Shopping for my first car (and yes it has to be a p-car!). They're asking $53k. Autotrader has '03 C(4) cabs ranging from anywhere $44-57k, and I'm not sure how much of the range is options vs. car condition vs. wishful thinking by seller.

Someone please give me objective reasons to dislike this car, since I fear I'm falling in love!

Pros:
low mileage
dealer is local (unlike 95% of listings, which are in CA)
dealer is a MB restorer, not a shady wholesaler
tiptronic + C4 (first car + boston winters)
pretty steering wheel (I'm a sucker for it, can't deny it)

Cons:
price (??)
carfax lists one accident (will have to follow up, is this a deal killer?)
2 owner car (first owner had it for 4 months)
some useless options (e.g. I'm guessing PCM < $400 garmin)
no hardtop (though I think I could pick one up for ~$300 w/ some effort)
Others? Please explain!


Thanks in advance to everyone for the advice. I posted on rennlist but got no love. I think I'm so hot for a 996 that I may be confusing lust for love w/ this one.

 

Pics?

Sounds reasonable, you are probably paying a higher price due to the low mileage.
Regardless- get a pre-purchase inspection!!

Good luck on your hunt- i'm sure you will get a number of good insight posts from other members here.

 

Sorry, I didn't post them but there are some in the link.

http://www.hatchandsons.com/pages/sales/JB61/Side/
http://www.hatchandsons.com/pages/sales/JB61/Back2
http://www.hatchandsons.com/pages/sales/JB61/Interior
http://www.hatchandsons.com/pages/sales/JB61/Front2
http://www.hatchandsons.com/pages/sales/JB61/Back
http://www.hatchandsons.com/pages/sales/JB61/Miles

I need to avoid looking at them for the sake of my own sanity. Otherwise I spend absurd amounts of time browsing through 996 pictures. It's worse than an internet p0rn addiction.

 

Car looks like new, at least from the pics.. Love the color-matched steering wheel.
Get a PPI from an independent shop that knows pcars, maybe even local pcar dealer.
A PPI is a MUST.

If the PPI checks out and you love the car you probably can't go wrong. Check how long he's had the car for sale, classic MB owners probably don't look for late model pcars. If he's motivated to move it maybe you can knock him down a few k on the price, something like $48-$49k.
The accident on the carfax concerns me- see if you can find out anything about it.

 

figured out how to post pictures directly

 

There are 2 things that I be would concerned about, the Tiptronic and previous body damage, both can make it hard to resell. When I was shopping for my 996, I made a want list: miles, number of previous owners, colors, options, ect. Don't be afraid to make a low offer, remember you are the customer. Good luck with your search and follow your gut.

 

Thats a good deal. I paid $42K last year for a low mile 2001 loaded out. Full leather and wood trim. It came with GT3 18's and the 19's that are on it. 28K miles when I bought it. I now have 32K on the Odo.

 

PS get the inspection by a Porsche dealer. I did.

 

I'll definitely keep that in mind. Out of curiosity, what's the discount you'd give for a Tiptronic? I don't know how to drive manual and I'm hesitant to try and learn on a Porsche since my warranty won't cover standard transmission.

And what exactly is an "acceptable" accident in terms of body damage?

 

Stupid question, but this is my first car purchase:

Do you negotiate the price first or get the PPI? Sounds like the former is pointless w/o knowing what may be wrong, and the latter is premature if you're not going to meet eye-to-eye on price. Or do you say, "assuming it comes back clean, let's agree on this price" and negotiate post-PPI as needed?

 

I'd negotiate first and have sale contingent on no major issues found by a PPI. The car has really low miles so mechanically it will probably be in great shape unless it's been abused.
Typically, a "minor" accident is one where airbags were not deployed. If airbags were deployed, I would be very concerned as it could mean the chassis of the car had been compromised.

I would not worry about resale of tiptronic, there are a lot of buyers out there looking for one for various reasons (daily driver / commuter in traffic, etc..).
You do not want to learn stick on a pcar, that can get very expensive. Besides, buy what will make your daily driving enjoyable! That in itself is priceless. A tiptronic in manual mode is still a helluva lot of fun.

 

Let the guy know you want to take it to a Porsche dealer and have it inspected. If the guy is not trying to hide anything he won’t mind. It will cost you $100-$200 for the inspection. If it has problems then you can negotiate. Look for rear main seal leaks. That’s a big problem. Good Luck!

 

you shouldn't have a problem with RMS (rear main seal) and associated leaks, as the tip cars are far less prone to this issue. I would be concerned about the collision/accident damage.
I would def. want more info about that, and 110% take it to a Porsche dealer and do a PPI. if he refuses, just walk. there are plenty on 996's out there, and one with potential skeletons
in the closet is not worth it. it's hard for me to comment on price as I don't know what the extent on the damage was. it seems nicely optioned, and on the surface looks good. come back
to us with more info and I'm sure we could give you a more definitive answer.

 

I was going to add but everyone pretty much covered it. Since the car was in an accident the PPI is even MORE IMPORTANT.

 

Thanks to everyone for the advice. Called up the dealership and some new points:

1.) Accident: he sounded surprised to hear about this (which is kind of suspicious since it's clearly listed in the CarFax). He said he's done an inspection and no metal's been touched except some touch-up of the front bumper cover. Airbags are still original, etc. There's a good tech here who can do my PPI, is it safe to say he can confirm this isn't an issue? Even if so, it's going to be a hassle explaining if I resell, so that should reduce the price ...

2.) 15k mile service was completed a month ago and tires are almost brand new (that saves me $1k or so, right?).

3.) Car has a k40 front/rear laser "thingamajig" as he put it. He clearly doesn't install detectors/diffusers, as he said "it's the one I see all the time, not sure which model." Anybody know what the price range is and how much they're worth? Quick google search implies $300-800 value depending on model (I dunno how much installation would run me).

Would appreciate if there's anything people think is or isn't important to follow-up on. Otherwise I'm going to go out and see it next weekend!