Buying a 1992 Carrera 2 - Any thoughts??

[hhazrati]

I have been P-car deprived for 5 months now. Sold a 1983 SC Cab with 930 S Slant Nose widebody. Too flashy, couldn't DE with it. I think the 993 is the ultimate, but would have to "settle" for a 964 for now. Going to look at a nice one I saw on Ebay. I will not buy from Ebay but negotiate after the auction is over (it won't sell). How much do you think it is worth? What are the main trouble points with a late 964. Would it make a good part-time track car / daily driver. Ebay Item #596935508 (could someone please convert this to Blue URL Address, I can't do it)
Thanks.
Lewis

[orbmedia]

That car is Tiptronic. I don't think you'll like it for track driving.

[hhazrati]

Tiptronic not good for track?? I would only have 2-3 DEs and maybe 2-3 autoX a year. I have seen a Supercharged AUTOMATIC 928S at our DE's that does very well in his group. The triptronic is actually a good selling point for me as a daily driver. Also the wife can climb DOWN from her SUV and enjoy the Porsche once in a while.
Does the Triptronic diminish the value of a 911??

[Drew_K]

For that particular 964, I would investigate whether it has the updated Luk dual mass flywheel. If the engine number is beyond 62N01738, then it should have the Luk. Or perhaps the prior owner has had to change it out.

Also check whether the distributor has the vent kit, which is a white tube from the distributor. If the vent kit has been installed for the majority of the car's life, great. If not, I would have the distributor belt replaced. $400 by the dealer or you can send it off to Steve at Rennsport in Oregon for about $150. It's possible the belt is broken already b/c the car will still run on the one set of plugs.

Here's one more thing to check which has plagued a few 964 owners- oscillating idle after a warm restart. After you test drive a 964, chat with the owner or whatever for at least 15 minutes. Then go back and restart the car to see if the idle is steady. It it isn't, it could be a number of things, all of which are easy and cheap to fix, but it can be difficult to pinpoint the source of the problem.

I have a 92 C2 that had his problem. Turns out it was a bad transmission ground strap ($15) and old battery. Now my car runs very smoothly.

Check to make sure air is blowing from ALL of the air vents. The servos can fail and are a pain to replace. One of mine is out but I just live with it.

I noticed the chin spoiler is bent upwards a bit.

With the engine off but key in ignition, put the rear spoiler up and down and listen for any grinding or strange noises.

Smell the trunk area for fuel. The gas tank filler neck can be a source of leaks. Not expensive to fix.

Other than those items, I can't think of anything else other than the typical things (PPI, prior accidents, etc.).

[Drew_K]

From what I've seen, the tiptronic doesn't really affect the value, but it will make the car harder to sell since most people want the manual.

[hhazrati]

Thanks Drew. Some great pointers. Will check on everything you stated. What is a good price for this low mileage '92??

[Sportsman]

depending on condition and miles

high 20's or low 30's

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Daryl Planter 91C2
Targa

[ebradway]

Why is every Porsche listed by a dealer considered 'rare'? This one is a 'rare' speed yellow with black interior.

Someone needs to make real definitions as to what constitutes rare and find some way to enforce it.

-Eric 'Rare' '86 Targa

[orbmedia]

The tiptronics in the 996 and twin turbo with PSM can rival a manual on the racetrack but the older tips were not as sophisticated and hence your laptimes will not be as fast as a guy with a manual gearbox. This may not matter to you.

As for the resale value, tip is always lower than manual by a few grand. Good for buying not good for selling.

[Drew_K]

Orb may have a better grasp of the tiptronic's affect on value. However, assuming the tip doesn't have any effect, I think Daryl's estimate is pretty accurate: high 20's to low 30's assuming the car is mechanically sound, has receipts, no accidents, and doesn't have any major blemishes. If that is the case, I think $30K is a fair price, $33K is too much, and $27K is a very good deal. Subtract $1K from these numbers if the car doesn't have the Luk flywheel. Just my opinion based on For Sale ads and the price I paid for my 92 C2 with 36K miles last year.

[BRAINIAC]

Drew, I don't think he needs to worry about a dual-mass flywheel on a Tiptronic!!!!

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Tyson Schmidt
72 911 Cabriolet
92 C-2 Cabriolet

[Drew_K]

Ah, the Brain speaks the truth! DUH, no flywheel on an automatic. I guess the combination of tiptronic and 911 does not compute for me since most of them are manuals.

[firecall999]

Im told the Tip' has some advantages for the casual or beginer on track days.

Firstly its impossible to miss a shift and over rev the engine.
Also you can concentrate on driving the track and learning the correct line. Which may make the day more enjoyable, especialy if you only drive a couple of track days a year.

I've never driven a Tip' but Im told the new ones are vastly superior to the one in the 964. So I'd prob avoid the early ones.

In fact I'd avoid all Tiptronic and auto boxes. The only excuse for one is the lack of a left leg.

If you are a fully optioned bi-ped, then be a man and get a manual!

Alex.

[broseed]

here is the URL:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=596935508



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Dylan Essner
1981 SC
PCA - GGR

[Jack Olsen]

My memory is fuzzy on this (because I chopped the pump off), but weren't there also some power steering pump issues to watch for on the 964?

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

[Britwrench]

This is no more or less likely to suffer form the usual 964 problems. It's obviously been optioned for cruising, therefore had most of it's running at low speeds in traffic; so it's run hot for 9 years..you think it might start leaking oil when driven hard? It's a cruiser not a track day car.

[kr911]

I also noticed that the wheels are not the orginal 16" or 17" factory Cups. The rims are off '95-'97 993 or cheap aftermakets.

Good place to find more info on 964s is the "Group for owners and enthusiasts of the best 911 ever " at :
http://www.smartgroups.com/groups/964porsche

One more thing. There are few poeple who may want to buy a yellow tiptronic...

[rdvnac]

Gee, I wish all these guys selling tips so much cheaper than 5 speeds were around during the 5 months I spent looking for my car last year! ;-)

Seriously, I think there may be some regional variances that come into play, because in the Midwest, tips were the same $$ or more than comparable 5 speeds when I was looking.

Re the performance of the tip, yes the newest ones have phenomenal performance but that doesn't mean the old ones were bad. They are definitely NOT the average AT. I came to the tip decision with great reluctance (joint disease has turned my left ankle and knee into purely cosmetic appendages at this point) but when driven properly (i.e., shifted manually) a tip gives up very little to a stick, IMHO. The instant, perfect downshifts are particularly nice.

Check out Bruce Anderson's section on tips in his Performance Handbook, where he states that the tiptronic's only problem is not performance, it's "being able to defend them in macho conversations." Pretty funny when you think about it....

Re the track, search the rennlist archives; there were several testimonials a few months back, including a post from a guy whose 964 tiptronic consistently turned the fastest lap times at a DE.

HTH and good luck. There are a lot of good 964s out there if you are patient.

[This message has been edited by rdvnac (edited 10-25-2001).]

[cim]

cool site kr911.....like www.rsamerica.net can't say www.ebay.com is the best place to buy a car

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www.angelfire.com/va3/vw



[This message has been edited by cim (edited 10-25-2001).]