rr69h
Part of things
Posts: 313
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Jun 15, 2016 13:09:30 GMT
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As stated elsewhere I was looking for a sensible daily driver and somehow I’ve ended up with this. But let’s start at the beginning. Imagine a 15 year old Mr. rr69h nagging his parents to death about taking him to the local Porsche Centre just to have a look at that new car that was so very different from all those predecessors.  Copyright: Kinja / Gawker MediaThey finally gave in. That new car looked so incredibly modern to me. Sleek, and elegant yes, but at the same time understated and some might argue a bit tame. My 15 year old self liked that a lot, but at the same time realized that a car like this would totally be out of reach. But one can dream, right? So on this very day I bought this as some kind of food for thought:  Ta. Modern cars. I’ve spent my driving years with much older cars never once thinking about going for a Porsche. I enjoy tinkering with cars, I like that I don’t have to worry about depreciation and that putting in effort allows me to own cars that are by no means special, but feel very special to me. What made me come around the rising profile of Porsche cars in recent years: everything labelled “Porsche” suddenly shot up in value, no matter if it was a 1973 Carrera RS or the fairly new 997 series. My reasoning was: if I don’t consider getting one of these cars NOW I’ll probably never be able to afford it. And then I remembered that 1:18 scale model. Yes, it’s the 911 everyone warns you about. Intermediate shaft bearings, poor build quality and would-you-look-at-these-headlights is the general pub-talk. But for me it comes down to this: it’s the bravest 911 design of them all. And to me at least it’s always been and still is unbelievably pretty and may I even say: timeless. Or would you believe that this exterior design is almost 20 years old?  Copyright: AutoevolutionI took one in 1:1 scale out for a test drive and was sold. I loved everything about it: that you can drive one around town easily. That it doesn’t encourage you to behave like an animal. That the build quality is exquisite. And of course that it can make you giggle with excitement above 4500 rpm when everything else on the Autobahn turns into a blur. It’s all things to all men (and women!) really. My hunt took quite some time in which I’ve seen surprisingly many lemons. I won’t bore you with the details, but will say that it took me more than a year to find this:     Fact sheet!- 1999 Carrera 2 (so RWD it is)
- Ocean Blue paint with metropole blue interior
- We have a sunroof!
- We have the “extended leather package”, hooray!
- Xenons!
- Porsche CR 21 sound system! It plays cassettes AND CDs!
- Trip computer!
- Works sports package! That means a 30mm drop, harder sway bars, lovely turbo-style seats, LSD, traction control and 18” alloys (sadly currently abscent).
- 300 horsepower!
- Works floor mats!
It has 118.000 Km (=70000 miles) on the clock and is in fairly good condition. Of course there are things that need addressing (watch this space), but for now I’m feeling rather good about it.   In case you are wondering. It passed the first test with flying colours:  This is the beginning of a new chapter I feel. It's totally out of my comfort zone, but that was part of the appeal. Let's see then how that one goes! Cheers, Felix |
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Last Edit: Mar 25, 2019 11:26:29 GMT by rr69h
"Racing drivers never carry cash"
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JoshO
Part of things
Posts: 337
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Jun 15, 2016 14:09:14 GMT
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That looks lovely, need a shot of your two 911s together  I hope too to one day own my dream car! An FC3S rx7 in white with no sunroof. |
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Jun 15, 2016 14:32:13 GMT
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hey, nicely done...you took your time and waited for the right one to come along. nice example.....
PS...I like the silver wagon in the background too!
JP
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I know its spelled Norman Luxury Yacht, but its pronounced Throat Wobbler Mangrove!
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Jun 15, 2016 18:00:31 GMT
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Spot on motor there pal, I like it a lot. Love the beer crate |
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Clement
Europe
ambitious but rubbish
Posts: 2,095
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Jun 15, 2016 20:18:39 GMT
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Well done that!!
The other day I was looking at cars on leboncoin, and my oh my was I shocked by early 996 prices. Sooo much car for the money, and to think the Porsche snobs who hate on it now will change their minds in a couple of years...
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Paul Y
Posted a lot
Posts: 1,951
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Jun 15, 2016 22:47:12 GMT
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Had a lot of Porsches over the years but my fondest memories have always been with the 996, really have a soft spot for them. As for build quality, had more issues with the 993's especially trim and paint. Really like the colour, have you considered the bbs option for wheels? Think it would really set off the blue. P.  |
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thebaron
Europe
Over the river, heading out of town
Posts: 1,659 
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Very nice buy and a cool back story as well.
I'm very interested to follow your journey with this car.
I had a 1977 SC 8 years ago and while I loved the balance and poise of it I just couldn't gel with the gearbox or the fact that it was not really that quick. I also had a e30 325 at the time and point to point they were pretty much equal which was disappointing as one cost 10,000 pounds and the other 570 !!!!
As someone who had always coveted 911's it just didn't leave me with the sense of wonderment I had expected.
I'm always looking one car ahead (an affliction I'm sure many of us are affected by) and I'm coming back around to a newer (i.e. watercooled) 911 again as a purchase in the next couple of years.
I want to get back into a true manual sportscar (rather than sports saloon/estate) and now that I've a sprog and 2 seaters are out the list is quite short. 911s and Cerberas and ..... that's it really
As you mentioned prices are a bit crazy for most Porsche items at the moment but I think a 996 or a 997.1 could actually be a valid daily choice.
Good luck with this and the next question is.... when are you off to the 'Ring to test it fully?
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Last Edit: Jun 17, 2016 12:02:52 GMT by thebaron
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rr69h
Part of things
Posts: 313
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Jun 17, 2016 16:14:33 GMT
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Thank you for your generous words. As we speak I'm processing the first spanner-related pictures for your enjoyment. In the meantime... That looks lovely, need a shot of your two 911s together I hope too to one day own my dream car! An FC3S rx7 in white with no sunroof. I'll definetely take a picture of these two together as soon as possible. Their colours and specs are almost identical, too. Ta! As for your RX7: I'd say do it. I can only imagine how good it would feel to find that car. After all 911s can almost be called "common" compared to the RX! hey, nicely done...you took your time and waited for the right one to come along. nice example..... PS...I like the silver wagon in the background too! Cheers! I had a feeling you might like that silver wagon. It belongs to a mate of mine. 320d, manual, M-package. Quite capable, this. Spot on motor there pal, I like it a lot. Love the beer crate Thanks! Although it must be said that the bunting is optional. It's not something Porsche-dudes just do. Well done that!! The other day I was looking at cars on leboncoin, and my oh my was I shocked by early 996 prices. Sooo much car for the money, and to think the Porsche snobs who hate on it now will change their minds in a couple of years... You know what? I was >this< close of actually getting in touch with you about a few cars on leboncoin. Your Maserati and what you're doing with it speak for themselves, really and show that we're kind of on the same page here. I've actually viewed two cars in France, but was quite underwhelmed. They weren't exactly cheap, too... Really like the colour, have you considered the bbs option for wheels? Think it would really set off the blue. Hey, thanks alot! Yes, wheels are a bit of a subject. As stated above the car originally came with 18" variants of what's on the car today. I do think they look the business:  ...although I'm drawn to the BBS GT3 wheel, too:  I do want to maintain the understated and elegant look of the car, but I'm always open to suggestions. Is there any particular BBS wheel you have in mind? What makes the matter a bit tricky though is that a) the bolt pattern is 5x130 and that German TÜV is very particular about what you can or can't drive on one of these... Very nice buy and a cool back story as well. I'm very interested to follow your journey with this car. I had a 1977 SC 8 years ago and while I loved the balance and poise of it I just couldn't gel with the gearbox or the fact that it was not really that quick. I also had a e30 325 at the time and point to point they were pretty much equal which was disappointing as one cost 10,000 pounds and the other 570 !!!! As someone who had always coveted 911's it just didn't leave me with the sense of wonderment I had expected. I'm always looking one car ahead (an affliction I'm sure many of us are affected by) and I'm coming back around to a newer (i.e. watercooled) 911 again as a purchase in the next couple of years. I want to get back into a true manual sportscar (rather than sports saloon/estate) and now that I've a sprog and 2 seaters are out the list is quite short. 911s and Cerberas and ..... that's it really As you mentioned prices are a bit crazy for most Porsche items at the moment but I think a 996 or a 997.1 could actually be a valid daily choice. Interesting what you're saying about that SC. I've had a similar experience with one of these, albeit as a passenger: it didn't feel as special as I thought it would. As to the 996 (and the 997.1 for that matter): some of my passengers were a bit underwhelmed, too at first. These cars are by no means torquey rocketships. But once VarioCam kicks in at 4500 rpm the car's character suddenly changes quite significantly. I'm still in the learning-phase, though. Every once in a while I find myself trundling around town at 1200 rpm wondering, what all the fuss is about. Once I remember to keep the revs above 2500 rpm I get much more enjoyment out of it without breaking the speed limit. So to answer your final question... Good luck with this and the next question is.... when are you off to the 'Ring to test it fully? ...not very soon. First I need to get comfortable with it. Then I'll take part in some sort of driver-training to learn what the car will behave like at the limit. Maybe THEN I'll be brave enaugh to turn off the traction control for the first time. I know this might sound a bit over-cautious, but this car has three times the power compared to my last daily. I feel you have to treat it with the proper respect to get the most out of it. Well, I'll keep you all posted. And again: thanks alot for everyone who read this story and for everyone's kind words! I had a little fear that people might view this thread a little show-offy. Instead you all proved to me what makes RR such a pleasant place to be: the variety of cars and what the good lads and girls of this place are doing with them. |
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"Racing drivers never carry cash"
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Paul Y
Posted a lot
Posts: 1,951
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Jun 17, 2016 17:18:58 GMT
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 The Mk1 GT3 wheels are rather nice as well. Enjoy P. |
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Jun 18, 2016 18:50:05 GMT
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Mmmm very nice Fewell.Health to drive. A bit of a change from the C Class. I hope none of the other three pointed stars have been culled as well.
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rr69h
Part of things
Posts: 313
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Jun 20, 2016 14:00:14 GMT
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Mmmm very nice Fewell.Health to drive. A bit of a change from the C Class. I hope none of the other three pointed stars have been culled as well. Fear not! Once you start working on these cars it's surprising how often you see symbols like these:  This is the original connector for the air mass flow sensor. Any questions? Other than that I've done an oil change which was rather uneventful. It ended with the dashboard indicating a healthy oil level:  A new air filter and a set of spark plugs are on their way to me as we speak. Installing the later will be...interesting. I've never had to jack up a car and take the wheels off just to access the spark plugs so I'm expecting this to turn into a bit of a faff. But it'll help me getting to know that car a little better. I was a little afraid to approach a car as modern as this with tools, but I'm glad I did. It's just so beautifully put together that working on it has been a joy so far. My first tasks were two of those things my friends now tend to say "the loon is at it again" about. First up was the 3rd (and 4th!) brake light. A few of the bulbs had failed and the one sitting below the rear window was looking a bit faded. So:  On the left you see what I've started at, on the right what a mere two minutes of polishing have done to it. Quite satisfying job. Then it was time to proceed to the cowl at the bottom end of the windscreen. It was looking grey-ish and a bit past it:  So taking it off was easily done. Left a bit of a hole:  While everything was apart I could address the wiper arms, too:  ...and after a bit of plastic dye all was looking well and blaaaack again:  The final task was regassing the A/C and fitting a new dryer cartridge. That system takes a hefty 850g of coolant, 200g were in it before I started:   That turned out quite well. Now it's time to find out why the intermittent wiper doesn't work. Well, not that we really need it these days:  |
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"Racing drivers never carry cash"
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Jun 20, 2016 14:55:20 GMT
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I like these, been trying to work out if I can save up enough pennys to have one as a daily driver. I want 4WD though. There is an interesting bit in the latest Classic and Sportscars magazine about them. Comparing them favourably to the last air cooled 911.
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rr69h
Part of things
Posts: 313
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Jun 20, 2016 16:02:48 GMT
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I like these, been trying to work out if I can save up enough pennys to have one as a daily driver. I want 4WD though. Take it from someone who might be a bit biased: do it. Had the pleasure of driving a Carrera 4 in the snow once and was mightily impressed. You won't be disappointed! There is an interesting bit in the latest Classic and Sportscars magazine about them. Comparing them favourably to the last air cooled 911. Oh, that's interesting. Is that article somewhere on the web? I'd love to read it, but each issue is about 18€ at the Düsseldorf airport. Ouch... |
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"Racing drivers never carry cash"
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Jun 20, 2016 16:32:22 GMT
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I need to take some info from it, when I've got it noted I'll send you my copy |
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Paul Y
Posted a lot
Posts: 1,951
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Jun 20, 2016 18:16:12 GMT
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The Carrera 4 is good but the Carrera 2 is much, much better. Plus there is less to go wrong. Plus it is a proper Porsche driving experience. What ever. Just do it. The best £10K you will ever spend. P. |
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Jun 21, 2016 15:25:22 GMT
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Plus it is a proper Porsche driving experience. Like throwing a hammer from the wrong end |
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rr69h
Part of things
Posts: 313
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Jun 21, 2016 16:07:05 GMT
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I need to take some info from it, when I've got it noted I'll send you my copy !!!!! Wow, thank you so much! |
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"Racing drivers never carry cash"
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Paul Y
Posted a lot
Posts: 1,951
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Jun 21, 2016 23:40:35 GMT
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Plus it is a proper Porsche driving experience. Like throwing a hammer from the wrong end Said by someone who has never driven a 911! (Please insert best tongue in cheek smiley here) It does drive differantly to anything else but, once you have got it, you will never be able to go back. The best driving experiance...ever... Had both and the 2 is better. Lighter, more responsive etc. Anyway...back to the OP. Love the blue, had one in the same shade. P. |
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fer4l
Posted a lot
Testing
Posts: 1,497
Club RR Member Number: 73
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Jun 22, 2016 11:44:11 GMT
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Jun 22, 2016 12:28:00 GMT
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^^^ Lol the sideways overtaking at 2:48!
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