[champignon]

I posted this on a Porsche forum but I'm not sure I'll get any responses so I'm putting part of the post here. I realize this is seriously off-topic for this forum, but seriously, is there any topic related to the 1M that we haven't already beaten to DEATH?

I am considering buying a Porsche, but I really don't know very much about the cars, and maybe someone here can steer me in the right direction. This would be to "round out" my car collection, as such. I am not planning to get rid of any of my current vehicles; this really shows how horrible my judgment is. I am hoping that better sense will prevail and I will abandon my search, however, at least I would like to learn about these cars if nothing else.

First, the last thing I need is another car; I already have 5 of them, 4 of which are BMWs. All of my vehicles have manual transmissions and I have no interest in automatic transmission vehicles, no matter how wonderful the AT is :-)

I have some storage considerations in that my storage space is already more or less full, however I could shoehorn in one additional car as long as it was no longer than 15 feet in total length.

As to a car, I would want something that has already significantly depreciated, so I would expect this means it needs to be at least 3 years old, maybe better if it is at least 5. MT is a must, and anything less than 275 HP is probably of no interest, and somewhat more would be somewhat better. Electric steering is a NO NO. Fun to drive is an absolute must!

I do need some cargo carrying capacity, in that I would want to carry some Costco items in the car as well as my 43lb doodle who can't sit in the front seat due to concerns about premature death by airbag, and wanting to avoid distractions while driving; he also sometimes gets car sick, and a somewhat confined space for him is probably a good thing.

I don't want a convertible; I already have the 135is which is enough for my climate. A back seat could be a plus, but it would be used mostly for storage or for the dog.

I don't want a troublesome car or a car with an Achilles heel that is going to have me in and out of the shop repeatedly with the vehicle. I don't work on cars mechanically other than extremely simple stuff, however I do keep them clean and neat and wax them from time to time. They are always garaged. I don't think I would ever drive this car in the snow, but in the rain, yes. I would not get snow tires but possibly would consider good AS tires vs. simply summer performance tires as the other choice.

Other criteria would be cost (probably no more than $40K under most circumstances, cheaper is better) and mileage, not looking to buy a car with more than maybe 45K miles on it, less is better. I would travel up to maybe 500 miles to pick up the car in person if need be, and having been seriously burned on a couple of out of state purchases on used BMWs that I did not inspect beforehand, I would never do that again :-)

From what I am seeing so far in my own research, a Cayman or Cayman S, or perhaps a 911 of some sort, would best fill the bill, but as I said, I know nothing of these cars so I'm trying to educate myself before seriously looking at specific cars. Maybe you can educate me why I should abandon this search and not buy another used car? That would be really welcome information!

I don't regard cars as investments, so while I would obviously not want to buy something that depreciates hugely every time I look at it, I am not really looking for a collectible vehicle, just one I will enjoy owning.

Given these criteria, what would you suggest I consider buying and why?

Thanks very much for all responses!

Addendum: I really would prefer an NA engine; I already own 4 Turbo engine cars, which is enough.