Maybe looking at an "S" tomorrow (for my brother). I'm not as familiar with the 944 S as I am with other models.

What should I look for with an S? What are some differences between the S and normal 944, so I can go into the discussion educated?

Any quick links people have regarding the "S" I can read through?

Thanks fellas,
Matt

PS
Whoever caught the eBay scam first, and to all those who emailed the bidders/seller/eBay - WE DONE GOOD. Saved those fools from losing their pants. Good job Rennlisters.

 

same as any other NA 944 really.. in terms of things to look for, i mean, it does have that timing chain.. but you cant really look at it without taking off the head... soo..... just look for all the typical 944 goodies and remember.. its 16valve.. and has the turbo gearbox... and a really awesome car yep thats about it.. really i dont think theres much extra you can look for... have fun. <img src="graemlins/a_smil17.gif" border="0" alt="[blabla]" />

 

If car has ~90k on the clock, expect to do the cam chain and tensioner.

 

[quote] that timing chain.. <hr></blockquote>

Timing BELT, right? Not chain?

-Matt

 

It has a timing belt that runs from the crank to a cam, and a chain that runs from one cam to the other to drive it. Or so I believe. Never saw one in the flesh.

I hear it is a pain to replace the chain that runs cam-to-cam because there's lots of other goodies that must be replaced too... tensioners and whatnot. Again, no personal experience, just hearsay.

~cheers~

Thaddeus

 

The maintenance issue with a 944S is the chain which connects the 2 cams. To change the chain requires removal of the cams. To change the gears which run the chain requires replacing the cams. The most frequent issue is the tensioner for the chain. There is a nylon guide which can get brittle and crack with age. A replacement for the top guide is $25 = about $200 to hire the labor. To replace the whole tensioner is about $250 plus $200 labor. Both jobs are do it yourself possible. Failure of tensioner can destroy the head. Heads are rare/expensive. This is reason to be careful about the timing/balance shaft belts too. If they go there are twice as many valves to bend.

Otherwise the 944S is like the regular 944. Some have ABS and/or airbags. The major difference is that the S is more powerful when you can use the 4000-7000 rpm band (track). It is a lot smoother motor at those rpm too.

I love my S!

 

Look for the nearest exit and run as fast as you can.

My reccomendation is to stay as far away from the S as you can.

The performance advantage over the 8-valve is almost nil. In other words the only cars who will be seeing your bumper are base model hyundais.

Like I've said numerous times here and on pelican:

If you want reliability get an 8-valve.

If you want to go fast get a turbo.

If you want to go fast reliabily get a new car.

 

oh yea. and tell your brother to ignore the naysayers 944S's rock ***.

what if you want reliability and speed? get a 944S!

jees.. we knew they were comin' huh? <img src="graemlins/nono.gif" border="0" alt="[nono]" />

<img src="graemlins/wave.gif" border="0" alt="[byebye]" />

 

[quote]Originally posted by aka 951:
<strong>The performance advantage over the 8-valve is almost nil.</strong><hr></blockquote>

So Porsche spent all the time and money to produce a new model that was no faster than the base one then? I doubt it really.

I think it depends how you drive. If you never rev it above 4k an S will feel no different, but when the additional 40 horses come in above this you can definitely feel them. There is an old R&T article from when the S was launched which is worth a read.

The chain, tensioner and cams were replaced on mine at 97k before I bought it. I've had no more problems in my 2.5 years and 25k miles of ownership than most 8v owners on this list, and a lot less than some.

Keep up to the maintenance and the car will be fine. I love mine (but not in that way).

Cheers,

 

Last June my brother purchased a 87 944S... He has had absolutly NOTHING go wrong with his car this past year. I on the other hand purchased a turbo in septemper and have had my share of problems(headgasket, slave cylinder, fuel pressure regulator, turbo oil leak, fuel line leak)JUST IN CASE...I AM STILL GLAD I GOT A TURBO . The way I see it the 944S is a very very reliable car, there are fewer of them and in the future it will likely aquire more value than the 8valve cars.

 

I have an S2 my brother has an NA. except for the motor they are the same for what you are doing so far. i like everyday driving his na over my S2 since you can only go as fast as the minivan in front of you the extra power doesnt make much difference.

the cam chain tensioner can be dangerous, but no one has documented a blown head from the tensioner giving out. i posted on the 928 board asking about the tensioner for more info some months back. Seems for 928 owners it is a non issue and the part is changed only when inside the motor.

drive the car and report back to us what your impression is of the differences.

 

The performance of the car has little to do with the engine or the horsepower. I have a 88 944S and I am very happy with it. You will not see the performance on the low end, but the high end is where it is at anyway. The performance of the car is more closely linked to the driver and his/her skills than anything else.

For example, my uncle and I were at Mid-Ohio over the weekend for their DE. My uncle drive a 73 914 1.7, the car has 74 HP. I was driving my car for the first time on track, it has roughly 205 HP after modifications. He has been driving for 7 years, me for about 6 months. I was turning 1:58s, and he was turning 2:02s! And the only thing that passed me in my group was a 2001 Twin Turbo and a 2002 Boxster S.

He can squeeze every bit of performance out of an under-powered car, and make it a kick *** ride to boot. For anybody that knows Mid-Ohio, he can run from the end of the Carousel to the start of the Key Hole with no brake and no lift. It makes for one hell of a ride.

In short, don't steer away from the S models. They show their stuff when you push them to the limit. They are reliable, and easy to work with. Go and have your own experience with one and you'll see what I mean.

 

The Cam Chain in the S is not really an issue, it's the Tensioner itself. The entire Tensior can be changed by a backyard wrench. Most of the time it's not even the Tensioner, it's those lil' nylon pads that the chain runs on. To inspect the pads, just remove the cam cover and look at them for wear and brittleness.

As mentioned before, the S has Turbo gearbox, so the problems with the N/A gearbox are lessened in the S, so the Tensioner is sort-of a trade off for having a better gearbox I guess.

As for performance - I have driven both the N/A and own an S. In the lower revs - no difference, but once you hit 4000 RPM, the S has a noticable extra kick in all gears.

Don't forget the exclusiveness of the S and it's (perhaps in the future) higher re-sale over the N/A.

It all comes down to price. If the S is considerably higher than a N/A, then go with a N/A, but if the price is a wee bit more - take the S - the extra kick is worth a few more bucks.

944S Boyeee

 

[quote]Originally posted by 944S Boyeee:
<strong>As mentioned before, the S has Turbo gearbox, so the problems with the N/A gearbox are lessened in the S, so the Tensioner is sort-of a trade off for having a better gearbox I guess.
944S Boyeee</strong><hr></blockquote>
Not sure what 'gearbox' you speak of, but regarding the clutch: the 944S and 944S2 do not have the 944 Turbo's spring centered clutch. ALL 944 non-turbos have the rubber-centered clutch hub.

I believe the gear ratios are different in these cars (8v na vs. 944S, vs. 944S2, vs. 951s).

-Z-man.

 

IMO the 'S' is a much better car than any 8v N/A up to 88. I own two 8v N/A and an 'S' and can honestly say the is a major difference in performance in the top end.You can chip it to to add more low end but I think you trade off some top end if you do.

My 8v's are quicker but could never outrun my 'S',after I hit 80mph I'm gone.The thing is I drive my cars hard like I stole it from the chief of police with his 17 yr. old daughter in the other seat.

The only drawback is you NEED to make sure you maintain the t-belt cause replacing 16v's compared to 8 would really suck. All in all I think if its a good price you should go for it.

Good Luck