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Just read Bob Voskian's thread on 20 years of PCA membership and his 24k S4 purchase. Didn't want to spoil his thread.
It was mid-October 1997 when I flew to Denver to pick up my blind-purchased low miles (20k) 928 S4 for the drive home to SoCal. The dealer in Denver knew the car since they had stored it for the original owner. Dealer did the timing belt service due to age, prompted by discussions with very helpful owners on an ancestor to Rennlist discussion forum. Can't imagine owning the car this long without the excellent support from the online communities. Similarly, the continuing support from our 928-focused vendors has proved invaluable. Having Mark Anderson and Jim Bailey at then-nearby 928 International sealed the deal for me.
Unlike Bob V. though, my original car is still in my own garage. I've added about 90k to the odometer so far during my stewardship period.. The car has seen a fine mix of SoCal selective daily-driver duty, weekend touring warrior, and occasional garage queen between those other duties. Only once has it let me down outside my own garage, and that one time was at the bottom of my own driveway.
The 928 regularly generates great comments when out. My typical description of "an almost thirty year old example of a forty-five year old design" is a reminder of how timeless the cars really are. Jim Bailey reminded me a decade ago that it would be the same as one of use buying a 1940's car as our first ride in the 1960's, and expecting it to stay "new" and reliable through the following years. the closest I've come to that was a few early 1950's British sports cars, and it's safe to say that they didn't stand a chance of lasting 20 years without a couple restorations each tucked into their calendars.
Restoration efforts so far on my 928? Virtually none. A seat bolster repair. Rebuilt the LH brain with the help of Rich Andrade. Intake refresh done with the most-excellent support of Rob Edwards and Greg Brown. Pretty much everything else has been aggressive PM-plus-WYAIT. Oh, and I replaced a broken shift cable. With that care, I'm absolutely comfortable with the idea that I could jump in and drive to Florida and back without a worry. There's room for clubs and luggage. It's an almost thirty year old example of a forty-five year old design.
Thanks to the group here past and present, and the excellent parts and support from our vendors, I'll probably keep the car for a while longer.
Oh... PCA member on and off since the early 1970's. There were some late 1970's to mid-1980's Porsche-drought years when the focus shifted to Italian and British toys.
As a middle aged newbie to the 928 world I would like to thank all you 'old timers' for creating this community. You did all the heavy lifting early on so that when us new guys come along our ownership experience has really been first rate. Cheers!
An interesting milestone- I am two years behind you! Still powered by the same motor albeit in a different chassis. Done the inlet manifold, LH, MAF and engine harness [ongoing]. During engine change out I had to repair two damaged inlet valves on No7 so had the heads off, new seals etc 11 years ago. Front suspension the next project.
19 years ago, I bought my 1st 928 - an '82 Weissach.
I drove it daily for more than a year, and carried out a few driveway repair jobs with the help of this forum! Unfortunately, I didn't hang onto it like you did. But what a great resource this forum has been!
Congrats Dr. Bob. I started lurking on Porsche Fans right around the end, then the RL 928 email list (when I bought my '89 GT in '99). Then as soon as the email came across that the new 928 discussion board was up and running (I think they worked on the 911 Forum first), I switched from email to the 928 forum. Lots of great folks over the years. Some I miss terribly, and some are no longer with us (RIP).
I often have to remind myself that our cars are old. Our cars are the rolling equivalent of Frank Lloyd Wright's "Falling Water" house in PA. I've visited Falling Water several times (before and after the restoration that prevented it from falling into the creek), but on one visit near the end of the tour I spent some time looking at old photos that were hung on a wall near the giftshop..I think in what was part of the former carport. I will never forget seeing the back of a 1930s vehicle parked in one of the stalls. I was frozen for a moment...I knew the house was designed in 1935 and completed in 1937...but those are just numbers. The old car in the photo caused my inner voice to say "OH...this place is THAT old!" I remember when I was a kid a Porsche magazine ad showed a profile of a silver 928 and declared it "...a timeless design". Again, this made me pause...no other car makers were making "timeless" claims... and I thought "How do they know it is timeless?...we will only know in the future". Well, we all know the claim WAS true...and I'm still amazed.
11-07-2017, 12:56 PM
It Was Twenty Years Ago Today
Where does time go?
