Enthusiasts Blogging Our Favorite Classifieds
I love the 996 Porsche 911, right up to the point where the amount you pay for one can buy another 911 that is much more appealing to me. As the years go on, that seems to happen more and more. Today’s car, a 2005 911 Turbo S, is one of those. On paper, the best 996 out of the widow making GT2 or hard-as-nails GT3. For a long time, they seemed like a reasonable buy, but in 2022? How does a six-figure pricetag sound?
We made it to April and the convertible season is finally here. Personally, I’m not a huge convertible guy, but I appreciate them, and certainly more so when it’s on an iconic model. For the Porsche 993 generation, Porsche had a tough job to stash the folding soft-top somehow behind the rear seats and in front of the engine firewall, all while making it look good. Truth be told I think they did a great job considering the challenge, but I can’t say I’m ever tempted to go buy one. However, if I were in the market, today’s car might be one of the better ones.
This 1998 911 Carrera Cabriolet up for sale in Miami has the understate black exterior but went all in with Lobster Red leather on basically everything. Even better, this one has some extra goodies to top it all off.
I’m all for discovered “barn finds” or whatever hot term you want to use as it brings new life into a car that was probably written off and forgotten. Although everyone loves a good story, most of the time there is a good reason why these cars were stashed away and not heard from. Most of the time it is mechanical issues that become untenable due to time and/or money constraints, along with busy life getting in the way. Today’s car, a very special European-specification 1979 Porsche 930 Turbo, doesn’t have much of a backstory from what I can find, but oh boy does it have potential. Or so I thought.
As you might have noticed, this isn’t a stock 930. The front bumper was the first giveaway, then you look out back and see a giant intercooler with the lovely letters of “ANDIAL” tacked on it to. The selling dealer says this is now a 3.4-liter car with a RUF five-speed transaxle, and the crude drawing on the shift knob seems to confirm that. Even cooler than the Pasha sees is the custom mount housing an adjustable boost gauge, which I’m sure was absolutely terrifying to play with. So at this point I’m thinking “Cool. Just pull the engine, give it a full service, and drive it as-is.” Not so fast. This one might be a very hard pass for even the most extreme owners.
For many, the Porsche GTS trim level is the “do it all” choice of their lineup. Plenty of sportiness and special feel without Turbo or GT sacrifices on ride quality and, of course, price. A GTS is something you can get away with using 365 days a year if the weather permits it, no matter if it’s the trim you choose for the Boxster, Cayman, 911, Panamera, or even the Macan and Cayenne. For me, the 911 GTS is the sweet spot given how unforgiving the GT3 can ride on less-than-perfect roads and is the smart buy, as it can save you tens of thousands on the purchase price over a GT model. I say that in an absolute ideal scenario because today’s car, a 2016 GTS up for sale in Portland, maybe doesn’t save you all that much.
I’m not here to claim that the 986 Porsche Boxster gets overlooked in terms of the Porsche world in general, but it maybe isn’t the first model you run to when you dial-up Porsche in your thoughts. It was a wildly successful model when it launched in the late-1990s, as it brought back memories of the 914 and got people in the door of the Porsche brand without paying 911 prices. The base Boxster in 1997 started right under $40,000, while the base 993 started at around $65,000. As the years went on the 986 became just a used car, although a used Porsche, but still didn’t get much love from the collector crowd unless it was a really special example. Today, this still holds largely holds true but they are starting to come along slowly. Let’s look at this 2002 Boxster S, as it’s a great color and has just 47,000 miles. Is it worth the premium?
