Air-Cooled Porsche Buying Tips

Part 1: Buying Your Air-Cooled Porsche from a private seller.

Premier Financial, a major lessor of classic and exotic cars is running a series on Buying Your Dream Car (Classic Porsche). With each Premier Financial installment Air Brigade will apply their advice to buying an air-cooled Porsche classic. The first installment starts with buying from a private seller.

Five Tips to Air-Cooled Porsche Buying Success

1. Caveat Emptor – Let the Buyer Beware

The number one rule of buying from a private seller is “Caveat Emptor”, or let the Buyer Beware. A private seller is a no return transaction. After the sale you won’t see them again or do they need to worry about a repeat sale on in most cases their reputation as a seller of integrity as opposed to a dealer who relies on repeat word-of-mouth business. As a result a private seller may not always represent his classic Porsche as accurately as it should be represented.

2. Patience is Key

Patience is the number one key to making a purchase from a private seller. In this Internet age transactions move fast but it is important to be disciplined and buy at your pace to insure you are buying what you want and that the car is of the quality you desire and in the condition that it is being presented as being in.

3. Inspect, Inspect, Inspect…

You cannot over inspect a car. Crawl all over it inside, outside and underneath. Bring a good powerful flashlight to look in every nook and cranny and a magnet to check for Bondo on the body panels. You are looking for rust, mis-matched paint, improper repairs or any signs of water damage. Key in this step is to get the Carfax report. It won’t tell you everything but it is the first line of offense in learning about a car’s history.

4. Rely on Experts

Get a Pre-Purchase Inspection (PPI) from a marque expert. This is of utmost importance. Most Classic Porsche shops provide this service and know what to look for in the way of faults while inspecting your potential purchase. It usually costs around $300 -$500 for this service but it is money well spent. Any seller of integrity will not have a problem with working with you to deliver the Porsche being sold to a shop for the PPI. If they hesitate turn around and move to the next deal.

5. Be Prepared to Walk Away

You need the mindset that doesn’t allow you to fall in love; there is another one out there if the car isn’t up to your standards or you can’t get the price you’ve targeted. Go into the process with a price and car quality target established. Got to the extreme of writing it down as this will set a goal for you and help hold you to achieving the buying parameters you have set for a purchase. It is easy to get caught up in wanting to make the purchase and have the gratification of a new classic Porsche in your garage. But, if you don’t buy right, this car can turn into a nightmare and a regret down the road.

Advantages of Buying Your Porsche from a Private Seller

A private seller may be the only solution if you are looking for a very unique or collectible classic Porsche. You may only find it by going through a private seller.

Besides availability a private seller may offer more flexibility regarding purchase price and should price the car a little lower than a dealer since there are not fixed overhead costs to cover with a car sale.

Often with a collectible classic Porsche the seller is as concerned that the car is going to a true enthusiast as opposed to an opportunist so they may give you a deal to be sure “their baby” is enjoyed instead of flipped. Use this to your advantage as you develop a relationship in the buying process.

As you start to pursue your quest for the purchase of your dream air-cooled classic Porsche follow the Air Brigade Five Tips for Buying Your Air-Cooled Porsche:

1. Caveat Empor – Let Buyer Beware

2. Have Patience

3. Inspect every nook and cranny

4. Rely on an Expert

5. Set Buying Goals – Be prepared to walk away

Premier Financial is publishing a continuing five-part series on buying your dream. As each installment is published, Air Brigade will adapt their suggestions to tips for an air-cooled Porsche purchase.

Here is the link for the Premier Financial part one of the buying series.

1. Private seller

2. Consignment dealer

3. Broker

4. Auction

5. Financing

Tages: Buying an air-cooled Porsche, Porsche Buying Tips, Classic Porsche Buying, Buying a Classic Porsche