'98 993 C2S vs. '96 993 Turbo

I'm about to pull the trigger on a 993 and am looking for input regarding these two cars. Both are low mileage. Which to buy and why (or why not)?

I value your input, please don't be shy. Thanks!

Hi Ed!

Coincidentally, my son is aching badly to buy a 993, but probably not a turbo for him. But, my thought is that if you don't get the Turbo you would always wonder what it would be like to have the extra uumph. The 993 Turbo is such a sweet car -- beastly, but at the same time driver friendly. Incidentally, I took a nice drive in the '55 Outlaw today and it was a huge treat. I hadn't driven it in a while and it sure makes the '73S a modern car! With the 993 and then the Outlaw, you'll have quite a nice stable!

Jack

Buy the Turbo...

All 993s are fairly labor intensive cars to work on - turbos more-so - which means higher maintenance costs. Also, the parts can be expensive - again, the turbos more-so.

Be aware of the Secondary Air Injection issues associated with the Varioram cars which, to solve, usually means at least a top-end rebuild.

All that aside, they are AWESOME cars to own and drive. True grand tourers.

If you can swing the Turbo, it's a no brainer.

If it was a match against a C4S, there could be a discussion - but a C2S just has the wide body and none of the turbo bits (brakes, susp.) that the C4S has. I'd personally buy a C4S, not a turbo - too much car for me!

As an owner of both a 1998 2S and a 1996 Turbo, I have to buck the trend: if a gun was to my head I would choose the 2S. The turbo has all the power in the world, but the 2S is easier to live with and feels (and sounds) more like a Porsche should. It's a close call.

Paul

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Originally Posted by 2POINT7

Which to buy and why (or why not)?

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Turbo...for several reasons. Both cars are rife with technology, and that must be what you want if you are considering these models. The Turbo has the "advantage" of AWD and other technological systems not found on the 2S. (I know, some don't feel the AWD is an advantage, but if you want the "true/original" 911 feel you need to buy an old car.) Also, the turbo is holding value incredibly well, better than most Porsche models from the era. The 2S, while a cool car, is quite slow compared to the turbo, and also (in my opinion) quite overvalued for what it has to offer.

Having driven both PZuck's cars and with a 993 Targa as my daily, I'd go with a 2S or even regular Carrera also. The Turbo power is a lot of fun but you can't beat the sound and power delivery of the N/A car along with its much lighter feeling. The Turbo understeers (off throttle) like a pig and noticeably has more weight over the front end compared to a 2wd car. If you like the feel of the old cars you may not be into a Turbo.

Thanks everyone for great feedback to my question. I drove both and while the Turbo sure puts a big smile :D on your face (ok....maybe its more like this :eek: ) I ultimately chose the 1998 C2S. I think I may have to own a Turbo one of these days but the C2S just made better sense for me right now. The car has just under 11,500 miles on it and I probably paid a little too much but it is the last year of the aircooled Porsche and seems to have, at least with this low mileage, held its value nicely.

Like my '73S, it will be a sunny day occassional driver, probably adding only 1,500 or so miles per year.

Again, thanks for the input. Interesting how split the response was which suggested to me that I couldn't go wrong either way so I utimately chose the one that made sense for me at this time.

I'll post a picture or two when I get it to Atlanta. Now if I could just convince JackG to sell his '55 Outlaw........:rolleyes: