If you had about $50K to piss away....

That is NOT a good price for the Porsche. I don't know much about BMWs.

If you can not pay cash for either, I'd take a pass.

[stephen wilson]

Neither, get a new Boxster S!

[Boxtaboy]

I would get the 4S Cab, but you can probably get a better price than that. I saw an 03 Carrera Cab at a dealer in NJ with full leather interior for $29k asking price.

[Topless]

A nice used GT3.

[unklekraker]

I agree with Trick, Grizz and EKap esp. to Bmuss regarding the price.

But if it's me, I would rather buy a slightly used 04 and up Boxster S or if you preffer coupe, get a Cayman S and if there's money left over...buy me Jolibee Yumburger...LOL

Im gonna be honest here...the only reason why "I" would buy a car in 911 line up is for status symbol only not unless it's in a GT's line up.It's so cool responding to someone who ask you..what car do you drive? Oh, me..ahhh Porsche 911


conrad, just get your plastic window instead of buying a new car, more cheaper...way cheaper...hahahahaha

[Perfectlap]

take a gander at this month's Excellence.
They take a CaymanS, 997 Turbo, and 997S through their real world paces.
All of these cars were well modified from different tuners. The CaymanS had like $30K in upgrades, the donor car was about $35K and in the driver's opinion was the best per pound and pony. "No matter who was driving the CaymanS, it was right there with the other two".

If power appeals to you, (being that your considering an M3) and you are looking to plunk down $50K, I'd take a look at taking a nice Carrera or Cayman getting some of those tuners who are hurting from the economy to make some upgrades.
Maybe call the tuners featured in the Excellence article directly and see if the have cars for sale.

[Adam]

If you are keeping the boxster in the fam then I'd get the BMW. Adding a 996 to the stable is a bit redundant.

[Lil bastard]

With the market being what it is right now, if I had 50 large to play with, I get into some carefully selected equities and forget the car altogether.

Good, solid stocks are incredibly cheap right now, maybe the best bargain hunting in our lifetime! In little time, you could easily see gains of 100-200%, and then you could walk into the showroom and pick the exact model you wanted and pay cash for it.

Of course, there is some risk. But, a car is the surest depreciating asset I can think of. There you'd easily see your $50k turn into $30k in just a year or 2. In any event, there would certainly be absolutely no prospect of a gain.

[ekam]

^He doesn't have 50K, he said he'll pay 20-30% and finance the rest.

Well, we need to go get this economy going again sooner or later. Go ahead and treat yourself with a new ride.

[unklekraker]

You got a good point there Lil B

And probably Perfectlap could point you the the right direction.

*don't mean to put you in the blast, PL

[coreseller]

Originally Posted by bmussatti

That is NOT a good price for the Porsche. I don't know much about BMWs.

If you can not pay cash for either, I'd take a pass.

IMO this is the best advice, but you're not me either. Surprisingly, I looked up 2004 911's in Consumer Reports (I know, I know) and it got horrible marks. 911, more fun and flashy, BMW V-8, awesome growl and usable back seat and more practical.

[jjanari]

drive both and that should be the deciding factor since you're obviously set on getting a new ride. While the advise posted has been spot on, it sounds like you want something tangible to justify the hard work you've put in at work. therefore, if limited to the 2 choices, I would go with the C4; however, like the others have said, you can do better on the price. btw, don't get me wrong, the m3 is a nice ride, (I had an '02 cab), but the 911 will probably fit the bill between performance, prestige, familiarity (since you've already got a boxster) etc. But again, drive both, you might be surprised.

somewhat off topic, if I had $50k, I would go w/the cayman S!

[roadracer311]

I'd pick up a Ferrari F355 rag top.

There are several of them on craigslist in the bay area right now. Someone just listed one today for $42k. It's got 45k miles on it, which is higher than average for one of these. They are also really expensive to service, but if you don't drive that many miles per year, it would be really fun to own.

[threpwood]

50K? I would go for 911 or just add more blings into the boxster to make it more fun! PS9, expensive wheels, stereo?, 3.4 engine conversion?, supercharger etc. I wouldn' go for cayman since there's zeintop and you can have the best of both worlds with the boxs...

If you love American cars, then corvette ZR is the way to go! You can always stuff your friends on the trunk and let the lady take the seat

[ekam]

Originally Posted by roadracer311

I'd pick up a Ferrari F355 rag top.

There are several of them on craigslist in the bay area right now. Someone just listed one today for $42k. It's got 45k miles on it, which is higher than average for one of these. They are also really expensive to service, but if you don't drive that many miles per year, it would be really fun to own.

$8000 oil change along with $19k for major maintenance. Yep they're good deal to buy.

http://www.ferraris-online.com/pages/cardetail.php?reqcardir=FE-355S-106122

[nola911]

Though tempting. those prices are high right now.

I just sold my 911 and was a half second from picking up a 2003 4s for 29k before I realized I shouldn't do it and I sold mine for a reason. That was a steal.

Turbo's can easily be had for 45k now a days. Keep shopping and go big with it

[23109VC]

so what did you buy?

911 turbo???

[roadracer311]

Originally Posted by ekam

$8000 oil change along with $19k for major maintenance. Yep they're good deal to buy.
http://www.ferraris-online.com/pages/cardetail.php?reqcardir=FE-355S-106122

I'll be doing my own oil changes. If I had a lift, I'd be doing my own engine-out service. A major engine-out service including replacing cam belts is usually $5k to $7k. Whoever owned the car in that link got hosed for service. A good clean <20k mile Ferrari 355 with services done is still going for about $65k though.

[Kirk]

Originally Posted by roadracer311

I'll be doing my own oil changes. If I had a lift, I'd be doing my own engine-out service. A major engine-out service including replacing cam belts is usually $5k to $7k. Whoever owned the car in that link got hosed for service. A good clean <20k mile Ferrari 355 with services done is still going for about $65k though.

I thought about an F355. I've been shopping for a year and I've seen 50K mile cars in the low 40's and 30K cars running in the mid 50's down to high 40's. Not bad IMHO for a mid-engine V8 super car. Part of what scared me away from them though is not just the high cost of service, but also the high cost of parts if you decide to do the service yourself (which I do). For example, I just changed the rear wheel bearings on my Boxster and they were $36 each. On a Maserati (Ferrari parts) they are $630 each. I think they're a bit more, like $50 each on my 996. What's nice about Porsches is that the parts are more affordable and there are several discount parts sources on the Net. For example, there is only one Maserati discount source on the Net and they don't carry everything. If I blow the engine on my Boxster or 996 I can get a used one for $5K. How much would a used engine on an F355 be? Last I checked I could only find one for $20K!!!

The other thing about the Ferrari is that I saw one this last year at a car show when I was seriously considering them. The car looked nice and I watched the car drive off and it sounded okay, but honestly it didn't stir my soul like the TechArt 996 does with the FabSpeed exhaust. I didn't think it was really worth the extra coin. Beautiful car, no doubt, but I think the hype over the wonderful noise and sensations of this car is a bit over done.

As for the Corvette Z06 - nice car but honestly they're a dime a dozen and it's nearly impossible to tell the Z06 from a standard Corvette when it's zipping down the highway. I've never been much of one to care what others think, but it is nice to have a car that really stands out and people admire. I picked up my 996 in Monterey, CA and on the 4 hour drive home I had someone take my picture while passing them on the highway and I had someone getting a picture of their kid with the car at a rest stop. It gets attention. If I had been driving a Z06 these people would have just yawned.

Kirk