tlippold

Hi All,

I wanted to get your advice and opinion. I am looking at a 944 that has been owned by the current owner for 15 years. Over these 15 years, he only put 15k miles on the car. Cosmetically, the car is nice and was always garaged while the current owner had it. However, over the 15 years of ownership, the current owner has done no mechanical maintenance other than oil changes and new tires. The oil changes have been every 1-2 years and often at quick lube type places! There are no receipts for other maintenance items such as transmission fluid, coolant flush, air filters, brake fluid, spark plugs etc. He has also not changed the timing belt (the first owner was very diligent and had the TB changed twice at 30k miles and 70k miles with the latter being before it was sold to the current owner).

If I make an offer, I plan on factoring in the cost of completing this deferred maintenance which would be a significant cost. I would also plan on having a PPI performed. However, my concern is whether this lack of maintenance could have caused long term damage. From the seller's perspective, the car is running fine.

Thoughts? The car is a good drive from me so I have not yet seen it in person. If I see it in person, what should I look for? Should I even bother?

Thanks!

Humboldtgrin

Have you ever heard of the term "money pit"? Well get yourself ready...no joke...

odurandina

might not be a full money pit, but it's not out of the realm of possiblity....

but, you've got a sizable amount of stuff to do just for openers.

ALL the belts, ENGINE BAY FUEL LINES, h20 pump, front seals, coolant flush, all hoses, dist cap/rotor, spark plug wires and power steering hoses.

your pullies/tensioner..... brittle. replace them too.

all suspension bushings need to be done.

you'll end up with oil leaking all over the place.... incl prolly the pan gasket and rear seals (ouch).

transaxle oil, brake fluid, brake lines at the calipers, repack the front bearings, etc....

the wiring, and every hose in the bay is crusty too....

rear hatch... body trim.... tires....

yeah, on second thought......

jeffrsmith

If the price is right and you don't mind buying into a hobby..... If you cannot do the work yourself you probably want to step away.

Where is the car located?

V2Rocket

Do the belts, refresh the fluids and just drive it.

Deal with anything when it pops up.

You'll be fine.

porscharu

Ditto, preventative maintenance and fixing things while you are in there is one thing. However, I am not one to just throw parts at a car just because.

marc abrams

If the car is clean, go for it!

Jfrahm

The only damage IMO could be a rotted head or head gasket if the the coolant was not up to snuff. I'd change that coolant, carefully and appropriately, ASAP as well as looking for the usual fuel line problems, check/change belts, etc.

If you can't budget a couple-three grand for repairs and catch-up maintenance than this car or any other 80's or 90's Porsche is not for you but I would not expect it to be a money pit unless it got wet inside for a long time or had a mouse infestation or something like that to make the electrics a nightmare.

The ECU might be damaged from lots of jump starts and charging so you might keep an eye out for a spare one of those.

Lastly, if it's on CL or something, after this post it might be gone pretty soon.
-Joel.

thomasmryan

No brake fluid or coolant flushes would be a concern for me.

Arominus

This. *Maybe* do the water pump in addition to the belts/rollers, but outside of that you don't need to go ape**** on it unless you have problems with a specific area.

TurnerJ

Agreed. Usually just a few pictures would help us give you a really good idea.

black944 turbo

I agree, just do the normal items such as belts and hoses and you should be fine. I have had cars before that have sat for 20-25 years and have done normal items (tune up stuff, oil change, belts, as well as changing coolant and brake fluid) with no issues.