Hi.

I had a 993 c4 with a 3.8 engine with the ability to go to 7500 RPM....PO did that. Anyway, I miss that car....but, we moved to the 996 for two reasons: it was less expensive and we felt it would be safer in a crash. Say whatever you want, the 996 is probably safer. The 997 is a VTG facelifted 996 for all its marketing....the underneath is similar. The 996 interior is less high quality, but is more "organic"....a taste thing. The 997 feels like an Audi to me (I had a few of those). Not a bad thing, but not a P car thing either. Just me.

I'd love a 993TT. Great car. The guys I know have all had to rebuild their engines...not a cheap thing. I know of one guy with a 996tt at 240k miles without a rebuild... N of 1 of course, but I suspect the watercooling helps in this regard a lot. He tracks his car via DE's frequently...and is still on clutch #1 (T2)...so he is probably super smooth.

The 993 was a handbuilt car more or less. Toyota came in and helped Porsche with the 996 so as to save the company. Had the 996 (and 986) not happened the way they did, there might not be a Porsche today. I think the GT1 based motor is still handbuilt as of the 996...my only beef with quality was with the cd based nav computer (that died). The rest of the car has been bulletproof. A third party DVD system made the nav issue go away...giving me Bluetooth, iPod, XMtraffic, etc....so progress is not so bad. I usually leave it off (my progress...).

Funny thing, all the P cars now EXCEPT the 911 have 996 like headlights...so the 996 to my architecture type friends looks "newer" to them. This is based on some conversations over the last few years. A well kept 996TT is still an alluring, beautiful car, to me at least....my interior is much improved over stock of course. In the last few months, 4 people have asked me if it was the "new turbo".....in places with lots of Porsches around....weird really.

All of the 99x turbos are just amazing cars. Silly to nit pick IMHO. I pulled stuff out of the car to get it to 3180#...that makes it feel more 993ish to me to be honest. Weight is the killer of the new cars.

Jeff

 

I wouldn't say the 996s are "ugly" at all. I still think they are awesome when you see them on the streets. However, I have always wanted a 993tt and see it as argueably the most attractive 911.

As far as the value is concerned, I don't think it's the quality of the car that is driving the value, but merely the limited numbers. The high numbers of 996tts shows that many people think it is a fantastic car.

 

I think both 996's and 993's each are distinguished in their own ways.

996's / 997's are said to be more reliable for DD (kinda drive themselves woth computers etc), feel precise and sometimes too perfect (not necessarily a bad thing for some people), and have more creature comforts that consumers demand.

993's in my opinion, are meant to be driven by enthusiast who want to cling on to Dr. Porsche's era, philosophy, and reason for creating the brand. A 993 fits you like a glove, when you slip in everything fits proper and tight. You control all your fingers, nothing moves itself, it takes you to where true driving should be - simplicity where man controls machine without interference.

This coming from a guy who drives a 1977 911 widebody 3.0

 

I have owned a new 993, 996 and 997 and they all have their plusses and minuses.

they are all Porsche's and great engineered cars.

i do admit i like my 997 turbo the best.


Cabman

 

Here's the thing... I've never owned any of these cars, but understand the allure to the 993, I much prefer driving my old beater 97 turbo supra (in mostly stock trim) to my brand new GTR, it's just a much more visceral and connected car. The GTR is bad ***, no doubt - but it's like driving a video game.

I'd imagine this is much the same for the 993 v 996/7 argument - the 993 was very much a beast of a machine for its time and to this day still requires a man among men to drive wicked fast - conversely any hooligan with enough cash can get in a 997 VGT PDK car and drive it stupid fast....

That's not necessarily a bad thing, but it makes the cars appeal to different sets of people - there is also a bit of exclusivity that comes with a 993, I'm not sure of the production numbers, but the fact remains that not EVERYONE who wants one can buy a 993 right now, but again anyone with enough money can find a 996/7

Bang for the buck though, the 996 wins - stock to stock it does out perform the 993s, and their resell is really terrible - for a car that retailed up to 130k US (or higher if totally optioned) it can now be had at auction for mid to high 30s in TT form.

The 993 is the last of a classicly lined and styled car, the round headlights and traditional lines means it will stay valuable with porsche lovers.