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So ive been looking for 928's for a while, something to use for a project etc. and i stumbled across this 87 928S4 for 4000 (probably negotiable.) the bad that he states flat out are that it needs vac lines and that the interior needs work (the one pic shows it through a window so its hard to tell just how much.) but really its gonna need a whole freshening. the other big thing is that it has no title. i have no problem bonding one as long as the VIN checks fall through all good so it isnt stolen or anything. im just curious if the investment will be worth it.
I've done about 6 of these projects now, and it depends on what you mean by 'worth it'. For someone who's handy, and has time and space, it is very much worth it. Suppose you get it for $3500. You will invest $3000 in stuff before touching paint and int. If you don't do paint, find a guy BEFORE you write the check, and make sure you both are on the same page for the work done, and the final product. Similar with the int bits. I can do a fair amount of int work, but the upholstery stitching has to be sent out. Get the est before you buy. While it's true that you'll be into the car well over $10k invested, then you have a no-excuse 928 for sale, and with bold colors and good options expect to sell around $13-18k. If you are lucky, you get a little back. If you aren't lucky you break even and save a 928 from the junk yard for a little longer.
Bonded titles haven't been a problem for me on cars that are more than 20 years old. If it were a 4 YO Lexus, bonded title on sale would be a no-go.
If you can’t drive it, the engine/transmission/differential is a total crap shoot. That he says he would pull the engine doesn’t mean anything.
I just drove three hours to look at a 91 S4. $11750 price.
Paint was beautiful. Amazing. Interior not terrible, dash nice, carpet and seat not so much. Suspension sagged out, front about 2” low, rear 1” low. Engine seemed a little low on power, but within ten minutes of running, almost no oil pressure at idle. About 1/2 barr or less.
The owner was puzzled, as he had a mechanic check out a low pressure issue 2 months prior. They replaced the sender.
My guess is non-adjustment of the torque tube/flex plate and a non-rebuildable engine.
Just saying.......
I Believe the proper Term for that paint is Patina'd hah. im very interested though it looks just good enough that i wont have to invest a ton to get it going but just bad enough i wont feel bad doing my own thing with it. does that paint have a hue of blue in it? or is it black and playing tricks on me?
Definitely playing tricks on you. The car originated black and then at some point was red and then back to black.
"Get it going" is subjective. It already "goes" but will need the typical 928 things done to keep it that way.
I have no idea when the TB and WP were done last. It does leak oil from somewhere and the radiator has a leak in it. Well, either the radiator or one of the hoses. I haven't sorced that out.
The power steering rack leaks but I wasn't overly concerned with that because my plan was to pull the engine to freshen everything up anyway.
Door seals will need replacing and it has an '87 rear wing.
My price of 6k is for a collective value of the parts, because as I stated earlier, it's a glorified parts car to me.
A manual transmission engine will easily fetch 2k+ and a 220 gearbox about the same.
The front suspension and brakes are very valuable to the S3 and older guys looking to do S4 brake conversions.
Fenders, doors, glass, switches and electronics easily bring up the rest of the parts value well over 6k.
So the only way you will definitely not "lose" money on a 928 is to always consider it a parts car.
With that all said, if your intentions with this car, or any other project 928, is to eventually make money? I wouldn't count on it. Especially if you have to pay for jobs
So far, I've made money on every 928 I've done. Sometimes very little, but cash coming in has exceeded cash that went out. I will do ok on the one in my shop right now as well.
After reading this in the morning and some casual thought since, it seems others have come to the same conclusion as I have --
If you can't drive it, it's a parts car. PO Pulling the engine makes it worth less as a parts car, leaving it adds back the couple $hundred if it doesn't run. If it needs any even mildly serious structural work in the front, it's a parts car. If the interior is rough, it's worth less for those parts. If body parts are damaged or missing, those can't be sold as parts. Gearbox OK? If it doesn't have a traceable pedigree in a running car, it's a core until proven otherwise.
I'm casually amused by folks who are selling a car that was running when they parked five years ago. It only needs a $ and a $$ to be a $$$$. Why the seller down't spend the $ and the $$ themselves is no mystery in most cases, as it really needs $$$$$$ to be worth $$$$.
I like the black car...seems like a better project than the one under the tarp. I wouldn’t pony up more than 1k for it (tarp car), with all the unknowns, but I am a bottom feeder....
1. Buy the best car you can find, with the money you are willing to spend.
2. Do not go down the path of cheapest.
3. If it is an automatic, doesn't run, and you can't drive it, it's probably junk and worth only the value of the pieces. (If the engine is turns out to be bad, that's not very much!)
I used to tell people to plan on spending $10K to get a running car completely mechanically "sorted". As they have gotten older and the parts have gotten more expensive, that number is now $20K.....and they frequently go over this.
Jacob Hallenbeck: I saw this in RL 928s for Sale posted on 8/19. I'm definitely not the brightest bulb in the shed, but if this car is still available, it looks like a much better "investment" than the GA project car, w/auto, under the tarp.... at least you can drive this one. Didn't scroll thru all posts, so I'm not sure if it's still available, but @ $6,900.00 for a blue, 5 sp, lsd.......might be worth looking at.
This car makes way more sense for you than the one you posted, especially if you are factoring having to do the paint. As for not losing tons of money when times comes to sell, well that really depends on when that time comes. Realistically, depending on your free time, free cash, wiling-to-lend-a hand friends and supportive family, any 928 sold for less than $10K will take another $10-$20K to make nice and 1 to 3 years to get it there, IMO. Once there if you then sell soon after, you will be out basically 80% of the money you've put into it (unless your Doc. He still hasn't revealed his secret recipe on that). However, my suggestion is if it really is your dream car, then have fun with it. Don't worry about it's value and sell it 20 years from now. By then you'll likely be on the plus side even with yearly mx, insurance, gas, etc.
I was trying to buy the above 928 for $6900...He just let me know lastnight...she's headed to CA Sold....sound like a nice car. I just found one in Wisc. There's a red one in San Antonio that needed work, the guy seemed nice and honest
08-24-2018, 02:23 PM
