In the market for a 996/997.

[pochejp]

Hello guys i'm new to the forum. My name is Jason and I live in south Louisiana near Baton Rouge. I'll be in the market in the next six months or so for a decent 996/997 model 911 coupe. 6 speed standard trans is what I will buy, no exceptions. I don't want a convertible but would like a sunroof. Color is not a big issue. My budget is $30K MAX. Thats complete top end I can spend so i'm hoping I can get a nice one for that kind of price range. I've wanted one all my life and my kids will all be out of the house soon and on to their lives so its my turn to enjoy.

I am a machinist by trade so I plan on working on the car myself. I know all about the IMS bearing issues with these water cooled engines. I would preferably like to get one with this service done already (yea right huh) but if I can't i'll do the job myself. I've rebuild a couple of Honda engines with success on my sons cars so I can do most work on the car that I purchase.

Anyways I just wanted to introduce myself now that i've finally signed up (long time lurker). Look forward to a fun search for my new toy in life and hope you guys can help me. I will travel anywhere in the US if the deal is right to purchase a great car.


Cheers!

[dporsche74]

Dont let a simple lame 100 bearing gasket scare you away from tons of fun...
The 996 ,997 are GREAT reliable everyday fast drivers
So easy to fix compare to the air cooled models and
parts are very cheap and everywhere as well
Radio and heat work awesome..

Time to grab them up when they are in this insurance / used dealer pricing limbo
20-30K gets you the color and everything option you want... Good luck
low ball the dealers if you have cash great deals..

[3stewartS]

Welcome Jason!
Good luck with you search!
And let us know what you find.

[dporsche74]

More more thing i notice alot..

In the Old air-cooled you always get smiles and waves

996 /997 lots of angry beeps . middle fingers and lots of hate on the roads

[KNS]

Originally Posted by dporsche74

More more thing i notice alot..

In the Old air-cooled you always get smiles and waves

996 /997 lots of angry beeps . middle fingers and lots of hate on the roads

Huh..? That's a new one.

[SilberUrS6]

Originally Posted by dporsche74

More more thing i notice alot..

In the Old air-cooled you always get smiles and waves

996 /997 lots of angry beeps . middle fingers and lots of hate on the roads

100% nonsense.

[dporsche74]

I drive them everyday"....

[Ronnie's.930]

Originally Posted by dporsche74

996 /997 lots of angry beeps . middle fingers and lots of hate on the roads

Next time that happens just return fire with this , or this , or this !!!

[NYNick]

Originally Posted by dporsche74

More more thing i notice alot..

In the Old air-cooled you always get smiles and waves

996 /997 lots of angry beeps . middle fingers and lots of hate on the roads

Agree with the smiles and waves with the air cooled, but the latter is a tough one to fathom. Been driving 996's and 997's for more than 15 years in NY/CT, and it's never happened to me.

Stay off the Merritt Pkway maybe?

Nick

[SilberUrS6]

Originally Posted by NYNick

Agree with the smiles and waves with the air cooled, but the latter is a tough one to fathom. Been driving 996's and 997's for more than 15 years in NY/CT, and it's never happened to me.

Stay off the Merritt Pkway maybe?

Nick

I asked the several guys I know that have 996/997s. Not one of them had experienced any angry gestures. They had also never heard of such a thing happening with other 996/997 owners.

I'm guessing dporsche74's driving habits are what's causing the gestures, not the car driven.

[PushingMyLuck]

Originally Posted by dporsche74

The 996 ,997 are GREAT reliable everyday fast drivers
So easy to fix compare to the air cooled models and

Wait, yet another air cooled myth shattered?
Now, you're telling me that water cooled cars are EASIER to work on than the "simple machines" of the SC/3.2 era?
Jeez, what in the P-car world isn't a lie??

[manbridge 74]

[QUOTE=PushingMyLuck;7999692]Wait, yet another air cooled myth shattered?
Now, you're telling me that water cooled cars are EASIER to work on than the "simple machines" of the SC/3.2 era?
Jeez, what in the P-car world isn't a lie??[/QUOTE]

Certainly not your ability to give the appearance of solidity to pure wind....

[SilberUrS6]

Originally Posted by PushingMyLuck

Wait, yet another air cooled myth shattered?
Now, you're telling me that water cooled cars are EASIER to work on than the "simple machines" of the SC/3.2 era?
Jeez, what in the P-car world isn't a lie??

Originally Posted by manbridge 74

Certainly not your ability to give the appearance of solidity to pure wind....

Well, that and the fact that dporsche74 is just plain WRONG about the ease of access for working on the car. Has the guy even SEEN a modern watercooled Porsche? They are not easy to work on, by any stretch of the imagination, when compared to aircooled cars.

[NYNick]

[QUOTE=SilberUrS6;7999752]

Originally Posted by manbridge 74

Well, that and the fact that dporsche74 is just plain WRONG about the ease of access for working on the car. Has the guy even SEEN a modern watercooled Porsche? They are not easy to work on, by any stretch of the imagination, when compared to aircooled cars.

Exactly! And PML should know better after all this time 'researching' air cooled cars. Why does someone post inflammatory comments like that? Clearly both he and dporsche74 haven't owned or driven a 996/997, or even looked into the engine bay.

Driving habits? Gotta be. We all drive like maniacs around here. Bronx salutes are somewhat commonplace, and certainly not unique to 996/997's!
Nick

[dporsche74]

HAHA Clearly dude ..,. driving a 996 since 07 everyday driver...
long hood everyday since the 1990's .
996 by far the easiest car to do brakes, suspension, tune up, misc broken parts
i have ever had. you think its false so be it.. cheapest as well

[Matt Monson]

The one big place is see the water cooled cars having as ease of maintenance advantage is the engine can stay in the car when gearbox stuff needs to be done. Whether it be a clutch and flywheel or a full gearbox rebuild, the fact that you can just unbolt the cvs and drop the gearbox is a huge advantage on a water pumper.

[techweenie]

Originally Posted by Matt Monson

The one big place is see the water cooled cars having as ease of maintenance advantage is the engine can stay in the car when gearbox stuff needs to be done. Whether it be a clutch and flywheel or a full gearbox rebuild, the fact that you can just unbolt the cvs and drop the gearbox is a huge advantage on a water pumper.

It's a big advantage but one that most owners will never benefit from. These things are going 100K on original clutches and any gearbox problems are typically showing up much later than that.

Hating on the liquid cooled Porsches is a sport around here, but quite isolated in the real world. I drive both air cooled and liquid cooled Porsches a lot and people pay far more attention to the colors than anything else.

To the OP: the IMS was redesigned effective mid-05 and the latter design is less failure-prone than the earlier design which appeared to fail in 4-8% of cars.

[SilberUrS6]

Originally Posted by dporsche74

HAHA Clearly dude ..,. driving a 996 since 07 everyday driver...
long hood everyday since the 1990's .
996 by far the easiest car to do brakes, suspension, tune up, misc broken parts
i have ever had. you think its false so be it.. cheapest as well

I think you have an active imagination. Or you don't do any of the work yourself.

You imagine people flipping you off, and you imagine that watercooled cars are easier to work on. Real watercooled Porsche mechanics seem to disagree with you, but hey, you can claim anything you want.

[SilberUrS6]

Originally Posted by techweenie

It's a big advantage but one that most owners will never benefit from.

There's a bit of irony there, IMO.

My 3.2 is the simplest car I have ever worked on. While accessing the front of the engine bay is difficult with the engine in the car, taking the engine out of the car is about as easy as it gets. In fact, the biggest challenge to working on these cars is getting them up in the air. I see now why folks opt for two-post and scissors lifts. Once you get the car in the air, everything is *right there*.

[Matt Monson]

<div class="pre-quote">
Quote de <strong>Matt Monson</strong>
</div>

<div class="post-quote">
<div style="font-style:italic">The one big place is see the water cooled cars having as ease of maintenance advantage is the engine can stay in the car when gearbox stuff needs to be done. Whether it be a clutch and flywheel or a full gearbox rebuild, the fact that you can just unbolt the cvs and drop the gearbox is a huge advantage on a water pumper.</div>
</div>It's a big advantage but one that most owners will never benefit from. These things are going 100K on original clutches and any gearbox problems are typically showing up much later than that. <br>
<br>
Hating on the liquid cooled Porsches is a sport around here, but quite isolated in the real world. I drive both air cooled and liquid cooled Porsches a lot and people pay far more attention to the colors than anything else.<br>
<br>
To the OP: the IMS was redesigned effective mid-05 and the latter design is less failure-prone than the earlier design which appeared to fail in 4-8% of cars.

You are quite right. My personal experience is unique where we may have a Cayman or Cup gearbox out of a car 3-4 times a weekend.

But it sure beats doing the same on an air cooled racecar.