‘Holy Grail’ 911 Carrera (996) for sale

The base Carrera was much loved when it launched almost 30 years ago, but was often forgotten later (and especially when the GT3 arrived). Values ​​eventually plummeted because purists didn’t like the look or the new cooling method, the popularity meant a lot of them, and IMS/RMS issues held some back. But now that situation is starting to change; each 996 is now over 20 years old, and not all of them will have survived. Take into account the amount required for special track and race builds; the number will be even lower. It also comes from a pre-PDK time of crap cars and wobbly cabins, so those looking for a modern classic Porsche are probably all hunting around the three-pedal coupes now.

Although there is certainly still choice, demand increases the price of supply. For those who want to stay under the radar all year round (and enjoy every mile), this C4 manual will be a PH Auctions lot later this week; for those looking for a little more attention, this Carrera 2 should be just the ticket.

“Holy Grail,” the seller’s description, may be going a bit too far for a base 911, but it checks a lot of boxes: As a 1998 build, it gets the throttle cable that is often appreciated, as well as orange turn signals (they had to be cool again at some point). The original owner really understood the brief when it came to spec’ing a great 911, opting for Ocean Jade Metallic and adding the MO30 Sport Pack – with bigger brakes and racing seats – plus the MO30 lower, stiffer suspension. With an LSD as icing on the cake plus, absurdly enough, a rear window wiper. After all, no one is perfect…

Still, it should make for a pretty exciting Carrera experience, and hard to repeat these days as, besides the cost of Porsche parts, there are very few truly early 996s left. And it looks exotic in a way that silver 911s just aren’t. A nice reminder that fun colors existed before Instagram came along to show them off.

With just 70,000 miles on the odometer, a new set of Michelins and a magazine cover to its name, this C2 is probably about as good as a 996. That means it’s also over £30,000. You don’t need us to tell you what Porsche capabilities that kind of money brings, and those who still had the 996 as the cheap Porsche two-door might be in for a shock. But the price is a testament to the appreciation that the first water-cooled 911 now (finally) enjoys, and it seems unlikely that it will budge much in the near future as Porsche continues to wonder what to do with its new cars. Showing a few more in Ocean Jade Metallic might be a good start…