Thanks,
I'd been looking at 911s on websites such as this for a good 18 months or so, trying to build up my knowledge and decide what would be best for me. I was very keen on the retro styling and chrome of the early 70s 2.2s and 2.4s and thought that one of those would be just the ticket. Then I put my sensible trousers on and realised that this was a car that was gong to be my only transport and was going to have to live on-street in central London, I needed a car that would start on the button every time (not that any Porsche shouldn't if properly looked after) and be as immune to tin-worm and the ravages of London life as is possible. As my budget was pretty limited (still managed to spend more than i meant to !) a late 80's 3.2 seemed the obvious choice, mechanically simpler than the later 964 and rumoured to be more reliable, but you can argue that one until you are blue in the face.
Anyway I set about my task of looking for a late 3.2, had to be G50 gearboxed, had to be coupe, (sorry folks I think Targas are ugly !), couldn't be red or white (too 80's and cliched for my taste) balck for choice and ideally without whale tail (see previous comment !), and LHD for preference (cheaper, more choice and not a problem to drive on the left at all). My decision to look very seriously for a car was forced on me by a late night meeting between the front of my Peugeot 205 and the back of a London taxi on The Strand - the less said the better !
On the off chance I gave Adrian Crawford (well known Devon based Porsche importer who runs the Performance 2 and 4 website) a call to see if he could help me. His initial response was that my budget wasn't big enough for him to find a decent car, however when I mentioned I was happy with LHD he said that he might have just the thing - the car you see above:-
Late 1989 3.2 Carrera Sport, 135,000 Km (80K+ miles), Linen Leather (wouldn't have been my first choice !), sun roof, working air-con, basic electric function comfort seats (there were loads of options for the level of electrical adjustability, mine is the standard option), completely original paint, decent service history, both in the UK and in Germany, fairly recent top-end re-build, all the original Documents from 1st registration in Germany. It seemd too good to be true and reasonably priced at £14,750. I had an inspection carried out by a local Porsche specialist who pointed out that the rear break pads were pretty worn and that the bonnet and engine lid struts were a bit tired, other than that it was given a clean bill of health. Adrian had the break pads replaced free of charge and promised he would post me the bonnet struts (hmmm strangely never arrived !).
Anyway as you will have guessed I took the day off work and the train to Plymouth and handed over my hard-earned. I haven't looked back ! The car is a joy and has given me no hassle whatsoever (apart form a slightly sticking front right caliper which I will have sorted some time soon). I have managed to clock up about 2000 miles since July when I bought it without even trying. I got a fantastic deal on my
Insurance - having had quotes of £3-£4K I was a bit worried, but managed to get a deal through my existing insurer Admiral for £800 fully comp, protected no claims bonus, parked on street in Kensington (more Porsches stolen than from anywhere else !) with my girlfriend as a named driver - trust me for London, where I was paying over £400 on a L reg Peugeot 205 worth £1800, this is a good deal ! (Surprisingly so given that they had just written off the Peugeot - thank god for protected bonuses !)
Jamie
Migration info. Legacy thread was 333