NelaK

I saw an interesting 924 come up for sale and was considering going to check it out.

https://www.kijiji.ca/v-classic-cars...24s/1296360467

Couple red flags right off the bat:
- Only 10,000 miles
- 'Rebuilt' status - I've spoken to the owner and apparently the car was t-boned and repaired at some point.

The question is - do I run towards or away from this car? And what is the going price on a 924S nowadays?

morghen

In europe they are quite apreciated and going up pricewise.
It all comes down to how good of a car it is and how many miles it has done, how original has it been kept...stuff like that.

jvandyke

The low miles may be because the odometer gear broke many years and 10s of thousands of miles ago, or it was broken for a long time, then fixed.
It looks like a nice one though. It's probably worth around that if it's as nice as it looks WITHOUT the salvage, with that in mind probably drops it into the 5K range, IMHO, if it checks out decent. Service history is good to know, belts and rollers coming out of the gate ain't cheap, it'll need that at the least most likely.

elgy

The odometer is only 5 figures so I would suggest that it is at least 110,000 miles. The general condition should give some idea what it really is. I paid $3000 CDN for mine 6 years ago, it is in good original condition well taken care of with some maintenance to do. I find $7000 a lot, although it does look nice. Not the original radio obviously. Has the clutch been changed? If you buy it and are unsure of when the timing belt was changed... put in a new one right away.

curtisr

In Ontario a Used Car Seller's package is required whenever a car such as the one you're looking at is sold. Surprisingly, the seller doesn't have to be the one to plunk down the $20 for it but rest assured the gov't will get its cash from who ever agrees to pay for it. You can also get the VIN number and have this run for you. If AB doesn't offer this, might I suggest getting a Carfax or Carproof? It sounds like the car was written off, rebadged possibly and the odometer was reset as a result.

Is there somewhere you can take it for an inspection?

As for the price, that looks more like 944 money. The $9000 initial asking price anyways. I'd offer $5000 and take it from there. $5900 max. Looks nice though.

morghen

No offence but why so much skepticism on the mileage?
And that IS a 944 only a bit more elegant...the only reason they call it a 924 is that it has narrow fenders, everything else is damn identical to the 944.

curtisr

Couldn't agree more. Every time I go look at a 944 I find my preference for the 924 reinforced.

MAGK944

Because the question hasn’t been answered as to why such a low mileage car has a salvage title.

While it has the later 944 engine and mechanicals, it has the less desirable 924 body, interior and ancillaries. Even an 87 944 with a clean title, in good condition and with average mileage struggles to get what is being asked for that 924S.

elgy

I agree the with your assessment that it is an elegant 944, I have one and appreciate it. The problem is that the odometer gears normally break sooner or later, plus at 99,999 miles or kilometers it suddenly becomes a brand new 0 Km car. My odometer wasn't working when I bought the car, it read 17,000 Km (should have read 117,000) but the (honest) seller figured it was really about 170,000 Km based on the quantity of gas he had put in it.

The mileage might be correct, in that case the interior should be like new, mechanicals super clean etc.

morghen

Well, you see...2.5L 924s are rare compared to the 944s...and the "less desirable" thing is kind of a thing of the past as we grow up and old and our tastes mature we tend to like more elegancy and less aggressive stances..and the 924 is spot on for a mature taste..just like a narrow body 911...its an acquired and matured taste.
So I am not shocked to see a 924S sell for more than a more common 944. After all, the most produced were 944s.

Fair point with the salvage title and mileage, I didn't see it...perhaps the seller could answer the question

MAGK944

I like the narrow body 924, it’s just not as popular as the 944. I think the reason is the 924S has its roots firmly in the 70’s whereas the 944 is an all 80’s styled car. Nothing good came from the 70’s, everybody wants cars made in the 80’s and the 944 is absolutely one of the top 3 cars from that era. The interior let’s the 924S down also, seat position, air circulation, etc. Also the ancillaries like fuse box, fans, heater are all inferior compared to the same year 944. They are rarer because they couldn’t sell as many as the 944, for obvious reasons. Btw, I’m 57 and I bought my first 944 new in 1986

morghen

70s had great cars, i think you may be just looking at usa cars..which were bad for more time i guess.
I heard about the driving position and to be honest i think its nonsense..nothing changed from the first 924 to the last 968 in terms of driving position...what are you refering to? The bodies are identical..and so is the seat position and size and steering position.
Anyway, for me a popular sports car means not interesting...vw jettas are very popular i heard

NelaK

As an update - I went and checked out the car. It looks great. "Looks" being the key word here. Definitely not the 10k mile car as advertised and service history is missing.

I did a VIN check and it seems the car was nearly 100,000 miles when it was written off and that was 20 years ago. If I had to guess, the car has been driven to the moon and back (300k+).

When I asked the current owner about it, he just suggested the previous owner must have scammed him. I'm not sure how that happens.. Either way - if anyone else is looking at this car; I'd suggest avoiding it.

morghen

No affiliation to the seller obviously but why avoid the car?
ok surely that price is bull**** for an unknown mileage car with a salvage title but if the car is in good condition, why does it matter if its missing some meaningless papers and has loads of miles?
if its a good car its a good car, you would not be sniffing at an original gtr for being driven hard to the moon and back would you?

Noahs944

Advice? don't buy it.