly in the palm of my hands when I get into the 911. I feel like I am driving something special. I rarely use the Bose system because even after 5.5k miles the sound of the car is intoxicating especially when moving up to the higher end of the rev range ;) I am now of the belief that when I was in the BMW I needed the toys because the driving experience was otherwise bland.

In the 7 months of ownership my love of the car is growing and as for depreciation..well if it's anything to go by a couple of indies have told me I paid a good price and would probably have to pay more for it now..Good news when I have been used to losing a ton when driving a BMW off the forecourt. It's a bit of a shock to the system but it makes me smile every time I think about. Joining this forum, PCGB and Tipec has really opened my eyes, I love the Porsche ownership experience even if it does come at a price!

So why a 911? It's iconic and it's cracking value! It's a no brainer seriously! :)
 
daz parker said:
Thanks everyone for you honest answers.

@phil997 thanks for the reply it was a good read, I have read many of your replys while I search this forum.

I've seen the tombstone seats in the earlier Porsche cars and I fit some in my mk1 caddy so that's good to know.

Are they an optional extra or standard seat?

You have also answered one of questions I didn't ask as the gym trip is about 7 miles from home and I wouldn't want to be running start stop and the engine not getting hot enough.

For my budget I've found early 2005 cars with about 50k miles and some higher mileage ones that have had a rebuild.

As for modding I wasn't going to do much just exhaust hack, maybe air intake, wheel spacers and maybe gen 2 wheels, gen 2 led lights etc
Not much modding😂😂 that's not a bad start but be warned it's addictive!
 

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