The 993 chassis Porsche 911 Carrera remains one of the most sought after generations of the classic air-cooled sports car. And perhaps there is no clearer indication of this than in seeing a wreck such as this one commanding a current bid price of $20,000. There is perhaps no clearer confirmation of a car’s value on the enthusiast marketplace than to see the type of money it attracts even when effectively an insurance write-off of the most significant kind. Find this 911 here on eBay and located in Auburn, Washington.
It’s pretty obvious this 911 suffered a massive accident, involving a roll-over that caused the roof to be crushed. It strikes me as a roll down an embankment, as oppose to flipping over on an interstate or backroad. I have zero evidence to support this aside from what I can observe with the affected panels. The seller notes this is a C2 model with the narrow body, which is as quintessential 911 as it gets. The fat-fendered models may be more sought-after, but you can’t go wrong with an air-cooled Porsche in its purest form.
The listing further notes that this 911 was apparently in excellent condition before it was involved in an accident, and that’s certainly likely given how cherished 993s tend to be. You very rarely see a 911 of this vintage pop up for sale in rough condition, cosmetically or otherwise, which is why it’s somewhat jarring to see one in such awful shape. I’m not sure this car would have been totaled out when it was a few years old, but these days, nothing is off the table as it relates to saving an air-cooled car. The lack of wear on the steering wheel is a strong clue as to the clean before-accident condition.
The force of the impact caused the transmission case to crack, and as is the case with most any wreck, you’re going to find all sorts of issues that need resolving beyond the physical damage. The listing does now include a link to video that proves the engine is still running, so it has that going for it, at least. The indicated mileage is 53,000, which indicates that the 993 was being used fairly regularly before its unfortunate accident. What I’d love to know is whether the winning bidder will actually reconstruct this wrecked 911, or if a cabrio conversion is in its future.
That’ll buff out…
LOL, I was gonna comment, “A little polish and it’ll be good as new.”, but you beat me to it.
Ah just spray some Windex on it. Had a zit and put some on it… gone
Clean title means no insurance company involved. I agree. Just want the VIN.
I bet it was a heck of a ride 12 seconds before the crash. It doesn’t appear the occupants were killed, if buckled in, and a pretty strong testament to the safety aspects of this car. Says 33 bids, that’s something, for this? I must be missing something here, you going to fix this? Just buy one at auction and be done with it.
Yes 33 bids but only 6 bidders. The seller has over 1,900 items listed.
I have a sneaking suspicion there are a couple of scammers out there.
I think they found that throwaway car you were talking about.
Why do they even bother?
The airbags can be salvaged!
I was wondering why in such a violent crash the airbags didn’t deploy
I owned a 1997 C4S 993 that I sold a few years ago. Selling it was a huge mistake in part of a long line of automobile mistakes.
welcome to that club
Yes, my list is long and distinguished as well. My heart breaks a little everytime i think about it.
The 3.6 engine is highly sought-after for conversions, although I’d argue that at $20K or so, it’s reached the top end of the range of its value. Looking at it closer, the car is being offered by a dismantler – not a dumb seller there. I’m guessing that they have taken all of the useful parts off of the car and/or determined that the engine may have some issues? Just a guess though – buyer beware and inspect before purchase!
I’m guessing the engine, entire interior and wheels will easily exceed $20,000 alone. The clean VIN is probably worth as much also to someone
Is this the dynamic and ever-popular Wayne of Pelican Parts?
This should not be allowed, its coming with a Washington clear title it is obvious a total loss , and should be marked as such . Buy be ware,???
Lawrence,
The seller is a major specialty car dismantler with a very good reputation. Seller also states that the car had “No insurance”, hence it was likely never processed as a total loss vehicle. This can be confirmed with any state motor vehicle agency, and the seller has included the VIN in the listing. The US government depends on the insurance industry to advise if the car has been declared as a total loss, hence the title has not been re-issued as a “salvage” vehicle.
I suspect the buyer of this vehicle will ship it outside of north America to have the repairs done, then import it back to the USA to sell. Major projects like this one can be done fairly cheaply in Eastern Europe, and over the last few years there are now shops on the Gold Coast of Africa that are capable of doing the work correctly. A top mechanic there often earns only a few Dollars a day.
Vehicles are temporarily exported & then re-imported every day in the USA. Many people are sending valuable cars over to Eastern Europe to take advantage of top craftsmen at low labor rates.
As no insurance industry records of a claim/loss exist, and with the proper export & re-import papers, there won’t be much in the way of proof of the damages [except for the ebay ad, and ebay only maintains those records for 90 days.
Hopefully the new owner [if he has the car repaired] does disclose the prior damages when offering the car for sale in the future. All of the above efforts are legal provided subsequent owners are made aware of the work performed.
Not the best color choice for this car but it will need a repaint.
Ya think?
sorry to see someone who had more money then driving ability??
The wipers still look servicable. Definitely worth $20k. Sheesh
No tests have been done on the engine since the accident.
No attempts have been made to start the vehicle after the accident. The engine was in perfect running condition before the accident.
I wonder what the story was behind the accident.
Accelerator pedal got sucked to the floor and wouldn’t come back up until the car suddenly stopped.
Let me guess, Porsche 993 , damp road, over enthusiastic driver ? And that’s for starters…sadly not the first 911 to end up this way !
I cannot imagine the cost to get this back on the road in its previous glory?
It’s easy find someone’s pride and joy and wah lah, instantly fixed. This is a world car and as we have seen in recent years many vintage, older, special interest cars drive off into the night never to be seen again. I have had two and even the original DB5 from Goldfinger was swiped and has never been recovered. I have GPS on the ones I drive now. I learned this when I was young running a wrecking yard. I would see these guys bidding on destroyed exotics. I asked one I knew well and he explained just what junk like this is for, and you still have the parts and they only need the vin to get the car through customs and out of the country. Even salvage titles are just fine for export.
Grey Goose and tonic water?
The listing does now include a link to video that proves the engine is still running.
If the engine still runs well and nothing inside was bent or broken and it doesn’t need a complete rebuild, then that alone is easily worth $20k. I don’t think people understand how sought after the 993 3.6 H6 is, too bad the transmission was trashed. If someone has a 930 or 964 era 911 that has a blown engine this would be an excellent upgrade. And if the interior and wheels are salvageable, then it’s worth $20k all day every day and twice on Sunday. The 993 is probably the MOST sought after 911 after the mid 70’s 2.7 Carrera, these cars sell for huge amounts, even wrecked. Almost wish I had a basket case 930 in my garage needing a rebuild, I’d jump on this one in a heartbeat.
If.
The owner had to be heartbroken when he saw what he did to his baby.
sorry to see someone who had more money then driving ability??
I just clicked on this to see how long it would take for some comic genius to say “That’ll buff out”.
You’re too late.
Put an LS in it?
Been called many things, but, “Comic Genius”? That’s a first. Thanks for the compliment. I’m here until Tuesday, try the veal.
Sarcasm. Extreme sarcasm.
Wait, why didn’t the airbags deploy..
I know they had one hell of a headache the next day. On a side note I wonder what happened to the Porsche Paul Walker was in?
Maybe just park it next to “Christine”, and it will be like-new overnight .And red.
Put in in the crusher
They want the Vin plate..
was running when crashed or parked, LOL
I didn’t hit the guy he ran into my fist.
Howard, you are probably right about that 12 seconds.
I wrecked a 1968 Porsche in 1972. Was doing around 125 when the rear slid out entering a curve. Hit a telephone pole and cement drain embankment. Fortunately for me, it hit right on the dashboard end, crushing in two feet. The AH owner took the seat belts out so I wasn’t wearing one.
Broken wrist and knob on the head when our heads cracked together
Body filler and a thick coat of paint, it will look like new in the dark.
Leave it as is and drive it! They’re only original once. ;)