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I’m currently looking at an ‘88 Carrera that’s for sale a short flight from where I live. I’m planning on visiting and will organize a prepurchase inspection but the seller sent me undercarriage photos and I was wondering if anyone had any thoughts?
The fact that the 30 something year old heat exchangers aren’t dented to hell is a good start, at least the
guy was careful and didn’t drive over anything that might have damaged the undercarriage …
Asides from that and the tires looking in good shape, there’s not much to judge.
Do get a thorough PPI before spending what i’m guessing will be a fairly large amount of money for a G car !
You need more details …
Really appreciate you taking the time to a have look. Do you have any thoughts about areas that should definitely be checked during a PPI, especially things that might not happen without me requesting them? I know it’s a very open ended question… !
Originally Posted by wildcat077
The fact that the 30 something year old heat exchangers aren’t dented to hell is a good start, at least the
guy was careful and didn’t drive over anything that might have damaged the undercarriage …
Asides from that and the tires looking in good shape, there’s not much to judge.
Do get a thorough PPI before spending what i’m guessing will be a fairly large amount of money for a G car !
You need more details …
I have an 89 911 coupe which i bought in 2008 ,therefore a G50 car like the one you’re considering … they are built solidly and should be good for another 20 years if well maintained.There are some key areas to check for rust , mainly the battery tray.There are probably dozens of posts already regarding what to look at before purchase.Ask if the car still has the rubber centered clutch, mine exploded around 120,000 kms …
The rear swaybar mounts have a tendency to crack, like others mentioned the undercarriage seems pretty clean.Look for oil leaks around the “ triangle of death” area on top of the engine ,no leaks means the owner has addressed the issue at one point.
Torsion bar bushings are another pain in the butt repair if they are original and have deformed, do a search here and on the Pelican Porsche forums which have a lot more 911 traffic than Rennlist.
Make yourself a list of key points to inspect during a PPI performed by a competent shop , not the place you are buying from.The 3.2 engines will eventually need to have the valve guides replaced at one point , ask a lot of questions regarding what has been done to the engine over the years.
Good luck and keep us informed !
Pictures look good, car appears solid, original and not abused at all.
Some of the "top" items on a 3.2 Carrera PPI that I would want are:
1) Cylinder leak down test
2) Compression test
3) Some evaluation of valve guide condition (mechanic may do a driving test with an observer following, and subject the motor to heavy engine braking (vacuum) to see... or he/she may have other ideas)
4) Close inspection of the body structure in the battery compartment area for damage (corrosion) from unattended battery leakage
5) Head stud check (would require removal of valve covers, and the gaskets and nuts should then be renewed upon reinstallation)
6) Condition of soft fuel lines
Those are the 911-specific big hitters that come to my mind. It is always preferable that the shop doing the PPI has an intimate knowledge of air-cooled 911s (which typically means that they will be spring-loaded to look at all the stuff anyway).
As 500 mentioned , the fuel lines are a major item to replace should you purchase the car , too many engine fires due to original cracked fuel lines.There’s a member on the forums, Len Cummings. “ AKA Boxster Gt “ who is the everything hose or line guru for our cars and he does incredible work.He made up all new fuel lines for me when i swapped a 95 3.6 in my car a few years back !
Yes, leak down and compression checks will give you a good idea on engine health.Like i said earlier , go on the Pelican forums … lots of good reading !
I own a 88 coupe. The underside appears to be in good shape. Possibly this car has received a bit of dry ice cleaning, which is perfectly ok. I have seen the underside of a number of 87/88 models and the condition varies from excellent to pittiful. This example is good. The exchangers aren't dented and all the bits appear to be in order. As Wildcat077 suggested, the rear sway bar mounts have a tendency to crack and the torsion bar bushings are another pain in the butt repair. When the bushings, shocks and proper alignment is made these G50 cars drive great. Hopefully a clean PPI will follow. Good Luck.
It would be good to see the body too but the underside looks good, agree about the dry ice. Things to be concerned about are fuel lines to be replaced if original for sure. Pop the valve covers off and check head studs and do a compression test. These cars are stunningly good at hiding rust so have a very long inspection of the rear wheel inner where they meet the door striker, the front tops of the wings where the front fenders mount with your hand. Remove the battery and check the seams for rust and if that all clears, or as best as can be, buy the car and drive the nuts off it. These cars are a ton of fun
Just want to say thanks again to everyone offering such thoughtful advice. Really appreciate it. We are going to look at the car this weekend. A little more info.. it lived most of its life in Japan, has about 64500 miles on it. It has been repainted at some point but it’s the original color. I’ve attached a few more photos..
Does anyone know what’s up with the rear seat cushions being one piece? I haven’t seen that before.
If anyone thinks of anything else please let me know and I’ll report back about the trip sometime next week.
03-20-2023, 02:29 PM
Pre-purchase advice 1988 Carrera
