I've found a 78 for a phenomenal price, and appears to be well taken care of although is has spent a fair bit of time stored. I supposed my hangup is I've been mostly looking at the 84-88 years, and not sure what to think about the storage time.

In a nutshell, it's a 2 owner car with 130k miles. 2nd owner has had it about 4 years, and has not driven it much. He bought it from the original owners family (who are friends) after the original owner died. The engine was rebuilt and resealed before spending a few years in storage/ little use. Current owner had the car repainted properly, bumpers off, glass out, etc...

As always, there is some work that needs to be done, and some concerns. The owner tells me the seats will need recovering, the carpets replaced, the dash has cracks around the vents, and the passenger power window is not functioning after coming out of storage.

Should I be concerned about being stored for a few years, and or very little use. The fact the engine was rebuilt and resealed would seem to be nullified by the following storage period. What should I think about having done after lengthy storage? Any other pitfalls I should look for?

Overall it seems to be what I'm looking for. Not a queen, and not a complete shambles. A few projects need doing which would not be too challenging, but still allow me to cut my teeth on.

 

Why do you use the terms rebuilt and resealed. If it truly was rebuilt, then the resealing is part of the deal. Is the owner using the term resealed? If so, was it really rebuilt? Or, were some items taken apart and put back together.

Interior refurbishing is very expensive. Covering two seat, carpet and doing something on a dash could run to $4000 if done right.

What do you consider phenominal price?

 

I think the owner was trying to be thorough when describing the rebuild. The phrasing was...."engine out rebuild and reseal". Reading the description as a layperson, which I am and many prospective buyers are, would express to me the job was done properly.

The price is about double your interior refurb estimate.

 

....guess a full/complete review by (aircool knowlegeable) pro shop will be the surest way to get the answers you are looking (....p.p.i. will be your greatest friend).
pitfalls? do you want short list or long.....really only way is to have it thoroughly gone over mechanically....& having a looksee for Mr. Rust.

anyway only recommendation i have is have a pro give it a full bore once over.

IMO....you should stick with your original plan - mid to late model 80's edition, best you can afford, from a caring/knowledgeable owner.

Excellence (magazine) latest edition is on the shelves now....& while not a bible its pretty decent with a decent amt. of assembled knowledge.
The porsche series under review in this edition is exactly the "era" you are considering....so before you buy start by buying the mag. & have a read.

1 last comment, seems from your comment this may be the 1st p-car you have seen....that being the case i generally would say pass - lots around.

ck the for sale here, pelican, craigslook.....see where your buy stacks up.

good luck

 

You need to be most concerned about its current condition. "Rebuild" means many different things to many different people. The proof is in the receipts. Without the documentation listing every part that went into the engine and every hour of labor spent on it, you just don't know what you've got. A quality repaint is a nice bonus for sure. I suppose you need to ask yourself again why you were looking only at Carrera years and evaluate if it is still that important to you. Mine's a 78, and I'm pretty happy with it.

Brett

 

Thanks for your input guys. PPI without a doubt. I'll have to ask if there is any supporting documents for the rebuild. Car is not local. I told myself to stop looking at cars that I can't go see, but it is difficult. Not too many come up for sale in my area. Truly I know I would want to see the car before buying. Need to be more disciplined. I've actually seen and driven a handful locally and all Carreras. Only one was the right car, but could not come to an agreement with the owner.

 

For the record, I'd not necessarily consider $8k a phenominal price. If the rest of the car checks out, it may be on the money.