997 or high mileage 993

[slipslide]

Hi
Since selling my 912 and deciding on keeping the 356 ive been looking around at getting something a bit more modern, something that i can go away in for the weekend with the wife and she can enjoy as well. A comfy ish grand tourer (must be 2 plus 2) that goes all right when i want it to. So i narrowed it down to the below. No specific cars just a general whats out there description, i know condition is everything but its a guide only. And i fully admit to knowing nothing about either off these models.
2007 ish 997 carrera 4s ( i know the 4 wheel drive is not eveyones thing but im keen) 80000 miles odd full porsche/specialist service history. £20-25k
1993 ish 993 carrera 150000 miles odd porsche/specialist history £25000-30000 from what i have seen for sale it will have marks, some non original parts/messing with (stuff like aftermarket stereo) and is very much bottom off the market.
So i wondered if there were any "must have/must not have" options on these cars.
Any negeatives with them? Can a 993 cope with those sort off miles ok?
Many Thanks

[Ants]

993
My last 993 had 145k on the clock, and whilst noticeable compared with the low mileage one that I had before, it was still an awesome car.
Great performance, handling, and sound. It had some minor issues, but nothing really to worry about, or affect the driving pleasure. With some money spent on it all the issues could be sorted gradually over time.
I had a 997 back in 2007, and again a great car, however doesn't have the class or classic looks of a 993.

[Martyn1]

I currently drive a 2006 997 2s, as a daily driver. Its totally useable in this mode plus offering all the benefits of a 911 when the road is open. My car has 70K miles but frankly you wouldn't know from appearance or performance. For me must haves start with it being an S (2s is my preferred but understand the desire for 4s) sports exhaust (switchable when you want to lie low), and a manual box, i have replaced the pretty useless stock stereo/sat nav with Apple Carplay enabled one.
My previous 911 was a 1997 993(LHD) again daily driver it had > 100K miles. Was again very useable, but I would personally question using it as a daily now especially given prices I see. As a word of advice, my 993 was a targa i loved the roof (glass) but imho I wouldn't buy a targa again as it did rattle a lot.

[yoda]

Another vote for the 993.

Far more engaging to drive and tough as old boots. A good friend had a 997 Carrera gen2 and we both thought it a little dull to drive compared to the 993.

As long as you buy a decent car, the running costs should be similar ie the newer car isn’t necessarily more reliable or cheaper to run in my experience.

[gridgway]

It's quite a tricky one, I think as I'd be going for the 993 every time, but there are a few things to consider. Primarily, shopping at the bottom end of the 993 market may well be quite hard. You don't want to end up with a leaky, wheezy, rust-bucket that drives like a boat because the suspension is way past its best It essentially means unless you are lucky, it may take quite some time to find a good cheap one. Although maybe CV might help with that. A good 997 might be easier to find.

Also are there any mod cons you might need - AC being the one I can think of. For example, Mrs R is ok touring the uk without AC, but she wouldn't want to travel across Europe without AC.

So for me, much harder to find a 993, so one might have to settle with a 997. Or split the difference and go for a 996?

Graham

[hot66]

For me it would have to be a 993 .. great GT's , good fun to wind up & chuck around yet not having to be at daft daft speeds .. but last time i was looking approx 80% of the cars I viewed were dogs / rough so your budget probo won't stretch to a nice one / cared for one . I honestly think there is less worry ( real or percieved ) of things going wrong. I know there are not the same .. but I had way fun in my 993 cab than I ever did in my 996 turbo. Saying that , my mates early 996 C2 manual on spsorts suspension didnt feel worlds apart from teh 993 in terms of driving experience & again it was way more fun than my turbo

Of course the budget thing could be misleading as for all we know in 6 months the 993's & 997's could be a lot lot cheaper and your cash will go further

[gridgway]

here you go, job done and a very low rate of commission...
http://www.911virgin.com/porscheforsale ... 964SCoupe/
£22.5k

[inaglasshouse]

I'm a bit torn on this.
I've seen a lot of doggy 993s, and 25-30K is not going to buy a nice one (yet!) At that point the usual advice would be to accept that getting from a cheap car to a nice car will be an expensive and annoying business (true) so accept that a unless a nice one is within budget, better to look elsewhere.
But... I'd rather have a doggy 993 than almost any car. (I own a 993, have done for years).
Oil leaks? fine, a few dents? fine, slightly questionable repaint to a panel or two? fine, bubbly screen corners? fine - none of those affects how it drives. Does need decent suspension though, so budget (quite a lot) for that. Tyres and brakes, obvs. Anything else can wait.

As James says, though, give it 6 months and I doubt they will be more expensive...

[slipslide]

So the 993 has a few fans, that’s good to hear. I understand I would be at the very bottom off the ladder on these and that a my big concern but I’m happy to sort as I go as long as I can still go. I’m not allergic to a socket set and can work on a car, plus I have friends that a far cleverer than me with cars. Body work though is beyond me. That said a money pit wouldn’t go down well.
I never really got into the 996, maybe I will check them out again but something just didn’t work for me with the looks both inside and out.
My thoughts with the 997 was newer more mod cons, comfortable, more reliable, and a better tourer with the mrs. I also thought cheaper to run, although no idea what I base that on. My worry with it is that i am not looking for a daily driver so it needs to be fun and have character which with modern cars sometimes they just don’t.
Is a couple off hundred mixed miles reasonably comfortable in a 993 (especially in the passenger seat)? From my experience the 997 would do that all day long.

[gridgway]

Me n Mrs R went on the ddk ring n spa trip as the first thing we did in our 993 targa. It just ate up the miles. Awesome.
Graham

[hot66]

997.1 is not more reliable... they are known for engine issues , suspension wearing out and coolant pipe leaks etc

[inaglasshouse]

Is a couple off hundred mixed miles reasonably comfortable in a 993 (especially in the passenger seat)? From my experience the 997 would do that all day long.

Yep, easy.
Most summers mine makes a few long weekend trips to Cornwall, usually with an uncomplaining passenger.
Last year coming back from Switzerland my 11-year-old daughter was pretty chilled listening to audiobooks on the retro original CD player. That journey was probably do-able in a long day, but we discarded that option and stopped at the Porsche Museum on the way. Still covered a fair bit of ground in two days. I find the 993 quite relaxing on a quiet autobahn at a cruise of about 120(mph indicated), but faster than that takes too much concentration for me.
A 997 would doubtless be better at all that stuff, but a 993 is fine.

You'd struggle to convince me that a 997 with (lots of) electronics and sensors, an entire additional cooling system, traction control etc is inherently more reliable than a 993, which has all the mechanical complexity of a hammer. That's why a grotty 993 is viable - you can have a grotty one in which the mechanicals are "fine for now, improve later" (being fairly simple and robust). Electronics don't tend to fail in a "fine for now, improve later" kind of way.

[hot66]

My daughter reckons the seats in my 964 are the most comfortable of any car we’ve had ( this includes a 7 series and a Range Rover ) . Aircooled Porsche seats are just good ...... not to bang on too much about 996’s , but the seats in my turbo were the worst of any. At I’ve ever had . I actually ended up in the chiropractors because of them

[gridgway]

My 996 seats were just awesome!

[Flat 6]

993 all day long. Perfect balance of classic feel and enough finesse to keep your passengers happy on long journeys.

Assuming of course you are up for the improvement journey, which given your other cars you must be used to. When you have fixed all the problems yourself (or at least identified them and had them fixed) you will know you have a good car. Higher entry price cars may not be as good as they appear even with an inspection.

Nice decision to have in front of you! Enjoy.

Al.