Well after almost 30 years (not contiguous) with only 914’s (the 914-6 was nice... Sold it for a bronco in 1985) but, I am ready to move on to a car that has a little more modern tech… not much just a little. You know the next evolutionary step… I am thinking a 78-83 SC… Price points are getting attractive. Also, would you pay twice market for a low (<60,000) mileage original car?

If you got one let me know! Also what are good 911 sites?

As Always,

Regards,

James

PS Keeping the 914

Have one of each I say. Good for you!

SC's are great little cars. Carrera's are awesome. I'm stuck with the early cars but... you'll be in the same boat you're in now with the teener.

I would not pay double, especially in this market. Bruce A. has the easiest advice. By the newest/best car you can afford.

Pelican is the place for those later model 911's.

(want me to edit your dual coupage?)

I hear your Eric "By the newest/best car you can afford"

I checked out the newer... 2001 ~34K with ~49K miles with warranty available. Dude this car was wicked fast!!!!!!!!!!! With climate control. Tempting... Puts your automotive technology dollar in perspective.

Other thougths?

Regards,

James

i don't mind the SCs or the Carreras
i would pick a conservatively colored original SC/carrera with black interior
i think the key point being "original" and then get the best you can find for the dollar amount you have targeted, 1978-89 and everything inbetween, coupe only
there are lots to be had.....
stay clear of the targas
but i could not let go of my 914-6clone-ish
i just like the raw simplicity, brute power,and perfer the look of a car that is very unusual in apperance

eh... I sold the 911 I had for more mods to my 914. Really rather have a nice 914 with more HP than a 911. I am sure one day I will have a 911 as well but not right now.

'78 is a good year and the 3.0l is a very good engine. You can have fun with them and even drive them every day if that's what you are looking for.

I have owned several 911's. I have a 74 right now. I like the classic 911 body style but if I had to drive it every day I would probably go for a 993. The 993's were really the first 911 with A/C that worked well (I have 993 style A/C in my 74 but it set me back some serious coin).

Next on my list for DD would probably be tied with a boxster S and a 84-88 carrera. You get a 3.2 with the motronic. the 87-88 cars with the G50 bring a premium but I would probably stick with the early 915 cars you can pick up an 84 or 85 with 100-140K miles for probably around 10 or 12K in nice shape.

On looks you cant beat the early long hoods. I have owned a couple of them and I actually could not believe my ears when I was talking to my wife about trying to gather up the dollars to buy back my '67 she was all for it.... Ok back on topic. The draw back of the pre '76 cars is that they were not galvanized and if left out on rainy days they tend to rust. My 74 has not seen rain since I restored it...

It does seem that the SC's are bargain day right now though. I have seen some show up on craigslist for 8500ish but beware you defanately get what you pay for. I had a pretty nice '78 that I bought intending to make my DD and put a 3.6 in it. However, I changed my mind and bought a TDI for a DD and sold the 78 to a friend of mine. We put a rebuilt 3.0 in it and really went through everything and the price wound up at about 12K. I would spend the extra $ for a nicer car but by that time you wind up in carrera price range.

I guess I am kind of rambling here but I will wrap it up by saying that non air cooled porsche's dont have the same feel. For that matter the newer you go the more you loose the raw driver experience ... However, as a DD I personally think the boxsters are great used car bargains for DD material.

Larry

Here's mine. A 2000 with tiptronic trans. Great car for traffic and enough power that the auto trans doesn't seem to slow you down. Wife can drive it too. Maybe a bit too modern for what you are looking for but the prices are getting very low on these now so it is a great buy.
JIM

Dang if I was in the market right now I would buy this:

82 SC Cab converted to a 3.6 for 9k!!!!

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/cto/1044570390.html

This 96 vram car for 24.5K really does it for me too:

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sby/cto/1043762424.html

But for 5K less you really cant go wrong with a boxster S and it is in the 914 spirit:

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/pen/cto/1043752153.html

go motronic if you can afford...cis is find when right...but twice a year adjustment and all vacum lines must be good...I had a '79..great daily if your not in bumper to bumper...

Do it! SC's are great cars. So are the 3.2 Carreras. Given some issues with CIS parts becoming NLA, a 3.2 Carrera might be the better choice. Stay with the 915 trans to ensure the "early" feel.

Pelican and Rennlist have very active 911 boards.

Interesting poll:

Coupe,
Sun room
Coupe
Cab

Be advised finding a "non" sunroof coupe will be harder. Most US delivered cars came with Sunroof.

Since you like yourt 914, I would say look for a targa. To me, the 911 sunroof just made more noise when open than anything else. If you really want a cab, get a boxster

My .02 is a Carrera or later. Sure the SC's are nice, but I'll take the better Motronic. I had a '91 C2 and it was a great car, traded for an even better Porsche a '00 Boxster.

We have two kids and there've been times I wish we still had the back seats the 911 offered.

Since it's free advice you want, I'd stay with air cooled. The water cooled cars are very nice, but the values just don't hold like the fan cooled cars.

If I could make a lateral trade for my low mileage 986 to a nice clean air cooled Carrera or later, I would.

I have a 996 that makes an awesome daily driver. The ac in the 996 I think was the best Porsche developed. Tiptronic so my wife can drive it and it's easy in the traffic with kids, etc. All of the modern conveniences with long maintanance service intervals. Early 996's are even lighter than the last of the 993's. The best thing is prices on early 996's are plummeting (I know because I'm selling mine). There are a lot of 996's that have had factory engine replacements that should now last a long time. While the old air-cooled 911's are classics, for modern everyday driving I'll take a water-cooled.

James, There are two 911's at the Los Gatos Honda Dealership one red and one black as of this last Saturday. They looked very good. The red one really caught my attention and if I could afford it...well...you know..

The SC is a good car. Watch for pulled head studs even in an extremely low mileage car... Upgrades should include the Carrera chain tensioners, a fan for your oil cooler in the right front wheel well. I love my Carrera. I voted for the coupe but the sunroof coupe is good too. Mine is a sunroof coupe but I never seem to open it, so why have it? The Cab is popular but it adds a number of maintanance and security concerns. I have really never been attracted to the Targa at all other than parts cars...

PS: have an admin edit your poll to merge the dual Coupe vote and add a Targa... I suspect that was your intention?

The coupe has the best lines. The non sunroof gives you more head room. Besides one less place to leak from and one less electrical thing to fix...

But basic Boxsters and Ss are very affordable, and you'd carry on the mid-engine line. Unless you need the rear "seats."

I think the Cabrios lines are wrong, but understand the urge to go topless.

Several members have posted to buy the latest and greatest you can afford. Great advice.

I loved my '82 SC Targa. If I were to go 911 again I'd go 993. Stay away from the Targa. I can remember the body flex and the doors rattling due to the flex on cornering. If you are looking to go SC or Carrera, I'd go Carrera simply for the additional power at little added cost. Get the later SC if you go that route since it had eliminated the need for the large smog pump in the engine compartment.

Somedays I miss my SC then I drive the 914-6 and remember why I sold the SC.

Click to view attachment

I would love to take a 84-89 Carrera and back date the look into a '73 RS, white and blue.

Click to view attachment

I really love my 86 wide body every time I think about selling I don’t I love the feel and I have done allot to make it handle the way I like to drive. I think a 3.2 car is the way to go at your price point. Here in LA I just helped a friend land a very nice 85 for 10K dose not happen often but it dose happen.

Do the research on a 996 before you buy, many reasons for the price droppings so bad. but where thay are priced now 18-25K is only going to drop more. Some feel the 993 is the last of the great air cooled driving experience. I have been on the fence about a 996 turbo or a 993 Turbo but keep in mind a 996 turbo is a slit case like the GT3 and GT 2 cars bullet proof up to 650 Hp.

Back to you like other have said buy the newest you can buy. Old school 911s are a blast to drive if you learn how to drive it. The 3.2 is truly a great motor, as is the 3.0 L I have seen more SC with over 200K thay seem to be one of the best motor Porsche ever put together it’s the best balance between power and reliability. But what do I know. Anyway walk with your eyes wide open.

I love my 83SC targa! The car had 48k on it when I got it ten years ago. No emission's on that year in Mass so I poted the heads & added a couple Web 20/21 cams. Also lowered it along with Bilstein sports and 21/27 t-bars. The car pulls hard thru 7000 rpm, handles great ( just not like my 914 ) and I love the open top.
Then again, don't we all want a bunch of Porsche's?

Don't buy an SC without torquing the head studs first. 30 years and 30,000,000 heat cycles have taken their toll on those little 5/16 pieces of steel alloy. I saw a perfect, perfect 20K mile SC with 7 broken head studs.

Targa means leaky in German.

This thread couldn't come at a better time since I've sold my 914 and am looking for a 911.

I've seen many 1999 911's which I think are the 996 body styles for a low price. So what is wrong with these cars that they have lost their values?

Also in thinking of a 87-89 coupe vs 99 911, what are the differences in insuring these cars? Do the 87-89 fall into classic insurance?

Just drove this one today. 1999 911 with 101K miles. Awesome ride with lots of power and creature features. Dealer listed it for just less than $20K.

IMHO high miles you can do better, sorry but you can.

Early 996's are very cheap for a few reasons. 1: They're not air-cooled and therefore purists think they are not a proper Porsche. 2: Porsche made a lot more of them than previous models, so they are not as much as a collectable. 3: Early RMS and IMS leaks and engine failures gave it quite a bad, undeserved rap. I replaced my 996 engine with a factory replacement engine last year, and despite that have still loved the car and would recommend them. They look great and are awesome daily drivers with excellent ac, heat, stereo, etc.
Having owned one, even with issues, I wouldn't mind owning another someday. Unfortunately I'm selling mine because of job change/moving. I would recommend an early 996 with a factory engine change. Updates have been made and there is a warranty. These newer engines will last a long time. These are the best Porsche deals on the market. Look for one with a factory motor and warranty, then drive it with little maintanance for the next 100,000 miles...

Second the head studs. My 83 had 48k on it with 3 busted studs. Was a great time to do cams & some headflow work.

I thought Targa was Italian for "go fast, rain go over top"

Not to hijack the thread, but...

If I was to buy one of these beasties with the aim of using it as a daily driver in the rust belt (eventually converted to electric power), would the later cars rust less? I asked about this on the bird board and got a lot of useful feedback including a reference to a thread with lots of pictures about where they rust. I sorta got the impression though that all the galvinizing doesn't help all that much though. They still rust quite a bit. I figured maybe the good folks here (maybe some of you with lots of restoration experience) might have a slightly different perspective on the topic.

The galvanizing helps a lot in that the cars were not built with the rust already in them. The metal was galvanized before it had slight surface rust.
It doesn't cure everything but it helped. The SC's at this age are a lot less rusty than the 356's were at the same age.