NickBW

well, I was walking my poor but home from work today and looked down some street and saw a silver(ish) porsche 944(base model i believe) for sale for $1,500.
The passanger window is gone. The seats have a good fair bit of wear to them, the bottoms are ripped up preaty bad, but tbh that doesnt bother me at all. I may end up getting racing seats for it anyway since I hope to start up solo2'ing. The bottom side flares(not sure the correct name..) have a few bumps on them but I believe those can be hammerd or pulled out easily. tires look brand new. There is a good sized scrape on the body behind the front tires thats about the size of my fist. Other then that every thing is super clean.I didn't notice any cracks on the dash. It still had the dash carpet though... Paint looks great. I didn't see any rust.
It was hard to look threw the window becuase it was tinted and its getting kinda dark. but (if i was looking at the right thing..) it says it has like 02## miles. Im guessing 102k and they just dont read above 100k? Or was i not looking at the right thing? lol
So basicly, any advice? What things should I look for? I am aware that this car will take up a good bit of my money in maintence parts but I am kinda used to that now but I would like to know to what extent this car will.
What questions should I ask?
tbh, i am really excited about this and I just want to make sure I am not over looking anything about these cars.
Thanks

xsboost90

well, im sure in the hood they werent too worried about the belts/seals/ etc...so you might want to check under the hood to see the condition. See how it runs. They didnt come w/ dash carpet so i would guess the dash is cracked up. Remember that w/ a cheap car comes expensive repairs so be ready to do alot of maintenance not done by the current owner-but you never know.

NickBW

What kind of ballpark figure would I be looking at for basic maintenance items that I would need if the current owner wasnt keeping up with them. such as belts/seals and I heard a water pump was recommened.. *shrugs.
arg, thats such a broad question. :/
Any idea on how much a replacement window 'should' cost?
I hear the dash is hard to find/expencive.. if its cracked Ican live with it. lol

tifosiman

Let's put it this way, the things you just mentioned in the post above, if added up, would exceed the initial purchase price of the car. That's not including all of the other things that are probably worn out or neglected that you don't know about yet (clutch, trans, CV's, balljoints, shocks, any bearings, hoses, brakes, etc.). Then add the costs of getting it cosmetically up to snuff and you'll realize maybe you should have just bought a nice example to begin with.

Jakerx

if you want a long-term project car then go ahead you've found what you wanted...but if you need a reliable car that you can work on at the same time and add "goodies" and not end up hanging out to dry because of the cost i would suggest looking for one in better condition..j.ust my $0.02

Peckster

Few things are more expensive than a cheap Porsche. You might pay a mechanic 10K in your first year and still not have a reliable car. Whatever you do, pay $200 or so to have it inspected by someone who really knows these cars.

You'd probably be better off spending 5K for one in good shape.

Dave951M

Hey, if all you're looking for is a Solo2 car, then cosmetics aren't high up on the list. I would recommend that you do your own wrenching, cause nothing is more expensive than a cheap Porsche for the non-wrenches. BTW- autox stinks in an automatic.

Legoland951

In the hood, generally you can trade for some bling like gold chains or the likes of such. I think its way too high for something in that condition. If you can get it for less than 1k, even the parts are worth it so you don't need to waste your money for the PPI. Anyone who does not buy a used glass from ebay for $25 to protect the inside of their car does not give a crap about their car so take that into consideration. If someone broke my window, it would be fixed in the next hour and I don't live in the hood.

PCA 944

A few months past, I bought myself a 1986 944 NA for about 4k. My car has dash cracks, extensive body damage and well over 186km on the odometer (which is dead for now).

The love for the 944 series should let you ride out the problems you might incur if you bought the car. Just make sure when you test drive it you acclerate hard and run through the gears. Also I would advise you check to see if all the electronics work properly.

Hope you buy the car.

NickBW

Thanks guys.
(btw the hood comment was a joke :P)
I am somewhat mechanicly inclined but I have a few freinds who are very handy with a wrench and have helped me quit abit in the past. I will most likely have one of them come with me and let them test drive it.