'02 porsche turbo or '03 sl55..

I just want some opinions of you fellow fchatters on these 2 cars. I have an S550 or I guess should say had an S550. My girlfriend and I are living together now and she's been taking my car all the time for the last month and a half, so I've decided to get myself another car but I don't want to spend big money for it since I hadn't even planned on getting another car in the first place. I know both of these can be had in the mid 60's and would probably both hold value decently and not cost an arm and leg for maintenance. I know mercedes really well bc I've had 3 R129 SL's, a w220 S500, and now an S550. I know they're all fairly cheap to maintain. So anyways I need to get a car in the next week or 2 because I'm tired of being stuck with her audi A4 when she takes my car!!! Just wanted to know which you'd take and why? I'm trying to stay around 60K bc I just spent about 102K tax included on the S last june. I know you get flamed for not including pics on fchat so here.

how can I say no to her when she asks for my car?
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Porsche Turbo.

I try to stay away from Benz as much as possible.

 

Coming from a SL600 owner, I would say get the Turbo if you want more of a toy, SL if you want more of a daily driver/comfort car.

 

This car would be used everyday probably about 12k-15k miles a year. I make alot of trips between houston and dallas. I have no experience with porsche, much less the turbo. Are there any good porsche forums? How reliable is the turbo, what is the maintenace schedule? How much are we talking about money wise bc A and B services on my S550 aren't that bad. I have one next week scheduled now that I'm at 14K miles its going to be around $700 including something special for the 7 speed transmission. Even when I had a '99 SL600 I think the most expensive thing I ever paid for was around $900 for some sort of problem with the check engine light that wouldn't go away.

 

Like MB you can purchase a Porsche with a preowned 100K warranty. Typically low maintenance cars. Check out, www.6speedonline.com. Both cars are great daily drivers however, I get the feeling your a SL55 kinda gal.

 

I'm glad you bought your S-class from Star.

Personally, as has been mentioned before, the SL is the comfort, the Porsche is the toy. My reasoning is, if you don't want the gf to steal the SL as well, go with the Porsche.

 

Definately go with a Turbo. Much more fun than an SL. 6speedonline is a terrific resource, but you probably won't be cleared to make posts there before you get your car (takes so long). I know a TON about 996 Turbos, so if you have any questions absolutely feel free to PM me.


-Joe

 

Another vote for the Turbo; If you love cars. (6 speed)
If you prefer luxury and status get the Benz.
I talked my best friend out of buying a SL and into a Porsche years back and he thanks me to this day.

 

Turbo,
you cant go wrong

 

does anyone know how much clutch replacement costs on the turbo? Also anyone know how long the clutch lasts, I'm pretty good with a stick, my first car back when I was in high school was manual jeep cj7

 

Spend $50k, and buy her a car she wants, so you can get your S550 back. Or get the 996 Turbo, as Im seeing an excuse to get a newer car here.

 

I'll be odd man out here and say the SL55 AMG. I think it would suit you better if you are driving a lot. Its also one of the fastests production automatic cars in the world. The automatic hard top is perfect for sunny days when you want to enjoy the breeze.

 

as to the just buy her a 50K car,well

1)she's not my wife yet
2)her parents gave her the A4 cab when she finished her masters and the sticker on it I believe was 48K
3)If you drive an A4 and then the S550 even once you'll be in love with the power and smoothness. Its amazing esp w/ all the gadgets esp the night vision camera,reverse cam,heated steering,pano roof. The nightvision is one of the neatest things I've ever seen it amazes the valets everywhere

 

Hey. You can always pm/contact ze_shark (Jean Claude) on ferrarichat. He is the type of petrolhead who likes to make longterm cost evaluations for his cars, and guess what he just bought a 996 turbo. I think he is the most able here to answer your questions.


Best,

 

Unless your 60, but the Turbo. SL are nice and fast, but for the older crowd IMO.

 

Get the Turbo, Sl's are always driven by old people.

 

I want to thank all of you guys for your opinions, I really am leaning towards a turbo just bc I feel it will hold its value better after a few years after seeing how far my '99 SL600 depreciated. I just wish someone here knew more about porsche maintenance and costs along with the clutch..

 

PM ze_shark. He's in Cali. As i said, he will be able to answer that i think.

 

You could also check out rennlist.com - great site for Porsche info.

My Mercedes SLK was an expensive car for the <10K miles I had it. Depreciation was bad, but things like a failed $1000 electronic instrument cluster and three replaced fuel senders convinced me it wouldn't be much cheaper than a Porsche over the longer term.

 

I've owned 18 P-cars and never really had a serious maintenance issue. Why are you so concerned about clutch replacement? Find a low mile, well cared for example and have a pre-purchase inspection completed by a professional P tech. The Turbo should hold its value better but not by much.

 

02 Turbos have taken a huge depreciation hickey so far.
The good news is that they will stabilize. Check out 993 Turbo values. (A better chice BTW ).
MB has had lots of Quality issues as of late.
Porsche very good here. However there is talk of a Rear bearing seal problem. Check with the dealer. Clutch changes on a 911 are not a big deal as the engine drops easily.
The 911 is the best kept secret in sportscardom.
Get an older depreciated one, drive the piss out of it, sell it for close to what you paid.
Borders on no-brainer territory.
They are almost giving normal 996s away now.

 

True. They're unloved compared to the 993 or 997, but the market values have tanked so badly they're not a bad buy anymore.

My big hangup was always the cheap-o plastic interior. I was in a Boxster S yesterday where the finish was flaking off the driver's side armrest, after 20K miles. But it's certainly nothing worse than 348/355 interiors turning into goo.

 

Agreed, my spider has some goo issues.

I have owned a 996 Turbo, and had no isues with maintenance. A test drive will show you if it has abnormal clutch wear. The point of contact on the pedal should be somewhere in the middle, if it's on the bottom or top of the pedal thats a red flag.

 

It's called an RMS or rear main seal, but it doesn't happen with the Twin Turbo or the GT3 and supposedly there is a fix (finally) on the standard model.

I have owned a 2002 996TT since March, bought from a reputable dealer in one day - so I didn't even bother with the PPI (I know I know) or the extended warranty because I wanted a sportscar and I got tired of looking for the perfect 328.

I basically used it as a daily driver until October when I put it in storage. Total cost after about 5K miles - $170 for an oil change and a look over. It's very fast, very comfortable and very reliable and if I had the same in a big sedan I would think it would be the perfect compliment.

Although I also have an old SL and understand the roofless motoring part and I think that is what it comes down to...

 

I'd take the porsche. Every time someone does an opinion poll they rank high in satisfaction whereas mercedes doesn't do nearly as well. The porsche will be much more fun to drive and own. Though I guess you could argue the merc would be more practical in terms of comfort and space but you already have one (and another, A4) so you have access to two practical cars, I say get something fun