A group of mechanics at a local independent Porsche service shop strongly discouraged using a water cooled 911 of ANY year as a daily driver. I asked them what could go wrong and their response was "anything and everything." Very discouraging!

So, can a non-turbo 996 2000-2004, sub-40k be depended on day in and day out over 52 weeks a year? I understand that Porsche cannot match the build quality of Toyota or Honda given their relatively small development budget, but have they succeeded at making a daily drivable semi-exotic?

What have your experiences been? What broke? When did it break? How long were you without your car? What did it cost?

 

haven't had any problems so far... and i have to drive 200 miles up to my office at the beginning of the week, then 200 back at the end.


P.S. Porsche are known to be a great DD! (compared to a Lambo or Fcar)

 

I used my '01 996 cab as a daily driver for 4 years without any problems at all. Mine had 20k miles and almost all of it was in town so although it seems low, I bet it had a harder life than someone who puts 60-70k highway miles on theirs.

 

Mine is a DD as well, but my daily commute is only 20 miles, and I got mine in march with 29k miles and now it has 32k

 

daily driver 109k miles on the clock....motor replaced under warranty at 75k....I drive 100 miles a day roundtrip....have been for 2 years in the 996...I wouldnt put 100k miles on an aircooled 911...the upkeep on those cars is VERY expensive...on a 996, drive it, do the services, and replace motors when needed...motors are actually getting pretty cheap, about 7k now for a 3.4L...If you have to replace every 4 years which I doubt, but even then its not bad at all.

Here is an article that basically says the 996 engines are some of the most reliable Porsche engines ever made....they disassemble one with over 100k miles on it and the insides look new!

http://www.renntech.org/forums/index...e=post&id=3224

personally, I wouldnt let anyone who thinks a 996 is unreliable work on my car...

 

I think they are very reliable. I have done three trips from South Texas to Los Angeles (at high speeds) and never thought twice about something breaking. The only problems I've experienced so far inside of 17,000 miles is a noisy idler pulley that was replaced for $102.

 

i've been driving mine as a dd for a little over 2 years now without any problems besides a flat tire and a window regulator.

 

wow $7k for a motor..i had no idea they were that cheap.

 

The mechanics are right.. I used to own an 83 cab i bought from someone who used it as a daily.. and it never broke down, not a single problem. I bought the car for 12K in 1998, it has 150Kmiles.. I sold it in 2001 170K miles for $18K,LOL.. but I think the 996 would be a better daily driver since it's water cooled... especially in traffic/hot weather.. I used to see my temp gauge on my air cooled almost over heating during traffic...also the temp control/ammenities inside the cabin are better on the 996's, and more comfortable on long drives, better seating position etc etc..
I agree with newport on the upkeep of air cooled, although I never had prob's with my old one, some of my friends did and most of the time the car just sits in their garage.. good luck with your decision, both are great cars, I wouldnt mind owning another air cooled, especially a 993

 

No car is going to be perfect and they will vary. I'm sure you've heard of all the lemon stories with each auto manufacture. I drove mine for over a year straight with more than 12K miles in that year. Nothing major, when I say that I guess I mean nothing out of the norm for your average car. I've dumped more $$$ into my RX7 as a daily driver with 1/2 of the miles driven.

-Eli

 

Newport,

What warranty do you have that covered your motor. I am thinking about getting a warranty but afraid that my mods would make it useless.

Also did you have your mods when the motor was replaced?

The only performance mods will be: Fabspeed headers, Fabspeed Muffler Delete, Fabspeed cat delete and a ecu reprom (i havent decided between upsolute and GIAC).

 

Your mechanics are giving you good advice. The 996 has been a very reliable model and probably the best Porsche so far to be driven daily.

 

lol had my n/a996 for 3 years put 30,000 miles on it never had a probelm daily drove it..

 

It was a Porsche CPO warranty.

 

The people I know that use theirs as a daily driver haven't had any issues to keep them from using it as a daily driver.