Anyone here know Porsches?

[Matt@EuroJerks]

JUSSSST KIDDING..... Sorry to hear the timing was off. Look forward to see what you find next.

[champignon]

Originally Posted by Matt@EuroJerks

JUSSSST KIDDING..... Sorry to hear the timing was off. Look forward to see what you find next.

I'm going to cast a fairly wide net. I'm probably going to look for a car with lower mileage, that looks newer in terms of wear and tear. I won't rule out turbos or something exotic, nor will I rule out a Cayman S. I think I am going to try to get a car with no likely IMS issues, which means it will either be a turbo, a 997.2, or a car that has had the IMS dealt with. I don't have a time frame for the purchase, which means I can look for a while.

I can afford to spend more than the 996 I was going to buy cost ($20-ish), although I'm not going to go crazy. Another option, something my business partner has been pushing me to do, is to get an M3 instead . . . . . he thinks the semi-affordable Porsches are not real Porsches in his mind, and at the sort of price point I would pay, I'd get a much better car in an M3 rather than in an "affordable" Porsche.

[champignon]

So I did finally commit to buy another car; it is a 2006 Cayman S with very low mileage (<25,000), that has some small cosmetic mods such as carbon fiber this and that, custom steering wheel, etc. done to it, but nothing major, also the engine has been made visible by replacing the original cover with a heat and vibration tolerant fused glass cover in the back.











I am probably not going to do this but am considering, possibly, doing the basic engine mod that increases the HP to ~350 from 295, with a plenum and ECU flash. This is probably not needed since the weight to HP ratio is only a tiny fraction less than a 1M, being that it weighs about 11% less than a 1M.

I decided to stop worrying about the IMS bearing issue other than that I would not consider buying any Porsche, other than a Turbo, from the 2000 through the 2005 model years, unless the car had already had the IMS addressed. Lots of sales ads mention the IMS, even say it isn't an issue, but in fact nothing has been done to the car. The risk in the 2006 through 2008 cars is still present but quite small (unless it happens to you, that is :-) ) I could not justify paying $10 or $15K more to get a 987.2 Cayman S with the revised engine design not having the bearing in it. The risk is probably on the order of under 1% for a 2006, 2007 or 2008, from all the statistics that appear to have any real basis to them.

[saeyedoc]

That cover is cool, but it takes the fun out of it when you have the frunk and trunk open and people wonder where the engine is.

[Delta0311]

Yeah got a lap dance from her a few years back.

[Matt@EuroJerks]

.......and done. Spiffy engine cover.

[champignon]

I am now back in the USA from an extended trip to France. I put a $500 deposit on the 2006 Cayman S pictured above while I was there because i thought the car was cool and I believed a number of assertions listed by the seller in his ads, many of which were repeated to me verbally on Skype phone calls while I was in France.

Among other things the car was billed as having been kept with "no expense spared," that a "pre-emptive 40,000 mile service" had been done in 2016, that the seller had expended thousands on various aftermarket parts, professionally installed, that the tires on the vehicle had a long life ahead of them, etc.

The above and other things about the car could not be verified when I asked for documentation. I had already concluded that I would not drive the car back to Idaho, that I would ship it due to concerns about the tires and other issues. When the seller would not or could not give me proof the work and condition of the car being as described, I concluded that I was owed my deposit back by virtue of the agreement we made, since the vehicle was "not as described."

Whether I would actually get the $500 back was not clear at the point when I started writing this post. I have amended the rest of this post since I received an email from the seller just after I posted this.

I assumed I would not ever get a refund, however surprisingly, the seller did send it yesterday without my knowledge. For some reason, Paypal did not notify me of the refund. I will ask him for more detail on the modifications, however until or unless I can verify other aspects of the car's condition, I will pass on purchasing it.

I will write another post in this thread immediately following this one about my impression of the used Porsche market.

[champignon]

This will be a fairly brief post, as this thread is basically dead at this point. I will post a more general but similar thread on the 1-Series general board after I make this one here.

I have been looking at used Porsches for more than a couple of months now. What I have found is that in the private party market, especially if one is looking at a car that sells for over, say $20,000, that material misrepresentations in sales ads and from sellers verbally are more the rule than the exception.

This includes such things as the reason the vehicle is being sold, the condition and past maintenance of the vehicle, any aftermarket modifications that may have been done, and many other things. I am sure that this applies to the used, more expensive, part of the used BMW market also, although perhaps not to the extent I discovered in looking at used Porsches.

Let the buyer beware.

[buddalun]

Originally Posted by champignon

I am now back in the USA from an extended trip to France. I put a $500 deposit on the 2006 Cayman S pictured above while I was there because i thought the car was cool and I believed a number of assertions listed by the seller in his ads, many of which were repeated to me verbally on Skype phone calls while I was in France.

Among other things the car was billed as having been kept with "no expense spared," that a "pre-emptive 40,000 mile service" had been done in 2016, that the seller had expended thousands on various aftermarket parts, professionally installed, that the tires on the vehicle had a long life ahead of them, etc.

The above and other things about the car could not be verified when I asked for documentation. I had already concluded that I would not drive the car back to Idaho, that I would ship it due to concerns about the tires and other issues. When the seller would not or could not give me proof the work and condition of the car being as described, I concluded that I was owed my deposit back by virtue of the agreement we made, since the vehicle was "not as described."

Whether I will actually get the $500 back is not clear at this point. What is clear is that at the moment I have a potential/likely $500 "contained" loss, and that things could get a whole lot worse were I to complete the purchase. People frequently sell out of warranty used cars when major problems are discovered and the seller doesn't want to pay to fix them. The fact that much of the customization of the vehicle was done only about 3 months ago suggests that there are likely undisclosed reasons for selling the vehicle, now.

I have asked the seller for a refund. Whether or not I get that will give an indication of his honesty and integrity. I am not holding my breath, but at this point I can live with $500 flushed down the toilet.

I will write another post in this thread immediately following this one about my impression of the used Porsche market.

So frustrating!

I learned when buying premium used wrist watches that you should "buy the seller first." I feel the same holds true for premium used automobiles. Having said that, caveat emptor is truly the controlling principle.

The search continues, which is the best part!

[champignon]

Originally Posted by buddalun

So frustrating!

I learned when buying premium used wrist watches that you should "buy the seller first." I feel the same holds true for premium used automobiles. Having said that, caveat emptor is truly the controlling principle.

The search continues, which is the best part!

The problem with buying the seller is that it is hard to accurately size up the seller.

I have a tendency to be too trusting, and although I am sure that it has occasionally been of benefit to be this way, it also exposes one to a lot of risk. Having been burned a number of times in my life on this account, I am left feeling that my skills in seller assessment are not the best :-)

[champignon]

I have had some further contact with the seller of the Cayman S pictured above. We have overcome some misunderstandings and are proceeding with a PPI and likely sale.

[rightrudder]

http://singervehicledesign.com/

[buddalun]

Originally Posted by rightrudder

http://singervehicledesign.com/

These are $300k+ cars. Beautiful, though.

[champignon]

I have abandoned the deal for the aforementioned Cayman S. It simply took too long to get it done, and although at first it looked like a good deal, after finding out more on the car it became simply an OK deal, not something worth traveling for or spending very much time on. With the last delay due to some personal issues from the seller, I decided to just bow out.

The search continues!

[champignon]

Have made a deal for a 2003 996 911 Turbo with 75,000 miles, but extremely well maintained, including about $15K during the last 2 years, with $8000+ within the last 6 months. Almost everything that wears in this car has been redone, including brakes, coolant lines, clutch, transmission, tires, wheels, etc. Going to pick it up in LA later this week and drive it back to Idaho.

[8081M]

That was my vote (996TT)!

So awesome...congratulations!

[champignon]

Originally Posted by 8081M

That was my vote (996TT)!

So awesome...congratulations!

Car is awesome; just drove it back 900 miles from L.A. to Boise, Idaho. Everything works, car is very tight, amazingly nice for a car with 75,000 miles (now almost 76,000). The car has a stage one software tune on it, and supposedly has 485 HP on 91 octane gas. What I know is that you can make a passenger really nauseous by using even a fraction of the power that this car has.

Cannot compare the car to any BMW; it is and drives very differently. Not "better," but differently. In a lot of ways the controls and interactions with the vehicle are more intuitive than I have found in many BMWs from the beginnings of the i-drive system, for example. But these are minor details.

A nice addition to my little car collection, but not a replacement for any of my BMWs.

[evdok]

Brother is currently waiting delivery of the new GTS, should be with him end of month