pnwc4s

Well, the sad time has come to say goodbye to my 2006 C4S. She's been a delight to own, no real problems, and put a smile on my face every time I drove her. Unfortunately I've got a new baby and it's just not practical for me to have this car any more. I used to always drive it once or twice a week, but recently it's been sitting and I believe these cars should not sit still, so hopefully she goes to a good home where she'll be used mercilessly!

This is my first time selling a high end car, so any advice would be appreciated.

Here's the ad :

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?zip=98118&endYear=2006&modelCode1=911&showcaseOwner Id=0&startYear=2006&makeCode1=POR&sellerTypes=b&searchRadius=10&mmt=[POR[911[]][]]&listingId=350444845&listingIndex=4&Log=0

And the text with better formatting :

Beautiful, well optioned and well cared for C4S. It has a manual transmission and the desirable Adaptive sports seats. Beautiful combination of Seal Gray Metallic on Sand Beige interior.
....
I have taken meticulous care of this car. The oil is changed every 5000 miles. I cut the oil filter open at every change and have never seen any chunks. It's regularly driven, and I carefully warm it up and then get the revs up high. Major service has been done at Aker's Posrche in Seattle and they've remarked on what great shape the engine is in. This car does not eat oil quickly.
....
I'm the 2nd owner; carfax is clean; PPI done when I bought it.
....
options codes : c02 x70 267 342 377 378 431 446 537 575 615 635 670 680 983
....
267 Automatically dimming mirrors;
342 Heated seats;
431 Three-spoke multi-function steering wheel;
446 Colored crest wheel caps;
475 PASM;
607 Homelink;
635 ParkAssist (parking aid rear);
650 Electric slide/tilt sunroof;
670 Navigation module for PCM;
680 BOSE Surround Sound System;
P01 Adaptive sports seats;
X70 Door entry guards in stainless steel;
....
The car has very few small mods : clear side markers, Porsche GT3 adjustable rear sway bar, "4S" wheel caps (the colored crest caps are included), Rennline aluminum shift **** (OEM shift **** included), rear debadged (original badges included).
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Major service has been done; six new plugs and coils, new serpentine belt, new battery, new shift cable, all fluids and filters and brakes in good shape. Tires are 3000 miles old.
....
There are a few cosmetic flaws, all included in the pictures. The right rear wheel is curbed and buyer may replace it. There is a scratch on one rear bumperette and near the fuel filler cap. The emergency brake lever has some gouges in the leather. The seats bolsters and leather are excellent shape. The car is always garaged and kept out of the sun.
....
3.8 H6, Manual Transmission, 911 Carrera 4S

MessyMarvin

I would put the badges back on the back and take that part out of your ad.

Nice car!!!

pnwc4s

Thanks! Yeah, you're right, should probably put it all back to stock (shift **** too). I just love it the way it is, so pretty with just the body curves in back! Can't let go yet

RacingJunkie

Sending PM.

pnwc4s

Update :

Well I put the shift **** back to stock (I highly recommend the Rennline Aluminum shift ****, really liked the feel of the weight of it on the shifter).

I'm trying an experiment and listing the car on ebay :

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Porsc...item4ac94147d4

so we'll see how that goes. Fingers crossed!

911Steve

Good luck, I know it must of been a hard decision to let your car go! But a man has to do what he has to do, hope you someday have the ability to get back in a Porsche.

fbfisher

I feel your pain. Good lunch with the sale.

fastm3

Beautiful 4S in a great color combo. Best of luck.

ECS Tuning

That's a great looking car. Good luck with the sale

pnwc4s

Ugh. The market is super slow right now. Is there something about my car that's turning people off? Maybe I'm too forthcoming about the two scratches.

I did a lot of price research, and I think I'm priced about right compared to similar cars, but I see those other cars also just aren't selling. I've seen the same cars in my area listed on Autotrader for the past year.

I suppose it's mainly the 991 that has really slowed the market for 997.1 ; I feel like the car is no longer the hot new thing for the status-conscious buyer, but it's also too expensive for the low end bargain buyer.

powderzone

From your ad.... "I have taken meticulous care of this car. The oil is changed every 5000 miles. I cut the oil filter open at every change and have never seen any chunks. It's regularly driven, and I carefully warm it up and then get the revs up high. Major service has been done at Aker's Porsche in Seattle and they've remarked on what great shape the engine is in. This car does not eat oil quickly."

My 2 cents...a non Porsche owner will be wondering what the heck you're talking about with respect to "chunks", "revs up high" and "eating oil". While we certainly appreciate that sort of candor on a P-car forum for your average buyer, it may be scaring them off. I would maybe say that the car has "some very minor cosmetic blemishes typical for a 7 year old car".

fskof

In the ad I would leave the "changed oil every 5k miles BUT remove the part "cutting the oil filter", "get the revs up high", and "This car does not eat oil quickly." Those words are sort of RED FLAGS to non hard core Porsche fans

Comanche_699

As a recent buyer I can attest that there is a lot of good inventory, but it seems like everyone is pricing based on the success of some of the record sales at Mecum this year, instead of pricing their cars to MOVE.

I had been looking steadily since last November when I (stupidly) let a black on black 2007 Targa 4s go, thinking another would pop up easy enough. I chased that dragon for 9 months and saw a LOT of Porsches in the meantime, but never another deal like that one.

About 10 days ago I almost gave up and "settled" for mint 996 C4S Coupe. I had a deposit on it and we were just waiting on the dealer to quit dicking around & finalize the numbers.

And then "Poof!" Like a black unicorn charging through a rainbow, my 997.1 C2S Cab magically appeared on Craigslist. It had been listed 18 minutes when I saw it. The pictures weren't even of the actual car, but I KNEW.

Instinct took over.

The next morning at 8am, I was sitting in it. I called & canceled my deposit on the C4S, and the following day I went and brought that C2S cab home.

Here's what made it work.

THE PRICE.

I paid full price, and didn't even try to talk him down. I knew he could just change his mind and put the price up where EVERY OTHER 997 cab was. The car had a few cosmetic blemishes, (curb rash, worn tires, a few "city" scrapes & a little ding on the hip) but my mind's wallet did the math on those things very quickly and this was a DEAL not to be missed.

Since buying the car I've had the rims refinished, bought the new tires, and had a little PDR done on the hip. I clay barred and buffed and waxed it, and now it looks amazing. Sure, I spent a couple grand within the first 10 days, but that couple grand was easy to spend because the buy-in was so "reasonable" that all the other stuff seemed to keep within budget when compared to the asking prices of all the other cars online.

My advice is to look at the comps, (like you already have) and then just UNDERCUT THEM by a couple of grand.

I didn't see your asking price, autotrader says the ad is gone, but if it's a good looking, well optioned, well documented car, people are ALREADY interested. They just need a push.

So,for example, let's say, $54,000 is the average price for a similar car locally, then just come right in at $51,000 asking. It's going to make yours stand out, and buyers who are shopping for the deal, are going to pounce. If you can afford it and REALLY want to sell it fast, you gotta make the deal stand out.

In the grand scheme, a couple grand isn't going to make or break you. It's probably just a couple of day's pay... but it makes all the difference to potential buyers who are literally trolling all the usual haunts for that killer deal.

When I shook hands on my C2s cab, I knew the p.o. was probably still getting calls on that car for days afterward.

Fact is, I KNOW he was thinking he'd listed it too low. He's wrong. I've seen some of the same cars listed on and off for as many as 6 months, and the price barely moves and the car never sells.

HIS car was online for barely 20 minutes and it was sold, and now it's in my garage and he's got a fat stack of hunnies to do with as he pleases. And that is the point.

If you really need the car to move, consider a very competitive price drop.

When people ask, "why did you price it so low?" You can say, "Hey. I'll take more if you insist- but I just want to SELL it, not TALK ABOUT it."

You may be very surprised.

Good luck.

perfectlap

Autotrader are always on the high side of pricing so its not the first place people go to buy. Also, there is a metric ton of water-cooled Carreras available in the used market right now. Nearly 2,400 m96/97 Carreras on Autotrader alone. Even just for your year there are nearly 300 cars including two with similar mileage selling for well under $40K, which means in a private sale from a forum classified, Craigslist, etc. pricing is going to be even lower.

The other factor is that rates are low and the banks are lending. If your car is out of warranty by over 3 or 4 years, or not sold with an extended warranty, is an expensive one to maintain requiring specialized labor, then buyers really need a strong motivation to go with a used car in the $50K range, namely very very low miles or a more limited variant. But the bottom line issue is the supply, there are not nearly enough enthusiasts/brave first timers to absorb that much supply and thus sustain high resales.

pnwc4s

Yeah, thanks, good advice.