LiveFromNY

So I’ve spent the last few weeks planning my restoration on the 1986 951 that I recently acquired. It’s been an adventure (to say the least).

My goal is to end up with a 95% restored car. Basically, I’m evaluating every piece and, if it’s not 95% perfect, I’m replacing or reconditioning it. The car is a one-owner car with just 41k miles so I’ve got a head start in that the car is, mechanically-speaking, very sound. The one thing I’m not doing is pulling the engine. It just runs too well and from past experience I’m hesitant to pull it. I’m just concerned about creating new problems if I do. Of course, making the engine compartment look 95% new is a PITA without pulling the engine but I’m really trying not to pull it if I can avoid it.

After working out the numbers for everything I’m going to do, it looks like I’m going to end up well north of $50k all-in (even doing much of the work myself). I figure if I’m lucky, the car will be worth maybe $15k when I’m done. So, clearly, I’m an investment guru of some kind.

When I'm done I hope to end up with a car that looks and runs like a showroom-fresh, 1986 944 Turbo. I’m going to do very few modifications. Almost everything will be oem and I’m going to be a stickler for the details. The few things that I am upgrading over oem are:

Aftermarket rotors
Fabspeed exhaust
Clear sidemarkers
Rennbay headlight upgrade
Koni shocks/struts
Blaupunkt CD player (as close to period correct as possible)
Upgraded front/rear speakers

Other than these few things, everything else will be Porsche parts. I’m just painstakingly going through every part of the car and seeing what needs to be replaced.

I’ve had a bunch of messages resulting from my posts so I thought I'd give everyone a rundown of the project to date. I just started tearing the car down this weekend and I’ll be posting photos of the project as I go along. My goal (which I will clearly miss) is to have the car back on the road by July 4th.

I’ve met a lot of very cool people as I’ve begun ordering the parts for the project (my garage looks like a freaking shipping facility with dozens of boxes everywhere). The people at Paragon, Pelican, and 944online have been great.

Also...

Bob at Classic 9 Leather is the man. Finding good carpet for these cars is insane. There really isn’t a readily available carpet kit that is anywhere near what I’m looking for. Bob sent me a sample of his German Sliverknit carpet and it’s really good stuff. He does not have kits for the 944 on his site (too expensive) but he is willing to make me what I need. He’s even letting me send him the rear hatch carpet pieces and he’s going to lay new carpet over the original molded foam piece. Should be kickass and I can’t wait to get it.

Harvey at Weidman’s Wheels is another great guy and really knows his stuff. He’s refinishing my Fuchs and after talking to him on the phone I know that I’m going to be thrilled with the results.

John at Goldline Brakes is rebuilding and restoring my calipers and he seems to be a great guy. Very helpful.

The guys at TPWS here in Austin did some mechanical work for me and have certainly lived up to their reputation as real Porsche guys. They also located a brand new rear hatch for me in Germany. Mine isn’t leaking yet but I can see just a bit of separation at the top of the window so I’m replacing the entire hatch.

The little bits and pieces have been a lot of fun although much harder than I expected. I went through 3 cigarette lighter assemblies before I found one that is exactly 100% oem. The fact that my dash trim pieces are dark brown when everyone calls them black has been a nightmare. I have my 4th climate control unit on its way. Mine is perfect but the little red status light on the AC switch doesn’t light up when depressed. I’ve ordered several from eBay sellers but none seem to be perfect. I’ve even had people tell me that the buttons don’t have status lights (they are very hard to see if they are not lit). I have one last unit on its way before I bite the bullet and blow $850 on a new one. I figure that's a good example of the level of detail I'm aiming for.

The forums here have been a wealth of information. I must have over 100 threads bookmarked for future reference and I’ve already run into issues that I never would have solved without the help of my fellow Rennlisters. Hopefully, I’ll be able to contribute some knowledge as I get this project underway.

So, July 4th is the goal. 126 days. Wish me luck. Photos should start next week.

PeteL

Good luck. I am doing a way more modest restoration of my 86 n/a.

rickb20

Some nice "before" photos would give us an idea of your starting platform.

Tom R.

Looking at the stable in your signature I either call BS on that one, or agree that a 951 is as good an avenue as any to spend a trust.

Enjoy the restoration for the theraputic properties it offers - or so i am told it offers. My wife is convinced if i didnt spend my time chasing a "stupid" part etc. I would be chasing skirts. We both agree chasing & catching parts as poor an investment in time and money as it may be is cheaper than catching the skirt.

LiveFromNY

A trust! Too funny. The only "trust" I have is the trust in myself to work another 80 hours this week (and next week, and the next week).

As for the rest of your post, my chasing parts is actually taking away from my time chasing skirts. I may have to re-think this project. And if my girlfriend happens to read this - I'm only kidding, dear.

No HTwo O

^That's some funny $hit above (post #4). Both quotes.

Good luck on your project.

LiveFromNY

But of course...

whalebird

Holy smokes, thats a gorgous car. I love these cars in white. Keep us posted and pics.
I think classic9 has the underhood pads, but I don't know if they fit your OEM requirements.

Luis de Prat

Looks like an exciting project. Enjoy it!

Underhood pads are readily available from your local dealer, and quite inexpensive at around $30-$40 each.

LiveFromNY

Yep. Sitting in my garage.

whalebird

The pads can be a pain to get to adhere; removing the old glue tricky. I've seen people use a die grinder with a roloc which is hard on the paint and chemical strippers are equally as problematic. If you find an effective method let us know.

Luis de Prat

Here's how I did it:

944 Turbo Hood Insulation Replacement

HTH

whalebird

Thats how I've done it myself Prat. I have to do the 924S soon and was considering an "eraser" wheel on a grinder but don't know how it will work in the end. Any way you look at it it's a pain-literally...a lot of contortions of the back.

racer

Good luck with your project! Looks like a nice car to start with.

imho, the future value of these cars will be either 1) absolute originality.. ie 30+ year old components or 2) restored to factory like condition. I have seen several early low mileage turbos (ie 20K miles) on the market and know of one that was priced in the low $20k's and sold at that price. It just seems to me if you are going to go through the effort to "restore" the car, why not get it as close to factory as possible?

LiveFromNY

Yeah, I considered that. In the end, the few mods I'm making are just personal preference. Some of my cars (like the F430) are temporary - I'm already on the list for a 458 - but some, like the Aston and the Healey, I'll die with. This is one of those cars so I'm more concerned about making it mine than worrying about future value.