If you’re anything like me you’re constantly window shopping for classic cars, regardless of how happy you are in your current vehicular relationship. You’re also trading good finds back and forth with friends, noting interesting features, prices or attributes. A buddy recently sent me a Porsche 964 he found and, based on the price, asked if I thought prices were on the way up. His question inspired today’s Market Monday post on the state of the Porsche 964 market.

The Porsche 964, produced from 1989 to 1994, represents an important evolution in the 911 series, blending classic Porsche design with key technological advancements. The car retained the 911’s signature round headlights and characteristic rear slope, but it introduced new features such as an automatically deploying rear spoiler that activates at speeds above 50 mph. Built on a re-engineered platform, the 964 was the first 911 to offer a fully independent suspension system and an all-wheel-drive option, significantly enhancing its stability and handling.

Under the hood, the 964 featured a new 3.6-liter flat-six engine, capable of producing 250 horsepower, which gave it impressive acceleration and top speed. This model’s engine improvements, combined with its advanced suspension, made it well-suited for both winding roads and high-speed cruising. The 964 was also the first 911 (excepting the old “Sportomatic”) to offer an automatic transmission option—the Tiptronic—which allowed drivers to choose between manual and automatic modes.

In addition to performance upgrades, the 964 was designed with enhanced comfort features. It included options like ABS brakes, power steering, and improved climate control, making it more practical for everyday use than its predecessors. These refinements, along with a thoughtfully designed interior focused on driver convenience, made the 964 a more versatile 911 that appealed to a broader range of drivers.

Let’s get the main question out of the way: Is the Porsche 964 market on the way up? Technically, yes, but the rate of increase appears to be slowing significantly. The chart below shows the average price of all Porsche 964s over the last three years.

The trendline from 2019 to today would look a bit like a horsepower graph – a steady upward curve that leveled off in the last year or so. The pandemic drove big gains in the entire market, so this is expected.

If that average seems high, keep in mind these numbers reflect the entire Porsche 964 marketplace. Quite a few interesting variants were released in its 5 years of production and some of those variants include exclusive special editions and rare turbo-charged monsters. As with most luxury or premium objects, prices vary significantly. I’ve put together the current market averages by model below.

Were you to compare value over time for each variant, you would find different results. Most values are generally flat, with the Carrera 2, Carrera 4 and Turbo models showing a slight upward trend.

Another major consideration when shopping for a Porsche 964 is whether you prefer open-air driving or not. On the earliest Porsches, the saying goes “if the top goes down, the price goes up.” This does not carry over to most aircooled Porsche 911s, as you can see in the chart below.

If you’re a convertible lover, you are clearly in the best buying position for an aircooled Porsche 964. These cars are almost 50% of the cost of an otherwise equivalent coupe. That’s a staggering discount for what is a very similar driving experience. Yes, there is cowl shake and yes, the chassis is weaker—but if swift cruising is your jam, a Cabriolet may be a very affordable option.

One might ask how the Porsche 964 is tracking relative to the overall collector car market. In my view, the overall picture is pretty similar with definite flattening or slight declines during 2024. One might think Cabriolets were dipping more severely than other variants, but it looks like Cabs just didn’t get the same size pandemic bump as Targas and Coupes. For years the Targa was shunned by aircooled enthusiasts, but fortunately that appears to be changing.

What I found most interesting from these results was the reasonable pricing for rarer cars like the RS America and America Roadster. They only made 701 RS Americas for the US market and while it’s not nearly as potent as the European RS, it is still effectively a factory “lightweight” produced at a time when stripped down 911s actually cost less than the base model. An average price of $150,000 is nothing to sneeze at, but you can find higher-mileage RS Americas for the low $100Ks.

The Porsche 964 America Roadster is another exclusive variant of the 964 with only 250 ever built. Like the RS America, the engine is the standard unit but the America Roadster got a wide turbo-look body, turbo brakes and suspension with 17” wheels. If you can swing it, find one in an interesting paint-to-sample color. The average price of a Porsche 964 America Roadster is hovering around $121,317, but a number of cars have failed to reach $100K (and their reserves) in recent auctions.

The Porsche 964 has always been a favorite of mine. I’ve never been a fan of the styling of the impact bumper cars, and the 964 brings more modern comforts and performance to the traditional styling of the 911. It’s always hard to say where the market is headed, but I’d be surprised if we saw a significant decline in the next few years. As always, I suggest you buy a car for love and not for money. That way, any declines are shrugged off with a quick blast down a leaf-littered back road.

A note that all of the above numbers are averages, and when it comes to value Condition Matters.

Wolf and Mare provides car finding, appraisals, and auction services for buyers and sellers of collector European cars. If you’re interested in acquiring an overseas car, give us a call or drop a line!