Which 911 can I get for 10-12K? Please help!!

[Andrew Luu]

Hello everybody,
I have a little problem in getting my first Porsche and I asking for all your help. Originally, I have 14K to spare and something has come up, and now it is down to 11K. The question is, which newest 911 can I get for 11K?. I like to used it for street, daily driving. thank you all so much for your help. God Bless. Andy.

[orbmedia]

Look for a good value on a 911 SC, '78-'83. Maybe you can find one with higher mileage or in need of cosmetics for that money.

[fred hannah]

you can have mine for 9000.00. its a 1970 911 t 2.2 with webber carbs. its getting a new (respray) paint job in a few weeks and will be for sale after the paint. email me if your interested at fha8337671@aol.i live in n.c if that matters.

[Jdub]

Reserve 9K for the purchase of an SC, including a reserve of $300.00-$500.00 for PPIs.

The last $1,500.00 or so is to fix all that is found to be wrong or needs to be updated. The SC you are looking for should ideally have:
= Carrera chain tensioners
= Airbox popoff valve
= NO broken studs (critical)
= Minimal rust around battery
= Proper warmup and run characteristics

Bonus:
= Updated sump and oil pressure springs (early SCs)
= Rebuilt Targa top, as applicable
= No-sunroof coupe; quite desireable
= Carrera valve covers
= 16" FUCHS
= New battery and alternator
= H4s

Now is the time to look. Economy down, winter is here so wife's/? car must now take Pcars garage space, etc.

That's all I can think of. There was a post about what upgrades we'd like to see in the car we purchased; maybe another member can find this post?

Also, many will say that $9K won't get you much of an SC. I am here to tell you that, if you have patience, you will find many.

Good luck and happy hunting; this is the most fun of all!

Jw

[pbs911]

Do you paln on doing any work on the car yourself, or have a wrech do any required work? This should make a difference in the car you purchase.
I paid 10K for my 78SC Targa almost three years ago. The motor and tranny had received a full rebuilt and had only 35K on at the time of purchase.
Since the purchase I put a 5K paint job on, replaced the interior (including Monaco RS seats) stereo, torsion bars, suspension bushings, adjustable swing plates, I rebuilt the brake calipers, new cross-drilled rotors, TTRod ends, four wheel alignment, corner balance, and other small items due to ordinary wear and tear and just plain wearing out on a 23 year old car.
While the initial cost was low, I have probably put another 8K into the car. And that is with me doing all the labor except for the alignment and corner balance.
Now, I'm going with Brembo 4 caliper brakes, need 17" wheel to house them in, and will be going to either a Paxton supercharger on the 3.0, or putting in a 3.6, depending on whether ethenal will be added to CA gas. (CIS on ethenal scares me.) Add another 7K to the original purchase price after I recoup some of the costs from the 3.0, SC brakes and Fuchs
Cut costs in the purchase and you most likely spend more money to get the car as you like. Like others, I find there seems to be no end to the modifications you'll want to make.
To paraphrase Bruce Anderson, "Buy the newest P-car you can afford."


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Paul
78SC Targa

[Jack Olsen]

10K 911 + daily driver = high risk

The difference between a 10K used Porsche and a 25K used Porsche will generally have less to do with performance and refinement, and a lot more to do with the reliability of the older components. The lower initial expense is like a leveraged bet -- the potential downside (liklihood of needed repairs) is much greater. If the difference between 13K and 10K is significant for you, and you're going to need to rely on this car to get you to and from work, then I'd respectfully suggest you look into maybe leasing a newer, non-Porsche until you're able to sock some more cash away.

Porsches are notoriously reliable, but that's in comparison to cars of similar ages -- which most people would never consider buying (25-year-old Toyota, anyone?). Porsches can also be very expensive to maintain and repair. If you're able to do your own work, this becomes less of an issue. But if you need to have the car up and running by Monday morning, this can get pretty crazy.

I think it's great to want a 911, of course. But I think it's a dangerous car to buy if you're in a position where another $2,000 in repairs would be suddenly unmanageable.

I don't know your financial situation, of course, but I thought I'd throw in one voice of caution.

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Jack Olsen
My Rennlist page • My Pelican Gallery page • My Porsche Owners Gallery page

[This message has been edited by JackOlsen (edited 10-04-2001).]

[Andrew Luu]

Thanks everyone for your advice. I am going to work on the Porsche myself (ordered Wayne's book two weeks ago) and since I have a 91 prelude 2.0Si which run very strong, I will use the Porsche for the weekend drives. I am currently looking having an interest in the 83sc below which does not have very good background record. They are asking $12K. I have not checked it out yet, but what do you all think?.
http://wwwheels.com/cfapps/ascar.cfm?ID=1602772
Thanks again. God Bless. Andrew

[davis911s]

Looks nice. Be careful around the bra area, they can hide chips but also cause the paint to fade differently, so it looks dumb when it comes off. Also I don't know what year the updates were done, but ensure it has hydraulic tensioners. Also try to get all of the previous service records, and lastly ensure a PPI is done if you get real interested.

Most important, don't jump at the first 911 you see, there are lots around especially in the US. I bought the first one I looked at, and although I love it and will never part with it, I should have looked around and studied more.

Good Luck

Shawn

[cegerer]

I think BA's advice is 'buy the newest P-car in the best condition you can afford.' For 10-12K, you are probably looking at an SC that needs work. One in truly good condition will be more. You might want to look at a pre-74 lightweight car that has already been re-done and still sells for under $12K - they're more fun to drive too!

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1971 911T - 2.5L Big Bore

[machintek]

Do some homework. I found my dream 83 911SC Cab/Euro at a U S Marshall auction. It has 60K miles, steel wide body, 17 inch Etolie wheels, killer stereo, wood dash, H4s, 204HP, and runs GREAT. I paid $12,100.00 for it. Yes I have the DOT and EPA compliance letters. Look at it in the picture files under machintek. Good luck.

George

[Superman]

We seem to be frequently chatting about Carrera problems and early car problems, but we don't seem to be chatting about SC problems that much. With the exception of broken head studs. Besides the head stud thing we seem to be mostly talking about parts that should be replaced at that age.

Sure, cars that are 18-23 years old have old shocks, old rubber suspension pieces, old shift bushings, old distributor bushings, etc. But this should be expected.

I'm going to suggest the SC. For sure. Shop smart and shop long. The difference between a poor deal and a good deal could be $2000 or $3000 dollars easily. The difference between a BAD deal and a GREAT deal could be $8000 or more. This is money you could pay out over the next two years in repairs and maintenance.

A really good deal would be a $10,000 late SC in such excellent shape that repairs and maintenance over the next two years would be $1500.

Absolutely DO NOT buy one without first getting a professional pre-purchase inspection that verifies the heads studs are intact.

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'83 SC



[This message has been edited by Superman (edited 10-04-2001).]

[Reg]

I second that for the PPI.

I did not have this done, and allthough I love this car I have found out a few things that I could have been told prior to purchase that could have been used either for bargaining, or as a reason to move on to the next car.

Thing was I wasnt shopping as the car just came up by chance so as it stands, it will be longer untill she is sorted but I am just now learning more along the way. Hopefully it is not too expensive!

After reading the article on Randy Wells in Novembers Excellence I am very happy with the car I ended up with as it has plenty of potential even if not quite potent(yet)!

Good luck!

[falcon]

Andy,

Assuming you have just 11K to spend, you may want to think about hidden costs

Each state has a sales tax. In CA its around 8.5%. On a 11K purchase the tax would be $935. Jdub mentioned 1.5K in fix it monies and 300-500 for PPI, which is realistic. There's also the state License fee around $300. First tank of gas is $30 :-) As you can see conservatively (sp?) the cost without a car leaves you with $7935 (11000-3065). This is the realistic number you should be using to calculate your purchase.

I'm not here kill your dream, merely stating the reality of owning a porsche. May I suggest you wait until spring of next year in which more cars may be available and at the same time you can accumulate more monies. I too believe you should buy the best pcar you can afford. Waiting is not really a punishment, the fun is in the hunt.
Good luck in your search.

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Randall
'88 911 Cab

My suggestion is the same as one of the other posts which is to use the Prelude as the daily driver and find a pre 74 - no A/C, no sunroof, manual windows, 2.7 RS spec motor, or E or S- for the weekend blast.


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Carlo
http://bigblue111c.tripod.com/dec2000/