1985 Red/Tan, 70,000 miles, Fl car, 3rd owner for 5 years.
The good, New targa top inside and outside looks great, dry under car, no cracks in dash, A/C is cold, (6 month old compressor and re do r-12) Has a descent c/d stereo.
The not so good, drivers seat needs restiching at seam on bolster, front bumper needs repaint, a few small dings here and there, r/r quarter is repainted, good job and looks like not much damage (only clue is paint on trim under r/glass), Passenger door pocket is "hanging off" , rugs are good
need 4 tires and wheels need black to be painted (no curb rash) and get this owner claims he has not done a major service since he has owned it (perhaps 30,000 miles) smokes a fair amount on start up after sitting a few days,it did not smoke when i raced it up after warm up, but it had a sweet smell, (does this mean a top end job soon and what does that cost?)
I think he said a quart every few months, looks like the engine is clean and appears to have a fairly recent filter change (?) not a lot of valve noise, r/f fender painted (?) small amount of clear is coming off around bottom of headlight, needs new targa seals at back of both door winows, (the cloth is gone)
The car appears to be "un-molested" no DE or track.
General appearence is very good
Owner is a 60+ year old "country club golf type", just bought a 996 conv, does not seem to be very well versed in 911's. Car was probably garaged, and looks like it was used only locally (its a FL all its life car)
I would give the car a solid 7-8....but for the smoke.
What would "you pay' for a car like this, as a bargain?
I did not make an offeor drive it.....asking price is $14,750
Lotta questions...
Thanks guys,
I need to "steal" a Carrera to get back into P car land....

 

Offer $13.5K & get an independent PPI for compression & leakdown etc. Smoke on start is normal of course, but you would want a check - especially since it hasn't had a major service in a long while.

In mint condition ~ 70K miles, a '85 Targa would fetch ~ $17 - 18K?? This one sounds a lttle more stressed. Seats & tires & stuff can easily eat up $2K.

That would give you your bargain as long as the PPI checks out.

Ian

 

I think the "unmolested" no DE is a misnomer. Most of the folks I know that DE keep their car in the top 15% mechnical condition, me included. My car is in the best mechnical shape of it's life... because I DE.

 

I completely agree with Ian above. Jeremy is right too.

I agree with the $13,500 due to the need for tires, rim refinish, trim issues, major service needed immediately and the paint issues. Budget at least $2000 for the first year of ownership to get this car sorted out.

My previous 911, an '86 in Guards Red, did not have clear coat. I'd definitely have a reputable body shop that knows 911's look this body work over to see what else is hiding...

"Quart every few months"... How many miles does the car travel in a "few months"? If he's running it several thousand miles in that time frame, that oil consumption is probably O.K. If less than a thousand miles in that time frame, then it's time to take notice a bit and see why she's burning oil.

I would bet there are some other issues with this car that have not shown up yet. A PPI is definitely necessary on cars like these...

Good luck!

Jay
90 964

 

quart every few months - I'll bet you $45 that he has bad valve guides...

 

Is that howmuch each guide costs?

 

I think I'll wait till the end of the week before proceeding, the ad came out yesterday and runs a week, I think I was the first to see it.
Seems that the Carreras are not selling that quickly.
If it is still available, I'll make a $10,500,and see how that goes. I hate to get into this. If he doesn't have any other offers he may consider a counter offer, then a PPI. I figure about $1,500 right away (tires, major service, probably brakes, and then see where it goes.
It helps that he bought another Porsche, (and a 6 speed to boot) makes me feel that he hasn't "gone off" the P cars, then again he really didn't take car of it....or are we all to "****" about our porsches?
As far as oil use, deven if it uses a quart in 500 miles, thats about a month to me....
Now the "Q" is this car worth $12,000 (plus the needed stuff)?
If the car drives and handles well, is the Compression and leakdown test all I need.
As a note, in the early 80's I was going to Germany and importing BMW 323's, M/B"s and a few 911's, for resale. (about 40 or so cars over a 3 year period) with just a quick drive! One of the 911's, a 79, I owned for 10 years. That car I bought from a doctor in Stuttgart....I pretty much bought it when he opened his garage...it was sitting covered alongside his new one and the garage was so neat I knew the car would be OK.....it was...in 10 year the only repair it needed was a blown up air box.
I bought these cars with just a quick drive

 

I'm still shopping for my first 911 & visit this forum frequently for advise & values.
I can tell you I'm in Connecticut & have been negotiating w/sellers from NY & MA. Currently,
I'm at $17.5 for an '86 Targa Guards & '86 Cab Black. 85k & 98K respectively. No PPI's yet, but absolutely no issues with 20 photos that I received for each. If at the end of getting the car where you want it, if the cost's do not exceed $16k, seems your doing alright

for what it's worth,
signed too new to know much of anything...

 

Sounds to me like that car is due for some serious $$ maintenance. My experience is that most owners will spend the $$ first to keep the appearance up if they cannot afford to do the proper maintenance. The fact that it needs so much 'liittle items' indicates the current owner does not care or won't spend his money.

Unless you are looking for a project, pass. If your budget is @15K try uping the ante to $17-18. You would be suprised how much more car that $2-3K will buy. I live in Va near the DC area and this seems to be the rule on '84-86 P-cars. Anything $14K or under will be a car like the one you're looking into. When the asking price goes starts $17K and above you'll find the cars do not come with a lot of excuses or needs.

I've seen cars of that vintage with the right colors and VERY low miles sell for stupid money. IE: One or two owner cars with under 35K on the clock SELL for $26K and above!! IMO at those prices I'd be looking at a Turbo car!

 

The seemingly "clueless" owner would give me pause. A quart every few months is not a good answer to the question. There could be more neglect related issues.

No service in 30K miles. Many on this board would consider that more abusive than DE.

$10K.

 

Not to offend anyone here but Targas are a dime a dozen. Here in Florida you can find real good examples of Targas for less than this guy is asking, and in great mechanical order to boot. Its the coupe'
version that you really need to be above the 16k mark to start finding nice cars.

 

OK, I'll bite, where.....

 

I did'nt know that Targa's are a "dime a dozen". I looked for a long time for the right targa, and found it in florida. But there seemed to be many more coupes for sale than targa's. Mine was in excellent shape, drives tight, works right. looks right, and now, would not sell it for, well, many more dollars than before.

 

He's the THIRD owner in FIVE years, and he's put 30K miles on the car...?!? That sounds wrong. Oil consumption - does he use half STP, half non-detergent 30W? Hmmm... I would not proceed until I see a service file. One positive, he doesn't seem to be hiding anything. Sports Car Market Magazine says $17 - 19K for "very good to near excellent" condition. It sounds like you're faced with paint ($6K), partial interior ($2K), wheel refinish ($1K) and... I like your $10K offer, I wouldn't pay any more than that. Pin him down, ask those hard questions, if he doesn't have the answers, walk away. Remember, the '86 has the bigger dash vents for better A/C, although finding an '85 with working A/C could be a plus. HEY, I just had a thought! He paid big bucks to fix the A/C - perhaps the car was in for a major service at the same time and they found one or more BROKEN HEAD STUDS! If you buy the puppy make sure the tech doing the PPI takes those valve covers off and checks that all the studs (24) are there!!!

 

I'd consider that 100% times more abused than DE. 15K miles between valve adjustments for a Carrera. Any more miles than that and start asking questions and start lowering your offer.