BlackOp

If you drive it for another 50k...it will be worth about $1500 less. I'd drive it..thats what make owning these cars worth the hassle.

CyCloNe!

It's a nice car... personally I'd drive it, if the weather seems to bad then that's another issue.. cars are made to be driven and honestly it's just a material possession in time it will be like any other old car... in a junk yard, waiting to be restored or scrap. So drive it, enjoy it and then restore it lol.

Arominus

I'd drive it while its nice... winter.. well maybe. I drive mine daily year round and i have a set of snow tires for it but my paint isn't nearly as nice. That said, its a ton of fun in the snow

fittrjoe

put a good coat of wax on it ,wash it religously and drive the heck out it... maintained well these cars are built to driven . then when it gets to old and youre tired of it ( it happens ) do what i did... get another one and drive the heck out of it!

Mike C.

That's a tough decision for sure. While I agree saving it for a (non) rainy day is tempting and nice examples like this are getting scarce, it's hard to imagine it ever drastically appreciating. But winter is tough on a car especially if salt is used on the roads. It causes all threaded connections underneath to seize up with corrosion and eventually the body will begin to succumb. Another thing to ponder is the higher probability of being in a fender bender with more time on the road. If this happens on the uni-body, it ain't pristine anymore... It's perverse really... they are built to drive and enjoy but doing so puts them at a greater risk of premature demise...

944obscene

Since I got out of school, I have been the owner of a 1992 Saturn SL2. Having gotten the car in 2004 with 30k on it, I had an appreciation with vehicles that were getting "of age" but still in good condition. I digress. I learned to take care of a car that I wanted to continue looking good. I carried that over when I bought my 1987 Black 951.

I bought the Porsche about 2 years ago and promptly cared for it every way I could. Garaged it, detailed it and even watched my driving habits, so I wouldn't beat this near-perfect car into a heap like all the others I have seen locally.

Then, at the end of Winter I ran my Saturn into a snow-covered curb at 20mph. It wasn't pretty. I kept the Saturn and fixed everything with my own hands, instead of getting rid of it. However... I was doomed to driving my 951 DAILY in SNOW, RAIN, and SALT for months afterwards. Turned into about 6 months of driving before I got all the parts to fix the Saturn. But, as a good Porsche does, she always cleaned up. Like I had noted before, it was in amazing shape when I got it (But nothing like yours!).

I got used to taking my 951 out on a daily basis. Even after the Saturn was back again. I just enjoyed having fun in the car. Could have used it as my ONLY car haha. Through my time driving it, someone at my work had run an SUV into the back of it, a kart was shoved into the passenger rear-quarter flair; A couple kids threw rocks on her one night on my way home (I chased them down to kill them!), and I learned that stupid people in very large cars/trucks are attracted to you when you have something like that on the road.

All in all, it seemed like one hit after another, but with the help of Huber Restorations (In Tulsa) and skills with a buffer, I kept her looking like the day I got her... Except that kart ding. Yeah, it's still there. I don't regret taking all that time with her. I've since lost her to a collision, and bought her back to part out, but if I had babied her all that time and still gotten into that wreck, then my time owning it wouldn't have been the same.

I say drive it. Be careful, and enjoy getting looks more often. If you're like me, you will!

P.S. I'm still waiting for the day I can return with another 951 or maybe a 968. Either way, I miss sitting in my Porsche for hour-long drives! Sometimes more!

gtroth

I'd drive it. Drove my S 70mi/day year round for many years. That's a lot of enjoyment I'm glad I didn't miss. I found it not great in the snow, even with snow tires. No LSD.
Then I bought the mint C4 for year round. Not mint any more - don't care. Enjoying it is the point. If chips and loss of value ruin your enjoyment, then that's different.

90Carat

I'd drive it every day unless there is nasty weather. These are fun DD's, though I'm not looking forward to winter driving with a non-LSD car.

Keep it clean, waxed, and enjoy it. About 4 years ago, I bought a '92 Audi S4 with a whopping 41k miles on it. Drove it daily and loved every minute of it.

odurandina

castastrophe to drive in inclement weather.

get an old beat up truck. and go wrench some parts for it.

NYCpersian

i'm using my 944 for the winter snow and keeping my awd EVO in the garage, lol! don't ruin your mint car, buy a civic for $500 on craigslist. Hey wait, that's how I got duped into my $2300 944...

John_AZ

The car is too nice to commute with.

Once you start using the '86 for a DD you will miss the pristine car you spent hours polishing, cleaning, maintaining (obsessing about) you now have.

Smell the interior-----do you really want to loose that feeling (big grin) every time you get in?

I bought a 2nd ('87) 924S for a DD.

GL
John

rhs63

Thank you all for your great responses and insight. My wife made a good point yesterday, indicating that the 944 has neither ABS, Airbags, 4wd or LSD, so from a safety perspective it's not an ideal commuter car, especially in winter weather. This is certainly a considerable factor to think about. So, while I have not made my mind up yet, I'm leaning towards buying a reliable 2nd car, perhaps an old Impreza with 4wd, and only occasionally commute with the 944.

pnbell

Ooooo! I highly recommend an old Subaru Impreza!!!! I had a 95' Impreza for years up in Rochester, NY, and it was the most amazing car ever in the snow!!!

I used to plow my driveway with the bumper; so my buddy could get his car in without shoveling! Only got stuck once -I tried to jump a snow bank, and got high centered, wheels not touching the ground..-

If you do get this car, use the handbrake for turns. Once you master it, you will never turn without it in the snow! Ha ha, I could literally parallel park in the city with the handbrake -i used to get applause from my neighbors!!!

-Wow, sorry I just got a little excited,,, but i bought the car for $2k, and had such a great experiance with it... i miss it... Good Luck. p.s. Get an automatic, it has a better 2.2l motor vs 1.8l the manual has...

choinga

buy a 8 year old Corolla or something - don't beat this car up!!! You'll regret it...

joemis

This is a personal choice on the part of owner. I would not turn such a nice example into a daily driver but it's not my car. Do what you feel is best for you - but I vote for keeping it a weekend car.

Joe M.