Car appreciation... the aesthetics, the engineering, etc

From experience once the values of a manufacturers model go up, people start to look at what else the company makes as an alternative. 996's were on their arse until 964 & 993 prices started to rise. Once people couldn't afford the last of the air cooled cars, they started looking at the 996 as a usable and affordable alternative. Despite what they think about the looks and the 'fried egg' headlights it's still a 911.

The same goes for previously unloved Ferrari's like the Mondial and 308 GT4 amongst almost every other specialist brand.

Wheeler Dealers bought a tatty 308 GT4 from that car hire place that used to be on Old St, ten grand I think they paid, can't remember what they spent to get it right but they never factor in labour costs and by all accounts they do more work than they film

is it car allowance that you get in cash if you don't spend it? I get about the same and have never thought about justifying a mustang to the mrs in these terms. I am now on the lookout...

Call me slow, but I really am not following this bit of MM, beyond the first sentence.

I get similar car allowance, I just pocket it (after gilding HMRC) and run whatever, currently the M3.

Octavia VRS
Alfa 159
Fiat Panda 100HP
Mazda 3 MPS
Renaultsport Megane 225
Passat V6 4Motion

I understand that there are a few Hot Hatches in there and you've already said you're not interested, but I thought if I mentioned a few more it might peak your interest.

Call me slow, but I really am not following this bit of MM, beyond the first sentence.

I get similar car allowance, I just pocket it (after gilding HMRC) and run whatever, currently the M3.

I could just trouser the cash, yes - I am thinking about using it as a figure to aim for/to keep under per year.

In reality I get taxed on it, so it's not 6k dans le poche, but whatevs.

Loan to cover Porka purchase / ins / maintenance paid off yearly by allowance?

Yes, basically.

Ah, the bit I missed was that your repaying 14k over x years.

get a w460 g-wagen :D, you won't lose any money and it will be huge amounts of fun

I feel that I've done large/load carrying/FWD, I want small, nimble, RWD, grunty.

Isn't that what the Porsche will do though?

Catch up!

I wonder what the ultimate pairing would be from a cost efficiency perspective - a Fiesta as the main vehicle (that sits, sulking on the drive) and then the 996 as the classic, restricted mileage/weekends away motor?

To me that makes the most sense. Have something that is cheap as chips to run day to day and will tick boxes for being practical, hauling shit around and that you won't have any particular affection for. Then you have the car that matters in the garage for fun. The less you can spend on the daily hack, the more can be put into the car you care about.

There is a dude on my street (read estate) who has a mint Carrera S wedged in behind the practical family car.

I am already prepping the wife for a stoopid second car. Going well.

that is DEF the way to do it. I don't think I ever sold a car in aus, they always got crushed into a cube when a big bill landed and a new one purchased. $400 minis, datsuns, corollas, etc. that left me to waste all my money on the sick as 'wood. mind you, I had some ace bunkies.

reasonable GT3 > http://borderreivers.co/portfolio/porsche-911-996-gt3-mk2/

RS style, at not RS prices > http://borderreivers.co/portfolio/porsche-993rs-spec-1994-rhd/

GT3 looks like a nice bit of kit.

The 993 looks nice but 65grand! For essentially a 911 C2 with a few bits on it. The 996 looks better value and has a bunch of desirable bits on it.

neil's 12k 996 chat escalated quickly...

Yeah it's clear that he just needs to jump feet first into a GT3. Nothing else will do.

They're selling a Rod Emory 356. Who wants to buy a kidney? Lung?

I believe the GT3 and RS rep will exceed the 6k car allowance

It doesn't have to be that GT3. Any other will do.

The 993 looks nice but 65grand! For essentially a 911 C2 with a few bits on it. The 996 looks better value and has a bunch of desirable bits on it.

I'm pretty sure I've driven that car. It belonged to a bloke called Gary from http://www.elite-carsales.com/ It was decent, but I seem to remember the reason I didn't buy it is that it had something ridiculous like 16 former keepers.

Might be a different car, but there can't be many speed yellow RHD RS reps about.

987s handle better though. I did an A-B-A-B back-to-back drive with a Cayman S and a 997 Carrera S over a 2 hour period, and I thought the 987 handled better than the 997. YMMV though, it was a fairly subjective thing as both were bloody good. In the spirit of full disclosure, I should point out the salesman never let me turn the PSM off so there was no tail-out action.

I agree the shit out of all of this.

A 987 Cayman R is a bloody amazing thing, it's so accessible that you're driving it at 9/10ths by the third corner. I only drove one for about 10 minutes tho and I fear it might be boring by the second day of ownership.

The tail out thing is where the whole mid-engined layout goes wrong for someone of my average ability and I end up in a hedge. 911s are just so brilliant at it. So long as you get the front to turn in you can just stomp on the power at any point you like and you get a beautiful, graceful power slide that the car pulls itself out of without needing any sort of scary little lift. You just keep pressing the right-hand pedal hard and the amaze traction of the rear engined set up sorts you out.

And when you work out that a little lift and flick on entry unsettles the car enough to make it work at any speed from 20mph to 150mph you realise just how fucking brilliant a 911 is.