M.fosmo

So I'm in a dilemma. I have a silver 84' 5 speed. I bought it when I was 17 as my 2nd car and I've had it for 4 years. I don't know whether to continue buying parts and attempting to slowly bring my car back to factory condition. Or cut my losses and start fresh with something else. I've slowly come to realize I do not have the knowledge, funds or tools to do what I want with the car. And after having various questionable mechanics work on her, And not even driving her for 2.5 yrs. I'm begining to feel that if I do ever get her running it will be more of a ticking time bomb. Not to mention most the interior is shot, the paint is pretty bad and it could use a good $6000 in mechanical parts alone.
I just have so much already invested into this car. And I love this car more than any other vehicle I could ever imagine owning. Just thinking about selling it makes my stomach hurt.
And the fact that I wouldn't even get 1/3 of what it's worth to me makes it almost unbearable.
But it's really driving me insane just seeing her sit there.
As of right now I believe the only thing stopping her from running is a clogged fuel line. I want to replace all the fuel lines, in fear of my car bursting into flames. But I can not afford to bring her to a shop and I no longer trust myself to work on this car. And even if i were to just fix the clog and drive it. I would still have to trust that my previous mechanic actually did the timing properly. He messed up multiple other things I'd rather not get into.
when it did run, the motor seemed strong and I had almost no problems other than a bad slave cylinder.

So any insight would be greatly appreciated. Nobody in my life has any actual knowledge about Porsches nor do they care.
Thank you for allowing me to rant.

merchauser

sorry for your frustration and issues; I think most, if not all of us have been there at one time or another

might be a good idea to mention what year the car is, and photos always help. best of luck

Mrmerlin

M.fosmo

Near Seattle in a town called silverdale

Landseer

Punt.

Unless you plan to be a hermit, at your age there is far more to life than restoring some complicated, expensive, rich guy's castoff car.

Just isn't worth it.

Far smarter to cut losses. Anything you've spent to date is trivial, walk.

928cs

This.

M.fosmo

If I were to sell it should I try to get it running first or just sell it as is

Otto Mechanic

No photos of the engine bay but I'll assume it's in no better condition.

What you have is a parts car. After you've stripped it for anything of value, the chassis could become a track car.

Walk away from it.

----

PS: It seems to be a manual transmission, which does make it a track candidate. Unless you're planning to do all the work on it yourself, you'd be best off selling it, but it is slightly more valuable than an automatic in that use.

PPS: Don't bother getting it running first. Anyone who might buy it knows more about the car than your top 10 mechanics do and won't pay a premium to have someone else do work they won't trust anyway.

Wisconsin Joe

Well, two sides of the coin (so to speak) -

The early 80s US cars are the least loved, least valued cars of all of them.
Sell it. It's not worth much. Even if you can get it running, it's not worth much.
The money you have put into it is gone, it won't ever come back.

If you need to own a 928, then get a better example. Best advice in the "New Visitor" sticky is to buy the best example you can afford. The most expensive car you will ever own is a "cheap" Porsche (or other exotic).

OTOH, there's nothing there that cannot be fixed. Paint and interior are just 'cosmetics'. You can always throw a couple of seat covers on, and you can't see the paint flaws from the driver's seat.
You can buy a few tools at a time, those are an "investment", in that you only need to buy them once (if you buy decent ones) and they will serve you for a lifetime. I'm too old to invest in Snap-On or Mac for the most part, but you aren't.
You can learn to work on these cars, if you are willing and at least a little bit mechanically inclined.

While the 84 is not a widely desired car, they are among the simplest to work on. The L-Jet is pretty fool proof (not like CIS), the green wire and vac advance distributor is the same. The motor is (supposed to be) non-interference, so if the hack 'mechanic' who installed the TB screwed it up, then there won't be any damage if it fails. They are "old school" cars. Minimal computer tech, no system integration. The electrical stuff can be frustrating, but it's all pretty basic.

There is a pretty good bunch of folks up in that area, and most of us are willing to help teach you and help you out on your car.
What is most likely is that you hook up with someone, and go over to their place and help them with their car. Even if you are just a 'tool hander' (which is a very useful thing to do), you will still observe and learn. As you learn, you apply that to your car.

Fuel lines are pretty basic. The hardest part usually is getting the old ones off. Then you install the new ones and make sure you pressure test the system before starting up. Jump the FP relay and check all the fittings for leaks. If they don't leak, you are good to go.

Any 30+ year old car is pretty much a "ticking time bomb." There is usually something that is broken, breaking or about to break. Part of the deal with driving a classic. But if all the major stuff is taken care of, these cars can be very reliable. I took mine to California and back with no real issues (odo stopped working in South Dakota).

Its a truly difficult choice. But if you choose to keep it and work on it, you won't find a more knowledgeable and helpful bunch of wingnuts anywhere else.

Shawn Stanford

I'm with Joe. I have an '82. I love the older body style. I'm not a very good wrench. I say it all the time and I mean it sincerely. About the only things I have going for me with regards to keeping that car on the road are as follows:

1. A halfway decent set of tools.
2. A garage.
3. This forum.
4. The indulgence of my wife.

I could probably get away without 2 and 4, but 1 and 3 are a must; and mostly 3. Every problem you're having someone here has already come across. Use the search, and if you can't find it, ask. Someone will answer. I guarantee it.

You can learn to keep the car on the road. Wrenching the car yourself will give you far more satisfaction and save you a ton of money.

Tell you what: Let's get you talked through solving one problem before you throw in the towel. Start with the current symptoms. What happens when you turn the key?

Landseer

I've resurected a bunch of these to drive. No question its doable. Actually cheap transport.

Restoration you mentioned is a different deal.

At your age go for bettering your lot in life, education, family, don't burn time and precious dollars on that car, or any of them for that matter.

BTDT, got the t shirts.

The Forgotten On

I'm 22 and bought my first when I was 15. It's the battered 81 some on here have seen IRL. It's the poster child of "cosmetics can wait, mechanicals cannot."

If you feel like you won't be able to do with the car what you want like a real restoration I would walk away.

If you change your priorities to just making the car mechanically sound and run reliably on your budget, then keep the car and start digging in to the issues. We're all here to help

80-84 by far are the least expensive to own and repair. Them being undesirable now is irrelevant to how YOU feel about the car. Do what feels like the right choice to you and never look back.

Otto Mechanic

When I was 19, I bought a 1971 1.7L Porsche 914. I loved the car, did all my own work, and just drove that car crazy. I really loved it; I called it "the flexy flier". I threw a rod, punched a hole in the case, and turned it into a 1.8L flexy flyer.

Don't try this with a 928, it will just hurt you. Buy a 924S or better still a 931. At this stage of your life, a 928 will just be a vampire that sucks the life from you. You'll end up hating it. Don't Go There.

But, if you're truly dedicated to automotive self destruction, buy a 1986 Porsche 930, the most beautiful and dangerous car ever mass produced on our planet. No sense messing around; if you're going stupid, GO BIG stupid!

Best Regards,
Scott.

monkez

I agree with Shawn on this one. I am not much of a mechanic, but the resources and folks here are EXTREMELY helpful. It may not be as tough to get this car running as you think. Tools can be borrowed. Harbor Freight has decent sets for very reasonable prices. They may not last under constant use, but if it's just to work on one car on week-ends or so, they do just fine. Also, fuel lines can be rebuilt for reasonable prices. I agree that any amount of money put into the car is not coming back, but it could still be cheaper than having a car payment.

Although, I see a couple of positives with your car: (1) It's a stick shift. Not common and pretty desirable. and (2) It looks like there is no sun-roof, though it could be just a grainy picture.

Good luck with your decision!

M.fosmo

Thank you all for the input. I appreciate it more than you could imagine. After speaking with some of you I'm beginning to lean away from selling the car. More than anything I want the car to run. I'm really not concerned with cosmetics. They're more of a long term want.

As of right now I know the next step to getting her running is getting fuel to the engine.The engine cranks but that's it. Just replaced plugs, belts, crank, TB/wp, and fluids and it ran for 15 minutes. Then there was smoke coming from the rear driver side of the engine bay, so I decided I was done for the night. The next day after deciding the smoke was probably just from cleaning/sitting/wrenching. I went out and tried to fire her up and she just cranked, and wouldnt fire. I replaced the fuel filter which was clogged and the pump which was also clogged which leads me to believe I have a clogged line. I figure I might as well replace all the rubber lines so my car doesn't end up in flames.
I'm still unsure of exactly what I'm going to do with her. But I might just decide to get out there and give it what I got.
Thanks again for everybody's input and help.