The G-series 911 costs about as much as a Toyota to maintain.

[sugarwood]

Originally Posted by rusnak

If you're one of these "knowledgable enthusiasts" then you'll know that the G-series 911 costs about as much as a Toyota to maintain. Yes, engine rebuilds can cost as much as $10K but these are cars that now command premium prices -.

I found this a curious claim. What has been your experience? Has your 911 cost the same as your Toyota?

[shamrok]

My other car is a '96 Land Cruiser, which can be one of the more expensive Toyotas to maintain, and that claim is fanciful. Parts alone aren't even in the same ballpark. Porsche tax is real.

[Joe Bob]

Cheaper than my Mercedes and the crappy emissions system. Just wish they’d finalize the lawsuit so I can get some money back.

[Quasimoto]

Oh how we laughed...

[safe]

Incomparable, the things I do to my 911 I would never ever do to a daily driver.
But regular maintenance replacing wear items on the 911, that's not very much and if I would drive the dd as I drive the 911 (10+ trackdays a year) I think that would cost more in the end.

[Flojo]

Money spent on a 911?
A gentleman remains silent.

[IROC]

I have owned my 911 since September of 1993. September 23, to be exact.

I have spent a lot of money on upgrades and stuff like that (heck, I put a 3.2 in it), but in more than 27 YEARS and about 100k miles, the only things that have "gone wrong" that I needed to fix:

Warmup regulator crapped out on the CIS
Auxiliary air valve crapped out
Clutch cable broke (due in large part to my own incorrect routing - long story)
Master cylinder leaked - replaced it
CIS fuel pump was replaced due to bad wiring from PO
Headlight (high beam) switch crapped out due to running H4s
Turn signal relay died
Oil tank level sender died
Rear wheel bearing wore out - replaced it

The rest is "normal maintenance". Brakes, oil changes, etc. I know my car's history from new (it was purchased at a dealership in Stuttgart originally). It's been rock-solid reliable and cheap to maintain.

[Showdown]

It would be an interesting thought exercise to compare the real costs of a DD 911 (no racing, no hot rodding or wild customization) over its entire lifetime to the amount spent on other cars during that same time.

I’m new to the 911s having just bought one this fall and right now I’m at 40k for the car, shipping maintenance and mods. I expect this car to be with me until they take my license away. I have serious doubts that even with extreme maintenance my Nissan or Volvo would make it that long.

What do they say about 911s, that 78% of them are still on the road...

[Glenfield]

My 911SC cost me a couple of Toyota’s last year. Does that count?

[David Inc.]

Yeah I don't know about that. In the seven and half years I've had my SC I've spent $20k in maintenance that I flagged as "required", which included $6k for a top end rebuild for busted head studs and $5k for partial trans rebuild with some other bits done (sure wish those had been closer together...they were a year apart).

Then again, I have tracked the car so things like caliper rebuilds, a broken condenser (aggressive gator strip made the decklid condenser bounce off the fan housing since the ducktail didn't have a good hold-down for the condense) and extra sets of tires increase that value. Honestly I could have gone without the trans rebuild as well if I had a higher tolerance for mechanical faults.

So I guess total I could have lived with just $10k including the engine work if I treated it like a normal DD and didn't worry about the little things.

But I can't.

Then the options and upgrades side of the maintenance list...there's a reason the total line on the excel sheet is labeled "THE SHAME OF IT ALL".

[GH85Carrera]

Well, I paid 20K for my 911 back in 1995. It has gone up a bit in value. Yea, I have maintained my car at a slightly excessive rate. I do things like change brake fluid each and every spring because I do track the car.

Overall I bet I have spent less on it than I have gained in value. No Toyota can equal that.

[porschenut]

It's worth noting that maintenance is different than repairs.

Fluids, filters, brake pads, etc. are not much more expensive, but repairs are. Repairs means fixing things that break unexpectedly, and rebuilds of various components. Totally different league from a Toyota of any vintage.

Let me know where I can get an engine rebuild for 10k!

[dfhtrhjn]

I actually did the math on this one for myself. All of my cars are or were daily drivers (depending on season), and since I bought them cheap, and do 90% of the work myself, my costs have been cheaper than buying a similar Toyota/Lexus sports car.

Now engine work, if you have to do it, is waaaaay more expensive.

[David Inc.]

Originally Posted by porschenut

It's worth noting that maintenance is different than repairs.

Fluids, filters, brake pads, etc. are not much more expensive, but repairs are. Repairs means fixing things that break unexpectedly, and rebuilds of various components. Totally different league from a Toyota of any vintage.

Let me know where I can get an engine rebuild for 10k!

Case in point:
https://www.1aauto.com/toyota-avalon-camry-lexus-es300-steering-and-suspension-kit-12-piece-set/i/1asfk04512?f=1102151&y=2000&gclid=CjwKCAiAl4WABhAJEiwATUnEF1ZwAdMLShYzWeVYx1l2 ntmOzgZB1lUK2ZgyaMQH-IfJD5Wz199K4BoCDhkQAvD_BwE

That's all the suspension and steering tie rods with complete lower control arms (both sides) for a 2000 Camry. For $165.

$165

Maaaaan

[wildthing]

My Sienna goes to the dealership and the 911 goes to an independent shop. The 911 is definitely more expensive to maintain. But I view that as a cost of entry. I didn’t dream of buying a Sienna.

Sure, it will be cheaper if I do the work myself. I just don’t have the time. Might as well pay someone who knows what they are doing.

[creaturecat]

11 litres vs 4. oil change-wise.
mucho expensive oil, as a rule.

[Tipo R]

Interesting someone mentioned Land Cruiser, which is my second most-owned model. 911 is the most @ >20 over 3 decades.

My experience (and spreadsheet ��) does indicate that maintenance is less on TLCs. But TCOs (total cost of operation) highly favors air-cooled 911s especially my G-body ones. I can’t say the same for my water-cooled 911s. I’m comparing ac-series 911s to 40/60/80/100 series TLCs, which all have had decent value-retention (if not appreciation).

[1990C4S]

Seriously, who cares?

I didn't buy any of my 911's based on maintenance cost.

Might cost more, might cost less. People own 911's for reasons entirely unrelated to operating costs, purchase costs, insurance, tires, etc.

[fastfredracing]

Rev up your engines, its time for the scotty kilmer hour

[RWebb]

once your old 911 is fixed up, it costs very little to maintain

after 400,000 more miles you are sure to need an engine rebuild