I have had my 01 turbo for 3 years and no issues at all...the second gear pop out is not very common and other than that the car is bullet proof. Buy a nice clean car and enjoy it.

 

I have to agree that this is a great car at these prices. Your priority should be to find a clean well taken care of car. The last thing you want to do is shop for the lowest possible price at the expense of abuse. Trust me, some people beat the **** out of these cars and nothing is more ill designed for abuse than the tranny. It simply doesn't like to be hurried.

Some of these cars are coming off 2nd and 3rd leases.

I think cars that have not developed the pop-out issue may be immune to it by now.

Finally, keep in mind that there are cars with aftermarket warranties around. You're not likely to find any 01 CPO cars. If I'm not mistaken, the cars came with a 4 year warranty and CPO is good for another 2 years. Even 01 cars that were purchased in 02 are likely to be running out of CPO any day now...

 

I bought my 01 in September 2005 with 26K miles, it had pop-out. I didn't realize it was a problem until after I did my research here, so at least you're ahead of the game!

It's not a huge problem, since I don't plan on taking this one to the track. It may only pop out two or three times a week. That being said, it's still BS, so I will probably get the tranny rebuilt sometime this year.

If your car doesn't pop out on the test drive, it probably won't in the future. Test it by accelerating downhill hard in 2nd, let off around 5K RPM and coast.

Also, since you're still shopping - if you're into mods buy one that's already got them. 996TT mods = $$$$

 

Finally, keep in mind that there are cars with aftermarket warranties around. You're not likely to find any 01 CPO cars. If I'm not mistaken, the cars came with a 4 year warranty and CPO is good for another 2 years. Even 01 cars that were purchased in 02 are likely to be running out of CPO any day now...[/quote]


NOT true...Porsche CPO works differently than bmw or Mercedes...If a car is out of its 4 year warranty when the car is purchased as a CPO, the CPo warranty is in effect for 2 full years from date of purchase as a cpo. or a 100K on the odo of the car.

Its similar to mercedes benz starmarked which does the same thing but for one year.

Hope that helps clarify some stuff. I know that is because thats how my CPO warranty works...Bought april 07 as a CPO and good till 04/09 or 100K cause car was way out of warranty period when purchased.

Still good deals out there on 01 but much pricier with CPO

 

I would definitely buy one with an extended warranty. There are other problems that you could run into other than 2nd gear pop-out.

You don't need to just stick with 01. Be patient and search everywhere. That is half the fun of buying the car. Shopping and anticipating the joy of ownership.

RG

 

My 2001 has 25k miles and 1.5 years left on CPO. I'd let it go for around $62k

 

One other thing I would recommend is to read as many posts in this forum as possible. There is a wealth of info here. This particular topic has been discussed many times and I'm sure any question you can ask has already been answered. Good luck.

 

My 01 turbo came with the pop-out issue in spite of a PPI and a warranty. The dealer that performed the PPI felt no need to pay for the repair in spite of the fact that the prior owner notified them of the issue and the warranty company went out of business weeks after the purchase so I got screwed both ways. Cost me about $6k to have the tranny rebuilt by Brian Copan. For the entire story look up post from me.

But all that being said, I love my 01 turbo. I could drive it around town for days and never come across a faster or badder car. Many people want to race, but I rarely do, what's the point? Even if you beat me with your souped up ricer, I'm still the one in the Porsche.

 

My advice is to monitor and read posts on this site for a while and then ask for input before you make the final purchase. Also find the previous owner if possible. I was able to find the original owner of my GT2 before purchase and received bunch of info before buying, and more since. He has been a great help, which may be an exception. Still, my hindsight is that I should have done even more research before buying.