993 questions for a potential owner

[mnk]

Hi all,

I am thinking of buying a 1998 993 Turbo S... but before I do so I was hoping for some help answering the following questions:

- The car has always been looked after by an official Porsche dealership, with the last major service done in Dec 08, 4k miles ago. Since then a new clutch has been fitted in Feb 09. Given that the car has a full Porsche service history (and all work done at an official Porsche dealership), I take it I won't really need to get an independent specialist to go check it out? I currently have an M3 and trust me when I take the car in for a service there is not a single thing BMW miss that needs replacing/repairing! Presumably any big problems with the car would have been identified by the service centre and so it's reasonable not to expect any disasters coming up.

- Is the extra (about £20k) really worth getting the S?

- It looks like it's been kept on the street for the past few years in the UK... is this ok in terms of rust - and if not, are there any specific areas I should check which are more prone to rust?

Many thanks for your help

 

[997GT3_KO]

Buying the "S" version of the 993 Turbo will be akinned to an investment given its rarity value...

 

[p27549]

Very jealous. Would definately invest in a full inspection to confirm what the service history is telling you. Just piece of mind at the end of the day.

Good luck

 

[FLAT-SIXY]

You are investing in a future classic, just make sure its a happy one. Please get an inpection done independently, and someone the owner isnt on personal terms with, ie his local porsche centre, also check and see if it's a genuine S and not just an X50 upgrade, as you will be paying a premium for an S.
I went into my purchase 5 years ago with blinkers on, no inspection = leaky seals+ leaky rocker covers=£££££££ in my case. Dont muck around when it comes to Porsche maintanence.
Dont be put off by the horror storys, just do the right thing though ok.[]
Post some pics if you get it.

 

[iver rek]

I bought (a 'cooking' 993) from a reputable specialist and had mixed experience, though the few problems were fixed without question. My only reservation of getting a proper inspection is; do you get the bloke with the 'name' or an employee? I guess the latter carries just as much risk as a reputable specialist.
Best of luck and with envy.

 

[mnk]

Thanks everyone... I will let you know if I get it.

 

[Gordon Attar]

You need to get the car inspected by an independant Porsche specialist, if your in Thamews Valley go to Northways nr Reading and get Ray or Paul to inspect it and drive it. Ray has owned one personally for years and Pauls an expert and there is always one or two around for servicing and a good test for the specialist will be how long to do leaky rocker covers (nothing serious but common) Factory says 10-12 hours(i.e.£1500+v), Paul did mine in 2 hous cost £100+v and thats the big importance of having someone who knows the car, thsy have also got to pull of the cooler inspect the pipes for oil etc and I'm not sure Peter Morgan would do this!

Let the site know roughly where you live and the Turbo owners will point you in the right direction and as Dongawoy says you need to know what your getting there is not many 450bhp S's about there are tell tale signs like Yellow brake calipers, rear wing inlets but you could spec them as extra's on a std Turbo. Its the engine and the serial numbers that tell the true story and the std Turbo is very similar until you get into the high revs area, the xtra 50hp doesnt give a lot of extra torque just higher rev limit and a bit more speed.

Keeping a £60k + S on the street is very odd, but the car is galvanised so should be fine, only area to watch out for is around the front windscreen and where the wipers go into the body, lift up the rubbers, they are not known for going any where else but again the inspection will reveal all.

Good luck

 

[clubsport]

I would get a rolling road test done to see if the output is anywhere near factory tolerances, if it falls short it could cost quite a bit to rememdy.£5-10k easily. Don't forget these cars are 11 years old now.

I loved the concept of a Turbo S and once thought it was my ultimate Porsche,,, then I drove one,,,didn't buy it after all, far too much of a cruiser for me. Which may be exactly what you are looking for?

Check it is a real "S", many of the features including the rear wing vents were available as an option on the regular Turbo. An optioned up Turbo will be not be worth anything like, or have the investment potential(?) of a genuine Turbo S.