Noahs944

That's the big one there! Love commuting with my 944 DD but you have to have another vehicle to rely on when your '44 is down.

Absolutely love the car, but also its the only P-car I've owned.

Best of luck to you with your decision.

Tom R.

You should have told him about the backup car before he sold me his backup car.

Speaking of backup cars, should we bring the Astra to the track this Saturday along with the 944 just in case - so we have a backup car to get us home - just in case the antique acts like an antique?

plumbum

I DD my 951 for a summer before I had to sell her and last year my S2..this year I just don't want to get her wet but trust the car 100%...if it is a well cared for 944 it should be just as reliable as any other used car and a lot more fun to drive!

use2windsurf

I have been driving my 87 NA ~50 miles per day, 5 days a week for almost a year, has been very reliable. More so than my 03 BMW. I never understood why one would own a sports car and not drive it. If I had a Lambo I would put 10K miles a year on it

yorkee

I semi-DD my 944 for last two years. That said I don't drive it during winter (snow), and I don't drive it in nice sunny summer day (ride a bike). Mostly rainy day or when I have to haul something.

I am able to survive with another "antique" (classic cherokee) along with bikes. The 944 is not less reliable than the my cherokee. There are times where vehicles in pieces in the garage, but I always have some wheel to get around.

So, if you don't mind commuting with the 996 while the 944 on the stand, or the other way, its probably not crazy to dd a 944.

mikey_audiogeek

Driving mine every day for 14 years and 240,000km. No major problems and I do most of the maintenance. Parts bill is high but I enjoy working on it!

ZR8ED

Shoot I guess I am one of the crazies too. I have been DD my 86 for 2.5 years, and I drive 1000km/week just commuting. I don't have a backup car, but I can readily turn a wrench, and I do have a very good shop local to my work, and I will not hesitate to have it serviced while I'm at work. As said already, it is more expensive than a Civic, but then it is not a Civic. And yes check my location. I have not missed a day at work, even in -30c winter and major snow/ice storms. I've seen it all in my 944.
If driving in the winter, oil it, and buy the best snow tires you can buy.

odurandina

over time, it costs a small fortune to daily drive these 944s, T's and 968s.

I've driven a 944S 99 k miles (rod bearing failure 1994), and my current 968 121 k miles..... I can estimate with confidence that the maintenance and repair bill for a typical 968 over the lifespan of the short block will top *$40,000 in the engine bay **(with the rest of the car being fully reasonable to keep serviced)....

been there, done that...

it wasn't as bad as the time I got my leg blown off in the Great War, after being poisoned by mustard gas...

but, within a few years you dd warriors will be wandering around aimlessly dreaming of what could have been.... mumbling things like, "coulda had me a nice used GTR that woulda gone 450 k miles on pennies, instead of being thrown out of my home.... dreaming of happier times."

things like that.


Whalebird's post from 6 years ago...

and he's speaking mostly, about the first decade or so after the cars were built...

he's not even talking about the full-crusty/dead-zone/resto stage where most of the cars, their antique parts and engine management systems exist now...

carry on.



*how do you get to $40 k++ ??? first, the 968 is a ho 4 cylinder, semi-exotic, limited-production, junior, German touring car. read the owners manual. then imagine replacing most of the **** in the bay 3~4 times over the life of the car, including; messing with oil coolers, ac pumps, headgaskets and doing the rod bearings/pickup tube replacement along the way, and maybe a valve job or dead camshaft teeth - taking you over the top with ease....

what kills you on the 944s ?? we all know the 944 n/a is the second phase of the petulant timing belt/expensive serpentine cars... you won't always be replacing the same stuff as a typical 968, but you still have the engine management system/wiring harness/no-starts, and headgasket/s, clutch or bent valves looming.... those big repairs are what marked the end of thousands of 944s–

including many of the dearly departed on the forums.

PeteL

I have a 70 mile round trip to work, drive the 944 one or two times a week. Do my own work.
Repairs and maintenance are still cheaper than car payments, and I love driving the 944.
Not crazy to daily drive at all, once it is sorted out and you know what you have.

ZR8ED

You are partially right, but no where even close as expensive at a 30yr old ferrari with a tiny 2.8 v8.

I will add that you should be prepared to spend $$$$ as things can fail rather suddenly sometimes. If you want to DD a 944 on a shoestring budget, you won't get more than a couple of years on a well cared for 944. Much less if you buy a "cheap" 944.
But then we are talking about DD'ng a Porsche. If we wanted a practical commuter car, we would be over on the civic/corolla forums.

Mister Quickie

If you can DIY a 944, buy it, they're cheap and fun.
If you can't DIY a 944, walk away, no run away from it.

divil

I also DD my 951 for months at a time. Usually when I don't it's because I have decided to do some work on it, rather than it breaking down. Unfortunately that happens a lot because it's practically impossible to keep it in perfect condition. But honestly, stuff doesn't break very often. My car has 190K miles and I'm always finding worn out things to replace, but rarely anything that renders the car undriveable. Taking things apart and then waiting to get parts/tools/information to put it back together has been the cause of 90% of the downtime.

MAGK944

While I agree on some of your posts, you do sometimes push out some blanket statements that make no sense to some of us on these forums.

I've driven my 86 944 daily or very frequently since new. It's got over 190k miles. Apart from regular maintenance items and tires I spent less than $2k over the first fifteen years and another nearly $3k to date. I still drive it two or three times a week on 80 mile commutes.

It's been one of the most reliable and cheapest cars to maintain that I have ever owned.

balefire

In 2006, ONLY 4k miles ago, he had the timing belt, DME relay done.
I have quotes for $450-850 job for the timing belt.

Would you guys change out a well tensioned, low mile, but 8 year old timing belt?

odonnell

That's 8 years... Double the time interval for a rubber belt. Even the newer material (forget what it's called) isn't rated for more than 7-8 or so. IMO nothing wrong with taking it to a shop this time because it's a crucial component, but it's not overly hard to DIY. Getting the tension correct on the other hand... Make sure you don't f that up!