OK, you folks here have convinced me that the 911 non-turbo will be the
best choice for me.

If I may ask a hypothetical question?

I am going to check out a 1986 911 [non turbo] today. The car now has
72k miles on it. Assuming [I'll check a PPI] the car is solid mechanically
what kind of maintenance cost experience should I expect? Sellers want
to say that an annual oil change and a valve adjustment every 12k miles
should be enough. To repeat what I've posted in other threads, I only
put 3-4k miles per year on a car now and they are almost all very short
trips so the engine will suffer from being run at less than optimal temperatures.

 

An 86 is a special car. Good choice. Maintenance will be minimal if you buy it correctly after a complete PPI. These are robust cars, not tempramental at all. A good 911 is one of the chaepest cars you can own. Get some pics of your prospects and post them here so we can tear this car apart. I want some pics.

 

whalebird...OK, here is a link to the ad with pics and info about the car. By all means tear into
it and give me your opinions gang! :-)

http://www.specialtysales.com/1986-p...era-c-2356.htm

Everett

 

Looks pretty nice. Is the exhaust stock? I can't quit tell on my laptop screen. By all means get a PPI.(your tired of hearing that by now) If all original paint and good mechanical condition with documents, throw a lowball at them. I love white coupes but the Carrera tail sets of a Targa real nice IMHO. The color combo is going to be a love it/hate it on the market. I like the same car with "lipstick" interior(red).

 

whalebird. I don't know if the exhaust is stock. I'll check that out today! I do know the owner will take considerably less than the posted asking price. This will be the first 915 I've driven so I am curious to
see how that transmission feels to me.

 

It's not that big of a deal. The 915 may be "different" but I don't think its a deal breaker. A properly maintained and responsibly driven 915 is a breeze to shift and will last for decades. The short-shift kits is where they start to suffer. I may get some flack on this from others here - it's been debated and most agree that a G50 shifts well, I and others feel a 915 is not much different. I think the hydrolic clutch is nice, but a properly adjusted 915 is really as good. I doubt you would look back on it if you opted for an '84-'86.

 

as far as maintenance cost, it's very minimal..i try to change oil every 3K miles (dino oil). my car is a daily driver, the last year i logged about 15K trouble free miles. i don't see any problems with the 915, you just need to get use to it and from what i understand is that it's cheaper to rebuild than the g50.

looks like a clean car but asking price is a bit high..mid teen's i think is where it should be at in this market. look around, there's a lot of 911 for sale in the bay area.

 

Thanks 997for40. Yes, if it gets to that point I'm thinking maybe 18K$ for the car. We'll see!

 

Make sure they can prove the miles with all the records. Then go the next step(PPI) Definitely not a stock exhaust.

 

FWIW, I have owned my 86 for around 14 years, bought it with 35K miles or so and now it has around 95K, It has been without a doubt one of the most reliable cars I have ever owned. Not very expensive to maintain at all. I do oil every 3K or 6 months, Tune/Valve every 15K and normal maintenance.
The only big issue has been a Tranny rebuild about 10 years ago, alternator and other than that just upgrades like shocks, Turbo tie rods...etc.
They are really solid cars.

Good luck!

 

Thanks guys! I couldn't test drive the '86 today as the dealer is still closed
for the holiday. I'll try again on Monday. From the responses here I feel more comfident
in the longevity of these cars. I won't abuse it [probably baby it too much!] so if
I'm diligent about finding a solid car to start with I should have decent odds of
not buying a headache. I know "cars will be cars" but that's true no matter what
I drive.

Many thanks,

Everett

 

Everett,
I bought my 87 last February with 126K miles. It had an engine rebuild done at 110K miles. I test drove it, scheduled a PPI and got the list of things it needed (about $700 in work). Initially before bringing the car home it went straight to the mechanic and I spent $700 on oil change, spark plugs, valve and idle adjustment, valve gaskets, oil line replacement and some other stuff. A few months later I spent $1300 chasing an oil leak and replacing a window regulator. I had a second oil change done ($100) mainly because I wanted the Porsche mechanic in Colorado Springs to take alook at it and see if he could figure out the oil leak. I can live with the amount is leaking but it bugs me that the leak is in top of the heat exchanger and therefore it smokes when the oil hits the hot exchanger. Otherwise I would have only maybe a grand on the first year.

So in summary $2100 in one year.

 

That muffler is not stock.

There looks like a multi-CD changer in the front trunk, and non-stock speakers.

And something else jumped out at me. The fan shroud does not look stock. In fact, it looks like it came out of a 930 turbo with a CIS ignition. Look at the mounting bung for the coil. I somehow doubt the mileage claim. Sorry to be the skeptic.

 

Ad says the mileage is 72xxx, but the speedo says 69,298. Why the approximately 3K difference?

 

You may want to run a carfax to find out discrepancies with the mileage. Not that Carfax is always accurate but it the best you can do.