stefang

I'm looking at an ''86 Targa , 114k miles. Cosmetically pretty good, has some dents in the front valence and a ding in the rear fender. Top seems ok. Needs heater blower and ac blower. Interior is fine. It had a major rebuild at 98k miles. Engine looks to be completely rebuilt, new clutch, rebuilt tranny. Recent brakes, tires and shocks (I was looking though the records). Work done at Autosport Performance in NJ. I drove it. The car feels tight, the tranny feels good. Asking price is $18.9k, which is somewhat high, but then again it's had a lot of work done recently. What do you guys think?

Stef

CrossT

Seems somewhat high to me, given my 86 [coupe] went for $13.5K with very few cosmetic issues and a rebuilt eng/new flywheel/clutch/considerable suspension work done by the PO less than 10K miles earlier.

todd
86 cpe

jet911

Wow todd, I think you got a great deal. How many miles are on the car? The price of $18.9 seems not really too out of line to me. I have an '86 with 82K miles on it and I certainly would not sell it for less than $18. I guess my only concern would be why it needed a total engine rebuild at 114K miles.

TMH

Wow, looks almost like someone stole my car! Except mine is an '87, and I bought it with 120k on the ticker. It did not have all of the work you specified, but then again the PPI showed that none of that work was needed. And I paid almost $5k less, plus I got the G50 tranny and hydraulic clutch...

Seems pretty high at the asking price.

Tom

scottb

Given the market these days, that sounds high.

CrossT

Jet,

That was the price the PO was asking so I took it and ran [i.e., no PPI]. The miles are pretty high and that's why the fairly low price [155K]. It really doesn't show its 'mileage age' due to the care and $25K or so the PO put it in the 2 years' of his ownership.

I jumped at it but got lucky - others haven't necessarily been so furtunate. I don't think I'd do it again without a PPI.

todd
86 cpe

geo.aigel

That's way high! Keep looking! It has been rebuilt, okay, but it shouldn't need that at that mileage. An engine rebuild under 100k miles tells me that the car was neglected. It will show in other areas. Also, a rebuild is good, but a well kept intact factory assembled engine is always better, IMHO.

The targa is less desirable than the coupe. You can get such a car for under 14k if you are a bit patient here in the bay area. The tech boom crash has brought the prices down and it looks much like they are not going to recover any time soon.

That car you are looking at may be priced with the 'investment' in mind that the PO put in it. Also, why did he spend all that dough so recently and now sells it?

Good Luck!

George

stefang

The trouble is I'm not in the bay area. Any time a reasonably priced car comes on the market it goes very fast. If it's on ebay it gets sucked up by some slimeball arbitrager who just flips it. Anyway, I know it's high, and I know you're right and I guess I'm a bit frustrated with the hunting process at the moment. Patience is not one of my strong suits. So, thanks for the feedback, it helps. Maybe I'll offer him $16k in february when we have 2 feet of snow outside. Something tells me the car will still be there...

Stef

Kurt V

You can get into a newer 87-89 for that price.

krichard

Yea that price is way high. I picked up my '88 Targa with 73k miles for 15k in August. No dents, dings or any mechanical issues.

LongLiveThe3.2

Hi Stef--

I feel your pain! Buying Porsches in the NorthEast is unlike anywhere else in the country. We often need to pay 15% - 20% more than our sunny California friends!! I live outside Boston and PCars cost a freakin' fortune around here, just like everything else. I sold a 1986 targa three years ago that had a full motor rebuild, new clutch and overall good condition for $18.5k. That's just the way it goes in our neighborhood.

The trick is to try to buy where they're cheap. Do you have a friend in CA that could help? If the car you mentioned checks out OK in a PPI, I wouldn't be afraid to try to get it for like $17K or $18k.

If you want to spend more, I might be selling my 88 CE cab this spring

stefang

No, I don't know anyone in CA. I would certainly impose upon a Rennlister to help me check one out, but you can't do that on a daily basis, and it's pretty often that a quick look will disqualify a car (When I said "like new", I meant except for the huge freaking dent not in the pics, etc...)

No, I don't want to spend more. I want to have play money left so I can tinker, not to mention reserves for unforseen expenses. Also there's only so much I can justify on spending on my second Porsche, fourth vehicle. And no, I'm not made of money but I need a 911 before I turn 40. So there.

So after mulling it over, I'm going to turn the car down for now and keep looking.

Speaking of bay area - where would I find local ads online? I'm looking in all the national stuff already.

Stef

jet911

Stef,
IMO, you made the right decision by walking away. Keep looking, you will find a deal somewhere.
Good Luck!

Paul968

Hi,

I am selling my 85 911 Euro right now...... it is listed on rennlist classified.

My car has 125,000 miles and had a rebuild about 15,000 ago, thru choice and desire to upgrade some parts, not thru misuse of my car) It was professionally done and cost over $7500.

My car has all records, showing over $65,000 of receipts over the years.

Take a look at my car..... I am asking $21,750
Rennlist Featured Ads ad# 2547

Do you think my price is justified????

TMH

Stef,

For Bay Area cars check:

PCA-Golden Gate Region: http://www.pca-ggr.org/marketplaceads.html
PCA-Loma Prieta Region: http://lpr.pca.org/source/classifieds.htm
Craigslist: http://www.craigslist.org/cgi-bin/se...min&maxAsk=max

Good luck,
Tom