[tiorio]

Just did this for the second time. Found a car I liked, got all the info. emailed to me and then flew out to see it. Unfortunately I had to use the return plane ticket as the financials couldn't be resolved but a one-way back and I picked up the beauty in Kansas City and drove to LA.

Upside is that the fiance was able to come along for the drive (and thanks to Southwest Airlines it only cost but a fraction of the purchase price of the car).

Did something similar with my 97 Land Cruiser and would do it again! Just remember PPPPPPPP (prior planning prevents piss-poor porsche purchasing performance). Do your homework, have owners email you everything they have (lots of pictures if possible) and docs, get the 30 day CarFax subscription and get all the VINs ahead of time (or find internet access in town) and see if you can't find a mechanic to do as many of the PPIs as possible (he/she can help compare if you have a couple you're interested in).

It's perfectly do-able but having the return ticket in hand (as recommended by others) really helps prevent the irrational purchase (also known as M.O.I. - moment of insanity)...

I'm sure there are more tips from others but thats my short-list!

Good luck on the hunt!