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I suppose I could pass on my impression that low mileage on these cars (under 100,000) isn't really all that important unless it's a collectible, and then you're probably looking for under 20,000 to see a real price difference. The engines, if treated well and maintained, should be good for 200,000.
35 years will do it's work without putting mileage on the car though, so pay careful attention to the maintenance of all the seals and rubber parts. The electrical connectors throughout the car will become brittle and disintegrate in your hands while you carefully try to remove them. Same is true with harness casings and wire insulation. There isn't much you can do about it and it has little to do with mileage.
For my part, I think the price may be a little high for a 2.5L NA, maybe $500, not more. A lot depends on a careful inspection. The interior quality looks good to very good, it doesn't seem to have sport seats, but the standard seats look nice. I have an '89 with 68K on it from Florida where the sun does shine and it has no dash cracks, so that's a little odd. I agree on the red wire, it suggests there's a fuse blown somewhere (check the cigar lighter, fuse #11 on my car) so you may want to look into that.
I'd say you're in the right ballpark and that, if I were interested in the color, I'd make the drive.
PS: The most expensive Porsche you can buy is the cheapest one you can find.
Last edited by Otto Mechanic; 01-20-2019 at 07:14 PM.
By your photos and description, this is the last of the Series 1 944s. It will show 'Pilot Car' within it's code of options on your white build code tag, simply because all '85.1 cars are..... sharing some changeovers to the Series 2 model.
Your car has the '85.2 washer squirters on the hood, so you will also have other features not shared with the other series. Make sure you give your serial to your parts supplier when ordering or picking up parts, because they need to know to give you the right parts. Differences are varied and noted as such in parts numbers. It might be wise to also know your build date for it as well, located in front of the driver on the black tag on the cowl underhood.
Nice looking car and appears to wear it's original finish and interior, thus making it a 'survivor' from someone who must have cared. This goes a very long way in quelling some of my fears. I am not a real 'color brown guy' ( or green ), but this is a very pretty car presenting itself well 35 years on. I AM curious about the different look to the rockers and the front of the rear wheel arches, so would inspect these quite closely. A very unusual look here, but it may be someone just sprayed these with a type of flexible spray-on rubberized finish and replaced the clear vinyl guards.
I would make sure the owner gives you all the books, receipts, air compressor, tool bag, spare, and sunroof top bag which should all be in the back or carried in the glovebox ( books ). This stuff completes the car and is sometimes hard to procure and expensive, time consuming to obtain. Also see if the original Blaupunkt stereo is still around and can go with the car. Finding one of these has become VERY expensive and difficult. Original stuff matters more each day .....
Best wishes with your new choice. I hope it serves you well and brings great joy of ownership your way.
I just want to thank all for their insight. Really a delight to have received such constructive feedback from folks I don't know. Says a lot about the community.
Currently arranging a trip up to visit and inspect and I will be bringing a good list of all these suggestions to look over closely.
Thanks again to all. I will keep you posted on progress.
My son bought this one a little over a year ago. Same year, color and really close on miles. After fixing a few items we ended up between $6 and 7K. He has put over 20K miles on it already.
something that has not been mentioned yet is check the date code on the tires , if it is a garage queen they are likely very old and will need to be replaced if you plan to drive it much .
I personally don't think the mods done take much away from the value , these are not super collectable cars yet , and they can be reversed . if you don't like them .
There is a 968 in one of the pics , so that may indicate the owner knows these cars well and has maintained it , but that is just a guess .
ask the owner what else comes with the car , I have had my 88 for 2 years now and have amassed a shocking amount of spare parts , ask if he is including spares
even old parts that were taken off can be of use , front struts can be rebuilt , same with break calipers starters ect . dont pass on any parts even if they are parts that were replaced . ask if he has the original stereo . check the glove box for a spare DME relay if there is not one there ask the owner if he has one .
If the guy is a Porsche guy he will understand why you want them , and the questions should not bug him . If you were buying a Honda civic and asked for old parts ppl would think you were nuts but with these cars it is a legit question .
He is asking top dollar for this car and should be prepared to throw in any extras he has in his shop .
also as mentioned check the paint code and see if that is the original paint . it is a horrible colour in my opinion but if you can live with it why not .
You can easely save waterpumps? Crap. Years ago, threw that out too
I found out later they're re-buildable and the castings are starting to get hard to come by. The more recent ones from Laso are much better, they use plastic impellers that can't dig into the aluminum blocks on a 928, but as I understand, the older pumps with metal impellers can be retrofitted. I think I learned that from Roger Tyson at 928srUs. Felt like a complete fool.
01-20-2019, 05:57 PM
