Sell my 993 C2 to get a 996T. Should I?

[Maxilla993]

Never sell that 993! I have a 96 993. Hands down the best car ever made. I considered selling mine over 10 years. Never got the nerve. Drive 996. No way!!!! Keep it.

[Jascha]

A wonderful conversation instigation and catalyst for story telling but Elvis left the Zpelican Stadium-- the said 993 is for sale on AutoTrader for $54,500*

For my own edification*: *what constitutes a $24,000 engine rebuilt (?)

[dlstephenson]

I own a 996tt. It's fierce, frightening, and wonderful. It begs for throttle all the way through corners and springs out of them like a scalded dog. It makes clover leaf exits a joy. It has 130k miles doesn't leak, and was a daily diver for the first owner. That being said, it's sort of the red headed step child. Porsche fans hate the head lights, they aren't round, and most of the original turbo twist wheels get replaced for 19in variants as a lot of owners wanted something different. It was the prices that lead me to purchase it, and I would not go back. I really wanted a 80s SC but the 996tt was the same price so I took comfort, performance, and the bullet proof water cooled over traditional. Mine is a late 2002.

[mrjirey]

I spent several years looking for my last Porsche and am very happy I did. I love it and will keep it and am always excited to drive it di spite it being 25 years old. That being said, I have my eye not two other models that I woild love to add to my garage. The first is the 993 American Roadster and the second is a 993 Turbo 3.6. I never have been a big fan of the Turbo, with their high cost to get into and their high cost of maintenance, but I still feel every Porsche owner should experience one.

For my driving purposes, I have plenty enough power with a normaly aspirated car on the street, and if I'm on the track that is a very specialized car that I use for that purpose.

[tkb]

Don't sell your 993. In a mad moment, I sold my 993RS which I owned from new and used on dozens of track days. Alarm bells should have sounded when I was offered £5k more than I paid for it and that was with 24k miles on the clock. I couldn't buy it back today for less than £300k. I've been running a 996 Gemballa GTR, which is an amazing car with phenomenal performance, but I would swap it instantly for my old 993. I don't know about 993 production numbers for the US market, but in the UK they were low, so all 993s are appreciating, especially 993 turbos. I'm not an expert on Porsche prices. If I was, I wouldn't have sold my 959 for £80k. I bought it for £110k with 2k miles on the clock. I put another 18k miles on it (and I also used it on track days), so £80k seemed fair. See Pelican Parts: Stories from Our Readers. Anyway, back to this post. Repeat: do not sell it.

[wilsonlaidlaw]

I have had a lot of 911’s including a 996TT (modified to 540HP). There are only two 911’s which i felt were out to bite me and the 996 was one of those (the other was a 1972 Kremer 2.6RT, where T is titanium not turbo). I also felt that the steel brakes were not up to the job, in comparison to the Alpina B10V8S I had before the 996 and are not in the same league as the PCC brakes on my 997TT. The 993C2 is a lovely balanced car and an appreciating asset, if kept in perfect condition, which the OP’s looks to be. However I totally understand that after 10 years, the OP is looking for pastures new. My recommendation would be to squeeze the bank balance and go for a 997, which is a country mile better than the 996. The 997 is better suspended, the 4WD works better, it has far better brakes, the turbo lag is considerably less, the interior finish far better and it’s prettier to boot.

Wilson

[jakers02]

Understand desire but not worth it. I went from 997s to 997 turbo for same desire. Now driving 993s more fun and much happier.

[masraum]

It looks like Wayne's email generated some traffic on this thread.

I wonder what the OP ended up with. The last post that I see from the OP has him asking about the IMS bearing in a 997.

I recently got back into the Porsche world. Many years ago, I had an '88 911 targa. A couple of months ago, I was looking at newer 911s and Boxsters. I test drove an '01 996t. It was a great and capable machine, and very fast. It was also very boring. I was completely underwhelmed. In the end I went with a Boxster S with sport exhaust, sport chrono and PASM. The driving experience is much more engaging that the 996t.

[PoloTurbo]

I'm wondering about the same with my 930. I absolutely love the car but the maintenance is brutal and here in Quebec for just a few months a year it sits too much.
I already tried a 996tt and with a reflash and good suspension I would track a lot more with it.

[Roc Doc]

I think sports car ownership is very much about a time and a place. When I lived in Northern California I had easy access to all those great foothill roads, and loved driving my 911S Targa with the top off ripping through the gears. Then I moved to Las Vegas, and between the heat, the constant construction on the freeways, and a lack of good drivers roads, I gradually fell out of love with the car. On a good road it was like a big go-cart ('76 with 3.2l transplant), with the manual steering, manual brakes and classic Porsche handling, but driving it around town was just not that much fun, so I sold her (Elsa).

Now, a newer more modern car is looking a lot more appealing.

YRMV.

[LordVicious]

It's really all about intended usage. If your daily drive involves a bit of interstate and you enjoy a spirited drive then the 996tt is utterly intoxicating ... once you go this route you will not be able to go back. This car makes BIG POWER and is capable of using it (as long as the driver is.) On the other hand there is nothing more frustrating then driving a super car in traffic. If you are really looking for a go-cart (i.e. the connected experience) then get a miata. The air cooled machines are just not part of the modern driving equation anymore, the relentless march of technology has simply moved on

Now if you are talking about collectibility, cool-factor, hipster credit ... then it's 993 all the way baby, but thats a topic for another thread

[KobaltBlau]

The OP may be gone, but for those with a similar quandary:

Buy the car you're considering, drive both, keep the one you prefer. You won't lose much (sales tax might be the kicker if you end up keeping the original car), and you won't have regrets. If you don't have the credit to front this approach, well...

[geobed]

I am in the same dilemma. I have owned my 72 911s targa for 32 years and have been looking at something more practical ie: a 993. How come Porsche guys are never satisfied.

[Matt Monson]

Originally Posted by geobed

I am in the same dilemma. I have owned my 72 911s targa for 32 years and have been looking at something more practical ie: a 993. How come Porsche guys are never satisfied.

My usual response to a post like this would be to tell you that you are crazy. However I see a 356 in the background of your photo. Sell whichever one you enjoy less, and get the 993.

We do only live once. It's not in my signature yet, but I just bought my first water pumper. The later cars are still totally Porsches.

[pirahna]

Originally Posted by geobed

I am in the same dilemma. I have owned my 72 911s targa for 32 years and have been looking at something more practical ie: a 993. How come Porsche guys are never satisfied.

Drool!

Wanna trade?

[porschec2s]

I currently have a 1998 993c2s with Euro pkge., a 2002 996TT w/x50 & major mods outputting 710hp on 100 octane. I also have a 2007 GT3 for track & street.
I'm selling the 996, but that's because I don't need all 3 Porsches, and want to prioritize my money and efforts on tracking the GT3. The 996 is great for brute power & acceleration, and it's probably the biggest HP/torque bang for the buck.
I feel the 993 is the most attractive Porsche I own, but it's a matter of your preference. So, bottom line is HP or appearance. If you want a 996 with brute HP, let me know.

[triwave]

Originally Posted by plymouthcolt

My friend drives a 1986 Carrera and he said my 993 was to computerized and "soft"-everyone will have their own opinion. You never know what life may hand you so buy and enjoy what you like and don't think: oh man I would've made a bundle of money if i kept it.

The 993 in question here looks like a beautiful car - I'd hang on to it!

@plymouthcolt I sold my beautiful and fast '86 911 about a year ago and updated myself to a 997.1 with a functioning A/C system and a clean garage floor.

2 Points to make about that:

1) I looked at 996TT and almost bought one, but outside of the straight line performance did not like very much how the all wheel drive system felt (remember my reference point) ; also learned maintenance was $$ ; also kept finding tiptronic and not manual ; really disliked the feel of the tip and in auto mode it was blah... always starting in 2nd and slow to downshift. [ no offense to 996TT owners, please don't flame me, just my opinion ... to each his own]

2) I like my 997, but I don't love it like my '86 which was a labor of love 10 years long. It's more modern, faster, and I can drive it on a 110 degree Arizona day, but it doesn't have the feel of an older car. It also doesn't have as distinctive a look as an '86 with factory spoilers and splitter and a gorgeous Garnett Red metallic paint job (original and looking great 25+ years old) .

If I had my choice I would have kept the '86 and bought the '06 for a daily driver.

Food for thought....

Originally Posted by triwave

The 993 in question here looks like a beautiful car - I'd hang on to it!

@plymouthcolt I sold my beautiful and fast '86 911 about a year ago and updated myself to a 997.1 with a functioning A/C system and a clean garage floor.

2 Points to make about that:

1) I looked at 996TT and almost bought one, but outside of the straight line performance did not like very much how the all wheel drive system felt (remember my reference point) ; also learned maintenance was $$ ; also kept finding tiptronic and not manual ; really disliked the feel of the tip and in auto mode it was blah... always starting in 2nd and slow to downshift. [ no offense to 996TT owners, please don't flame me, just my opinion ... to each his own]

2) I like my 997, but I don't love it like my '86 which was a labor of love 10 years long. It's more modern, faster, and I can drive it on a 110 degree Arizona day, but it doesn't have the feel of an older car. It also doesn't have as distinctive a look as an '86 with factory spoilers and splitter and a gorgeous Garnett Red metallic paint job (original and looking great 25+ years old) .

If I had my choice I would have kept the '86 and bought the '06 for a daily driver.

Food for thought....

That's me, triwave. I sold my purchased-new 2006 Cayman S and replaced it with an 88 911. Never missed the Cayman, even though objectively it was the best car I've ever driven. To me, though, it just had no soul. Missed the 911 immediately after I sold it and had to buy my 87.

I, like you, mean no offense to people who like the newer cars. Some guys like busty brunettes, some like slender red heads, and some like leggy blondes.

Terry

[Ryan Rehkopf]

So...we have come to the conclusion that the OP is gone? I sent an email and PM. If you're out there CMeSpeed, I'd be interested in a trade

[simon.marsh@xtr]

Just go and drive a 996tt, that's what made up my mind.
When I was 25, yep I could go with a car nearly 30 years old and I've loved every minute in a variety of 911's. I love the cars so much I could see no reason to molly coddle them, they were built to drive and I did every day.
Now the knees are more creaky and I look forward to something more comfortable my 2004 996tt is the best Porsche bargain there is. An awesome car its quick, it goes round corners, I sneak looks at it coz its a lovely car (pimped with guards red wheels and 997 RS chequer side graphics), the aircon works and the turbo roar as you get rammed back into your seat is something every kid should enjoy.