martinr81

Here's the dilemma...

I have a silver '88 Carrera coupe that looks great from 10' away, but there is evidence of use and abuse over its life. I'm sure that I am staring down the barrel of an engine rebuild, new clutch and new paint, not to mention the usual bits and pieces that need to be routinely replaced. I really like the car. It handles very well, runs like a scared rabbit and has the famous classic Porsche coupe lines. Purchase price was $18,500. Subsequent inspection indicated that the ODO had been tampered with. Car runs well, but engine weeps a bit of oil. Oil consumption appears to be in the high end of the tolerable range for now. No other major issues that I am aware of.

Question is.... invest in the engine, clutch etc (probably a $10-12,000 event when all is said and done) and possibly upgrade other parts to make it truly my own, or limit the bleeding and find a better, low mileage example?

Appreciate any advice you might have.

Thanks.
Rick Martin
St. Louis, MO
Silver '88 Carrera 3.2 Coupe

stormmaster

You have one of the most desirable years of the 911....My feelings.....bite the bullet and repair it....if you try to sell it, you will take a beating on the selling price, as you will not get top dollar evidenced by the repairs are needed....you know what you have better than any body else.....it just depends if you are willing to take the hit on the selling price and take a chance on the purchase of another one....never an easy delima

ked

Rick, Welcome aboard! I would spend a bit more time on the research end of things, or provide more data for a better "remote analysis" by us strangers...

"there is evidence of use and abuse over its life."
specifically, what damage? physical (accidents, rot, or?)
what is the estimated mileage on the car, any service history, etc?

"runs like a scared rabbit"
meaning it performs as new (0-60 / 0-100 / 80-0, etc.)?

"I'm sure that I am staring down the barrel of an engine rebuild, new clutch and new paint"
if the chassis is sound (no / minor accident damage, no / minor rust), then no one is forcing you to spend $4K (or more) on paint.

"engine weeps a bit of oil / Oil consumption appears to be in the high end of the tolerable range"
as we like to say, oil leaks are proof there is oil in your engine. oil leaks can be quite minor, minor or significant - in cause &/or cost to repair. if the leaks are fixed the oil consumption goes down - have you differentiated & accurately quantifies leaks from consumption? have you done a compression & (proper) leak down test to evaluate the internals?

what are your short & long term intentions for your car - drive everyday, pleasure cruise, racing?
what is your time line - do you have to have a near-perfect car right away?
have you had the car looked over by long time 911 3.2 experts (not just a shop, but PCA-types...)?

I like to remind myself, "things aren't as bad... or as good... as they often appear at first." One may have a beautiful car that is a mess beneath the surface, or a rough appearing & operating car that is a diamond in the rough that needs TLC from a patient owner (as opposed to big checks to a specialist shop).
cheers!

Luus

You know for $28K you can get a really nice low miles (45-60K) 87-89 Carrera in original condition with all records, books tools etc, one that has been well cared for and properly maintained form the start. Heck you could probaby find a nice one for a little less. There are still a lot of nice examples out there. You'll most likely have to take a hit on your current car but I'd dump it and start again.

r911

what compression #'s does it have? a leak down might be of some value also...

IF - IF - you need major engine work, then Juus has the right solution. If not, then it is time to consider other mech. components & the paint quality.

Larry Harris

I agree with Luus. Why look for trouble. My independent Porsche tech has had several quality 87-90 P cars in his shop over the past few months. One 89 had 37,000 miles, looked perfect and was selling for $30,000(you probably could have got it for 27,500 ~) Just had a new clutch.

Pedro356C

Very good advice here...a compression/leakdown test is a good place to start...maybe things are not as bad as you think...

As far as paint...there's a great range of fantastic products in the market and you can probably buff out most of the paint flaws with hard work...

All P-cars deserve a chance...

imcarthur

As above . . .

You recently (?) paid $18.5K. If you dump it to some unsuspecting, you could get most of your money back. Too bad for the happy buyer, though.

Or, you make full disclosure, but you will lose $6-7K approx.

Either way, you could buy a queen that STILL might develop a valve guide problem & need clutch work as you rack up some miles.

Get the tests as Randy suggested & try a clutch bleed with new fluid & see where you stand.

Ian

theiceman

Wow ! huge diversity in responses.. I guess you are as confused as when you started. but the trend seams to be MORE INFO. Sounds like a nice car that needs work . I agree with keep it but take your time and fix it as it fits your budget approach , but admitedly everyone buys a Porsche for different reasons. Good luck with your choice . This could be an interesting story to follow if you keep it ..

Jay H

I agree with KED on the paint issue. A good detailer could most likely bring the paint back to a decent gloss and condition. If you plan to concours the car, then dump this one and get a perfect one. However, I suspect that is not the case. Some time reading up on car detailing, a few bucks on some good car care products or a few hundred at a pro detailer's shop could be all you need verses that $4000 paint job. Porsche paint is robust.

As others have said, it really depends on what you want out of the car and what your goals are. I'd fully investigate your current 911 to really see how bad it is (if indeed things are bad).

Good Luck!

Jay
90 964

pcar964

You have to be kidding guys, this is really simple. He paid 18.5k for the car, could probably sell it for $13k minimum. Then he's out $5.5k. Buy a low miles perfect example for $20k, total expense is $25.5k

If he invests in the car it will end up costing $13k to get it right, that's over $31k total investment. It's almost never cost effective to buy a fixer-upper with Pcars, unless you do all the fixing yourself.

Jay H

pcar964, you make a good point that it could be financially beneficial for Rick to dump the car and then buy a better example. Restoring these relatively new cars never gets you ahead of the game.

However, we don't know Rick's situation though or the current condition of his car. He could end up spending only $5000 to get the car in very nice shape and have $23,500 in it total. Not too out of line for a solid car that you can trust.

Finding a low mileage, mint '88 Carrera for $20k might be hard to do, depending on the market that the buyer is in. All these cars need something, so if you spend $20k to $25k on a mint example, there is probably always something to dump $1000 or two on, even on a mint car. Also, nice cars are hard to find and it takes time to find them.

Just some counter point for discussion, no flaming intended.

I had an '86 that was in good condition mechanically, but in average condition cosmetically. I wanted to concours that car but it was too rough in it's present state. I could have repainted it for $5000 to $8000 and had it perfect, but then I would have had a lot of money tied up in an old car with a lot of miles on it... I ended up dumping it for cheap and buying a much nicer, lower mileage 911 that I could show. I was money ahead on that deal since my current car's investment is closer in value to it's resale value. My '86 would have caused me to have $30k in a high mileage car that would still have been worth only $15-$17k. However, every situation is different.

Jay
90 964

My87Targa

id just fix it up, a good project is fun, costly sure but always fun. and besides eventually you will end up doing most the same work to another one so why beat around the bush. take this one and repair it to your taste. nows a perfect time to mod

ChemMan

I guess it comes down to do you want something to work on or something to drive???
Mike

Dan Cobb

It's ALWAYS cheaper to buy a better car.
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