rallycobra

There is a 1979 5sp 928 forsale close by with 90k miles on it. I'm going to drive it tomorrow, the a/c doesn't work, the headlights don't go up, and the battery has a kill switch installed because otherwise it will go dead. Worst paint I've ever seen. It's a 2 owner car. The 2nd owner has put 29k miles on it in 29 years. The car started as black but the owner got bored and would take it to Macco for a cheap paint job every now and then when he would get bored of the color. It was red, something else, and now is metallic white. Tires are 2004 and dry rotted on 17" turbo twist wheels. Rust around the hatch, headlights moisture inside, sitting there with the windows cracked. It was 'maintained' at a local gas station, but I think that means if something fell off they would put it back on. Title is clean

If it runs is it worth it? What is the most I should pay for it? Do these things go beyond restoration at some point and just become parts cars? I was thinking about flushing all of the fluids, replacing the entire fuel system and putting new tires on it, and just drive it for fun with no a/c. Maybe gut the interior, put in a couple of race seats, harness bar, coilovers and track pads. Can you track these things?

Mrmerlin

it already has factory air,
roll down the windows and drive it.......... 240 air
given the amount of paint jobs and other missteps of the maintenance trail,
what ever you spend you will probably not get back

If it s a free car you should be good to go

AirtekHVAC

docmirror

I would say you should charge him ~$400 to remove it from his hands. If he balks, maybe drop your fee to $300.

Seriously, it drives, it stops, so all you have is a moveable project. Presuming you want to drive/track, you can't go wrong with an early 928. At this point, unless it is a special car, or highly optioned, the resto costs would be beyond economic value pretty fast.

As it sits, maybe $1000. But - don't worry, it will be for sale, for a long, long, long, long time. The buying pool for a 79 Porsche 928 with dodgy paint and int no AC is vanishingly small.

Wisconsin Joe

Even if it runs, what you describe is most likely a parts car.

It can be fixed, but probably isn't worth it.

What do you want it for?

Track?
Beater to drive around?
Resto project?

It might be a candidate for the first two. Likely not for the last.

If it runs, drives & stops, it might be worth $500 - $1000. Depends a lot on the condition of the motor, trans, and especially the interior.

SteveG

I agree with others, but some things went unanswered.

Many do.

A kill switch is not a bad thing. Almost all of these cars, certainly the newer ones, will drain the batt. So either a switch or maintainer is a must. But then if you gut it, probably no electrics to become a problem?

Depends. You don't say what he is asking or rate the mechanics and interior.

You sound like you are not a novice: Parts are available, post #19 in the New Visitor thread is a list of suppliers. This is a very active bunch here, there is a lot of help available.