[Lord_Galva]

For those of you who aren't ignorant, judgemental and just plain rude Rennlisters.

I needed somewhere to vent my ideas for the future. (Oh and if your in the dark about the rennlist thing, don't ask here, PM me)

I'm trying to go cheap but keep it in the family.

It seem's my best bet is a 944.

I'm kinda lookin at spending no more than $3k and I was shocked to see how many 944s were availible.

The problem is that the bulk of my knowledge is on the 968.

I realize that Porsche fixed many issues with the 944 line when they got to the 968 but what should I aim for? Besides the rule of thumb, buy the newest year for the money you have. I really liked the early 944 dash and the upside down tach espically. However I don't know what problems it had. Can anyone shed some light in this matter?



BTW this is just temporary, I don't know how much money I will have once I am ready to buy. So I could end up skipping straight to the 968. However I would like to get a 944 so I can pass it on to my bro when I get another 968.

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[rxter]

Agree Lord that there are a lot of very nice looking 44s out there. I'm not an expert but when Jack was checking out my cab on the rack he was muttering about how Porsche got the rear end right with the 68 - something about a lot of leaks. If you have a good Porsche garage near by hang out for a Saturday with them - they'll be sure to have a lot of 44s in the yard (about 30% of the cars at Jack's were 44s, followed closely by 28s) waiting for service.



There are also different variants of the 44. The S2 is darn near a 68 and therefore many of the earlier problems were worked out on the S2. For some reason I particularly like the looks of the S2 cab, even with the late 80's retro flip up head lights. My biggest problem looking at these is that they are all white, red, or black - almost no interesting colors on the trading block when I last looked.

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[ds968]

I drove two 944 for nearly 18 years, put over 250,000 miles on one, the other had about 80,000 miles but was totaled by a bozo who plowed into me while I was sitting at a stop light , I enjoyed both of them a lot

( still think they handle better than our 68s.. probably because they are lighter.. ? ) though after having driven your 68, you will feel like you're at the wheel of a slug - they are sooo underpowered ! - so be prepared for that aspect. However, for less than $ 4k , there is no better car out there, IMO.



As for problems: I neglected the h*ll out of those cars, I probably changed the oil no more often than at 20,000 mile intervals, never flushed any coolant or break fluid system, never replaced parts as a precaution because they would have met their mileage or timeline, I did however change the timing belts every 50,000 miles or so.. and the engine, transmission, suspension on the car after 250,000 miles had no MAJOR problems, still running perfectly well. BUT, I went trough countless motor mounts, several water pumps, one steering rack, a few wheel bearings, one roof mechanism repair, a couple of window motors, and three clutch changes, IIRC, with that car. Oh, re clutch changes on 944s - it's not separately housed as the 68s, so the tranny has to come apart for the job ( pricey labor, unless you're a DYI-er )



The other 944 I think only had two motor mounts changes and one water pump replacement, up to the 80,000 mile mark.



Yup, limited color choices in the 44s, but I liked mine ; one was "saphire" ( sliver with a slight blue tint ) and the other was metallic "sand" color.

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[unknown4u]

I would recommend a late S2. This according to the knowledge you have from a 968.

I don't know the prices but maybe a bit more than 3K it must be possible to find your selves one witch is in good mechanical condition. The outside must maybe have paintjob. But for that kind of money it is maybe possible.

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[Chris Vais]

I drove a 1983 Porsche 944 that I purchased from the original owner in 1986 for 10 years putting well over 150,000 miles on the car before I sold it. I always felt that the car was fun to drive. It was way underpowered, so to get the most out of the car you really had to work it to get the most out of the car. I personnally enjoyed the challange.



I went through engine mounts on a regular basis until I had my mechanic install Turbo engine mounts and the Turbo heat shield. That helped a great deal. the only major mechanical failure I had was when the oil cooler seals failed and I entrained water into the crankcase. In addition to replacing the oil cooler seals and cleaning all of the resulting oil water emulsion out of the engine and cooling system, I changed the rod end bearings on my mechanics advice to preclude a corrosion induced bearing failure later on. Other than that it got oil changes every 7500 miles and cam and balance shaft belts every 30,000 miles.



The guy who bought the car from me recently turned it in on a newer Porsche. The 944 had 352,000 miles on it, still with the original transmission and the engine unopened save for the bottom end work that I had done.



If your interested in these cars I would visit Bauer Porsche Repair in Oaklnad. They work on a number of 944 race cars and they do a lot of maintenance on these cars. this is where I have both my Porsche and mu Audi serviced. The Porsche dealership in Oakland sends them a lot of work on these and other older Porsches that their mechanics are unfamiliar with. He might even have a couple of garage queens that he might be willing to sell.

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[RPM]

At the price you are describing you are going to be pretty far down the condition ladder for a 944 (or pretty much any car for that matter). You can get a sound car, but would have to be crazy careful in terms of PPI and expections. Can't see an S2 worth owning at that price. I would also think that at that price you would want to stick to an 85.5-89 non-turbo car. These are the least complex. Great cars if they are still in sound condition. The problem of course is that unless you do a majority of the wrenching yourself this less expensive solution can quickly become a stupid solution. Most of these cheaper 944s have tons of deferred maintenance. The cost to get it on the road and reliable can easily outprice the purchase cost.



Two quick tales:



1. Good PCA buddy, who is the original owner of an '86 944, recently bought a 200k 944 to turn into a track car. He bought it cheap and after repairs and upgrades like a good racing seat he probably had $6-7k in the car. First track event the bottom end of the engine blew out. He is now parting out the car and basically lost his investment and time.



2. Another good PCA buddy, this one a 928 guy who is very wrench capable, bought a 944 for a 16 year old nephew. Paid less than $3k I believe. After another $500 or so in parts and a $300 cheap paint job (after he pounded out a panel or two in his driveway!) his nephew has a great starter car that so far is fairly reliable.



Moral of the story - there is a lot of luck in this kind of purchase, and it helps if you are really good with tools <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/wink.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />



p.s. - despite other recomendations I would stay away from an S2. The cam tensioner system was not as robust as the 968 and that is one expensive problem if it goes bad.

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[968rz]

I don’t have much time in 944s but going on my experience with the 924 and 968 I would not hesitate to get one (in good shape). Just like all Porsche’s; take care of it and it will love you back.

PS... Glad to see you are looking at getting back into the Porsche scene, even if you do get a 944 <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/wink.gif" class="smilie" alt="" /> come back here and visit.

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[ds968]

I was surprised at asking prices for an S2; they're not that far off the 951, or even the 968 range .. . if Richard is looking to spend no more than $ 3 k for the car, I doubt one can even get close to an S2 unless it's a salvage title.. Agree that you'd have to think about n.a. 944s, maybe even early 83-85.5 models, as I've seen 86+ ones with asking prices in excess of $ 6k..which is already double the aforementioned budget.

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[Lord_Galva]

Looks like $4-5k is better for the 944 market.



I actually had a scary experiance today.

I drove a 5.0 Mustang today. <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/blink.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />

I was supposed to help my brothers friend and teach him how to drive stick.

We get to the owners home and the car cannot be locked and we couldn't leave it there. So we start to go and miraculusly he gets away from the curb without stalling. "Ok" I say, "now try for second, hit the clutch and shift." Grinding sound goes here. Nada. He tries again, nada. Turns out 2nd's syncro is gone. "Crap, its ok just rev up to 3-4k rpms and shift into 3rd." (Friend) "Uh, whats 4k?" I'm thinking oh God what have I gotten myself into? I point it out and he tries but keeps shifting back into 1st. When he does get 3rd he lets the engine wind down to much. Thank goodness for V8 torque. After stalling 3 more times we approch an intersection to the main road. I tell him take a right back into the cauldusack. We switch (I realllllly didn't want to do this) and now I'm trying to drive. Keep in mind I have no control over my right ankle. "God keep us safe."



We start off and I had no problems. I then try the brakes. Oh man there are no brakes, just metal on metal. So not only do I have to shift into neutral before hitting the brakes with my LEFT foot I can't really stop. Then I find the speedo, turn signals, shocks, and parking brake don't work. Also the front windshield was cracked and the tags were bad. Anyhoo, getting behind the wheel of a stick felt sooooo gooood.

I didn't care that I had to rev a 5.0 V8 up to 4k before shifting, it was great.

No I'm not going to become a traitor, and I frankly felt sorry for the immense amount of DIY that my bro's friend would have to do. Driving an American car with no brakes or suspention was very scary at first but maybe it was just getting behind the wheel again.

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[unknown4u]

[quote name='ds968' post='49937' date='Mar 28 2008, 11:03 PM']I was surprised at asking prices for an S2; they're not that far off the 951, or even the 968 range .. . if Richard is looking to spend no more than $ 3 k for the car, I doubt one can even get close to an S2 unless it's a salvage title.. Agree that you'd have to think about n.a. 944s, maybe even early 83-85.5 models, as I've seen 86+ ones with asking prices in excess of $ 6k..which is already double the aforementioned budget.[/quote]





I always thought, because 968 are not that expensive, atleast for european, in the states. Here in europe a 968 is in the range of 15$ till30$ But probably I'm wrong........

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[Lord_Galva]

[quote name='unknown4u' post='50007' date='Mar 29 2008, 08:21 AM']I always thought, because 968 are not that expensive, atleast for european, in the states. Here in europe a 968 is in the range of 15$ till30$ But probably I'm wrong........[/quote]



Being european atleast gives you the choice of the Sport and ClubSport models.

That alone would bring the price down on regular 968s.

Here all the advertisments usually start with "Rare 968 model" I just shake my head to those.

Although it could be the same for europeans with american made mustangs or corvettes.

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[Lord_Galva]

I found two that I like so far.



This early 944

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/car/626346961.html



And a 86' 951

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sby/car/624651710.html



I don't like how the 944 guy is completly avoiding the cars condition.

The 951 guy has done most of the work for preventitive maintaince but its pricy for me.



(Actually I'm sitting on $7k right now and that 951 is tempting, espically since good 968s are double that)

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[PorscheDude]

That 951 looks nice. Has low miles and lot of maintenance.

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[Lord_Galva]

[quote name='smokiemon968' post='50129' date='Apr 1 2008, 12:28 PM']That 951 looks nice. Has low miles and lot of maintenance.[/quote]



Yea, and the fuchs look nice on it too.

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[ds968]

[quote name='Lord_Galva' post='50182' date='Apr 2 2008, 01:06 AM']Yea, and the fuchs look nice on it too.[/quote]



hey, watch that language ! <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/tongue.gif" class="smilie" alt="" /> <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/rolleyes.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.

[PorscheDude]

How does not like to fuch?

Partial Post: Please Login or Register to read the full post.