WolfeMacleod

Ut-oh. WHile on the way to check out an '84 944 that my wife had pointed out, I ran across this little thing.

'85. 180,000 miles.
They want $17k for it, and it's got records from a good (I hear..) local shop

Jay H

This one appears to be a nice looking 911. If this car has a fresh motor and transmission rebuild, then $17k might be a good starting point. If she's never been opened up, then you can probably find a much lower mileage car for $17k.

One positive about these higher mileage cars verses maybe a 120,000 mile car is that these near 200k cars typically have new motors and transmissions that were recently rebuilt. However, you must do your homework on these things since rebuilding 911 motors is quite expensive. These cars are built very well to high tolerances and with good materials, but things still wear out. 180k is a lot of miles. Make sure stuff is in good working order...

Being at a dealership, the price is most likely inflated verses what you might find from a private party.

Good Luck,

Jay
90 964, 84 3.2

JV911

Ah you've seen the light!

A few things to consider:
Body looks straight and clean
In the pic that shows the a/c radiator (second pic from bottom) there is what looks to be some surface rust...warrants closer inspection
Has it been re-sprayed? If so, why?
Interior looks neat...but dirty
180 is a few miles - had any engine work?

its tempting but dont buy the 1st car you see

look at (and drive!) as many as you can and once you've found one you like get a proper PPI...911 ownership can either be very rewarding or very painful and expensive

good luck

panchosouth

Wolf....
I spent 12.5K in December for a 87 w/117K miles, and have plonked 2K down to get it mechanically sound and put a SW chip in it, I still will have to p/up tires for it in the next 2 months. I found it on ebay. My thoughts are that this is a lot of moolah for this car. Markschu (rennlister) has a 88 Targa that is almost 9K more than this, but is 10x the car.....IMO I think that that is way too much money and you should keep looking. unless they are willing to part w/it for around 10-11 and the PPI shows solid. there. my 0.02

rbcsaver

I agree that the money seems abit steep for that many miles and they certainly made made no effort to clean it up. I also ech the concerns about the rust around the rear deck edge, and there maybe a funky area near the battery too. Get a PPI (not at the dealer obviously),a look at the records and also under that battery (an area prone to rust from the battery acids.)
regards,
Steve

Mike Murphy

I agree with everyone else. You should be able to find a car like this much cheaper than $17,000, unless it recently had an engine rebuilt.

butzip

As a general rule, I stay away from 'extra clean' 'cream puff' 'like new' cars. These guys probably got it at auction for $6K. $17k is good money, better get a no stories, good car in return.

arbeitm

Uh oh....another 944 owner (well 924S in your case) gets sucked in. No turning back now...trust me...I know.

Well...even though that car does appear to have the Crystal One optional installed mobile phone...I would say $ 17,000 for an 85 with 180,000 miles is a bit high. I would guess more in the $ 11 - 13k range???

It looks like that is one of those gas station/used car dealers....which usually scares the crap out of me. Most of the time I feel better buying a car from a private owner. At least I know where it's coming from and you can get first hand info.

Oshin11

Do NOT buy that car. It may have a straight body but the interior is hideous and the motor will probably conk out soon. If he had the engine rebuilt, he'd be selling for more, especially since he's a dealer. Nicely rebuilt 911s go for 22K if they have low miles on the new engine. My car had a CLEAN interior, pretty good body, nice paint, and 117K on the enginer and I got it for 17.5K. That car looks like its worth 12K.

RacingBeat

yep........keep looking........i bought an 84 targa for 17.5 k, half as many miles and twice as clean as the one in those pictures. don't buy the 1st one you look at...

Jay H

These 'corner lot' car dealers scare me too... I don't think I'd ever buy a car from one of these types of dealers. They know probably know nothing about the car, tossed all the records (who needs this big heavy binder sliding around under the seats), will let anyone test drive the car (rev's over 4000 while stone cold), etc. etc.

scottb

Frankly, I'm not impressed. The body looked nice, but the interior was ratty. At that price, you can do much better.

If you're serious about the car (and it's in Seattle like you), take it to John Walker's Workshop and get a PPI done. John's one of the best in the business, and he'll give you the straight scoop.

2002M3Drew

I did the same thing three years ago...set out looking for a 944, ended up with a 911SC instead. When the dust settles with maintenance and repairs, the 911s are much cheaper in the long run, and actually hold their value.

That car looks nioce, but as others said, resist the urge to jump on the first one...there are lots out there. I think that is way too much money for a car with 180,000, personally. It's not that these cars don't last (they do), but there are just so many other lower mile cars out there for less dough...

Happy Hunting!

theiceman

Just another .02c with the same opinion . I have had 944s and now this 911. I might hear the wrath of the 944 oys soon but in fact 944s are not as reliable and are expensive to fix and quite frankly don't hold value. A nice car if you can get past that .
Just as a different view point i bought my car off a gas station lot. The guy was selling it for a friend. I got to meet the original owner and got the story and I also knocked 3K off the price ... and I think I have a pretty decent car. I say at least talk to the guy .. but eyes wide open and be OBJECTIVE .. too many guys go in emotional ..
There are tonnes of renlisters in Seattle who could look at cars with you or at least sit down with you and tell you what to look for.

Have fun looking ...... this is the best part..

GothingNC

Read this thread.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/showt...hreadid=328856

And then this

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/showt...hreadid=329357

John