993 as an everyday driver

[AUS911SC3]

I'm just about to trade in my 2009 a4 Audi (everyday car). As such considering a 94 tipt. 993 as my daily drive however I'm concerned about ongoing Maintanence, longevity, reasonable practicality etc. Has anybody had/ have a 993 as daily driver. Love to hear your thoughts

[Schwarzeritter]

To be honest, it depends on the individual car. I have seen well sorted cars with very high milage and they look mint and operate fantastic, then I have seen low milage pigs. As with most things, be sure to keep up on services. Besure to check your fluids and I prefer to service my oil a little sooner then most do. Then again where I reside it in summer can reach 120deg F.

[993PorschePower]

I've had my car for 9 years now and as a dd. It has over 200k miles on it and still runs like a champ.



Ken

[TMc993]

I have used my '97 coupe with 6 speed as a daily driver for year-round for four years, but I have a completely rural commute with no traffic and only two traffic signals. I also have a pick-up for use during the few nasty winter weather days we get each year. The car is perfect for where I drive and how I use it, but given the barely adequate AC and 6 speed, I wouldn't want to have to use it as a DD in heavy commuter traffic....YRMV

Terry

[Sitparan]

I think if you keep up maintenance a 993 will go strong a dd. The build quality on them is much higher than modern cars that are almost designed as disposable..your Audi is more likey to end up at a wreckers within 10 years compared to your 993.
The only things to bear in mind are:
1. Not going to be as comfortable as Audi
2.harder to drive in traffic
3. More expensive wear and tear items .. Notably Tyres, brakes etc plus the engine oil leaks that need attending to in air cooled porsches
4. And lastly it is over 15 years old so some parts will need age based replacement

[Kraftday]

Yes, great daily driver. There is a reason they are over double the value of most newer 996 and Boxsters. Probably cheaper to maintain than most newer Mercedes too. I have one for sale that is tops if you are interested. My other daily driver is a 99 BMW M3. Beat up on those A4s all the time!

[Sitparan]

I just don't like Audi's. Something lacking in them. Maybe soul...
What you are likely to find is the 993 will cost a tad more to maintain and be a little less practical ... But will be a more captivating / involving drive and depreciate a lot less than the Audi as a percentage of value...

[Anchor]

I purchased a used 993 about 4 years back with 37K orig mile. I drive it everyday and now have 92K. The car has been bulletproof. I live in the Palm Springs area so it is used in some very hot weather and driven fairly hard. During this time frame I did have to replace the evaporator cooler (AC) but besides that nothing but very minor items. . I would recommend a 993 for a everyday driver.

[axl911]

My 993 has been my daily driver for 5 years now. Before that, my 964 has was mostly my daily driver for 4 years. I live in Texas big cities with both cars so they get to see some pretty harsh daily driving environment.

That said, both cars are EXTREMELY reliable. Never let me down or failed to perform under any condition whether it's snowing or 110 degrees heat in rush hour.

However, you HAVE to have some mechanical & electrical abiilty to keep up with them. You'll also have to spend hours reading this forum to learn the mechanical of these cars. Otherwise, they can cost plenty to bring into a shop that doesn't know anything about these cars. For example, a problem I had is air blowing into the cabin for heat & AC. A shop would spend hours chasing down the problem at $110/hour. Instead, I spent hours searching this list and understanding the HVAC system. In the end, narrowed it down to an intermitten servo...found one on ebay for $50.

They're reliable, but you have to have the skill or the $$$ to drive these cars daily.

[axl911]

To answer your question on:

1. Maintenance - It'll probably be less than the Audi since there is not much to do for the 993 (vs older 911). I hate that BMW and Audi maintenace jobs are $2000 for mostly check this and check that.

2. Longevity - Depending on the car. Forever or $$$$ if you run into the dreaded 96+OBD2 or valve guide issue which requires a rebuild. As for electronics, hvacs, etc. they will fail simply because of the age of the car.

3. Practicality - zip, none, nil, zilch. Can't carry much in the font trunk b/c it's not a flat surface and you don't want things bouncing in there. Ever lift up the trunk carpet and see how many electrical, hydraulic systems under there? Rear seat...what rear seat? When you have a 993, you won't drive it like a Camry. Stuff you normally put in the car or trunk WILL go flying all over the place!!!!

[wolf76]

As many have said here it is definitely doable. I don't daily my 993 but it sees 3 trips a week to work and back (about 40 miles) weather permitting. It is a very comfortable car IMO.

Chris

[1986 930]

I drove a 1987 930 for 5 years and a 1991 964 for 11 years after that. I found both very reliable after I sorted out the previous owners issues. The 930 was particularly reliable. After the first 6 months, oil, gas, and valve adjustments and a few oil leaks. I budgeted around $2000 per year for service and tires. You will probably go through rear tires every 15k miles and fronts might get 30k miles. I tend to do 1-60mph runs vs. 0-60mph runs to preserve clutches and tires and still have fun. I got 70k miles out of the clutch on the 930 before I sold it and 80k miles before I replaced the 964 clutch because I had the engine out for a rebuild to treat oil leaks. They were both strong when I parted with them.

Oil lines, seals, O-Rings, and the plastic rings that the injectors sit on are over 10 to 15 years old and will leak after you start driving daily. Expect it. Budget $4k to $5k to put it in the shop to sort those things out or less if you are handy with a wrench. Once you go through that stuff, it should be as reliable as a Honda.

The service on the 993 should be less since you do not have to adjust valves. I am not aware of too many big issues with the 993s. I am not familiar with the problems that might go with the tiptronic tranny.

I would say the Porsche is as practical as the Audi. Two of us could travel cross country with everything we wanted to take in the Porsche.

Porsches are a lot like the other German cars in that if you drive it once, you kind of wonder what the big deal is. Once you get aquainted with the machine, you will be addicted!

If I were looking at a 993, I would like to see between 50k-80k miles on it spread evenly over its life. Look at the maint reciepts to see how often the car was driven over the years. The more consistent driving will have kept the seals on the engine and AC systems lubed and hopefully limit the leaks you will experience when you start driving it daily. For a daily driver, I prefer coupe to convertible and not have to mess with tops and leaks down the road.

Good Luck,

Mark

[aigel]

I have had good luck using mine as a daily car, including a long distance commute I did for a while. It is a great interstate car - set the cruise at the speed cops won't bug you and just relax. I have 140k miles now and it is the first time it needed serious work under my ownership with a transmission rebuild (for a noisy differential).

I wold budget $3-5k/year for repairs, tires, brakes and upkeep, the lower number being a DIY and the higher number a shop service ballpark. If you calculate less than that, you aren't honest or the car will go unserviced.

George

[Android356]

I've had my 98 C2S since new, and put about 21k the first year. After that had a series of Audi's (second best car) and the 993 got marginal use. But after almost 13 years and about 50K in miles its been trouble free except the following:

Steering rack - $1600 started leaking like a pig, probably from sitting too much.
AC switch fast control went bad. Just turn the knob all the way up instead.
Other than that it's been trouble free and a joy to drive.

I have done the following mods for fun: Bilsteins and H&R springs with a track alignment. Fabspeed muffs, RS cams, GIAC program, Magnecore wires, BMC airfilter and some Padgid blacks for pads. Other than that its fun and so far still reliable.

Audi: My '07 S8 with the Lambo V10 was one I regret getting rid of. Really was a treat to drive all the time - but back to driving the C2S for DD. Selling the wife's gas hog Q7 4.2 and have a new A3 TDI coming to replace it. Needless to say she's not to happy about downsizing - but hey at least she doesn't have to go to the pump every week.

[ACar]

I've had my 97 993 for about 11 years now and have put 150,000 miles on it as a daily driver.

It always puts a smile on my face and has given me no troubles at all.

[Jim Richards]

Hi AUS911SC3,

I had a '95 993 that I used as a DD for a few years. I really enjoyed driving it every day. Some days a bit less due to lots of stop-and-go traffic where my left leg got quite a work out operating the clutch. But, that was no worse than any other car with a manual gearbox. I say go for it!