patrick-87-944

I have a '87 944 and I know what to look for if I were to get another late 944, but I have found a potential great deal on an '83 944 (project car) . What should I look for when inspecting the car? The car has been sitting for some time according to the owner and I am not counting on it starting or driving, but would like you pre-'85.5 fans to give me a quick list of stuff to look at/for.

Chris_924s

Check the battery box for rust. check for rust along the rockers and fenders- BRING a magnet.

Water in the rear seat floor. Most of the rest you should know. Door switches are an easy rebuild. Console bulbs are a PITA to get to.

Tony K

^^^ What he said. If you know later 944s well, there is a lot less to worry about with an 83. Yeah, those VW Rabbit A-arms will really put a dent in your wallet!

Seriously:

Here is the one biggest and most useful piece of advice I can offer: Look inside the left front wheelwell toward the front to see if that "Vermont-shaped" plastic splashguard with the rubber seal around it is still there. That's the best telltale as to whether the front of the car was ever hit; it never gets replaced.

ALSO: the condition of or presence/absence of the vented metal splashguard underneath is a good indicator of what kind of a life the car has had.

The presence/condition of the rubber seal on either side of the windshield trim is another, lesser "what kind of life has this car had" indicator..

A working power antenna is about as common as an uncracked dash.

Broken heater controls are common. About $40 for a new unit, and maybe want to replace the cables too. The trick to the new unit not breaking is careful routing/placement of the heater valve cable through the engine compartment.

All in all, the 83 is without a lot of the complicated and expensive things that tend to break on the later cars. It was with great pain that I sold my 83 about a year and a half ago.

Cheers,

patrick-87-944

What should the price range be for a non-starting car be? Assuming the car looks good, and all the parts are there and in place.

SoCal Driver

I can find non running 944's for $500 all day. Last one I bought was an 86 auto that had an engine fire. The engine is in great shape. The C3 wheels were worth more than the sales price.

StupEd05

There is no set rule for that. That is something you have to figure out yourself. If it doesnt run cause there is no engine in it, I wouldnt go above 1.5k if the rest is really good. In fact no matter what I wouldnt go above 2k, that is assuming the rest is immaculate.

Uranium-235

Are all of the parts there? Manual rack? Limited slip? If you can get the motor to turn over, may want to do a compression check - I wish I had on my latest '83, could have found a dead cylinder before buying. Any chance of records?

patrick-87-944

I know very little about the car. I did a drive by on the car after work, it was in the yard and i did not get real close so I left a card. The owner called back and I am going to go over the car at 6pm today.

Granite 944

A couple of other things to look for in the earlies IMO.

1: Cracked/broken seat anchor points in the pan. How tore up is the floor pan? Look underneath the car the best you can. Take a big mirror and flashlight.

2: Know what fuses are to go where in the fuse boxes and look and see if they are correct amperage where they belong. Look for hot/fried wiring, vampire connectors in and around the fuse/relay box.

3: Look for cracking on the top rear of doors, just below closed window, for slight cracking, indicating a broken rear window guide. Which may have also place a lot of amperage stress on wiring.

Just a couple of my thoughts. It all depends alot on whether its going to be a runner, or a parts car too. Good luck

patrick-87-944

I looked at the car and it's condition is not that bad...but the price was right - I paid $250 for the car - ($50 for the tow to the house). The maint. records are good for the first 54200 miles (8-30-87) the OD showes 98523. The paperwork from PO is all dated 5/2000, but he says it has 'only been parked a year or so'. I will try to get pics up.
Here is the bad stuff that $250 got me
Gold exterior (hood, valence and sunroof are bad)
Drivers door handle is gone, pasangers is not working
15" cookie cutters (need cleaned or painted)
Right turn signal is broken
Both fog lights are cracked
Front glass is cracked
Valence is bent (minor)
Red plastic 'PORSCHE' is in the backseat
Rear bumper is about 1/4" out of line
Motor may/does have problems PO parked the car thinking it was an oil pump
Brown/maroon interior
Hard wired bag cell phone
Rips in driver seat and back seat

Now for the options
1. Part it out (any one interested)
2. Sell it to someone to part out
3. Fix it and sell it
4. Fix it and keep it

Mike C.

Well that sounds quite good for $250. If the motor is not damaged, and only needs a head gasket or something like that, it might be worth it to get it running. If at that point it seems to run O.K., you can probably get at least 3 times what you paid for it (assuming the body damage isn't too extensive). If the motor has serious issues, part it.

SoCal Driver

83 chassis are getting difficult to come by. Take a little time and see what's wrong with the engine. I would replace the timing and balance belts before trying to crank it. Cheap insurance. Then if the PO thinks it's the oil pump the mains or a rod bearing could have spun.

buzzsaw

Ditto SoCal's recommendation. Crashed valves permanently retired my '83 to the driveway (I kept telling myself I'd pull the head and fix it until I sold it for pennies).

Also, be careful with the fabric that wraps the rubber seal for the sunroof when you buff the roof paint. I learned why the hard way.

Enjoy!

Granite 944

Again, I agree with SoCal. Look it over, check it out, TRY to save it whole. If the PO thinks its an oil pump problem............Ha!.......its probably a sticky OPRV, or loose crankbolt! NEVER trust what a PO tells ya! From what your saying regarding the condition of it, the car sounds like it might have at least 198,523 miles on it. THAT doesn't mean its not worth saving. Belts! #1 concern for sure.
I just picked up a car that cheap myself. Its worth saving, but not without some effort. Not very many of these cars are not worthy of saving for more driving pleasure, Contrary to some thoughts. Look it over good. Try to exercise your #3 or #4 option first, then go from there. Bottom line of course, is, its your decision to make. But, you asked. Good luck!

Luis de Prat

The 83 cars have that metal exterior windshield frame, that makes them look like little airplanes from the front.

Holds all the washer fluid in so you can wipe your windows clean with your windows rolled down and not get wet.