Advice on buying a 986

[dunks]

My advice would be get the color combo / spec you want and go with that , any car with any mileage, with any proof of service internals, with any proof of repairs, can fail at any time , or could carry on driving for as long as you want. 

 

[andyl62]

It’s weird to see these points for me as I’m selling my 986.

When I originally bought it,  it was more of a feeling and the comprehensive history. It was a trade in at a dealer so that said to me it was an upgrade rather than selling because of any major faults etc.

I did an IMS upgrade pretty early on as I wanted long term piece of mind and in that it succeeded.

It’s difficult to know if the previous owner has been genuine in their upkeep and the biggest risk you take on when making a purchase. Having said that, unless you’ve stripped your pride and joy down, you can never be sure there isn’t a bill just over the horizon! One of the board members asked about my tyres. I know they all have excellent tread depth but until I looked closer I didn’t realise the fronts were so old! ( I don’t do many miles a year ) I will replace them of course before it goes. I also get that garages will put cr.ap tyres on to get through an MOT. We bought a Mazda3 from a dealer with new front tyres. They we’re Chinese and lasted a week on the car before I changed them. Legal but horrible.

For me when I buy a car I always expect to have to spend a certain percentage. I always budget to change the tyres for example. Second hand cars are never going to be perfect. Even buying through a garage generally only means a 3 month warranty and I bet that even the worst cars could make it that long without major work.

For me the oily bits are the most important. Body work, unless it is right off stuff, is relatively easy to correct, so a service history is a must. Not a guarantee of course, but a firm starting point.

 

[Clivescoobydo]

14 hours ago, Codfanglers said:

My apologies but that was how I interpreted it. IMS scaremongering about these engines is all over the internet and I'm starting to realise it may be a bit over-hyped.

Far too many people though appear to have bought one of these cars, send it into their local Porsche specialist thinking they are doing the right thing and come out with a long expensive list of stuff that needs addressing. Must take the shine off a new purchase.

I know the hard reality, problems and risks of running old cars, but there is a difference between imperfection and a neglected car that has been run on a shoestring and into the ground. Not too difficult to identify from afar. I don't see that as being negative about these cars - but not wearing rose tinted glasses and being picky about a car's history and evidence of care will hopefully tip the scales towards a positive experience rather than being landed with a disappointing millstone.

Remember you’re buying a 20 year old car. It’s not difficult, buy a car from an owner whose an enthusiast. Check it’s got a well documented history, serviced yearly. I would also check it’s had a suspension refresh, AC fully functional - condensers replaced, glass back window as these will need doing and the plastic window is a PITA. Spec is important and extras like hardtop, heated seats, PSE are really nice to have. 

[Clivescoobydo]

Just now, Clivescoobydo said:

Remember you’re buying a 20 year old car. It’s not difficult, buy a car from an owner whose an enthusiast. Check it’s got a well documented history, serviced yearly. I would also check it’s had a suspension refresh, AC fully functional - condensers replaced, glass back window as these will need doing and the plastic window is a PITA. Spec is important and extras like hardtop, heated seats, PSE are really nice to have. 

I also wouldn’t worry about the IMS bearing. No pattern to it which makes me think it’s a negative build up tolerance issue on certain engines. Which means those that would go and have had the bearing replaced will most likely need it doing again and those that had it replaced and the original bearing removed was in good condition would likely have never needed it doing anyway. Just my thoughts 

[½cwt]

Ultimately you have to buy to suit your budget but also understand whilst you are buying what on paper is a cheap car it was a £35k car new 20 years ago and they do tend to have more expensive parts.  A higher purchase price for an enthusiast car with a stack of documents showing good maintenance if you have the capital, or a possibly less good car but you have the rolling budget to do the jobs required over a period of time.  I paid just under £5k for an OK but far from perfect car and I've spent around £3k in long term maintenance (suspension arms & dampers, air con rads, cooling hoses, brake lines, alternator) and upgrades (18" wheels & tyres, cruise retro fit, hi-fi head unit & speakers) over 2½ year of ownership with another £1k to go to get most of the long term and expensive stuff fixed.  Then there are bits that will fail with age/use regardless of maintenance like MAF, alternator, ABS sensor, CV boots, reversing light switch all of which can go on even the best maintained car.  Other owners may have had to do clutch/flywheel or brakes (done on mine before I got it so ticks of two more costly items on the budget spreadsheet). They are around 20 years old now so if you have concerns a pre purchase inspection may be a good investment.

They are not budget runabouts but smiles/mile for what they do cost to buy and run is pretty outstanding.

[Clivescoobydo]

20 minutes ago, ½cwt said:

Ultimately you have to buy to suit your budget but also understand whilst you are buying what on paper is a cheap car it was a £35k car new 20 years ago and they do tend to have more expensive parts.  A higher purchase price for an enthusiast car with a stack of documents showing good maintenance if you have the capital, or a possibly less good car but you have the rolling budget to do the jobs required over a period of time.  I paid just under £5k for an OK but far from perfect car and I've spent around £3k in long term maintenance (suspension arms & dampers, air con rads, cooling hoses, brake lines, alternator) and upgrades (18" wheels & tyres, cruise retro fit, hi-fi head unit & speakers) over 2½ year of ownership with another £1k to go to get most of the long term and expensive stuff fixed.  Then there are bits that will fail with age/use regardless of maintenance like MAF, alternator, ABS sensor, CV boots, reversing light switch all of which can go on even the best maintained car.  Other owners may have had to do clutch/flywheel or brakes (done on mine before I got it so ticks of two more costly items on the budget spreadsheet). They are around 20 years old now so if you have concerns a pre purchase inspection may be a good investment.

They are not budget runabouts but smiles/mile for what they do cost to buy and run is pretty outstanding.

And they don't depreciate like a stone.  I also think the right colour combo for you is worth paying extra for.