2008 Porsche 911 (997) Targa

In the vendor’s own words – “This is an exceptionally well-maintained 997 Targa 4S which comes with a fully stamped-up service book. The condition of the body is generally excellent as the photographs will demonstrate and the interior leather remains in very good condition. The car has been issued with a fresh MoT which is advisory free and expires in July 2023. In March of this year a full inspection of the car was undertaken by a Porsche specialist and any issues were dealt with at the time and this also included a scheduled oil change including the gearbox oil and filter.

Looking further back in the file {2021} and the car's Targa roof motor, ECU, wind deflector and water drain seals were replaced at a cost of £3,600. In Feb 2022 the front and rear brake discs and pads were replaced along with the usual service routine."

In terms of spec, this car includes:

• Three spoke multi-functional steering wheel in leather
• 19 Inch Sport Design alloy wheels
• Electric heated comfort seats including lumbar support with memory function for the driver's seat.
• Porsche Active Suspension Management
• Climate control
• Electric mirrors
• Headlight washer system
• An aftermarket Panasonic radio and Bluetooth system has been fitted but the car comes with the original PCM system including DVD navigation and 6 CD autochanger
• Rear parking system
• Cruise control
• Central door locking
• Rear wiper
• Wheel centres with Porsche Crest in full colour.

We have no argument with any of that.

The car has covered 96,717 miles and has the odd scratch here, stone chip there and road rash elsewhere – but no more than you’d expect of a car with this mileage and age.

We have driven the car and agree with the vendor’s view that this is a properly tuned, fettled and maintained Targa 4S.

It still has considerable abilities and the power to impress, even 15 years after leaving the factory.

It picks up pace and presses on with grin-inducing alacrity and it is thoroughly balanced and predictable in the way it corners, changes direction and faithfully rewards steering inputs.

As ever with a well-sorted 911, it feels like it’s been hewn from a single ingot of metal and is reassuringly devoid of any extraneous rattles, pops, sighs, groans or squeaks.

All the maintenance, repair and routine service work commissioned by the vendor is accounted for in the documents section.

The vendor has owned the car for a year or so and is only selling because he just doesn’t use it enough.

He bought the car from a friend – the kind of friend we’d all like: one who spent around £7k getting the car properly sorted before selling it to the vendor.

The car is black with a ruched black leather interior. It comes with a full set of manuals and guides, and a service book with all the required main dealer and specialist stamps.

The black paint work has retained plenty of shine and lustre and looks to us to be largely original.

The wheels and tyres (Bridgestone Potenzas all round) are very good and, with the exception of a small dark mark on the n/s/f wheel, we found no cause for complaint or reason to raise an eyebrow.

There are no dinks, dents or creases of any real significance whatsoever.

The panel gaps and shut lines are as consistent and even as you would hope and wish.

There are a couple of scratches on the front valance and the ‘nose’ of the car ahead of the ‘bonnet’.

Elsewhere, you’ll find a few scratches and scuffs on the n/s/f wing, plus a few more on its offside counterpart above the headlamp cluster.

The badging, lights, lenses and other exterior trim, fixtures and fittings are all thoroughly decent.

In short, while it’s not absolutely perfect, it is really very good indeed.

It’s broadly the same picture inside, namely pretty impressive with one of two minor indications that simply reflect its age and use.

The unusual and very classy ruched black leather upholstery has barely enough creases to even make a claim to patina. The front seats are comfortable, supportive and functional.

The rear seats look as if they’re only barely acquainted with humans, but a handful of light indentations suggest that they might, perhaps, be more familiar with the odd shopping bag or two.

The Targa roof operates perfectly, you’ll be happy to hear, as does the motorised blind.

The door cards are free of any meaningful scuffs and scratches.

The carpets and mats look fine.

Ditto the dashboard, steering wheel and controls.

We didn’t press every button or tweak every toggle, knob or switch but, as far as we can tell, everything does what it’s supposed to do.

Certainly, the vendor couldn’t think of anything that doesn’t work.

The transmission tunnel around the handbrake has a couple of chips to the lacquer and one or two scratches to show for its years of faithful service.

The front luggage compartment is very clean and tidy and contains the original PCM system.

Everything (visible) in the engine bay appears clean, dry, right and proper.

The undersides of the car look to have a good deal of structural integrity and seem to us to be untroubled by either time, wear or use.

This car comes with a satisfyingly thick and informative wad of invoices, bills and receipts covering every aspect of its service and maintenance history.

The car has a fully stamped main dealer/specialist service book, showing the following service intervals.

• 15/ 07/ 2008 – 5,683 miles - Porsche Solihull
• 09/ 02/ 2010 – 20,672 miles - Porsche Leicester
• 15/ 08/2011 – 39,220 miles - Porsche Leicester
• 03/ 07/2013 – 60,449 miles - Porsche Leicester
• 09/ 09/2015 – 74,191 miles - Independent
• 16/03/2017 – 78,586 miles - Independent
• 08/11/2017 – 80,408 miles - Porsche specialist
• 06/ 03/ 2019 - 85,662 miles - Porsche specialist
• 27/ 02/ 2020 - 91,669 miles - Porsche specialist
• 15/03/ 2022 - 96,168 miles - Porsche specialist

The car’s MoT (with no advisories) is valid until 31.7.23.

The four-wheel drive 3.8 litre variants of Porsche’s 997 911s were seriously good cars back in the day.

We think they still are, provided you can get your hands on one that ticks all the good boxes for history, care and provenance.

It just so happens that we’ve got one right here.

We’re confident to offer this fine car for auction with an estimate of £30,000 - £35,000.

Viewing is always encouraged, and this particular car is located with us at the Bonhams|Cars Online HQ near Abingdon; we are open weekdays 9am-5pm, to arrange an appointment please use the Contact Seller button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.