How much did the brake job run you? Did you use OE parts?
How much did the brake job run you? Did you use OE parts?
I had the local specialist do it as I didn't have the time to do the work before the vacation. Total was about $1200 including a brake fluid flush that was about due anyway.
This car has PSM (Porsche Stability Management) and you'll need special software to be able to bleed the brakes, so it's unfortunately not a DIY job until I manage to acquire both a usable laptop and said software.
BoxheadTim wrote: That said, the seats are definitely inferior to the ones in my old Carrera 3.2 in the long distance comfort stakes, and it could do with a bigger tank. With the range it has, I ended up having to refuel a little too often for my liking out here, especially between Vegas and up here where you get long stretches of nothingness.
Whoever designed the fuel tank must've been talking to the seat designer.....knew you'd need a break more often. 
$1,200 for rear brakes? Software needed to bleed them? Ack, a 'cheap' 996 may not be fore me after all.
I just dug up the receipt - the parts came to $650 (rotors, OEM pads, pad sensors and brake fluid), the rest was labour.
You can get aftermarket software to trigger the brake bleed and for "home use" that's around $300 IIRC. In that sense, it's a typical 911 - you usually don't need that many parts, but whenever you do, they're not exactly cheap.
I seem to recall the 1980s Carrera 4S cars required some odd tools and specialty stuff to do a brake job due to the pressure involved in doing so and was not necessarily an immediate DIY job without the proper tools.
I have found the 924/944/928/914 and the air cooled 911s in the 80s and earlier to be pretty DIY. This is a fun thread to follow though because I've often considered snagging a 996 due to how cheap they are these days, and don't really know a lot about the water cooled 911s. I've only worked on the air cooled cars.
The 80s aircooled cars are much easier to work on than these, and sometimes I think they're also better built. I found mine more comfortable long distance also, but they're not that great at being year-round daily drivers anymore. And that's before we get into the cost of buying one worth having...
I'm picking up my third ever car tomorrow - it's a 996 era 911, inspired in no small part by this thread.
My thought process is that with a 911 cab and a Volvo estate I have the basics covered (and if the Porsche explodes I can still get to the shops).
In reply to Dammit:
We'll need some pics of that 
Dammit wrote: I'm picking up my third ever car tomorrow - it's a 996 era 911, inspired in no small part by this thread. My thought process is that with a 911 cab and a Volvo estate I have the basics covered (and if the Porsche explodes I can still get to the shops).
I ended up adding an LS3 to my Volvo's engine bay and selling the Cayman. 
In reply to BoxheadTim:
Here's my thread, rather than clutter yours up with pictures of a different car.
Any input on centre console delete and button relocation very welcome!
Not gonna post massive info but I daily drove a 99 and an 01 - parts were slightly more expensive but with routine maintenance there were no major headaches. Wonderful cars that get a bad reputation - they will be worth real money 15 years from now. Get them while they're dirt cheap.
BoxheadTim...thank you for the time for posting this thread. You may have saved me from making a huge mistake.
Once I caught the track bug, I eventually started appreciating P-cars much more. For several months now, I have been researching and following 911 builds, classifieds, etc.. I am very close to selling my '91 project Mustang to invest in a weekend 911 track car.
With the ridiculous costs of air-cooled 911's, I was sold on the 996. After reading your entire thread, I am now second guessing my decision. Thank you.
In reply to Replayman:
Don't be disheartened. there are people out there with 300K on these engines. They seem to be very DIY friendly too. Take care of the IMS bearing and there are many beat on hard and put away wet with no issues.
In reply to Adrian_Thompson:
and don't over rev. That is apparently a death nail too.
So don't over rev and IMS.
In reply to Replayman:
I'd echo the comments of the previous posters. Yes, these cars can be a little bit of a crapshoot, as can be aircooled 911s. My '88 Targa also ate about £5000 shortly after I bought it and that was back when that was about ~$10k, not to mention that in general, labour costs in the UK are lower than in the US. And that was another "good" car that got a thumbs up from a well-known (in the UK) Porsche expert.
One of the reasons why there haven't been many postings recently is simply because there hasn't been much to write about. I have a couple of smaller items on my todo list (it needs new headlight washer jets and the plastic eyebrow at the bottom of the windshield is broken) but other than normal maintenance it's been utterly reliable.
Would I buy this one again? Honestly, I don't know. I've thrown a lot of money at the least desirable 996, but OTOH we have a Porsche that my wife also likes to drive on a semi-regular basis. I like driving it and I'm happy to just jump into for a long drive.
I'm still toying with the idea of getting another aircooled one (most likely an SC), but most likely something that needs some help and probably has one of the ill-advised Flachbau conversions that were so popular in the 80s. Then use it as a basis to build an impact bumper RSR replica.
As Adrian said, these things are pretty DIY-able. I usually do take it to the local specialist, but that's more due to time constraints at my end - I've certainly done maintenance work myself on it and will continue to do so. I'm even occasionally toying with the idea of getting a coupe as a track car.
One other thing to keep in mind - I also have an ND Launch Edition. Obviously that's not a winter car around here, but even during this summer I put more miles on the 911 than I did on the ND. And that's even though we were too lazy to take the hardtop off the 911.
NMNA $14500 for a 120kmi 2000 Porsche Carrera. Risky Bidness...
http://newyork.craigslist.org/fct/cto/5847000686.html
That doesn't seem to be that good a deal TBH...
One other thing to keep in mind - I also have an ND Launch Edition. Obviously that's not a winter car around here, but even during this summer I put more miles on the 911 than I did on the ND. And that's even though we were too lazy to take the hardtop off the 911
That's a useful bit of perspective.
And I'd like to point out that I like the ND and it's not like I'm trying to keep the miles off for investment purposes or similarly deranged reasons.
I'm definetly not turned off permanently, but let's say my immediate intentions have been altered. I don't think my admiration of 911's will fade away.
I'm thinking...maybe instead of finding a 996 C2 that has had the IMS fix done, who knows if it was properly maintained afterward? It might be better to find one cheap enough to allow myself to have the work done myself. That way, I know it's done right along with any other precautionary fixes. And then I'll have the state of mind that i won't have any surprises.
My other option...was to look into a 996 turbo. Thus, not having the issues of the IMS. But, I'm not sure if the heavy AWD turbo 996 will be a good track car?
Most well maintained 911s will come with a ton of service records, so I wouldn't rule out one that has an IMS fix done in the past and well maintained since.
I know one person who's using a 996 turbo as a track car and he doesn't seem to have any issues with it. The turbo isn't that much heavier than a C2 and while not exactly a lightweight it's also not a super heavy car. With hindsight, that's what I should have bought.
The turbo runs the Mezger engine - no IMS to go wrong.
I have a 996.1, I love it, bought it with eyes open and if the engine needs work then so be it. Until it does, if it ever does, I'm happily driving around in a fantastic and, I believe, significantly undervalued sportscar.
The 996 turbos need to have the water pipe junctions welded to the block though. They are bonded in and will fail over time letting coolant out on track. Most PCA regions now require it to be done before being allowed on track. Solid cars otherwise.
996 GT3's have the same problem with the water pipe junctions too
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