Stuttgart savers
Think a Porsche is out of your price-range? Think again…
With a fantasy budget of £10,000 and a pack of brave pills, we set out to discover whether the cheap Porsche is myth or reality.
So click on to discover our pick from Zuffenhausen’s back catalogue, for a Riesling driving experience on a mineral-water budget.
1. Porsche 924
Sold 1976-’88 • No. built 150,617 • Price now From £3000
For so long the whipping boy of the used Porsche market, with its VW-sourced engine (for early examples, at least) mounted up front and cooled by, of all things, water not air, the 924 is at last seeing an upturn in its fortunes.
Porsche 924 (cont.)
And that should come as no surprise: even the 125bhp cars are brisk, with four seats and sweet handling.
It still makes our list, however, though the MoT’d £1500 cars have disappeared, replaced by a more sensible entry level of twice that, with nice cars beginning at around £5k.
The good news is that our budget gives the pick of 2-litre, 2.5-litre S and even 168bhp turbo, even if £10k-plus is now being asked for the very best.
2. Porsche 928
Sold 1977-’95 • No. built 61,056 • Price now From £7000
It’s hard to believe that the consummate modern GT is now more than 40 years old, such is the youthfulness of Anatole Lapine’s styling.
More than all of its cousins, however, the 928 is the car in our list that should be approached with caution.
Porsche 928 (cont.)
If it’s sneaking under £10k, it’s likely to be a less desirable S2 or the more ubiquitous S4, and you can expect well over 100,000 miles, an auto ’box and questionable provenance – which means you must go into any purchase with eyes wide open.
Check the history for regular servicing, and look for accident damage or signs of ill health from the all-important, all-alloy V8. If in doubt, call in the professionals.
3. Porsche 944
Sold 1982-’91 • No. built 140,286 • Price now From £4000
Shedding the VW-by-Porsche associations of the 924, the 944 was a thoroughly competent 2+2 with more muscular bodywork, balancer shafts to add refinement to its 2.5-litre all-alloy ‘four’ and a transaxle ’box giving it superb handling
And the sheer number of 944s on offer within our price range makes it the pick of the current crop of bargain Porsches.
Porsche 944 (cont.)
You can choose from 2.5, 2.7, Lux, S, S2 and even Cabriolet for less than £10k, which brings power to your elbow as a buyer.
You won’t find a turbo at that kind of price, but instead we’d try to track down an example of the much-improved 3-litre S2 with around 100,000 miles and sensible history.
4. Porsche 968
Sold 1992-’95 • No. built 11,242 • Price now From £8500
Don’t be fooled: the picture above shows a Club Sport, but you certainly won’t be getting into that hallowed model for £10,000 – or even double that.
Set your sights a little lower, however, and with a bit of patient shopping around you might just luck in to a very leggy standard 3-litre, most likely a Tiptronic.
Porsche 968 (cont.)
Even this entry-level 968 is not a car to be sniffed at, building on the qualities of the 924 and 944 with a 240bhp motor and a few styling nods at the 928 to create one of the great all-rounders: fast, comfortable, refined and stylish.
We found a few coming in under budget, albeit with almost enough miles on the clock to get you to the moon…
5. Porsche 911 (996)
Sold 1998-2005 • No. built 92,662 • Price now From £9500
Surely the phrases ‘£10,000’ and ‘Porsche 911’ are like oil and water, they simply don’t mix?
But they do, and unfortunately so can the oil and the water in your 996’s engine if you are unlucky enough to suffer catastrophic IMS bearing failure.
Porsche 911 (996) (cont.)
Buy wisely, however, and you have the Holy Grail: a Porsche 911 – and a rather brilliant one – for the price of a decent MGB.
Here in the dregs of the market choice is dictated by fashion, with Cabriolets, targas and Tiptronic autos being the order of the day.
Buy on condition rather than spec, interrogate the service history for signs of ongoing care, and bring in expert help to avoid nasty surprises.
6. Porsche Boxster (986)
Sold 1996-2004 • No. built 160,578 • Price now From £3000
Once dismissed as a car only for those who couldn’t afford a 911, the Boxster today represents one of the cheapest routes into a usable Porsche.
Buy carefully and ownership of this beautifully balanced mid-engined roadster – a spiritual successor to the 914 – can be hugely rewarding, particularly if you stretch to the 266bhp, 154mph 3.2-litre Boxster S, tidy examples of which are within reach towards the upper end of our £10k budget.
Porsche Boxster (986) (cont.)
If you’re nearer the bargain-basement level, check carefully for accident damage, worn suspension and knocking from the engine, particularly on the early 2.5s, which could indicate an imminent very big bill.
7. Porsche Cayman (987)
Sold 2006-’11 • No. built n/a • Price now From £9000
Answering those armchair critics for whom the Boxster was the ‘hairdresser’s Porsche’, the fixed-roof Cayman used the same basic mechanicals and platform as the second-generation roadster in a stiffer, more focused package.
Porsche Cayman (987) (cont.)
With a 3.4-litre flat-six mounted amidships, the 291bhp Cayman S that was launched at the 2005 Frankfurt show was a genuine 170mph car, with the same impeccable poise and sublime steering as its open sibling.
Be warned, though: only pre-facelift cars with a patchy history or interstellar mileages – or both – sneak inside our nominal budget, so negotiate a warranty if you can when buying from the trade.
8. Standard (218)
Sold 1957-’63 • No. built c12,000 • Price now From £9000
The marque has a century-long tradition of agricultural vehicles, and an air-cooled diesel tractor is certainly the quirkiest way into an open Porsche.
Today they are generally bought by completist collectors to round off a Stuttgart set, and it’s hardly the most practical of purchases – unless you happen to have a field that needs ploughing – but should prove simple to maintain and it’s a guaranteed draw at shows.
Our budget won’t stretch to a stylish Super or 3.5-litre Master – which can fetch upwards of £50k – or specials such as the vineyard and coffee-plantation workhorses, but might just land you a tidy example of the 1.6-litre Standard.