I have been looking to purchase a 930. Having owned several porsches in the past ( including air cooled and water cooled models), I have never owned a 930 turbo. The anticipation is exciting, but I have heard mixed opinions on maintenance.
I have located a few cars, but any suggestions of what to look out for to avoid costly repairs down the road?
I know PPI should be done, but do they require more meticulous and higher maintenance cost?

Thanks

 

There are two varieties of 930 owners: those who have gone through an engine rebuild, and those who have not...yet.

Unsurprisingly, the owners who have shouldered the cost of an engine rebuild will tell you that 930s are expensive to maintain and those who have not will say a 930 is not really more costly to maintain than its naturally aspirated 911 sibling.

Yes I'm being a bit cheeky in my comments above, but IMHO the simple fact is that the 930 engine will generally speaking not run for as long as a 911 before it needs expensive attention. If you never get into boost, then I would take that statement back, but otherwise I stand by it resolutely. If you truly never get into boost, I would question why you want a 930 in the first place.

A PPI with compression and leakdown test is naturally your best insurance, but by no means a guarantee that you will not have expensive issues during your stewardship of the car.

Once you've acquired a well cared for example, I would argue that a bit more diligence is required with a 930 vs. a 911 to be sure it doesn't grenade on you. Ignition timing is critical, good AFRs are critical, a properly functioning wastegate is critical.

 

Well said....

 

The longevity of these motors depends on how quickly somone removed the thermal reactors, those destroyed motors fairly quickly. If you drive the **** out these with the boost cranked up you can also wear a motor out pretty quick. If you buy a well cared for example it most likely survived all of this and you should have a car that can be driven for years with out any substantial problems but you never know for sure.
Phil

 

Great information there.... Appreciate the response. I am still hunting down for a well cared for 930!

 

The present owner is a major part of buying a 930 because he/she is the one that did or didn't do what was necessary. I used to live in Miami and was a boat person. I loved all boats and bought and sold many over the years. But I learned that there were some owners that you never bought a boat from. The worst group were doctors. They loved their boats but never spent any time or money to keep them up. They would use the hell out of them for a year or two and then sell them at a big discount because everything on them had to be rebuilt. Car owners are the same way. Study the owner closely and see if they are knowledgeable about every part of their car or only how cool it is and how fast it drives. They will not have a clue about air/fuel ratio and on these cars that is life or death. Ask them how they shift their cars and why and when. Ask them the fluids they put into them. Ask them about any mods or upgrades they have done or had done. Ask them how they use the car and how many miles they put on it at one time. In other words find out if they go to dinner once a week in it or if they slip away and find a back road and run the **** out of it. These things will tell you more than a PPI in the long run but not in the short run. Good luck!

 

with the exception of a blown crank sensor which is a minor repair my 930 has been flawless, of course the previous owner spend lots of $ rebulidng the motor and abouyt everything else on the car. i couldn't be happier but i did pay top dollar for it.

 

Man, don't tell me that. By your criteria I fall into the latter group.

 

Do not let any of these engine rebuild words scare you off. That's just another aspect of their appeal and is why I purchased one. These forums will help much to narrow things down and if you use them wisely, you may find one with much work already done to it and save yourself a bundle - it's really a slippery slope all over the place, no matter how you approach the 930 - but that is life, is it not?

 

My brother bought a 79 930 in the late 1990's. It was in the family until late last year. We put about 30kmi during that time with only routine oil changes, plugs,wires, cap &rotor. 1 clutch, 1 valve adjustment. It had k27 turbo, full B&B exhaust, B&B intercooler, and 1 bar boost spring. IT NEVER, NEVER FAILED TO START AND PERFORM 100% EVERYDAY IT WAS ASKED TO!

I doubt any Toyota or Honda could have had the reliability of that car!

 

Having owned my car for over 25 years I'm probably not a typical owner. I've had 3 rebuilds but everyone was an upgrade on the previous one. I've taken it to the limit for a cis car. In all those years only 1 time was I on the side of the road. CDI unit went out after some extensive work on the stereo system. At least that is what I blamed it on. Other than that typical stay ahead of the curve.

I used to have adjustable boost. Not wise. Now have a .8 spring in there and don't worry about a thing. Shift at 6.5 and good to go. And yes your rear tires may last 5k if you are lucky.

 

Thanks everyone for great input. I put a deposit for a 86 911 turbo coupe.
The car appears to have a clean history, but I will get a PPI before final commitment.
I am excited....

 

Do get the PPI but don't let the dealer choose the mechanic. I bought an 86 from a California dealer (I live in RI). They had the PPI done for me. Car had 13,250 miles on it when I bought it. Last week odometer read 13,774 miles and I had to write a check for $2,930 to replace the primary and secondary fuel pumps and electical module. Next week it goes in for a new clutch. The car showed up with a nonfunctioning radio and no speakers and they assured me the radio was perfect. You have to be vigilant with dealers.

Bottom line, enjoy the car. I still love mine, but do be careful because PPI's don't always save you some big expensive headaches.

 

Pictures and a copy of the ppi printed here could save someone (maybe a member)a lot of money.

 

I guess my point would be that even a properly performed PPI can't always detect impending problems that would require removing engine components to test individually and you know that's not going to happen. Time (25 + years) also reaps its toll not just wear and tear under normal use.