The underrated, undervalued 911

Less kind observers call them 'fried egg lights', those melted-looking clusters on the nose of the 996-generation Porsche 911 of 1997 to 2006, before in the next breath bemoaning the model's move from air to water cooling for the engine. Not Rohan Cummings: he loves these features of his 996 and what they represent.

- JOHN EVANS

"I like this generation because it's about Porsche moving forward," he says. "It knew it had to do something to improve the 911's emissions. Regarding the lights, they signalled the change and are like those on the 1997 911 GT1 Evo race car. If people don't like them, there are headlight covers that will make the car look like the 997 - but why not just buy a 997? The 996 is underrated and undervalued, and buying one in the right condition is an investment opportunity."

Rohan has owned his 1998-registered 996 for 12 months. It's a 3.4-litre manual cabriolet, which when he bought it had covered 81,000 miles. He has put only another 1000 miles on it since.