Great choice millercarbon. They started galvanizing the cars in 78 which abolished the rust problem. You are however due for an engine rebuild if you have not done it already. It will cost you 10 to 15K. Just giving you the warning if you are not aware already. It is just the price of owning an air cooled car. If you really want a killer motor send the car to Flat 6 Solutions, Jake Raby’s shop. Best engine re builders in the States. They are always a year out so you have to get in line. My 2006 C4S is going there next year. Generally what happens is the car will start leaking and or burning oil. It will not hurt it at all to keep driving it. Most veteran 911 drivers keep track of their oil consumption. Don’t ever sell the car. Just keep up with it. Pass it on to one of your kids. It will just keep going up in value:)
The general rule with Porsche is buy the newest one you can afford. In my case back then it was the SC. Even then it was a stretch. But worth it because while I didn’t know near as much then as now I did know the SC was galvanized, with the 3.0 probably the strongest Porsche ever made. Even so you still need to care for them and not chronically overheat like the prior owner did mine necessitating an abnormally early and major rebuild. The 150k miles are since the rebuild. It’ll easily go another 100k at least. Easily.
I mentioned mine not because its anything special but the opposite, they made thousands of these yet still they appreciate. People unfamiliar with Porsche will have no idea what I’m talking about, but "mint" has a completely different meaning to us. "Mint" to most means unbelievably perfect, like new. "Mint" to most is a pinnacle. In terms of Porsche it is just the way they are supposed to be. The closest in meaning we use is original.
This is much like the way someone who thinks they know high end will talk about how great a system makes certain music sound, while the one who really knows will say instead it merely does much less harm to the signal than most others.
The difference may seem like mere words until you look in the real world and find my car, what every 911 enthusiast would refer to as a daily driver, chock full of flaws, is nevertheless in far better condition than ones I have seen sell on Bring A Trailer for $40k. In other words if somebody thinks they know a "mint" SC for $35k either they don’t know anything about Porsches, or the seller doesn’t, or both.
This is not by the way Mike so much me talking to you as the rest of these, uh, guys. You’re sending a C4S to FSI, that is more Porsche cred than I can match, and I was PCA Region president, Driving Instructor, etc. etc. Congratulations. Whatever level and however long it takes it will be stronger, smoother, snappier, more reliable and with a better warranty than anything ever to come out of Stuttgart.
My plan is to sell the SC next year, order a new one in 21. Mostly because its been my lifelong dream to take factory delivery and tour the passes and forests. Also because track driving at 62 isn’t near as important as consuming miles and flying up mountain passes in comfort.
Lifelong dreams aside though, to drive a Jake Raby 911, wow, would I love to hear how that goes. Well done.
