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buying a 964....tips?

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Hi there,
I' ve been looking at buying an early model 964. (1990 C4 to be precise). There seems to be some information about how it' s a problematic of the 911 series. Is this true? There' s also a 1989 C4 3.2 carrera for slighly cheaper. Anyways any tips on for checking out 964s? Thanks.
 
ORIGINAL: delhi

Hi there,
I' ve been looking at buying an early model 964. (1990 C4 to be precise). There seems to be some information about how it' s a problematic of the 911 series. Is this true? There' s also a 1989 C4 3.2 carrera for slighly cheaper. Anyways any tips on for checking out 964s? Thanks.
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John Miles website www.porsche964.co.uk contains the 911 Porsche World, Buyers Guide and lots of good information.
 
the early 964s have reputation for problems with dual mass flywheel (DMF) , ozone build up in distributor rotting rubber belt drive and engine oil leaks. look at service history. as all 911s are specialist cars and can be expensive to put right , you need an expert to check over the one you are thinking of buying - not a guarantee but usually gives you some negotiating power to reduce price against needed repairs, so pays for the expert!
the late 3.2 is likely to be less problematic as last in production series rather than first, simpler so maybe more reliable. should be definitely cheaper however demand good for the last of 3.2' s so a good 3.2 may dearer than a poor 964. mileage not crucial.
 
Dan,

I' ve just (in March this year) been through the same - I started by looking for only 1992 cars or younger, and very quickly found that the model year of the car is really unimportant. I looked at and drove many cars before considering purchase - some newer lower mileage cars were actually much worse in terms of condition that some older, higher mileage cars. The golden rule is get a pre-purchase inspection done by a specialist - or do what I did, buy from a specialist who guarantees the car. I ended up buying a 1990 C4 coupe from 911virgin.com in uxbridge - it was by far the best car I had looked at in three months of travelling around. In the end I went more for a mechanically well sorted car that was perhaps cosmetically not as nice as others I had seen - mainly because cosmetics can be sorted out without re-mortgaging your house, but buy the wrong car, and the mechanics can cost you a fortune. Look for a car that has a really good history of money being spent on it regularly, not just FSH, but evidence of other non-essential work like 4-wheel alignment. If it' s a C4 look for 4 matching make / tread good tyres. Try and speak to the previous owners to get a feel for how enthusiastic they were about the car. Read as much as you can - there are several books, Red Book is good for checking vin numbers, Buyer' s guides etc.

Good Luck - it' s well worth all the effort to find a good one!

Cheers,
Pete.
 
Hello squiresp,
can you tell me if you thought about the 3.2 911 during your search? That' s where I am right now. Tossing b/t an arguably more reliable 3.2 911 vs. an arguably unreliable 964. I prefer the 964. But things like DMF, belt tensioner issues, twin spark plug (i like to change myself) etc scares me. I' m currently talking with someone who has an 89 C4 for sale. It has 84k km on it and it' s going for CDN$31000 ~ 19k pounds? I' m asking some basic questions before I even want to go check out the car.

cheers!
 
That' s where I am right now. Tossing b/t an arguably more reliable 3.2 911 vs. an arguably unreliable 964. I prefer the 964. But things like DMF, belt tensioner issues, twin spark plug (i like to change myself) etc scares me. I' m currently talking with someone who has an 89 C4 for sale. It has 84k km on it and it' s going for CDN$31000 ~ 19k pounds? I' m asking some basic questions before I even want to go check out the car.
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Please remember that the 964 was an 85% new car from the 3.2 and although there were early problems with oil leaks, DMF failures and a few other bits they are few and far between. Twin sparks ! they are replaced every year as part of the 12k service so i wouldnt worry about them, apart from if the service hasnt been carried out as per service book as the plugs are one thing that gets missed due to the multiple parts of the exhaust that have to come off, anyway this is also needed to set the tappets.
All i can say is hunt the rennlist and JMs 964 website Ken stated above for all the info you will ever need for a 964. also subscribe to titanic 964
Your present concerns were every 964 owners before they bought tooooooooo [;)]
Buy the newest you can and look at as many cars as possible to get a feel for the market.
Great cars though [:D] [:D] [:D] [:D] [:D]
A good deal of service records and a check over by a reputable company means a lot and could save any heartache and loss of money !
 
Having just parted with my ' 88 3.2 Carrera in which I had done 25,000 miles in two years and despite the utter reliability of it, I would go for the 964.

The latter is hugely more civilised whilst retaining much of the driver feedback and involvement of the former. I don' t miss driveline shunt, heavy steering both under load and at parking speeds, nor the rather odd heating / ventilation controls.

Hopefully I won' t miss the reliability either, though this is yet to be proven.

My advice would to be buy well within your budget, thereby leaving sufficient allowance for those jobs you will invariably discover need attention post purchase.

Whatever you do, enjoy your purchase to the full [:)].
 
Elliot .. Ex ' 93 Carrera 2 Owner .. Now searching for a Boxer
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Who? What? Is that a dog or a car?

[;)]

Melv
PS Delhi -have a look at:

http://www.titanic.co.uk/964/FAQs.html

PPS Should the ' Cayenne' have been the ' Roxster' ?
 
The best sorted of all 964 the RS simple 911 driving with absolutely no problems just fun fun fun fun fun fun fun fun fun..............................................................................
 
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