The original question is not whether a PPI is a good idea. He asked HOW do you make it happen.

In my limited experience, the seller has to be willing to cooperate (as in no other offers) and you have to be a serious buyer.

The best way to know if you seriously want that 911 is to look at lots of 911s -- read lots of books -- and when you show up, decide if the car is in the zone of acceptable. Then make an offer dependent on passing a PPI and if the seller refuses, then move on.

If it costs you $500+ to tow it/inspect it, that is money well spent to save $5,000 in repairs you are not ready to pay. Consider spending that money as a taste of things to come -- cause owning a 911 is a costly hobby.
Good luck, most people don't regret it.
SCOTT

Most cars are unregistered. Most are being sold by flippers.

I agree that a low priced car will sell within a week, so you gotta move.
A car priced about $25k is going to sit longer, and can have a PPI arranged.

No need to sell me on a PPI. I am trying to make one happen, not justify it.
I have basic DIY skills, but have zero experience with 911s.
Spending $500 on a PPI to avoid a $25k money pit disaster is a no-brainer for me.

PML,
Happy to go look at a car with you anytime.
Nick

As others have asked - Where do you live? When I was shopping 2 years ago, there were numerous cars here in Oregon within easy driving range, all were registered. None were offered by flippers. All of the sellers I talked with in person were willing to work with me on PPI.

I will admit that a quick search today of the same sources I used when I found my car did not find nearly as many cars as I found 2 years back, and all of them seem considerably higher priced than they were back then. Maybe things have changed in two years.

Simple. You're looking in the wrong place at the wrong price point.
If all the cars you have looked at are being sold by people looking to make some quick cash it's because the car has been sold to a flipper because the P.O knew it needed money spent to fix it. They sell it to a flipper cheap who gives it a quick clean up but no money is spent to fix the real problems the car has.

Cheap cars are cheap for a reason. There is a running joke on another forum I'm on..

Some good thoughts here. As far as making the PPI happen, I would say:

1. As soon as you identify a car, get the local PPI shop lined up. Call the shop ahead of time.

2. Put it on the buyer - part of the deal requires them getting the car to the PPI. if they can't do that, just move on.

3. Be patient. This is the best car buying advice there is. I am amazed how often stuff I have looked at buying: cars, motorcycles, houses, boats, etc that seemed like they were about to disappear off the market if I didn't buy that day were still there for weeks and even months later. They made a lot of 911s. Another one will come along.

I've read a lot of threads on this forum, and I've seen this quote many times, but the number used has usually been $20k, $25k, or more recently 30k.
And I totally agree with this. I'd much rather pay more up front for a better car. It's cheaper in the long run.
But, $50k might be where I draw the line. At that price point, I'd rather buy a true collector's 60's muscle or a modern sports car like the 997.

I'm looking on Pelican, CL, and Ebay.

I agree with the flipper issue, and that is exactly why I will not buy from one.
The PO sold it cheap enough to make it worth the flipper's while.
So, with a flipper, either you're going to grossly overpay (if he paid market)
or, if it's priced fairly, he got it for a steal (for a good reason)

I have only run into a couple cars being sold by flippers. Most are private owners and more than happy to PPI if you are serious. I have been seriously shopping for about 2-3 months

Yes, absolutely. Especially for a car that I don't really even need.
I am simply taking my time, watching ads, trying to learn about 911's, and asking some "dumb" questions.

A car being sold by a flipper is a seller who has a vested interest in keeping problems hidden. He is not going to be interested in allowing you get a PPI when he can wait on an uninformed sucker to come by his turd.

That said, I tend to disagree with the statement that most cars being sold are being sold by flippers. Maybe if eBay and Craigslist are where you shop that is true, but there are a ton of other resources out there to find cars. There's this cool place called pelican parts that is one of them.

And visit our Marketplace forum where we discuss specific cars and values. You will see the flippers called out and the good guys (some of them value added resellers like Techweenie) pointed out.

If any seller refuses me a request at a PPI, which is general accompanied by a $1000 deposit by check, then I'm gonna move on. He's hiding something.

If I were looking for a good 911, I wouldn't bother with Craigslist or eBay. I'd look on Pelican, Rennlist, the PCA web site, the Excellence magazine web site, the web sites of independent dealers that specialize in Porsches and I'd probably search newspaper and other listings with a site like cars.com.

JR

I was told in another thread so avoid PCA classifieds since the cars are grossly overpriced by overzealous owners. Since you have to pay, it wasn't a hard sell to look elsewhere. I'm not interested in a $45k car with 20k miles. How much does it cost to read the PCA classifieds? Can anyone verify if that's a place to buy a reasonably priced car? It feels silly to join PCA just to read classifieds.

Is an indep. dealer the same as a flipper?
Flip one car, you're a sleazy flipper.
Flip 20 cars, and you're a respected dealer?
The dynamics are the same, no? Both get the car for cheap, for a reason.
If they paid market, you won't be. Seems like not an ideal place to buy from.
People are told to avoid flippers, but should you also avoid dealers like "Bob's Motorsport"?

Not bothering with CL would be a huge mistake. I can see skipping ebay though. Pelican/Rennlist/Autotrader/Cars.com are all good spots too

There are a lot of people on this forum that hate the PCA, so take their comments with a grain of salt. There are some nice cars sold by PCA members. I wouldn't dismiss it as a source. The cost of joining is less than a half tank of gas. If you don't want to pony up for that, stop by a decent Porsche shop once a month. Lots of their owners are PCA members and they often have free issues of Panorama laying around.

As for the "overpriced" cars, there will always be some of those. Having said that, the official "opinion" of 911 values held by a large number of Pelican members has been well behind the appreciation curve of these cars. I think these guys are now getting a wake-up call (see the current thread on SC and Carrera values). You have to decide what is the right price for you. Personally, I don't buy the best deal I can find, I buy the best car. Cheaper in the long run...


Not even close. One sells cars for a living and the other is a scumbag.

I'm talking about the good dealers, the ones that vet the cars they buy and know them well. Yes, they buy them at less than retail and the guys they buy them from know this. Business 101. Having said that, they can often get more money for a car if you're on the selling end, as they have a short list of guys looking for a car. The really good cars never see the market.

Here's a few sources compiled by someone else:

Porsche For Sale Links

Look, it's simple.

1. If the seller will not agree to a PPI for ANY reason, walk away. If the shop is an hour away, too bad for him. He has to realize it's going to make it harder for him to sell.

2. Except in extreme cases, the purpose of a PPI is to determine how much, if any, should be marked down off of the ALREADY NEGOTIATED PRICE. You do not pay for a PPI until you and the seller have agreed on a price first, and you agree that if anything significant is found that the price can be renegotiated. If the shop says it needs a $10k engine overhaul, then ask if the seller will take $10k less. If he says no, walk away. If the shop says it needs $500 for this or that, then just knock off $500 from your agreed price and write him the check. The point is, you do not get a PPI until you have decided you want the car and agreed on a price.

3. If you can't drive the car, or if the seller won't let you, walk away.

4. Ebay is a horrible place to either buy or sell a car. Forget that idea right away. Craigslist is okay, but only if the car is local and you can see it in person. Just because an ebay auction ends with a winner doesn't mean the car actually gets paid for. A huge portion of those end up as non-paying bidders. Look on Pelican, Rennlist, PCA, Autotrader and Cars.com.

5. If a particular car has a boatload of people fighting over it, the seller isn't going to make things easy for you and you are not going to get a good deal on it. Give the seller your name and number, and tell him to call you if he doesn't sell it to one of the fools that are bidding it up.

6. Under NO circumstances rush into buying a car because you're afraid someone else will buy it if you don't move fast. That's a great way to make a very expensive mistake.

7. Javadog is correct, good, original cars are getting scarce and the prices have risen dramatically for them. The market is full of cars that are modded, high mileage, or have a list of issues and those are the ones that go for prices in the teens. Pay a good price for a good car and your ownership experience will be positive. Buy a bargain car and you'll likely regret it.

Complete nonsense. PCA owners are enthusiasts and you'll have a good chance of finding a good car from one of them. Asking prices are not selling prices!

Why does Pelican hate PCA?
I sort of assumed it was the same people.

Great advice about avoiding a bad car.
Lots of great advice in this thread.
Thanks for sharing your wisdom.

I had several ppi's on 993's before I finally found the right one. The first car needed a top end rebuild at 91k miles.
2nd car had mickey mouse work done on it. Last one had a top end at 69k which I bought below market value.

I found my 993 on pelican.