I've been watching 996 prices plummet the past few years, however, it's only natural.
There are probably a good amount of sub 10k cars that sound great but probably have found their way into the wrong hands and have some nasty hidden or underlying issues to contend with. Most of the cheapest adds I see come from either people who say they can't afford to keep it any more, or from traders / garages that aren't in the know with 996's sell average cars and someone has just likely chopped it in because of a costly issue.
The problem with this is that other genuine sellers with good cars see these cheap adds and think that they need to compete and lower their prices. Buyers looking at the market are given a false expectation of the value of a 996 and what they can purchase one for., moving inquiries away from some of the nicer motors to the 'bargain' cars.
I bought mine a few years ago for what seemed a bit of a bargain price as an example, it looked pretty mint, had FSH and checked out. However it soon became apparent that there were some 'hidden' issues that did not crop up on testing, most noticeably the crank sensor that I diagnosed (after about two weeks of pulling the car apart) that was causing the car to strand me after prolonged periods of running. The fault didn't give any codes and sent me on a wild goose chase over all of the fueling and ignition system. Now, I am tempted to say that the reason it was cheaper than others is because the seller knew full well of the problem, couldn't get it diagnosed or sorted and decided to part ways. Lucky me, £125 part from Porsche and a couple of weeks of hard work and she was perfect! Still I bought her as a 'base' to do the things I wanted to and although I've spent a good few thousand on her in 'improvements' I think it worked out, but others won't be so lucky.
Someone on a limited budget may easily buy a 'cheap' 996 and as my grandfather used to say, pay 'cheap - dear' or not have the money set aside to fix the car and it becomes even more neglected - it's amazing what a few coats of wax and a well worded add can look like!
I still don't have any plans on selling my 996. I'm still really happy with her, true, I have thought about possibly 'upgrading' in the past, but I still get the experience I want, the look and everything else from mine, so I'm just going to keep looking after her until all the others have rotted or been sent to the big scrap heap in the sky. She'll probably be worth twice as much in the next ten years, but hopefully I will still keep her
I would say that you should stick to your guns, if you are in no rush and you have a realistic price in mind given the condition and the market then you have no reason to get involved with nor fuel the low-priced market war!
Cheers!
