I'm back in the Club - Here's my new 996

larry47us · 03:05 PM

I've been looking for a car to use as a DD for probably 6 months now. Started looking at a 964, graduated my thinking to a 993, and then I found this 996. It's a 2004, single owner 996 Targa in Dark Teal with a Savannah leather interior with only 25,000 miles. The car was at a Mercedes dealer in Houston Texas, and they had it listed on the internet. The PPI showed the car was flawless. OK, they found a number of paint chips. But when I got to the dealer, I looked, and couldn't find any chips. The car is beautiful.

The interior is Natural Brown Leather, with Rosewood and Aluminum trim. Includes Porsche crests in the headrests of the seats.

It's even got 18" Turbo Twist wheels.

I looked over the car as completely as I could. It looked NEW, except for the rosewood around the center console. It was badly smashed. I'll replace it with a leather covered one. The replacement part is $185. Not too bad. Looked in the trunk, and the toolkit was missing. I complained about it, and the sales manager said that "used cars come in missing all kinds of things. It's not our problem." But they told me that the car was complete. Spare tire, owners manual, toolkit. I wanted a toolkit. He said that they get 4 or 5 Porsches a month. He said that they would take the toolkit out of another car that comes in, and mail it to me. Success!!

I left the dealership at 7:00 PM to head north to Chicago. The car drives like a dream. The tranny shifts like butter, and the engine accelerates smoothly. It is FAST, comfortable, and FUN. I only spent 4 hours in it today. Now I am at a hotel, to spend a night dreaming about driving my new Porsche. Then I wake up in the morning, and live the dream.

Can't wait.

Larry

Paul K · Paul K's Garage

Glad you like it!

azasadny · azasadny's Garage

Larry,
Beautiful car! Congrats!!

Gerry van · Gerry van's Garage

Lifes too short grab it with both hands... nice one

Jim Richards · 09-25-2010, 04:15 AM

Congrats, Larry. How do you like the targa top? It sure looks good.

WIL84911 · WIL84911's Garage

Can't find the LIKE button... Sweet...

not_hans_stuck · 09-25-2010, 04:34 AM

I saw this car. It's gorgeous. Congratulations!

H

TerryBPP · 09-25-2010, 07:24 AM

Nice car! ....good luck getting that tool kit, lol.

jjwood · jjwood's Garage

Congrats & hope you enjoy it. I've been kicking around the idea of a Targa for a DD myself ('cept with a tip), How useful do you find that hatch back? Seems like a real cool feature.

5:04 · 09-25-2010, 10:20 AM

Congrats on the new beauty!
I hope you have a safe and uneventful trip home.

fryardds · fryardds's Garage

Hi Larry,

Sure isn't as bright as your last 911.

Congrats, on a very nice car. Should be fun.

If you're interested the midwest gang is getting together in Pentwater, MI for our Fall event in a couple of weeks. Now that you have a Porsche again you might want an excuse to drive up the coast of the Lake.

Jim Richards · 09-25-2010, 06:18 PM

Maybe Larry will get it painted like Kermit.

James Brown · James Brown's Garage

Great job Larry, most likely you won't need the tool kit but feels good to know it's there! great car!

efhughes3 · efhughes3's Garage

I'd probably ditch the wood anyway. Otherwise it looks nice.

wolf76 · wolf76's Garage

Beautiful car. The 996's always catch my eye as they seem to be such bargains. I for one like the styling as well. I hope the trip home is enjoyable.

Chris

gduke2010 · gduke2010's Garage

congrads, Larry. Sounds like a fun drive

dan79brooklyn · 09-26-2010, 04:10 AM

Sweeet, I like the looks of the 996 Targa a lot. I hope you enjoy it for a long time!

Targa Me · Targa Me's Garage

Beautiful car, congrats.

LakeCleElum · 09-26-2010, 07:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TerryBPP

Nice car! ....good luck getting that tool kit, lol.

He said that they would take the toolkit out of another car that comes in, and mail it to me. Success!!

Thinking the same thing Terry - From my experience, he will never hear from the sales guy again............

Nice car, but I miss Kermit!!!!!!!!!!!

larry47us · 09-26-2010, 07:21 AM

Thanks for all the nice comments. It was an 18 hour drive back. The car is nearly flawless. Once I fix the center console trim, I'll have a nearly perfect car!! I did find the toolkit. One of the guys on Rennlist gave me the details. I needed to pull the spare. Inside the back side of the spare is a styrofoam insert that holds the jack, jack handle and the toolkit. So the car is complete.

I LOVE the targa roof. For most of the drive, when the sun wasn't beating down, I pulled the cloth curtain back. The entire roof is then clear glass. It's bright, clean, and gives you a whole different feeling like you're open to the sky. I LOVE IT. I haven't had a chance to use the hatchback feature yet.

Brian - Yes, I would love to join the crew for the fall run. Let me know when it is, and I'll put it on my calendar. It will be good to get together with the guys again.

Jim -- Repaint the car Viper Green??

Not anytime soon. The Dark Teal looks really nice in the sun - with the metallic flakes sparkling.

I'd love to write more, but it has been nearly 12 hours since I have driven the car . . . . . . I'm suffering from withdrawal ALREADY!!

larry