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Owning a 3.2 Carrera vs 930


Simonk

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I've noticed a few 930s in the high $50,000s, even a couple Aus delivered ones. All have had reasonable kms on them. Having known someone who tried for years to sell theirs, I know how hard they are to offload. There's a couple Aus delivered ones for sale at the moment and I think a UK one owned by a collector. At this stage I've only been looking at 3.2 Carreras but I'm wondering how the 930 compares from a maintenance point of view. When things go wrong are they more expensive to repair or are they basically the same as a carrera with a Turbo hanging off it. Given the plan is to keep the car for a very long time, is a rebuild more for a 930? Also is insurance substantially more for a 930? The UK one has sparked my interest as it seems reasonably priced at $44,000 with 145,000kms. Another UK one sold recently advertised for $47k Obviously serious attention would need to be paid to any rust issues, service history etc but at the same price as an Aus 3.2, I wonder if it's worth considering?

Just a note, I'm not after a UK vs Aus debate thanks. I'm aware I would need to tread carefully.

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930 definitley more costly to maintain, a little more plumbing and oil leak potential too. They also can run quite hot and suffer more in summer traffic.

Dont forget they are also a bit trickier to drive and 4spd as opposed to 5

A close friend of mine has a 930 ('86 model Jap import), it is an absolute horn car to look at, but always feels like its gonna kill you if you make a mistake when punting it quickly.

He has spent quite a lot of money maintaining it for something that doesn't get driven a lot. (far less than I drive my 3.2)

New oil cooler, lots of stuffing with boost pressures and mixtures. Has cracked headers and looking at $3k for a stainless set from the USA. Also leaks a bit of oil here and there and its a rebuilt recently engine.

How much of the above can be put down to poor workmanship previously I dont know, but they are potentially more costly. Awesome car otherwise though and I think it makes my 3.2 look like the scrawny school kid nerd when parked side by side. From behind the wheel I prefer the 3.2 though. Ideally would have both :D

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I've noticed a few 930s in the high $50,000s, even a couple Aus delivered ones. All have had reasonable kms on them. Having known someone who tried for years to sell theirs, I know how hard they are to offload. There's a couple Aus delivered ones for sale at the moment and I think a UK one owned by a collector. At this stage I've only been looking at 3.2 Carreras but I'm wondering how the 930 compares from a maintenance point of view. When things go wrong are they more expensive to repair or are they basically the same as a carrera with a Turbo hanging off it. Given the plan is to keep the car for a very long time, is a rebuild more for a 930? Also is insurance substantially more for a 930? The UK one has sparked my interest as it seems reasonably priced at $44,000 with 145,000kms. Another UK one sold recently advertised for $47k Obviously serious attention would need to be paid to any rust issues, service history etc but at the same price as an Aus 3.2, I wonder if it's worth considering?

Just a note, I'm not after a UK vs Aus debate thanks. I'm aware I would need to tread carefully.

I spotted this one as well. It's got UK import against it but - a turbo - a 930 has always been the ideal for me.

The car is very close to where I am, so I'm thinking of contacting the owner for a look. If that car doesn't work out it looks like the owner is a collector and might know of others.

I figure the worst case scenario is you take the turbo off and run it as an atmo engine for a while if you can't fix the turbo.

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930's are wicked to look at. They are even more wicked to drive. I drove a RUF 85 930 and it was silly.

However, they are, at the very least 40% more expensive to maintain......big thrills=big bills

UK cars are ok, just as long as you carefully inspect all of the rust prone areas for signs of rot.

Or have a respected specialist do it for you.

In my honest opinion, you cannot go wrong with a well cared for Carrera 3.2. They are still expensive to maintain properly however they are basically a robust, over engineered and manufactured vehicle.

In fact, a 3.2 could possibly be even cheaper to maintain than far more modern cars. I have heard some horror stories about 'regular service' bills on late model cars....

I personally prefer the non turbo 911s to drive, just as much fun if you arent fixated on horsepower and straight line speed.

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I figure the worst case scenario is you take the turbo off and run it as an atmo engine for a while if you can't fix the turbo.

:wacko::unsure::blink:

It depends on what you're looking for in a car really... a 3.2 will have the 915 or a G50 and Motronic, a 930 will be CIS with a 4spd ... meaning both cars are completelty different to drive.

My old 930 was a beautiful car to look at, but a terrible car to plod along in traffic or drive on a hot day..where as the 3.2 you can happily cruise around in as an unstressed daily driver.

930 running costs are not just associated with the turbo hanging out the back, there is getting the CIS right, oil leaks and the list goes on... you can easily spend 30k rebuilding an engine to get it right...ask me i know

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It all comes back to you get nothing for nothing. More power means more to maintain. More to maintain means more cost. A 930 is still on my list of things to do though.

Oh and as for just pulling off the turbo and running N/A. No just no.

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My dream was to own a 930. I remember having these fantastic posters in the 80's and thinking one day that will be mine, meaning the car not the scantily clad girl lying all over it although that would have been nice too..... :rolleyes::lol:

Achieved the dream in 2002 once the house was paid for. What an experience, that acceleration when the boost hit was addictive but like someone else said earlier, I always felt like it was trying to kill me or I was going to end up in jail. Definitely you need to be committed to own one as they do require a deep pocket but I will always look back on the time I had it and think WOW what a great time.... By the way my wife hated it but she tolerates the 993 much better B)

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FedSq2009.jpg

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I do want a 1975/76 3.0 or as our merican friends have 'turbo carrera'.

Was a nice red one for sale, maybe still is? v early 1 oz deliverd low k's , tartan interior.

one hundred and something thousand dollars.

Couldn't justify it.....................maybe at 95k........

Anyway, The RUF I drove is for sale, 400bhp, twin plug, looney tune performance in armandine(?) ie metallic maroon.

Looks like a set of balls with a wing on them.

48k?

It would kill me. I know it.

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My brother-in-law had a 77 3L 930 in Moss Green with tan trim and tartan inserts. it was the first and only Porsche i drove before I bought my 930. He bought it in 83 with about 40K on the clock and paid 42K for it. Really interesting story as he lived in Mildura and the original owner of the car was the local surgeon but it was too much car for him so he sold it to a guy in Melbourne and my brother-in-law bought it from him. Didn't realize until we looked at the service books when we went to first have a look at it.

kept it until about 97 and sold it for more than he paid for it....

C

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My brother-in-law had a 77 3L 930 in Moss Green with tan trim and tartan inserts. it was the first and only Porsche i drove before I bought my 930. He bought it in 83 with about 40K on the clock and paid 42K for it. Really interesting story as he lived in Mildura and the original owner of the car was the local surgeon but it was too much car for him so he sold it to a guy in Melbourne and my brother-in-law bought it from him. Didn't realize until we looked at the service books when we went to first have a look at it.

kept it until about 97 and sold it for more than he paid for it....

C

Rare car.

because most of them went backward through fences......

Lift off oversteer.

lag lag lag boooooooooost..........lift...............crinkle.......bang..........tears

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Rare car.

because most of them went backward through fences......

Lift off oversteer.

lag lag lag boooooooooost..........lift...............crinkle.......bang..........tears

Arrrr yes well that nearly happened to me on my first drive..... Scared the ..... Out of me... I learnt very quickly to treat this car with respect. Had some wonderful drives down the Calder hwy to Melbourne in that car.

C

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Arrrr yes well that nearly happened to me on my first drive..... Scared the ..... Out of me... I learnt very quickly to treat this car with respect. Had some wonderful drives down the Calder hwy to Melbourne in that car.

C

You're making me want to drive one but not to own one. I think I'd end up driving it like the old Camaro I used to have. brake brake brake, crawl around corner, get car straight, LOUD PEDAL, brake brake brake, crawl around corner, get car straight, LOUD PEDAL - and on and on it goes. Until you forget one time and do brake, LOUD PEDAL...and... oh no, facing wrong way on road.

In that car it was just woeful handling, such a lead tipped arrow. But hitting the loud pedal never ceased to amuse. I broke the gearbox mount once when I hit the loud pedal a bit hard merging onto a freeway and the gearbox jumped up and hit the floor. Ah, the SBC - performance on a budget.

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You're making me want to drive one but not to own one. I think I'd end up driving it like the old Camaro I used to have. brake brake brake, crawl around corner, get car straight, LOUD PEDAL, brake brake brake, crawl around corner, get car straight, LOUD PEDAL - and on and on it goes. Until you forget one time and do brake, LOUD PEDAL...and... oh no, facing wrong way on road.

In that car it was just woeful handling, such a lead tipped arrow. But hitting the loud pedal never ceased to amuse. I broke the gearbox mount once when I hit the loud pedal a bit hard merging onto a freeway and the gearbox jumped up and hit the floor. Ah, the SBC - performance on a budget.

Sounds like my old Monaro-more power than the brakes or chassis could ever dream of coping with. :D

My wise father described it as "a young man's car" ...it was was unlikely that you would get to be an old man driving it :ph34r:

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  • 1 month later...

Just wander over to PP and check out spare parts prices e.g. brakes and so on (& tyres) , 930s are deep pocket cars for sure and in the twisties , yes I feel they will try to kill you. You don't see then driven in the Targa races, and as we can't drive at autobahn speeds the twisties are where we drivers get our jollies. 

 

Original 930s are becoming collector cars . They will gain value,  but then there is the recommissioning cost for those that have been laid up.

 

Uncle's got the right idea though...hotrod is the way to go if you want useable boosted cars.

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adding to what tazzieman said i also don't like thehandling on the widebody cars as much as the narrowbody (outside of a racetrack anyway).

between the heavier feeling handling and steering, big lag and tall gearing it's all a bit of handful in tight twisty stuff.

around smaller tracks like lakeside and morgan park my 3.6 SC is running as fast as 350hp 930's often! i get blasted on the straights though..

it just seems like the 930 guys have trouble getting all of the performance out of their cars- would take a skilled hand for sure.

 

 

between the 965 and the SC, yes the 965 has been more expensive but not unexpected - still quite reasonable. i don't doubt a badly tuned model would be quite the opposite though..

 

one little feature i have noticed is that in the turbo the oil lines seem to heat up more and seep heat into the cabin. does not happen in the SC! it's the little things.. haha

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Grrr, wanted to stay out of it.

However, here are some facts worth thinking about.

Stay away from these $50k 930s.

A good 930 will cost you around $75/80K, thats just what they cost.

People try and buy a cheap one(cheap for a reason) then piss and moan that they are expensive and drama filled.

If I posted on here that I was looking at a $20k 3.2 everyone would send off alarm bells.

But in the car buying tradition we try and get more for less and it ends in tears.

A good 930 will cost min $75/80K in stock condition.

 

Now I love the 3.2, I am always pushing them here on the forum.

Best Porsche for $50k you can get IMO.

However, a 930 is faster everywhere, and so it should be.

The other advantage with a 930 is the fact that you can add some small mods and stay with the modern cars.

I have a set of good tyres, big T Bars and new shocks. With that I can stay with the fast guys on our SMTs even in the twisties.

In fact the roads people say 930s are no good I find it at its best.

Now some will say, yes Vas but you have over 400hp.

I honesty feel in the twisties I would be even faster with the stock power.

As it is, I feather the gas to maintain traction and need to brake early to set the car up for exit due to the power.

 

If you look at the fast Tarmac cars you will see they are wide body N/A cars far from stock.

They use these cars as the rules allow for many mods, they are race cars.

The top guys are running 3.6s in early body cars are light as hell, as per the rules.

Against those cars and the limiting rules on the turbo's, a 930 can't compete.

 

As for being big bucks to maintain, yes if you buy a cheap one it will be a nightmare.

My car has had over 400hp for 25 years and done plenty of hard work.

Track days and a general flogging.

In that time it has had a new set of rings and serviced as needed.

None of these oil leaks or CIS issues that people have.

Don't stuff around with the CIS and it won't give you any drama.

I did have the gearbox rebuilt last year as 2nd was getting ugly.

But the car has done 1800000kms in anger, so thats not bad out of a gear box.

Same K27 turbo is still on the car, never had an issue with it.

 

Now a 930 5 speed is so much better again.

I had an 89 5 speed, easy to stay on boost and an all round better car.

 

I agree you need to be a real 930 fan to have one.

You need good driving skills and big balls to drive one fast.

 

So, a good 930 is a great car to own as a week end fun car.

But you need to be able to drive at a high level to enjoy it.

They are a great looking car with the price going up and up.

 

So, 3.2 or 930 ?

For most people a 3.2 is the perfect car for up to $50k.

If you enjoy more power and have around $80k a good 930 may be the go.

 

I am not saying one is better than the other.

Just that they both have good points and that much of what is said about 930s is a myth.

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Excellent return fire post Vas your points are well taken. As you say , it's a car that suits a certain type of person. These are special cars , in particular the early laggy ones. As a matter of fact , a mate down the road has done targa tas in a race specced '85 930 (like you,  ~400hp) and remarked the best aspect was the reliability. After each day , the other teams would be eternally about with mechanical and other issues ; he shut the door, walked away and had a couple of cold ones before rocking up next day. They are devastatingly quick on track but I wouldn't want to drive like that on our local roads! 

 

I would rather buy a well used car from an enthusiast than a garage queen any day. In fact I'd pay more for it.

Do you work on the car yourself?

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