murphyjp

I'm looking at an 82 SC just listed yesterday with lots of interest already. It's not likely to last very long. It has 128k miles with service history back to 92. Owner is at least the 3rd but more likely the 5th. Current owner, age 62, bought it 4 years ago because he always wanted on and only put 1k miles on it. The owner prior to him had it for 10 years.

The Good. Clutch replaced at 95k miles. Transmission rebuilt at 122k miles. Engine valve job at 95k miles. Dash is leather with no cracks. Does have tools.

The bad/unknown. I'm assuming broken head studs would have been found during valve job, yes? AC does not work. Small dime size rust/bubble in paint on drivers door. Owner does not think paint is original, but says it looks good besides normal stone chips. Seats have normal wear, and one has a very small tear.

It seems all the major items have been addressed fairly recently on this car which is a big plus. Any thoughts on the head studs? Can I assume this would have been found during valve job? I know SC's are very popular, and I've been mainly looking at 84-88 Carrera's, but is there a big difference in drivability or power between Carrera's and SC's? Have I missed anything? PPI for sure.
Asking $9500.

Peter Zimmermann

Review the invoice for the "valve job." The parts list will answer some of your concerns, and should show "12 Dilavar studs @ $xxx.xx". Same for the transmission, many "rebuilds" aren't rebuilds at all, some are even exchanges where you really don't know what you're getting.

murphyjp

Thanks Peter. I'll have to get the owner to maybe scan the receipts so I can have a look at the parts used. I'm guessing this car will be sold before I can get through the details, but we'll try.

Here's the few snaps I've got of the car. Hoping for more.

bxtech

Valve job done at 95K miles? Not many miles on that engine altogether.......valve job needed at that mileage? When was the valve job done? If recently, the new recommended head studs are the Raceware studs and not the Dilavar anymore. If done in the past, probably Dilavar was used since that was the recommendation back then.

On another thought.........maybe all the head studs were fine at the time of the valve job, and they were left alone? They might have been in good shape with such low mileage on the car.

Yes, I would scan the receipts closely and see what you can find. Otherwise, sounds nice and looks nice in the pics! Good luck. Let us know if you end up purchasing it!

bxtech

On another thought............maybe you can inquire on why the trans was rebuilt as well at 122K miles? 128K miles on a 911SC is pretty low and I'm surprised that it has needed some major mechanical work at this point. Something fishy about the mileage?? Sounds like the service history is there to verify though.

murphyjp

All of the engine, tranny, clutch work was performed under the previous owners watch. I've contacted a shop in the owners area about PPI, and they said they would be happy to look through the receipts and report how intensive the work was. They are familiar with the shop that performed the work and said they are ok. I suppose they don't want to talk up the competition too much.

I did not think it was necessarily uncommon for these to have such work done around 100k miles. My understanding is some early and some later. All depends, no?

I think I need to make an offer pending PPI or lose this one. If not gone already, it will be by end of day tomorrow.

bxtech

Actually having major work done like this to an SC at 100K is fairly uncommon. Some of these SC's have been known to have 300K+ miles on them without needing any major work. I talked to one guy that actually had over 400K on his and was still going strong. The 911SC's have been known to be one of the most reliable Porsches ever built! 100K miles is considered low mileage and to many, it is just being broken in at that point!

I agree though...........you need to make a move on this car fairly quickly. If it's as nice as it sounds, it definitely will be sold soon!

murphyjp

The car is now sold. Will keep on looking.

bxtech

Sorry to hear that. There are plenty out there and surely a good one will come along!

Not sure if you want to deal with a long distance purchase, but this one sounds decent. I have no affiliation.....

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/nby/cto/1634197646.html

1982 Porsche 911 Carrera Targa - $8000 (tiburon / belvedere)
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Clean 1982 Porsche Carrera in brown/brown. All service done and just smogged. Car runs fantastic and babied its whole life. Of course its getting old so a few cracks in the dash board, a small rip in the drivers seat and a bit of fading on the roll bar. Paint is amazingly good and tires are 80%. Always maintained and serviced at the dealer. Make us an offer, asking $8000. We just bought a new car. This has been my wifes car for 12+ years. Not abused or driven hard ever.

bxtech

Pics.......

murphyjp

I called about that one on Wednesday. It sold in a day. First guy that called offered cash site unseen over the phone. These do go quick. I've been the bridesmaid 4 or 5 times now. I'll keep plugging away and when it's meant to be it will happen. Thanks.

Baby

Murph, good luck with your quest! My experience with the car the Tiburon car that sold in a day was interesting and frustrating. I was second in line for that one. The woman who owned it (who said she has driven P-cars for 36 years) told me she was showing it to a guy (the eventual buyer) first because he said he had lived in Stinson Beach at one time (where she had lived and for which she fostered fond memories of driving the car up and down the coast) and knew of her son. She wanted the car to go to a good home, so he got first nod. She called me after meeting the guy, as she promised she would to tell me the car was sold. She was a bit upset. Apparently, after the paperwork was signed, he told her he had "a warehouse full of 911s" he was buying, refurbishing and selling" and would not, as she had thought, restore the car and drive it. She reiterated that she had so wanted the car to go to a good home and now it was going who knows where. Man, I felt bad for her. Anyway, you may see this car for sale again on craigslist in the Bay area or Sacramento.

murphyjp

I talked with the lady for 15 minutes or so, and she indicated the guy was going to restore the car. This must have been before she got the real story. Nice lady. Kind of a shady thing for the guy to do. I really dislike people who misrepresent their intentions. I'm sure that car will be back up for sale at a premium price.

bxtech

murphyjp........another 911SC for sale that sounds nice! I PM'd you the info.

bxtech

It's always nice to want your car to go to a "good home". However, when a new owner takes possession of the car.......it's theirs to do whatever they want to do with it. They can cut it up into pieces or burn it if they choose to do so. A bit of a shame, but they DO own it! Unfortunately, it's not like an adoption situation or a daycare center, in which someone can check people's backgrounds and do follow up visits to make sure everything is going as intended. Just my $.02.....