Where have all the cheap 911's gone?

[black_falcon]

I was hoping to make the leap from my 944 into an affordable 911SC this summer, but it seems like the once vast number of solid cars in the $10-12k range have simply vanished? I remember a couple years ago I was seriously considering a few purchases, and I was just tripping over decent cars for that money, and now I'm struggling to find anything under $15k, no matter the condition.

Have prices spiked that much in the year or three I've been out of the loop?!

[jrolstin]

I bought my car 4 months ago for $11000 canadian...

[timmy2]

They are out there but getting harder to find.
Try searchtempest, it will show you everything on craigslist across the USA and Canada.
Lots of them going to overseas destinations.
It's winter too, most are locked up in garages.

[szyzygy]

Economic recovery.

[pegasus9]

Get one while you can, before the window of opportunity closes.

You might try a good search engine like autotempest, pulls up many queries from multiple sites.

[szyzygy]

Originally Posted by Slasher

Get one while you can, before the window of opportunity closes.

You might try a good search engine like autotempest, pulls up many queries from multiple sites.

yep.

Got a 1977 911 6months ago. Just last week some dude came to my house wanting to buy it from me.

[porwolf]

I would say get one now. Who knows where the prices of good drivable older Porsches go with the new ones in the $100,000 plus range?

[szyzygy]

Originally Posted by porwolf

I would say get one now. Who knows where the prices of good drivable older Porsches go with the new ones in the $100,000 plus range?

my car cost 15k in 1977. That was a third of the median home price. Today, that would be like a 69K vehicle today

[Talewinds]

Interesting. I've tried to occasionally keep up with the pulse of the market since buying my Carrera three years ago... Black_Falcon, I'm afraid you may be citing as your example one of the WORST times in the market for these cars, although it was a very optimistic/opportunistic time for you personally, so that's what sticks in your mind.
Having not taken a hard look at the market place in quite a while until last week I can say definitively that there's been a swing. Last year the price of impact bumper Carreras was VERY soft and I was getting all butthurt about it... probably why I decided to stick my head in the sand for so long. NOW, when I look across the marketplace (non-Ebay), prices look MUCH stronger, and there were only 8 '87-'89 Carreras available on all of Ebay last week.

[Starless]

I couldn't understand why SC's were selling for under $10K when cars like Alfa spiders, MG's, Datsun Z's, TR4's, you get my drift, were selling for the same amount if not more. Are we partially to blame for letting our cars go for that kind of money? Or are people freaking out that a $10K Porsche must be a POS that will cost them another $10K to get running?

[DWeg1998]

You might get more to pick from when you are looking in the Summer time. There are lots of Cali and warm weather owners, but not everyone is. When winter is over people will pull them out of storage with some looking to sell.

[Josh D]

You can't pick up a 911 focused or classic car mag that doesn't say the 911 SC is the classic to buy now as the prices will start to rise.
With the long hoods going for big bucks, the G50 3.2 Carrera and 993 prices already high, that leaves the mid's, SC, and 964's. The mid's have a bad rep for reliability and the 964's are considered soft, so that leaves the SC as next in line to go up in value.
I'm glad I got mine when I did, not so much as an investment, but that the buy in price was still reasonable.

[timchar]

Originally Posted by Josh D

You can't pick up a 911 focused or classic car mag that doesn't say the 911 SC is the classic to buy now as the prices will start to rise.
With the long hoods going for big bucks, the G50 3.2 Carrera and 993 prices already high, that leaves the mid's, SC, and 964's. The mid's have a bad rep for reliability and the 964's are considered soft, so that leaves the SC as next in line to go up in value.
I'm glad I got mine when I did, not so much as an investment, but that the buy in price was still reasonable.

Could you fill me in on the bad rep for reliability regarding the mid years? I'm very curious. Thanks, Tim

[Winter]

Originally Posted by DWeg1998

You might get more to pick from when you are looking in the Summer time. There are lots of Cali and warm weather owners, but not everyone is. When winter is over people will pull them out of storage with some looking to sell.

+1.

There is an ebb and flow to everything. For a while I was seeing a lot of middies for sale for less than 10k, some drivers in excellent condition, plenty of basket cases. Now there are none.

I know that the more experienced hands on this board will always say "patience, patience" when looking for the right car, and since I've learned a lot from them, I echo their advice.

I think also, that spring, summer and fall are better times to look, as once someone puts a car in storage for the winter, they could be less inclined to list it, pull it out of storage, and fire it up so a potential buyer (who many not buy) can check it out. Much easier to show a car when you're out driving it and the weather is good.

Good luck with your search. If I was to do things over again, I'd probably focus on the classifieds here and try to buy from a Pelican.

[TWOZTER]

Bought my 85 targa for $15.5 last May... Not sure if it's worth more now, but I don't see as many for sale out here in the pacNW as I did a year ago.... And I was looking for months.

[Racerbvd]

Originally Posted by Josh D

You can't pick up a 911 focused or classic car mag that doesn't say the 911 SC is the classic to buy now as the prices will start to rise.
With the long hoods going for big bucks, the G50 3.2 Carrera and 993 prices already high, that leaves the mid's, SC, and 964's. The mid's have a bad rep for reliability and the 964's are considered soft, so that leaves the SC as next in line to go up in value.
I'm glad I got mine when I did, not so much as an investment, but that the buy in price was still reasonable.

Well, the G50s & 993 haven't really ever dropped in value (a few short ones, but not as a whole) so can't really say they are high, as they never came down, unlike most Porsches built after 1998.. Only in recent years have the SC values dropped, part being how cheap early 996s are taking some of that first time buyers market (while those of us who get it, some think it is a better deal to spend $12K-$15K on a 996 over a 78 SC) and never in Porsches history have they produced a car that didn't hold value like the 996 on series (look at what a 2001 twin turbo cost new, starting at $114,000, and now, only 11 years later, they show up for sale in the high twenties, mid thirties{and a buddy bought a modded 2002 with 550HP for $28K, and it is a clean car} while 1987 930s sold for $58,750 new and a clean one still sells for more than a 2001, as a matter of fact, finding a clean 930 of any year under $30K is a challenge) and with so many cheap boxsters & 996s on the market, they have eaten into the would be SC buyers.. Me, I love my SC, both my Black 78 Coupe & 83 White Cab

Could you fill me in on the bad rep for reliability regarding the mid years? I'm very curious. Thanks, Tim

The 2.7s had head stud issues, but most of those had been fixed long ago, so chances are, they are no longer an issue, same with early 964s, as they leaked, Porsche recalled & dealers rebuilt the engines, many of those benefited from engine upgrades, as you only had to pay the difference in the cost of the parts (I had one, and it was much faster) so again, problem solved..

[BK911]

Not sure exactly what you are looking for, but here's a nice SC Targa in the classifieds now for $14.5/obo:

1981 Porsche 911sc Targa - $15K OBO

I would be all over it if I had room.

[McLovin]

Contrary to what our govt says, we have inflation, the $$ is getting worth less, so you'll need more dollars to buy the same 911 as a few years ago.

Once inflation really hits (which it will), it will take $20K to buy what was previously $10K for a 911.

In other words, the cars aren't becoming worth more, it's that the dollars used to buy it are becoming worth less.

[Vintage Racer]

Originally Posted by porwolf

I would say get one now. Who knows where the prices of good drivable older Porsches go with the new ones in the $100,000 plus range?

But 993s, 996s, and 997s are still depreciating in value. I see (mostly) no change in the earlier 911s in the last 3 years. (SCM database) So, I'd be patient.

Originally Posted by szyzygy

my car cost 15k in 1977. That was a third of the median home price. Today, that would be like a 69K vehicle today

Well..It seems to me that the U.S. median is $163.5K (1/3 is $54.5K).
http://www.realtor.org/wps/wcm/connect/210258804a1865779a1aff7f116f4bb7/REL11Q4T.pdf?MOD=AJPERES&CACHEID=210258804a1865779a1aff7f116f4bb7

Since a new 991 is approaching $100K, that makes a new 911 at about 60% the median?

[Matt Monson]

A year ago I paid $10k for a decent 120k mi 1985 3.2l Carrera with 915 gearbox. I immediately put another $5k of "get it back on it's feet" money into the car. I could have shaved $2500 in labor off that $5k if I had the time to work on my own car, but I don't have any wrenching time to spare from my schedule these days. It's still got a bad clear coat and is going to need paint. Over the last year I've had more than one person tell me I've got too much money into this car. Come talk to me in another year or two. I'm a believer in the old "they're all $20k cars" adage that gets thrown around so often...