Peter Zimmermann

I feel the same, ice; if you can't reach agreement there's little point to walking away with someone pissed off. Are there sellers that have their heads in the clouds? Of course, but I've found over the years that most will listen to a reasonable negotiation that involves facts, rather than a "it's not worth that," approach. If this seller thinks that he can get more, well, that's the end of the nogotiation. But, the potential buyer should always give the seller his phone number, sometimes it takes a few hours/days for reason to overrule emotion.

Amber Gramps

in this case, with the seller being honest and upfront so far, he may be willing to take the ding so his car goes to a good home. I don't think he would get violent over the offer of $15K-$16K. I bet the seller of my car got less than that for it when you look at everything the shop did before I got it at $20,000.

martinfick

Hold up guys, let's calm down... 1 QRT every 500 miles?

I own an 87 Carrera and the user's manual specifically says that this car should consume 1qrt/600 miles; don't take my word for it, check the manual yourself. Now 500 hundred may be a little faster than this, but it is not terrible. My car uses anywhere from about 1qrt/600 miles to 1 qrt/1000 miles depending on the type of oil I put in it; the thinner oil goes quicker.

GeneralTso

Sometimes another option is to just come right out and say something like "I really like the car, but after factoring in all the anticipated repair costs I'm afraid that you might be insulted by the figure that I'd be able to offer you."

Then if they're open to entertaining a lower offer they'll say "try me" and then you can make your offer knowing that you're unlikely to offend them...or if they're delusional and think their car is perfect in every way and worth 100% of their asking price, they'll say "thanks anyway" and it's time for you to move on to a different vehicle.

If you approach it that way you probably won't hurt their feelings in either case....

Good luck!

Jeff

Peter Zimmermann

Martin: One of the keys here is the 100,000 miles that the car has covered. What you say about the factory listed consumption rate is true, but certainly not anywhere close to typical. 1,000 - 1,500 miles/quart is far more the norm. We who have taken a number of these engines apart that are 500/quart or worse consumers have found badly worn valve guides in every instance. I've discussed this issue with a number of people and the consensus opinion seems to be that Porsche stated acceptable consumption because of a twofold reason; (1) They wanted to protect themselves from having to deal with warranty complaints, even engine failures, during the warranty period, and (2) They wanted to protect themselves from complaints during the critical, oftentimes high consumption, break-in period.
In reality, 3.2 liter Carrera engines can be at risk, of bad valve guides, at as low as 40K miles, but in reality the vast majority of owners can expect 100K miles or more before top end work is required. The key to the subject of this thread is, "has the consumption rate worsened recently, or has it been a quart/500 miles for the last 50,000 miles?" At any rate, from my experience, having the heads done at the mentioned consumption is the owner's choice, I've found it necessary to consider the repair when consumption drops to 400/quart, and mandatory at 300/quart.

theiceman

if my car were using a quart every 500 miles , I would be selling it ..

oh yeah ,.. right .. that's how we got here..

gotta go .. looking for a 993 to buy since our dollar is doing so well.. gota go dig out Petes book again .... '95 only for me ...

1986951

Hey Kick7, I sent you a PM...

It would save you a lot of issues, if you are serious about buying...

Or if just kicking tires, that's cool to...

g-50cab

mine got to 500 miles per quart - right when I decided to open it up. I ended up needing 6 exhaust valves because the guides were worn so bad (at 56,000 miles)

Brett San Diego

I look at it as a now or later thing. If you pass on this car and continue to shop 3.2 Carreras, then you're still going to be in the same boat ultimately, unless you find a car that has had a recent top end job. If this car is as original and as nice as you otherwise indicate, it may be worth the extra change to you. Maybe not to anyone else, but to you, and that is all that matters. You really need to make this value judgement on your own. Personally, I value interior cosmetics highly and will pay more for a mechanically flawed car that has a great interior.

Another thing is that I would prefer that major mechanical work be performed on my watch rather than a previous owner's unless there is lots and lots of documentation of the work, and the work was with a known, reputable shop.

I'd still give the car and seller a fair shake and see what the seller may negotiate, if, of course, you feel really good about the rest of the car. My 2 cents.

Brett

Super_Dave_D

My 88 had the same oil consumption rate with 94K. She is in the middle of a top end and I am figuring we will be around 7k before its over. Here;s a link to my estimate and some pics of what I saw yesterday. Good luck!

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/showthread.php?t=366472

Mike Murphy

If you can get the car for $14k, then do it and have the top-end rebuilt. But I doubt the seller would do it because he might be able to sell the car to someone who isn't as well informed for $18k.

I don't see the owner performing the repair and then selling, because he will lose money.

butzip

After reading the above/below, I feel extremely lucky. My 88 cab just turned 121,000 miles and loses about a quart every 1500 miles and half of that is coming from the oil pressure sending unit......

kick7ca

[QUOTE=1986951;4595803]Hey Kick7, I sent you a PM...

It would save you a lot of issues, if you are serious about buying...

Or if just kicking tires, that's cool to...[/QUOTE.

1986 - PM replied.

Available this weekend?

Antony.

Should I feel extremely lucky if my 86 with 62k miles only used a quart and a bit over the last 3k miles? Seems like consumption is generally much higher for most motors in here. Why are some motors requiring some new guides at only 56k? Is that due to extended service intervals, oil choice(Mobil 1 for mine), manufacturing variances or something else?

kick7ca

I drove the subject car. Owner was generous enough to allow an extended drive, and I walked away impressed with how refined and solid the car felt. However, paint has faded, there was some minor body damage in front next to the fog light, I detected some clutch/flywheel chatter, and a faint gas smell in the cockpit. These observations combined with the high oil consumption and original clutch make this one a definite pass at $19K. But kudos to an honest seller and PCA member who really let me feel the car out.

He was not receptive to a sub $15K offer.