2001 2ws vs AWD

[jennbabesurf]

I'm in the market for a 2001 porsche w/ tiptronic
i have found two possible cars
1 is 2 wd and the other is 4wd any advise on adv of either.
both in same cond same options same price.
is the 4wd more maintaince and a noticeable less mpg?
this will be used as a daily driver.
thanks for any info

[ls911]

MPG is about the same. I have a 2001 2 wd and it is a total joy to drive.
The 4 is normaly more $ and could be the beter deal, never heard of maintenance issues, it will stick to the road better. This is hard to believe since the 2 wd handles like nothing else. The 4 will have slower times 0-60. If that is more important than 2wd is better.
I think you will be just as happy with either, buy the one that has the best maintenance, lowest miles, better color etc...
If all is the same than the 4 will be a beter deal for the same $ on re-sale. Good luck

[Aerkuld]

I'm not an expert by any means, but the 4WD is obviously going to have more moving parts and will likely require more maintenance in the long term costing additional money. This would probably be especially true at larger mileage services at the dealer. In the short term, however, you probably wouldn't notice much difference and certainly not on a week by week basis.

MPG is bound to be slightly lower in the 4WD car because you have greater drive train losses although it's unlikely to be an extremely noticable difference and probably more on highway cruising than urban driving. The way it's driven is going to have a far bigger imapct on MPG.

On the subject of driving, the 2WD car is going to be slightly lighter and responsive and a better car to steer into corners compared to the 4WD car. The 4WD car will have better drive out of the corners because you can get the power down easier. That said you probably aren't going to notice much difference on the commute into work in the mornings.

Bottom line? As has been said, the 4WD tend to bring slightly higher prices so it may hold it's value slightly better. To be honest, this like every thing else is going to be a very small difference and there is going to be very little difference on anything to choose between them. If I was you I'd take each one out for a good test drive. When I bought mine I took it out for an entire afternoon and drove it on freeways and tight twisties. Any decent dealer should let you do something like this if you show them you're serious about buying. Do this, then see which one you like best. Simple.

[BReyes]

Which one matches your eyes better? Well there you go. No seriously, which one do you like color combination best. My 2wd sticks to the pavement. 4wd must be cool too.

Regards,

[jbripps]

Not much performance difference at all...and unless you are a track junkie, you will notice zero difference in speed/performance. I think the AWD is 1 MPG less than 2wd. If you are even thinking of driving the car in the snow at all....AWD is the no brainer. If not...go for which you like better. Bernie gives good advice.

I love my '85...and my '996 as well. You will love it too. They are ridiculous cars.

J

[jennbabesurf]

is their a hugh difference between the 2001 and the 2002 of these models?

[Aerkuld]

Originally Posted by jennybabesurf

is their a hugh difference between the 2001 and the 2002 of these models?

Well, the 2002 has the 'turbo' instead of the 'fried egg' headlights, a slightly revised front bumper and air intakes, the 3.6 instead of the 3.4 engine, and a glovebox. The 2002-2004 cars are what are refered to as the 996 'facelift' cars. Apart from the above mentioned items (and probably a few more that are much less noticable that I've forgotten) there isn't much difference. Personally I looked at a several cars including pre-facelift cars when I was looking for mine. I did notice odd stuff, like the switches on the inside of the drivers door sill are silver finished on the older car and tend to get scuffed up badly while getting in and out. Obvioulsy this shows up more on silver finished switches than the balck ones on the later car. Little things like that and the prescence of the glove box (I don't know why) swung the balance in favor of the 2002. The extra power of the 3.6 had nothing to do with it of course!

From a driving point of view, the 3.6 has a little more power but it isn't as if the 3.4 is going to feel asthmatic by comparison. I suppose the answer to your question is, no, there isn't a huge difference. As mentioned before, find some different cars to drive and see what you think.

If it helps look on somewhere like autotrader.com and find a few cars that are close to what you're after. It doesn't matter about color and stuff like that if you are just trying to decide on which model suits you best. Draw up a short list of the ones you want to try and, if possible find ones that are not to far apart so that your thoughts are still fresh as you drive one after the other. A Porsche dealer might be a good place for this as they may have several cars in the same place. Once you've driven them you will have a good feel for the differences. At the end of the day it is you that you're buying the car for, so buy the one that offers what you like best.

I hope that helps a little, but feel free to ask more questions if you need to.

[jennbabesurf]

do these items really matter for a daily driver?
Porsche factory Sport exhaust (sounds like a Porsche now) Exhaust is over $1300 without installation
Porsche factory polished exhaust tips
Porsche factory ROW M030 Sport suspension (HUGE upgrade makes the car handle so much better) Retail on this over $1500 without installation
Carbon fiber strut brace
RUF Sport pedals

[Aerkuld]

Originally Posted by jennybabesurf

do these items really matter for a daily driver?
Porsche factory Sport exhaust (sounds like a Porsche now) Exhaust is over $1300 without installation
Porsche factory polished exhaust tips
Porsche factory ROW M030 Sport suspension (HUGE upgrade makes the car handle so much better) Retail on this over $1500 without installation
Carbon fiber strut brace
RUF Sport pedals

If you mean do you need them - No.
If you mean is it a bad thing - No.
The only thing that might be an issue is the M030, and only then if you have any ridiculous over-sized speed bumps on your daily route to work.