Locksmith

1986.5
Would like anyones opinion if I should sink $ in this car. Seller wants $ 2500.00 for it.
Needs:
1.Power Stearing Pump
2. Roters & Brake Pads
3. Shocks & Springs
4. Tires
5. New carpet & Drivers Seat
6. Air conditioner compressor cycles, but blows hot air would only take about 1lb freon and still has bubbles in the sight glass.
7. Odometer & altinator gage not working.
8. Sunroof & passangers window motors need replaced.
9. Dent in right front fender
10. Could use a paint job
11. "Spoiler" under front bumper missing middle section

The motor and tranny(automatic) seem strong, front end tight. Good oil pressure.
Just had the timing belt and H2O pump replaced. the car has about 110,000. miles on it.
Electrical sys seems OK everything seems to have power going to it, even the non functioning items.

Any input would be appriciated
Thanks
Eric

pewter82

I would, 86.5's are great cars and you don't have to do all the work at once, start with what it needs to be a good driver and enjoy the car!

jason

rixter

me being the last person to ask this question...

A. can you do your own wrenching and have some spare$$ ?
B. have a 928 mechanic and deep pockets?

if you answer YES to either go for it
if you answer NO to both then pass
a $2500 928 can quickly become a $10k 928 worth $5k

CWO4Mann

Hi again Eric, I enjoyed our telephone conversation. Always nice to meet up with another 928 nut ...

Some really big advantages to this car right now:

1. "Electrical sys seems OK everything seems to have power going to it, even the non functioning items" ... this is good, very good. You won't believe the threads on this forum about tracking down electrical gremlins. So, #1 is a big plus!

2. "Just had the timing belt and H2O pump replaced. the car has about 110,000. miles on it." ... Goes almost without saying that this major headache has been medicated for the next 50,000 miles. Especially with the 32 engine.

3. "The motor and tranny(automatic) seem strong, front end tight. Good oil pressure." ... Wow! Another plus! The fact that you drove over to Kentucky a couple of weeks ago and returned without incident (and no speeding tickets, I hope) shows that the car is still "roadable".

Now for the "bad news":

#1. Your first job is to find out why your shocks don't seem to be properly installed. I think the Previous Owner(s) (PO) had "performance shocks installed as if they were going to drive like Fangio. Hard (or dead) shocks are one of three things that will agravate your backache which you described to me. Check the shocks, the motor mounts and the tire pressure. Also if the driver's seat is tired, finding replacement seats from a part car might be an option.

#2. Brakes: Bite the bullet and replace the pads and check the rest of the system. Nothing is worse than not having brakes when you really need them. Some of us may recommend this as the #1.

#3. The Air Conditioning system is pretty essential here in Tennessee. Sounds to me like there might only be a valve or control problem. There are a lot of threads here about fixing the A/C system. I don't know much about A/C so I'll defer to others more experienced.

#4. Odometer and Alternator gauges not working. No biggie for the moment. Might be a fuse. I think you have an electronic odometer but I am probably wrong.

#5. Sunroof and Passenger side window motors need to be replaced? I would pull them and check them on the bench. Do the switches work (e.g. testing them with the motors disconnected to see if the switchs control the electricity to the motor's connectors)? They might need only new brushes or at worst, to be rebuilt. There is a place downtown, behind the big parking lot that is next to the Country Music Hall of Fame that will rebuild electric motors of any size and make. I had a 1-3/4 HP 220v motor for my radial arm saw rebuilt there for $65. A replacement from Sears was $365.

#'s 9, 10, 11. You can get all this done over on Nolensville road at one of the Hispanic custom paint shops. I know a good one called "Los Dos Hermanos" -- they do all that crazy Kalifornia style painting. On the spoiler. I will bet that Brother Rixter here on this very newsgroup has one or three hanging around his parts yard.

Hope this helps! I'll call you next week and we will go down to Mid-Tennessee European Motors in Manchester to pick over their 928 parts cars. Got to wait until the rain stops. Also, the guy down there says to wear boots when we go into the yard cause there are some copperheads hanging around curled up under the cars. Sweet Southern Life!

Cheers,

Dave

rixter

seeing Dave's post I realize you've already gotten the car so go for it....
1. FIX THE BRAKES 1st!!!!, I can't stress this enough (see the SITM thread for my lovely experience)
2. while doing #1 do the tires and check the shocks, if the springs were updated to stiffer ones swap them out for softer ones
3. I would check/swap the switches on the window and sunroof before pulling the motors
4. odometer... yep I think we've all seen this one, usual suspect is the gear $35 and a few hours time
5. ac.. your call
6. body/paint... local unless you're gonna spend BIG$$$
7. Spoiler... don't call me I don't have any, a good unbroken one is hard to find and a good expenditure

that being said.. many items are the same from 78-86 and if you're patient you can get them all at a decent price, the Big3 is a great place to start get to know them well!!!
and join Rennlist, the search function and ability to load pics will enable everyone to partake in your adventure!!

now upload some pics so we can see the ol girl

Locksmith

No I have not purchased this car yet. Only have had my mechanic look it over.
His latest report was it would take about $ 4000.00 to square the car up + interior and paint, this did not include tires and shocks. His final estimate is due tomorrow.
I like this car but trying not to have more in it than it is worth. ( I understand WORTH is a subjective point )

I can buy a nice 944 turbo $ 6000.00 to $ 8000.00 ride & drive with no major hassles. I Know but you still have a 944 ( wrong forum for this comment )

Thanks
Eric

jserio

Eric, 944 Turbos are nice cars and can cost less getting a little more power out of them also. Definitely less on maintenece. A 928 should only be got if you love them. Personally If the car is going to cost 6500.00 to have a decent car then I would look for a decent one in that price range from the beginning. If your looking at a car that needs all those thing to begin with then 10 dollars to a donut there are more things your going to run into as you proceed. I got a cheap Euro that spiralled into a money pit fast. Sunk major money into it only to sell it for what I paid for it because it still needed much work. Everyone wants to see these cars brought back to life as I do but make sure you know what your getting into.

Thaddeus

I doubt you'll find a "good" 951 for 8K anyway. And the bills can rack up quickly on those lovely beasts also.

For number 6, make sure the heater valve is closed. In a contest between heat and a marginal A/C, the heat will win every time.

mulik51

Go for it man!!!
I would change the rotors to cross-drilled zimmerlans anyway. You can probably get used calipers for not too much. Everything else doesn't really matter to me...
Klim

mulik51

Sorry, forgot about the paint job. Couse the car is running and drivable, you have time to save money for it. So, still go for it...

Klim

heinrich

Take it or if you don't want to please let me or another lister buy it fpr our collection.

bd0nalds0n

I think dent removal, paint, interior carpet and dealing with the driver's seat would amount to over $4k--if it's done right, maybe quite a bit more.

Pads and rotors all the way around is, what, $750-1000?

Labor to swap out the suspension is 6-8 hours. Parts are probabyly another $400. Setting the ride height and alignment is a $100-$300 job.

Tires are at least $600.

The AC is a big question mark, a similar thread estimates $1500 for a new compressor, a few new lines, dryer, and expansion valve.

...this is going to be a $10k car pretty quick, and I would budget another several thousand for the things that aren't going to be immediately obvious. With that said, there really aren't that many other cars from which you will get so much attention or so much performance for under $15k.

DoubleNutz

For $2500, I would restore it. Those are not huge problems if you ask me and it seems to be in better condition than the '87 S4 I am restoring now.

IcemanG17

928's can get expensive quick! Its easy to spend $10K fixing up a car that is "worth" 7K....buts thats one way of thinking...the 928er way is to fix it right no matter what it costs! Because where else can you find a $15K car (or much much less) that will turn heads all day, sounds great, is plenty fast & refined too? They just don't exist...sure a muscle head mustang or camaro "might" beat a stock 928...but they are no comparison in the luxury side of things! Come to think of it....I would venture to say find another 10-15K car that will cruise 165mph effortlessly, or even go 165....good luck, I can't think of any!
Brian

tammons

I found a really nice 87 951 on Ebay for $7500. It was local so I was able to check it out.

Full reciepts and the previous owner spent about 13K on it in 2002. Its not perfect, but it is nice. I have owned 4 928's and the 944 cars are cheaper for some parts. but they are really tight in the engine compartment. Too tight for me.

Back to the subject. That sounds like a good deal to me on the 86.5.
Bent valve 86 parts cars go for 2G down here. S4's go for about 3500-4000 that need work. They are a super wallet drain though.