Let's Talk Porsche 911

Originally Posted by WylieCoyote
This will always and forever be my dream car. My childhood neighbor in Wyoming bought an early 80s SC Targa when I was 14, and I've been enamored with these phenomenal cars ever since. I was thrilled to see Porsche reviving the true targa layout on the more recent 911s. They look great.



I always loved the Targa, wide body and Whale Tail look. That, to me at east, is also the quintessential 911 from my youth, I still have a primitive RC one my Wife (then just-met girlfriend) bought me in college.

This thread has me thinking of air cooled cars again....

To the OP, here are two fun links;

Sloan Cars CT
Holt Motorsports
 
Originally Posted by wings&wheels
Originally Posted by WylieCoyote
This will always and forever be my dream car. My childhood neighbor in Wyoming bought an early 80s SC Targa when I was 14, and I've been enamored with these phenomenal cars ever since. I was thrilled to see Porsche reviving the true targa layout on the more recent 911s. They look great.



I always loved the Targa, wide body and Whale Tail look. That, to me at east, is also the quintessential 911 from my youth, I still have a primitive RC one my Wife (then just-met girlfriend) bought me in college.

This thread has me thinking of air cooled cars again....

To the OP, here are two fun links;

Sloan Cars CT
Holt Motorsports


Not sure why Y'All like the Targa (vs. the coupe) in wide-body/whale-tail form so much. Leaky, susceptible to long term wear/degradation, less torsionally-rigid, less aesthetic (??) ??
 
I hate the Targa and the Cabriolet.

I wouldn't buy anything but a Coupe. Preferably a C2. Might consider a C4. They're worth less, but they're 300 lbs. heavier, the handling is not the same, and then you have the extra complexity to deal with.
 
Originally Posted by Cdn17Sport6MT
Originally Posted by wings&wheels
Originally Posted by WylieCoyote
This will always and forever be my dream car. My childhood neighbor in Wyoming bought an early 80s SC Targa when I was 14, and I've been enamored with these phenomenal cars ever since. I was thrilled to see Porsche reviving the true targa layout on the more recent 911s. They look great.



I always loved the Targa, wide body and Whale Tail look. That, to me at east, is also the quintessential 911 from my youth, I still have a primitive RC one my Wife (then just-met girlfriend) bought me in college.

This thread has me thinking of air cooled cars again....

To the OP, here are two fun links;

Sloan Cars CT
Holt Motorsports


Not sure why Y'All like the Targa (vs. the coupe) in wide-body/whale-tail form so much. Leaky, susceptible to long term wear/degradation, less torsionally-rigid, less aesthetic (??) ??


Because it was the car of my youth... If I get an air cooled one, it will be a coupe or some sort.
 
Originally Posted by john_pifer
I hate the Targa and the Cabriolet.

I wouldn't buy anything but a Coupe. Preferably a C2. Might consider a C4. They're worth less, but they're 300 lbs. heavier, the handling is not the same, and then you have the extra complexity to deal with.



I always wanted a Cab, they are good for showing off, the chicks dig them but they don't like their hair getting all messed up!
Cab's look classic with the top down when parked. But the road noise is unbearable! I'm with you, I would have kept my 993 if it was a hard top, but I lived 1 mile from Huntington Beach pier back in those days so the Cab was not so bad.

There is no different Vin # designation between a Cab and a Targa, so you can cut the "Rollbar" and remove the rear window and the convertible top goes right on with no other modification. The only way to tell if its a real Cab is to remove the top and see if the Targa top has been cut off. Many Targa's have been converted to Cab's.

Hard tops in Southern California are actually harder to find. Also, don't know if you like Red, but if a Porsche has been for sale for very long and its not over priced, its RED! I suggest, don't buy a Red car! Very few want them.

Buy a 96 Turbo S, they are only available in coupes, problem solved...lol, can you tell I want one!
 
Originally Posted by Cdn17Sport6MT
Originally Posted by wings&wheels
Originally Posted by WylieCoyote
This will always and forever be my dream car. My childhood neighbor in Wyoming bought an early 80s SC Targa when I was 14, and I've been enamored with these phenomenal cars ever since. I was thrilled to see Porsche reviving the true targa layout on the more recent 911s. They look great.



I always loved the Targa, wide body and Whale Tail look. That, to me at east, is also the quintessential 911 from my youth, I still have a primitive RC one my Wife (then just-met girlfriend) bought me in college.

This thread has me thinking of air cooled cars again....

To the OP, here are two fun links;

Sloan Cars CT
Holt Motorsports


Not sure why Y'All like the Targa (vs. the coupe) in wide-body/whale-tail form so much. Leaky, susceptible to long term wear/degradation, less torsionally-rigid, less aesthetic (??) ??



I'm a child of the 80s. I love almost anything with a targa or T roof. From an 80's Cutlass to a Ferrari 308 GTS, removable roof panels have always spoken to me. For open-air motoring, there are too many compromises and issues related to soft tops, ( I wasn't the decision maker on the convertible in my signature) and I have yet to see a hardtop convertible that doesn't looked screwed up in the rear section.

Hard, removable roof panels are the perfect balance between maintaining the look, the quiet, ease of maintenance, and watertightness, as long as you maintain the seals. Torsional rigidity would be the last thing on my mind. The car in the picture above would live an easy, charmed life as a cruiser if it were mine. There's just something extra-exotic about a Targa that a coupe doesn't have. Not that I don't love all 911s (except the 996).
 
I'm getting old, lol, I forgot I used to paint these for Strosek, I painted 12 to 15 of them, some Speedster's, you guys probably never heard of Strosek.

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I've had a fascination with these cars for a long time.

It started when I was a kid in the '80s, and I noticed these strange little teardrop-shaped cars with the funny name across the back, that looked so different from everything else on the road in Memphis, Tennessee.

Then, I can remember, in the late '90s, a buddy bought a late-'90s Mustang GT convertible, and he took a couple of friends and me out to drive downtown. At one point, we pulled up at a stoplight next to a black Porsche 911 convertible. It must have been air-cooled, because the noise that came from the aft of that thing when dude stomped the gas was beautifully mechanical and unmuffled as he shifted from 1st into 2nd, and then 3rd. My buddy and his Mustang had no chance. Not sure what year it was, but I don't think it was current.

I've just always wanted one of these cars. I love the idea of the horizontally-opposed engine, for starters. And the fact that it's mounted out back. These cars are just different. The 911 seems engineered for sporty driving, and that's what I like to do. I sold my WRX nearly a year ago, (Porsche substitute I had for a few years), but, when I had it, my favorite thing in the world to do was to take it out to the mountains of East Tennessee and Western North Carolina and find the crookedest (is that a word?) roads I could find, and drive them as fast as I could.

I just like that the 911 is different.

I don't think I would want the Turbo. Just the naturally-aspirated model. 2WD. And definitely manual transmission.

Hel, I'm not sure I could afford one. Definitely be looking at older models. I'm not sure what they go for.

I'd want a nice example. If I got to the point where I was ready to get one, I'd plan to keep it for a long time, if not forever. It would be a toy for my soon-to-be-wife and I (she's a car enthusiast also) to take out on the weekends and possibly do a trackday or autocross event from time to time.

I realize that there are faster cars out there for the money. I care more about handling and the experience of driving, than the outright number of horsepower. I mean, I do want some power. I'd say I'd probably want at least as much as my WRX had, which was 268. I want something that has a very mechanical feel; I don't care about lots of electronics and complexity; just give me a car with great driving dynamics. Great steering, great brakes, excellent cornering, great brake feel and a connection from accelerator pedal to throttle that feels almost telepathic. Obviously it needs to make great noises!

I like the idea of a naturally-aspirated 911 for a few reasons, including an NA powerband that makes power in a crescendo to redline. Also reduced complexity and weight. And the exhaust note will sound better. Same reason I don't want 4WD. I don't need the extra weight and complexity and maintenance. The car will never be driven in snow/ice.

I like that they put the ignition to the left of the steering wheel. Jump in, release parking brake, right hand on shifter, crank engine with left hand, GO!

So, I guess I'm kinda daydreaming about 911s at this point, and just wanting to get a conversation started with some of the enthusiasts here on the forum. I did do a search for Porsche 911 threads. There are a few - mainly UOAs. Unless I missed it, we don't have a thread where we're just talking about the Porsche 911. Its ins and outs. The things that are fun about the car, the things that made it great and made it a legend in the racing and sports driving world, as well as its quirks, problems, shortcomings, etc.

When I did my search, I came across forum member rooflessVW's thread about detailing his 911 (2003, I think?) and getting it ready to sell. Beautiful car. Why on earth did you sell it, man?!

If I were rich, I'd buy one of the last air-cooled 911 Carreras from 1996 or 1997. But something tells me they're probably pretty valuable.

So, I'm just kinda starting to do some research and get some conversation started. Learn more about the cars, all the different models, their quirks, what they go for, particular ones to avoid, best ones to buy, all that. I'd obviously want the most car I could get for my money.

So who here owns a 911 currently? Who has had one or more 911s in the past? What do you think about them? Why did you buy one? What do you love about the car? Anything you don't like about it? If you bought one recently, do you mind sharing what you paid? How reliable was/is your 911? What problems have you had?

Are there particular years that are best to avoid?

Obviously I have a ton of questions!

Please feel free to post photos of your 911s!

Thanks guys.

I included a few photos of some 911s I found in a quick search. I love that '79 911 S/C (black with tan interior). 78,000 original miles on that one. Currently for sale out of Campbell, CA. Asking $44,000. Wow.



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A couple of years ago, I went to my son’s work with him; the place was closed on Sunday. We checked out the cars on the outside (the lesser vehicles), I considered some paint and interior options, and then looked at the real cars down in the parking garage. Had a nice time. Plan to go back sometime and actually drive.
 

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I love with engine in the back there isnt much or any heat in the cabin. I have a 2014 and view to front, side and rear are fantastic
 
Back in the 1970s every other friend I had owned a Porsche 911 . They were nice and had their quirks . I really loved the 911/ 30 turbos, they were the Kawasaki Mach III of the automobile world. . When you stepped on the gas you know you were stepping on the gas. It was fun. About 6 years ago one of my friends was contemplating selling his Ferrari and buying a Porsche, I went to the dealer with him and sat in the cars on the show room floor, they feel good really good. Ferraris are pretty but I for some reason don't like them.
 
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A year ago, I started this thread, but got my feelings hurt when I found out what ‘80s Porsches sell for these days!

Man. They must have doubled in value over the last 10-15 years!

I also started this thread as a single man with no kids.

Now I’m married, and this dude came along last month :)
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I owned a 944 for a couple years. Really liked the way it handled. Used to road trip with my wife in it. Good AC in it too. Wife drove it once and when I told her "Why are you going so fast?" She realized she was doing 90mph. Last time she ever drove it. It was a very comfortable 2 person weekend get away car. I had a copper metallic paint with red tint. Real eye catcher. Sold it cause I was getting too old to get in and out.
 
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