1996 Porsche 911

Convertible

3.6L

Manual

WP0DA2996TS385116

Clear

Gasoline

With mixed emotions, I have decided to sell this gorgeous car. She has been my enthusiastic daily driver for the past 10 years. I purchased the car with 40,020 miles from Victory Motor Sports in Houston, TX. I think I am the third owner. I am selling because I'm ready to move up to a 4 door car with more space. My kids don't fit in the back as well as they used to. This car is relatively rare - in 1996 only 462 targas were shipped to the US and Canada that year (data is from the Wikipedia page on Porsche 933 targa). The entire 993 911 Targa worldwide production totaled only 4,619 cars. I'd love to know how many of them were black on black with a six speed - it's some subset of that. It took me a while to find her. ***ODOMETER DISCLOSURE - The odometer stopped working in 2011 and is stuck at 108,594. I estimate she has about $150,000 miles.*** Vehicle ConditionHopefully the pictures will give you a feel for her physical condition. This has been my daily driver since August 2005. I have not repainted her or repaired her cosmetically. There are some paint chips and a few door dings. There is a chip in the windshield and a chip in the right front headlight. There are some paint imperfections that I tried to photograph as well. The wheels are in good shape, but I'm sure I have bumped a few curbs along the way. Mechanically she starts and runs strong. I love how it sounds. My family hears me coming home from work before they see me round the corner. I will give the new owner my folder of every service performed since I've owned her. Below I will detail the significant repairs I have completed and a list of the cars "quirks". Significant RepairsIf you read the forums on Reenlist, two of the trouble spots on these cars are the potential need for a top end re-build and that the targa roof can be a bit finicky. I have experienced both of those issues and addressed them. Top End Re-Build 57,472 miles: In December 2007 my mechanic performed a "top end re-build" at a cost of $5,954.62. I had this done because one of the oxygen sensors was clogged with carbon and the check engine light was on. I wasn't able to pass the NJ emissions inspection without doing this repair. It was a bit of a painful repair bill to swallow at the time, but the car has been great since.Targa Roof Repair: In 2007 or 2008 (I can't find a copy of the repair bill for some reason) the targa roof was removed and repaired. The cable that opens and closes the roof had stretched so the roof wasn't closing all the way. That repair cost approximately $7,000. It was another tough repair bill to swallow, offset only by the joy I have experienced racing along with the roof open since.QuirksMy understanding is that these cars all develop their own quirks. This one has them, too. Following is a list of the ones I haven't addressed yet:Cruise control - sometimes the cruise control won't work (but sometimes it does!)Squeaky brakes - the last time I repaired the brakes, my mechanic suggested that I go with ceramic brake pads. He said they'd be little squeaky at first, but would create less dust, last longer and perform better. All of that has been true, but they are still squeaky!Snow tires / wheels included: I am including a additional set of wheels and snow tires. The rear snow tires need to be replaced - they are beyond their useful life. I drove this car year round and put snow tires on it in the winter. If I didn't have to drive in the snow with it, I didn't...but was happy to have the snow tires when I needed to drive her. It performs very well with the snow tires (for fun - there is a whole school dedicated to driving these cars in the snow - do a google search for Chris Harris driving 911s in the snow in Sweden. You can either go to that school in Sweden, or buy my car and wait for some snow in your own back yard! My daughters and I had a blast doing donuts in a few empty parking lots. Tail heavy rear wheel drive cars will really spin! If you want to get even more excited about this car, check to the Car and Driver Road Test from April 1996 (you'll have to do a google search - eBay won't let me provide the link).