Buying advice

[nfearn]

I am contemplating buying a 3.2 Carrera for more or less daily use.

Are there any buying guides in book form that are especially recommended, or websites ditto?

And more generally, for daily use, is there any particular "profile" of car that is preferable? Eg, is a car that is bought now with 100k miles and sold on in, say, 3 or 4 years with 150k miles likely to be much less sellable than a more expensive car now with 50k miles on that I could resell at 100k?

Lastly, what should I be looking to pay realistically for a really nice example with good cosmetics and mechanics?

regards
Nick Fearn

 

[75pno]

Nick
Try 911& Porsche World issue no 86 May 2001.
This has a buyers guide for 3.2 carrera, also look up 911 virgin.com
they have buyers guides ( straight talking )
Good Luck

Paul

 

[nfearn]

Thanks Paul.

I have also bought a copy of Peter Morgan's book on 3.2s and another downloadable buyers guide which has plenty of sensible-sounding advice.

Nick

 

[Jacob]

The best bit of advice I could give you if you do not feel confident buying by yourself...

Get a vehicle inspection by a trusted specialist (I think Peter Morgan does this, but I am not sure of the cost).

I wouldn't worry too much about age or milage but would focus more on condition

Good luck

 

[Jamie Summers]

Without wishing to hi-jack the thread my car is still for sale.

http://www.porscheclubgbforum.com/tm.asp?m=63934&mpage=1&key=&#63934

Jamie

 

[Martin Perry]

Having just upgraded from an 82 SC Targa to an 88 3.2 Coupe, here are a few observations on daily use issues:

Coupe eliminates almost all wind noise problems, and all leaks, up against a Targa. This is the biggest practical plus for me.

The 3.2 heating sytem is better, but also has the advantage of working properly over the SC so maybe not a fair comparison - front screen can be demisted in the morning - it all helps.

G50 gearbox is easier to drive with, and being able to get into first gear on the move is useful in traffic. However, it doesn't feel as direct as the 915 and gives me slightly less driving pleasure, at least so far. Wife certainly prefers it!

As for choosing, I agree with Jacob 100%. Get an inspection and buy on condition, not spec or looks. If the best car is the wrong colour, wait for another to come along, rather than buying the third best on the looks.

Good luck

Martin

 

[bones]

Good to hear you are enjoying the 3.2 Martin. It's generally agreed that the 3.2 is a subtle improvement on the SC, in my opinion the 3.2 should have been the SC but for the management trying to kill of the 911 in the late eighties it might at least have had the 3.2's extra grunt. The heating is helped by the footwell mounted fans.

 

[Guest]

Peter Morgan charged me £250 last year. His book is good - get him to throw in a copy as he did for me.

Sideways

 

[nfearn]

Jamie

I think I really need a RHD car.

Looks nice though...

nick

 

[Guest]

The best advice I got when buying my car was from a guy called Adrian Crawford at http://www.performance2and4.co.uk/. He also does a very in depth buyers guide which almost gives you the confidence to buy without inspection although I did have one - just to check.

 

[sheep911uk]

Best bit of advise i was given was look at plenty of cars,look at a higher price one a lower price one and some inbetween,if you look at enough you will be able to tell the good ones from the not so good ones.
Look at a real mint one first then you know what to base your search on.

 

[nfearn]

Thanks chaps.

All good advice. The tip about minters versus dogs (though those weren't the exact words used) is good. I advise this myself when called about '44s. As with many classic cars, the good cars' prices are dragged down by the average cars, and the poor cars' prices are pulled up. Makes sense to buy the best I can afford, I suppose.

Nick

 

[Ian Donkin]

Nick

When I purchased my previous 3.2 I bought below my budget so that I could cover any 'unexpected repairs'. I used it both in summer and winter for 18 months, putting 26,000 miles on it in the process. Never once did it let me down and returned a steady 27mpg over that period.

The only comment I would make is that as these cars are now all over 15 years old and do not have the luxury of the plastic wheelarch liners as seen in 944's, 964's and later models, you will need to pay careful attention to the protective underbody coatings if you are going to drive it on salty roads all through winter.

No matter how well Porsche built them, 100,000 miles of stones and debris will to some extent deteriorate the underside of the body. I suggest you pay particular attention to the area around the rear of the door catch when looking from under the wheelarches - this was the only area showing signs of age on mine.

Other than that, good luck and enjoy it when it arrives!