hanzonn

Okay, guys - Thanks for your comments. But can we re-direct back to my original questions? Geez Louise, I don't even have a car yet, much less adding a rollbar & upgrading the suspension!!

Thanks, again, Greg

imcarthur

Greg

Some eBay figures:

1986 Coupe 107,300 $13,050 Feb 2003 Red
1986 Coupe 97,000 $17,200 Mar 2003 Gray
1986 Coupe 81,800 $18,700 Mar 2003 Red Tail
1986 Coupe 57,385 $19,100 May 2003 Black
1986 Coupe 72,994 $14,101 Jul 2003 Seat tear, hood repaint Wine
1986 Coupe 87,000 $15,995 Aug 2003 Slight seat issues Gray
1986 Coupe 65,583 $19,400 Sep 2003 Red
1986 Coupe 77,217 $19,800 Sep 2003 White Tail
1986 Coupe 96,500 $16,100 Oct 2003 Rear tires Gray
1986 Coupe 60,700 $18,500 Jan 2004 Needs tires, brakes, washer pump Black Tail
1986 Coupe 81,569 $13,950 Jan 2004 Brown
1986 Coupe 112,000 $13,000 Jan 2004 Red Tail

Insert the usual disclaimer about eBay sales here.

Currently for sale on the net:

1986 Coupe 112000 $14,900 Red TX
1986 Coupe 73200 $16,500 Black TX
1986 Coupe 100000 $19,800 Black NJ
1986 Coupe 65000 $10,900 Black MI
1986 Coupe 86000 $20,000 Black MI

The 65K @ $10900 is really, really low.

Ian

Tommy B

I called the 10,900 guy twice and emailed him once. No response to either.

Tim993

Greg, I think that you are in the ballpark with the $17k-$19k range in SoCal. I have had my eye on the selling prices for about a year now (my '86 Carrera is for sale but I have been dragging my feet as to listing it) and they do have seem to stabilized after falling from the low $20k's a few years ago. Maybe the overall economy is helping in this regard.

Dan in Florida

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Noel
[B]I would much rather have a car that had the suspension refreshed with new bushings, even if it was done with non-standard upgraded parts. Any pre 89 car with the stock suspension needs new bushings at this point anyway, no question about it. This is not a matter of miles but of age and the flow of the stock bushing material after 15+ years of weight resting on them.[B]

I'm with you, Noel. A well maintained track 911 is likely to be in much better shape than cars that have not been tracked. And the suspensions have usually been upgraded. Any 911 with the original shocks & suspension has probably missed important maintenance, regardless of mileage.

Chris: I've got the DAS also. It's the best, at least until we're ready for a cage. These cars were designed to be driven, not just looked at or listened to.

hanzonn

Thanks Tim,

What do you have? Let me know when you list it.

Greg

RMA

good luck with the purchase

86Coupe

Greg,
$16 - 19K would be ballpark for an nice '86 Targa or Cab in So. Cal. but coupes are scare. It took me a year to find mine 3.5 years ago, I live in LA.

I wanted '86 or newer but was indifferent to the transmission -- 950 is easier to shift but 915 has more feel and doesn't rattle. Also wanted no spoilers, no linen interior, stock and original paint.

There were exactly zero meeting this description until I found one in San Jose. Paid $18K but needed new clutch, trans, etc. Even a nice '86 for $16 - 19K will probably need $2 - 3K in repairs. Valve jobs to fix excessive oil consumption run $3 - 5K.

Mileage on mine is 120K with 1 - 2% leakdown. Records show oil changes every 5K miles. Dead reliable, fun, beautiful to look at.

So what's an '86 like mine worth? It would sell instantly for the $18K I paid so it's worth more than that.

Side note: Three months ago I called a guy listing a '88 white / black coupe in the LA Times. That's my fave color combo an he was asking $19K. Good news -- When I called sounded like same condition as mine and it wasn't sold. Bad news -- He had several offers and price was up to $24K.

Prices for excellent coupes have not dropped in the last 3.5 years because they are scarce. Prices for cars that are more plentiful -- Targas, Cabs, average coupes -- have dropped. Recently these have started going up again. Related to improving economy I think.

Supply and demand suggests prices for excellent SC and Carreras coupes will remain high. When the economy and stock market are strong prices will be higher than now.

I see 993 prices coming down but that will mainly affect the more plentiful Targas and Cabs. In So. Cal. 964 prices fell below Carreras a long time ago.

Pete

gerry100

FYI-

- bought my '86 coupe one week before the 9/11 murders from the original owner in UpstateNY.

- almost all records, normal paint chips ( they really show on black cars), near perfect full leather interior, recent clutch and alternator, no tails or spoilers, 83K miles. Paid $18K. ( I submitted to " Readers Sales reports" in Excellence but they typo'd and listed at $8k - I hope that didn't upset too many '86 owners).

- In the past 29 months, I'ver spent about $2500 in upkeep and have at least $600 planned before spring. This is for a car that really needed nothing when I bought it.

- Love the car.

jet911

Noel,
Ok, I need some help here. What bushings are you referring to? The Torsion bar bushings? Are there other bushings as well? I have an '86, and I see no where in the records from all PO's (two prior to me) is there any mention of suspension upgrade or repair. I just had the consoles replaced on the rear sway bars. I'm looking to upgrade to turbo tie rods and Bilsteins. What else should be done at this point? The car has 83K miles on her. I do not auto cross, however I do like to get it on in the canyons and on the freeway once in a while.

hanzonn

Thanks & really appreciate all of the information. However, this makes me ask a couple more questions:

1 - If I'm looking at a nice 86' coupe with approx 100k miles on it, what maintenance/repairs/replacement parts would I expect to have been done (or should have been done)?
2 - If nothing has been done, what are the typical needs of a car of this age/miles?

The reason I ask is I looked a real nice 86' that had been well cared for & maintained (with records), but no major work such as clutch, bushings, etc. had been done.

Thanks, Greg

86Coupe

Greg,
Here's what I had to do to mine over the last 3.5 years. Some was elective, some had to do.

* New clutch
* Rebuild transmission (elective, "while you're in there")
* Replace sunroof cables
* Seal engine
* Replace fuel line
* Turbo tie rods
* Rebuild starter motor
* New Bilsteins (elective)
* H5 headlamps (elective)

Total exceeds the $2 - 3K I mentioned but that's because of the elective work. Gerry's story is similar to mine in terms of purchase price and non-elective repairs so this is about what to expect. These are old cars and it's hard to predict what will fail every year but the ones above are common.

A car that has been abused will require more extensive repairs so buy right -- service history is a must as is PPI. Personally I like to buy from older guys, they tend not to thrash their cars as much.

A mint 100K mile car without this work would be worth $18K in So. Cal. A car like mine that has had it done would be worth more but not as much as purchase price + cost of repairs. Price unchanged from 3.5 years ago. In future prices will be higher during times of a healthy stock market.

On the transmission rebuild do it even if the synchros are good. The shift feel of the 915 is awful when bushings and transmission internals are worn. After rebuilding mine there was a night and day improvement in the shift effort and precision. Now equal to the more expensive G50 overall, from spending just a little extra. This is what makes the '86s a best kept secret.

'86s are also less susecptible to valve guide wear. To fix that on newer models requires an expensive valve job.

Pete

Tim993

Greg,

My '86 coupe is white with a black interior. It has 78k miles and I have had all of the major wear items replaced in the last 10k miles. If you are interested let me know and I will send you some pictures and addition information on the car.

Tim