Purchasing a 986 long distance?

[husker boxster]

+1 on buying a Porsche Certified Pre Owned vehicle.

I bought mine from a Porsche dealership in Dallas and never had second thoughts about buying it because it was Certified. To be Certified, the dealership has to inspect it, it has to be mechanically sound and hasn't been in an accident. Not every Porsche is Certified. And since it is above average, Porsche adds 2 yrs or up to 100K mi to the warranty. If you purchase a 2003, the factory warranty will be expiring soon, if it hasn't already. A Certified vehicle gives you 2 more yrs. I have had a few issues with mine but they have all been covered by the bumper to bumper warranty. You will pay a little more for a Certified, but the extra cost also includes peace of mind when you are traveling a great distance to buy a car. I've heard lots of stories over the phone about how great a car is, only to find a piece of junk when I look at it in person. That's not the case with a Certified vehicle. It will be in the proper condition.

The dealer I purchase from was Boardwalk in Plano, Tx and I highly recommend them. They made the whole experience enjoyable. They don't waste your time. I had a conditional deal made with them within 3 phone calls (including my trade-in), they didn't endlessly dicker for a few extra bucks, and I was in and out of the dealership in under an hour.

Good luck with your purchase, you will smile every time you drive.

[vouvoune]

bought mine in ATL (I am in St.Louis), took a plane down there (using site59.com hotel + flight was cheaper than getting a RT flight alone let alone a OW, they have GREAT last minute weekend deals...For ex, just booked a trip to DALLAS this WE, 2 airfares, taxes and stay in a Wynhdam 2 nights for $275 total, last time I stayed at the Hyatt Regency there for $400 everything included).
I drove the car home for 9 hours. It actually was a nice way to get used to the car. I took it to a a close by garage for a basic inspection + emission (the closest dealer was one hour away and was $500 so I passed!).
I bought it from a private party (first owner) and got a good feel from him so I wasn't really worried as he had been unnecessarly honest all along...But trusting your gut feeling doesn't always go well

[boxster3678]

Hey my friend I do alot of the out of state car pickups and heres why. A: gives me an excuse to see another part of the country no matter if I have been there or not. Most of the places I have gone for cars was the first time but that was not a deciding factor. B: gives me a story to put with the car. Lets face it a big part of owning a vehicle is the story that come along with it. Every vehicle I have ever bought other than normal every day transportation cars, I have some funny stories to go along with picking it up. And i will tell you what I would not change the way I do it ever. Here is what I do after I determine what I am looking for I lay out the guide lines, whether it be color, miles, options, year...etc. Once I find what I am looking for I negotiate terms with the seller and as part of my terms is a small say $500 deposit, I then go in person to check out the vehicle now I pride myself at being pretty mechanically inclined so I usually do my own inspection but I take the car to a tire shop and ask them to check the shocks and under body of the car areas you cannot see when the car is on the ground. Before making the trip I make arangments with the local uhaul to have a car tow (one where the car is off the ground) put on the back of my Truck. If the car is as expected I pay the balance and tow my new project home. The nice part about this is that you can go down a day early get a hotel room bring a date or a friend with you and turn a trip into it. It really is a nice way to do it and see the country. Sorry for the long reply. Good luck and if you need any help pm me. Frank

[Thumper]

Originally Posted by husker boxster

The dealer I purchase from was Boardwalk in Plano, Tx and I highly recommend them. They made the whole experience enjoyable. They don't waste your time. I had a conditional deal made with them within 3 phone calls (including my trade-in), they didn't endlessly dicker for a few extra bucks, and I was in and out of the dealership in under an hour.

Good luck with your purchase, you will smile every time you drive.

I'll second that recommendation for Boardwalk in Plano, TX. First class place with first class people. The guys who run RUF Autocentre here in Dallas all came from there, as well as most all of the Techs.