Yes, the Evora is very nice. It all stacks up well on paper and in the drive. A couple of things have niggled with me though with how they can wear over time. Still definitely a contender. The one that really interests me now- particularly as it's smack bang between getting panned by new car owners wanting a pretty car and failing the daily driver thing....and reasonably quickly being recognized as the 'Modern Dino' by second hand buying proper enthusiasts- is the Alfa 4C. They by all accounts are reliable too. Carbon, simple, and I bet you can work on them yourself. No doubt share lots of parts with stupid cheap Alfa mainstream cars that devalue to nothing and provide lots of grommets and switches. Perfect!! Haven't driven one yet (I have driven the base Evora). I should shut up ;)

Edit to add some more info-
There are very few Evora's in NZ. Despite them being advertised as '2015 model' etc when they rarely come up for sale, I'm sure bar a couple I've seen, they are all 2010 manufacture going by the VIN code. The later ones, 400 etc are awesome no doubt but expensive. Alfa 4C's and early Evora's were dropping to mid $50k NZ before Covid, which is a bargain IMO.

I think the Evora is a much better looking car by far, but from what I have researched it seems to suffer from quite a few quality issues

On the other hand, for the price of my Porsche 915 trans rebuild you have have an entire Honda engine and 6 spd swapped into an Elise, making 275HP without opening up the engine. It's also 400lbs lighter than the US spec 4C (stupid fed regs) The Elise is also $10-15K cheaper than a 4c, $20-25K less than a C7, and closest to what I could actually sell my sad lil SC for... I might be the only guy in this Porsche market who could loose money. LOL

I’ve had several air cooleds and still have 3.

Apart from the head studs, what is the extreme cost of repairs you keep referring to? This has NOT been my experience with any of mine.

Yes you have some broken studs, this is a known issue. Once addressed you won’t have to deal with this again. You said that the PO passed this issue on to you. It sounds like a good PPI by someone who knows these cars and what to look for would have prevented you dealing with this. Hindsight is 20:20...

Seriously, this can be a sub $1500 repair provided you only fix this (and not do a bunch of upgrades). This also assumes that you are capable of doing the repair yourself and need no machining to remove the 3 broken studs. I assume they are all on one bank? If you were motivated, this repair could be done in a weekend. Follow the steps in Wayne’s engine rebuilding book meticulously and you can’t go wrong.

Fix it, enjoy your 911, quit whining.

If not, perhaps a new Kia with a warranty for life engine is more to your liking.

A PPI would have saved me from this car for sure... that is my stupidity. Turns out i'm not a very bright guy.

Sadly my car also had a near its death 915, which was a huge cost hit. Knowing my life luck the head studs will be the hardest to remove of any head stud ever LOL

Knowing this car, I am anticipating an engine rebuild at some point, this is the big looming cost that I mostly speak of. An engine rebuild that is 60-70% the cars value or more.

I'll try to get the thing sorted, but I might mentally be done with Porsche.

I'm with unclebilly. You're blowing costs out of proportion.

A 915 rebuild is usually not expensive (I've done several for under $500), and the engine can be made 'good' on a budget.

I have two air cooled car, neither is expensive to drive/maintain. (So far)

Get goin' or buy the Kia.

BK's Caddy would do it for me. I love this car. I'd have to sell two Porsches to have space to store it though.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1600175689.jpg

I have a trans thread.... an interesting read. $12K later.... new everything, including the warped case.

I do find it funny how a person not wanting to not have 5 figure repair costs means they should "buy a Kia".... I mean WTF.

C4S - No car is expensive to drive/maintain.... until it breaks, when a Lotus breaks a new engine is 5K, maybe.... Porsche $20K+

I have a sports car to drive hard, and have fun, but it's hard when I have a $20-30K anvil over my head. I get that most on here have a lot of extra money laying around, but an unexpected $20k would not feel good to my savings account.

I think i'm going to do my best to get the Porsche sorted and see what the market would give me for it... if it's anything near reasonable I may have to take a real hard look at an Elise.

^^^ $12k for a 915 rebuilt? You did it wrong.

I would have sold you a low mile mag 74 915 with a 7:31 RP I’ve been saving for a fraction of that.

Nothing personal, but that's not what I'd consider a proper rebuild.

I remember the thread about the 915. Geronimo you are an example of someone who won't accept compromise. All in or nothing. I got that from the 915 thread so if it's not accurate it's still how the tranny deal came across. Now you're looking at the engine and I predict the same scenario except this time it won't be a mere 12K (which was ridiculously expensive for anything but the best money could buy).

I'd consider what you just posted about the 911 and get out while you can. These cars are not what they used to be, common fun among those who are/were aficionados. Now they are beyond reasonable reach for anyone with common sense.

The times, they are a changin' and you're either in or out. Same with older Ferrari's, the cost per mile is only for folks who need to be that way.

I'm selling off projects and sticking with the Cayman...

Yea, I am afraid the idea of growing old with a hot lil 911 is a bit out of reach for someone without a substantial 5 figure bucket to play with.

I might get lucky and repair the head studs and have no further large issues to deal with. Then again, it might start smoking next year.

I can't drive the car the way it is meant to be drive for fear that a $20K hammer awaits any fun to be had.

With a car like an Elise I can drive the car to death, and for the price of a 915 rebuild (in my case) I can have an entire Honda engine and trans that are worlds better than what is in my Porsche.

Emotionally I want the Porsche, it is the car I have always wanted. Alas I just don't think I have the budget to keep it and enjoy it. :(

We all have different budgets, needs, and standards. I had several guys ask for the 'minimum', and they typically got new synchros and seals. I always drove the cars after, and most of them felt very good (for a 915).

No doubt most people would want more innards replaced. I guess the answer is between $500 and $12,000.

This I can understand.

However, you do have a very strong engine case with the 3.0 and it's 9.3:1 compression if the US version. They don't normally scatter.

You could just sell the car with the broken studs disclosed. Do the math and set a price.

Heh heh.

I did have several $185 parts replaced in mine on top of the usual. Mayo did it. Out the door with shipping and new fork about $3k ten years ago. All of their parts prices were in line with Pelican. Petrushka was the guys last name.

The cost of things generally match their value. Exclusivity and collectability generally make things cost more. It often impacts whether or not an item retains or increases in value over time. Art is often more expensive than appliance. One must often make choices based on budget and desire.

While I admit that I do not drive either of my 911s much, once I got them right, they have been pretty much as reliable as a Toyota. The last time mechanical work (other than gas and oil) on either them that was necessary was around 10 years ago...although I added Audette LED lights and am replacing a 45 year old door vent window seals on my '74...both were optional. The drivetrain is relatively bulletproof. The 915, especially so. Although it may seem to be in bad shape, it is almost always the adjustment of the coupler (and/or shifter/coupler bushings). In 20 years and owning several, I have never had to rebuild one.

If you have a 40 year old car, you have to expect to fix some stuff...then you get another 40 years to get it (worn out) back to where it was before you started and needed to refresh it. My '74 was a $10K car when new and a $10K car thirty years later. Now it is likely worth more than double that. Even if you had rebuild an engine or transmission along the way, if you spread that cost over years of use and enjoyment...it is a bargain. Hobbies are generally somewhat expensive. Fortunately, this one has at least a small investment incentive as well. Most aircooled 911s seem to gain in value over time if cared for.

Obviously, 40 year old cars are generally difficult on a budget (especially if one is not mechanically inclined) and not often the best daily drivers (depending on the circumstances of your commute).

BMW, same thing just shaped different.

I did check pricing for a complete rebuild on my trans when I was going through it. They were in the $7-9K range already pulled, so my $12K wasn't out of line for the work done. But i'm still stuck with a trans I drive like it's made of cheap glass. LOL

I had planned to get the heads ported, non CIS pistons and a good cam to take advantage of my carbs.... but looking at $10-15K if I do the work for MAYBE 20hp is part of why I am considering my options.

If it was 10K to get a well sorted hot lil 3L i'd be all in, but its more like $30K. When an engine is 80-90% the cost of the cars value things are upside down.


Maybe a hot lil Lotus would give me what the Porsche can not within any reasonable budget. A fun flickable sports car with enough power to push you into the seat without being a bellybutton (Corvette). I honestly think in todays market it would take $40-50K on top of my car to get it to that place.

if you are afraid to drive it, then it is time to sell.

Buy something that does not stress you out, what fun is a car if you can't drive it?

Bad thing about elise/exige is the bodywork is fragile and expensive otherwise they are solid cars and easy to work on. Ive had my exige for 8 years and had an elise before that for a few years.

They are a good blend of modern reliability with the toyota/yamaha drive train and lightweight simplicity. I can't image getting an sc to exige performance without getting really drastic. Love older porsches but my 930 might as well be a Tahoe compared to the exige.

Lotus are also starting to creep up substantially in price. Not sure you can get a really nice elise under mid 30s these days. The majority of them I see for sale are heavily tracked and modified as the cars appeal to car nerds.