THE PRICE IS LIGHT

I’ve owned my 996 Carrera since September 2017, but the journey really started with a visit to Autofarm that March. The only 996 I’d driven previously was a baggy Turbo, so when Autofarm founder Josh Sadler kindly chucked me the keys to his 2002 Carrera, I was blown away. It felt compact and light, with incredible steering feel, a gorgeously balanced chassis and more than ample performance from the charismatic flat six (though Josh’s car did have the M030 lowered factory suspension and Autofarm’s 3.9-litre engine upgrade).

I told Autofarm to think of me if a customer 996 Carrera ever came up, and in September one did. Just not the one I’d envisaged. I’d originally set my heart (and budget) on a 3.6 facelifted model with around 70-80k miles, partly because the 3.6 gets 320bhp to the 3.4’s 300bhp, and two-year instead of one-year servicing, but also the more attractive headlights. The car Josh suggested was a 3.4 with 139,000 miles. Too many miles, I thought. Wrong headlights. Pass.

But the price put it among the more affordable Carreras, and Josh explained that the current owner – a German solicitor living in the UK – had racked up 20k a year over the last four years commuting, and had maintained it to the highest Porsche standards. It was ready to go with a major service, clutch and the all-important IMS bearing