The Hunt

[JohnIreland]

And it goes with my hair and my eyes.

[5chn3ll]

I’d put $18k in one pocket and the rest in my sock...it’s a lot harder for the seller to say “no” when they can smell the money.

Great candidate for the GT3 lower console delete...nothing to relocate.

[B3DAWG]

And then the ghost of Jake Raby came into my room and he pointed his long boney finger at me and rasped out the words..."The cheapest Porsche you buy will become the most expensive Porsche you buy."

Actually, Jake says, "The cheapest Porsche you buy will become the most expensive to own". At least that's the version I've heard him say on our videos.

[32wildbilly]

And then the ghost of Jake Raby came into my room and he pointed his long boney finger at me and rasped out the words..."The cheapest Porsche you buy will become the most expensive Porsche you buy."

Actually, Jake says, "The cheapest Porsche you buy will become the most expensive to own". At least that's the version I've heard him say on our videos.

Even a non-cheapest Porsche can become the most expensive, but if you do it right cost fades into the past with the enjoyment factor...and it does not appear that Jake has boney fingers.

[JohnIreland]

Midnight musing on the market. Even though I'm zeroing in on a specific car (have I said that before?), I still keep looking for..."more." Putting my own delusions aside, there are a lot of crazy sellers out there.

On Craigslist LA, two 308gt4 Dinos...one a 76 for $35k, the other a 79 for $52k (with 1300 miles on the new engine). Then there is a 308 GTS with 37k miles and a recent belt service for $52,500...and an 1980 GTB with $16k in recent work, 6970 miles...less than 7000 miles...asking $125,000. 7000 miles on a 40 year old car? No wonder it needed $16k for a new clutch, rotors, rear main seal, smog pump and belt. I mention Ferraris because that always seems to be an extreme end of the market place.

But Porsche is not immune. Focusing just on the 996.1, I find five price ranges, with many cars overlapping.

Low...$11,000 to $14,000...and maybe the most honest prices out there, or at least the sellers seem to be realistic about the work their car will need.

Low/medium...$15,000 to $18,000...and now we see some fishing and high hopes mixed among the honest cars.

Medium...$18,000 to $21,000 ...again often more wishful thinking by the seller than logical value. The car I'm seeing on Tuesday is in this category but the price is based on a lot of recent and expensive work done to the car. Work that I would have to consider doing probably sooner than later.

Med/High...$21,000 to $23,000...Lots of cars with less than 55k miles...which begins to feel like more to be worried about than admired...a car dealer called it "lot rot"...like the 6970 mile Ferrari...in dies from inertia...or a 99 Carrera 4 with 26k miles.

And the last group....High/Stupid...$24,000 to $33,000...for simple med to low mileage 996.1s with sellers who imagine god has blessed their car.

For fun I looked at an ad from Beverly Hills Porsche for a 2007 997 S Tiptronic with 94000 miles, asking $33980. Looking at the pictures of the interior it reminded me why I sold my 997 S after only 3 months. Looking at the trunk without a spare only re-enforced what I didn't like about the car. And which is why I personally find the 996.1 so real world, so special.

Which brings me to a question for all you mechanical throttle cable 996 owners. When should it be replaced and how big a job is it? The only failure I ever suffered with my 90k mile (15 year old) 308 was when the original clutch cable let go.

Last question...who else among us is currently Porsche (or something else) hunting?

[Dr_Strangelove]

Last question...who else among us is currently Porsche (or something else) hunting?

viewtopic.php?f=4&t=985&start=10

Foxleen was hunting for a 996 but looks like they found the one in the Bay Area not long ago. Also Frunkenstein was looking for a 914 for a while and recently found his car. Was it good or bad things that happen in threes? Maybe you're next, JI.

[FRUNKenstein]

Last question...who else among us is currently Porsche (or something else) hunting?

viewtopic.php?f=4&t=985&start=10

Foxleen was hunting for a 996 but looks like they found the one in the Bay Area not long ago. Also Frunkenstein was looking for a 914 for a while and recently found his car. Was it good or bad things that happen in threes? Maybe you're next, JI.

Yeah, mine just popped up out of the blue across the aisle from me at a car show with a "for sale" sign at a price I would have paid in full. Could not have been easier. I was looking everywhere nationwide, and was considering a project car to get what I wanted (the rare color). In the end, this car was way, way better - no project car risk or work at a price that was several thousand less than what I would have had to invest in the project car to get it in decent shape.

Bottom line, whenever I am car hunting and really stretching to find the right car, I have to tell myself to slow down. Good things come to those who wait. Keep an eye on the market and wait for the right car to come around. If you settle for something not right, then inevitably the Porsche gods will send the perfect car your way as soon as your sign the title on the car you settled for. 60% of the time, it happens every time.

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[5chn3ll]

So the approach I took with the salesman from whom I bought the 996 ("I'll be back with my checkbook at 5:30 this afternoon - don't even think of selling that car to anyone else") isn't necessarily the one you'd choose?

Bottom line, whenever I am car hunting and really stretching to find the right car, I have to tell myself to slow down. Good things come to those who wait. Keep an eye on the market and wait for the right car to come around.

[JohnIreland]

Looks like low mileage 996s are coming out of the woodwork. Using 58k miles at the top, and checking just 6 websites, the breakdown was:
One car had 14k, eleven cars were in the 20k range, two in the 30's, fifteen in the 40's, and six in the 50's. The numbers may have been a little higher but I was leaving some out if I thought they'd already been seen on another website. Yes, there are many more in the 60s and up, but these low miles cars were the bulk of the cars with prices over $23,000. The all looked great in the pictures, but I can't imagine the deferred service they all need...or the failures that will arise if they start getting real miles put on them. These aren't rare or exotic museum pieces, so why weren't they being driven?

[5chn3ll]

Low-mile 911’s come from the same land as low-mile Corvettes...Florida. And Texas. And other places where old, rich people look depreciation in the eye and mutter “f**k you” while reaching for their wallets.