ADias

I post mostly on the 997 forum and I am looking at an '87 944 as a possible 3rd car to replace my current grocery getter - mostly to do errands around town. I am posting here to tap on this forum members' experience.

What should I check prior to purchasing? What are the typical maintenance ills of 944s?

TIA

Reimu

You know this is usually a question that is gone over exhaustively on every automotive forum.. With 1800 posts I'm sure you knew that, search is king.

ADias

I have searched, but it does not replace current experienced short reply. Thanks for the std 'non-reply'. On the 997 forum I try to answer if i have it.

dillon410021

timing belt is a big one along with the water pump.

ADias

Thanks! What are the critical replacement intervals for those, and what are the typical costs?

Mello

On an 8V car I'd say just the timing belt and water pump are the critical things to know since they can destroy the rest of the engine if they go bad. Find out when the belt was changed and/or retensioned and who did it. Also find out if the water pump has been changed along with the timing belt since it's a while you're in there job and they're known to seize and take the timing belt out with it. The rollers/sprockets/seals should have been changed in a deluxe timing belt job too if its a high mileage car.

pontifex4

Conventional wisdom says that the service life of the drive belts is three years (in your case, likely regardless of mileage). Beware the clutch, as well, particularly in your area -- they are expensive to replace (it's a major operation in the transaxle cars) and as with a lot of 20+ year old German cars, their rubber is what tends to fail, rather than the friction material. You may find that it holds just fine, but lash is killer on one that's about to go.

Please note that this is a mixture of my experience and what I would consider a cross section of forum advice on the above -- I'm not a mechanic. They're fun, and have an incredible amount of usable space. It's been a fantasy of mine since I got my first one to take it on the PCH. Unfortunately, I'm several thousand miles and one country away.

ADias

This is the feedback I am after. Again thanks. What are the average costs for a quality timing belt (incl. rollers) and water pump?

Why do you assign 3 years to time to replace timing belt/ WP and not miles? That is not the rule on other cars I had. Is it a characteristic of the 944?

Mello mentioned an 8V engine... I interpreted as 8 valves. Doesn't the 944 inline-4 have 4v/cyl?

racer

A shop will likely charge $1200-1500 OTD. especially if you are in a major city with the likely $100/hr rates. This would include a waterpump too, not just belt and rollers.

944 motors:
2.5liter, 4cyl, 8v, normally aspirated.. 143-158hp depending on year (1983-1988)
2.7liter, 4cyl, 8v, normally aspirated.. 162hp (1989 only)
2.5liter, 4cyl, 8v, TURBO'd.. 217-247hp depending on year (944T, 951, 951S -86-89)
2.5liter, 4cyl, 16V, normally aspirated.. 188hp (944S -1987-1988)
3.0liter, 4cyl, 16V, normally aspirated.. 208hp (944S2 - 1989-1991)

The concern over the belt is, when they let go, you damage valves and pistons.. Its cheap insurance to change belts more frequently, than not to change them.

Check out "clarks-garage" for more FAQs!

ernie9468

I always did replace all belts - water pump- rollers -thermostat ect ect every 35,000 miles on mine it 's an 83 and still going strong but like Charlie mention don't matter the mileage 3 years will be maximum I,ll go with the same belts on a 944, clutch is also important since it's a time consuming job & can be expensive if your getting it done in a shop, So low miles & the newest 944 should be the one you want to look for ,since your looking at an 87 i'll try to get all the maintenance records as far back as the owner can go,than very important get a compression test ,check the expension tank for any trace of antifreeze/oil mixe & get yourselve a good mechanic that knows 944 & get him to do a PPI on it before you hand your money over don't matter what stories the owner come up with,has you migth be aware off,- cooling is very important on them you got to keep the cooling system in tip top shape, most of the problemes associated with 944 are lack of maintenance & abuses if you get a good one & take care of it you'll love it.

ChazTech

High pitched humming through oil fill, oil in coolant from oil cooler they go all the time. and everything else what they said. I ought my 951 cheap cause it had a radiator leak. I tightened a hose and no more leak.

Litespeeds

The 944S has 4 valves per cylinder. Regular 944 only has 2v/cyl. If you need a mechanic, I highly recommend Art at Auto Point Motors in Point Richmond as he works on most of the 944 Spec race cars in the S.F. Bay Area. His prices are very reasonable. Also if you get a 944 between the years of 1983-1988, you can slowly get into 944 Spec racing if you desire to go that route. www.944Spec.org

I own a 1988 944 Spec race car, 1987 944S commuter/spare parts car, 1991 944S2 but selling this one because I still own another 5 other cars. Love the 944's.

I would highly recommend bringing the 944 that you plan on buying to Art to have him do a vehicle diagnostic and tell you what's wrong with the car.

Potomac-Greg

Clarks-Garage.com has a great checklist. You also want to know whether the clutch is original or replaced. They used a rubber center (rather than springs) and any original still out there is prone to crumble. Clutch job is also expensive.

Good luck. With the big hatch, and the engine in the proper place, it's more than a grocery getter. It's a West German Pickup Truck.

John_AZ

What caught my attention was the "grocery getter & do errands".

There is no such thing as a "mint" 944 or 924S. The POs sell after putting in hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars. Usually before the BIG repair or expense. Expect to invest many additional hours and dollars.

If you add the amount of lost leisure time and money to your grocery bill and errand running, this is an expensive decision. Not good for a 3rd car.

dillon410021

30,000 to 45,000 miles for the timing and balance belts and the rollers.


http://www.paragon-products.com/Belt...p/944-l-br.htm