RngTrtl

Harvey,

I agree that Tom928 is doing a much better rendition of upgrading his shark, but alas I am in college and only have a tad of money to play with (i.e. I eat a lot of ramen ), but I can say that the car is mechanically fine in regards to the drivetrain and that is all that matters to me right now. One day I would Love to do those things but I think I just lucked up when I got the car on ebay last thanksgiving-ish and everyone was watching football and eating turkey while I was watching the bid whilst taking my final.

p.s. Tom928, I am an engineer as well, I have an excel spread sheet of all kinds of stuff for this and other projects too funny, I thought I was the only nerd...Speaking of which, if you are a nerd how is this for a pick up line tee-shirt for the nerdy grrls?! (yeah, thats me wearing it.)

H2

RngTrtl,

Been there...done that...BUT do you cook your Top Ramen or eat it raw out of the package? When you graduate you should be able to buy a babied 928 for less than what they sell for today...if the prices keep slipping (on some models anyway).

H2

dr bob

I see the market for well-used beaters continuing to drop. As time goes on, fewer and fewer nice examples will remain, so they will hold or perhaps increase in market value. Feeding that rise will be a group that can immediately see that restoration of a beater is more expensive and time consuming than finding a well-maintained example that's already a 90%+ car.

heinrich

There are many like me, who will offer their 928 at a price they believe to be fair, and when others offer them low-ball amounts, simply refuse to sell. I would rather have my cars sit here and be driven in turn for my enjoyment, than sell them at bargain basement prices only to have the buyer grouse about the scuff marks on the carpet or the chip in the paint.

tdelarm

Ya...what Dr bob said

Shane...when I saw you guy's were gettng together after joining the 928 yahoo group...I almost used sum flying miles to come down to hook up and meet you folks..but it was already Friday by then.

tdelarm

ya...what henrich said

heinrich

You would have been very welcome Tim!

Tom928

Thanks for the vote of confidence on how I'm doing this, but really I'm just following the advice I have learned from all the people in this forum, the Pacific NW 928 forum and get togethers. Many people have suggested what to do and what to avoid. So it reflects back on how useful and informative the forum really is.

RngTrtl - I use to have an addiction to spreadsheets, then I was cured (others say I was in denial). When I got my first 928 I couldn’t help myself and went on a binge copying all the PO’s maintenance receipts into spreadsheet pages, creating a summary and of course gas mileage (yes, with graphs) and a todo list. Then along came the $50 928 and of course I had to have another one.

BTW - Interesting shirt – I have one with Maxwell’s equations on the back.
I wore it to the mall one day and a lady asked me what language it was. When I said electromagnetic’s she looked at me like I was from another planet, grabbed her young son and ran into a nearby store! Be careful what you put on tee shirts it can drive some people crazy!

H2

I think what Dr. Bob says is already happening. The price of less well taken care of 928s will continue to drop and the cars that appear to be 90% will go up in value or hold. The reason I say "appear" is that perhaps most ? (but not all) 928s will require some thousands of dollars worth of work to be done to them in order to be reliable, particularly in heavy traffic or long trips. I think the axiom is often true, "The most expensive Porsche is one that you buy cheap." As in anything, there are exceptions. If you're sincerely in the market for a truly good car..you're usually best to do a thorough PPI and pay the premium money asked, based on the outcome of the PPI and the reliability of the person selling (often not known). Paying premium $$ for a certifiably good 928 can be a great financial transaction...while paying cheap for one that has lots of gotchas can be the worst deal you ever made. On the other hand, if you know more or less what you're getting into with a particular car, and do most of the labor yourself, there still are some very "economical" deals out there, as Tom928 is about to prove. However, if Tom had paid $3K-$5K for the same car...his spread sheet might or might not come out wet with tears. At the higher price, it's a gamble. At $50, he can't help but come out smelling like a rose as the parts he's installing can be repurposed if he had to, and the rest of the car could be parted out.

At the same time, I think almost everyone is attracted to bargains...and bargains entice us to take chances...or in the case of the 928...buying at a CYA price. If the worst case happens, you're still OK. If best case happens, happy day! I dont' think it's a matter of screwing anyone but just being cautious...because no one knows really for sure what expensive part may be about to go south on any car you sell (a new deck glass from Porsche for the 968 is now $5,600 I'm told). My son in law recently bought a car in Seattle (no PPI) and the engine blew as he drove it home from the seller's house. I don't think the seller had a clue that the engine was about to go. But the seller waranteed the car and all was well with the buyer. Private sales usually is "as is."

Because the 928 (even a bad one) usually looks great, even if it's not running, it's not too unlike buying/selling guns. The uninformed sellers of guns usually value them higher than the informed buyer does. When a buyer perceives a bargain gun, they often buy even though they don't need it. However, if it's one they really want...they'll pay premium because they know that it will hold its value. The problem is that it's much easier to tell what shape a gun probably is in than a complicated sports car which seldom appreciates.

There's a 944 for sale locally that, from any viewpoint, you can tell that it's not been cared for. Also, you will see this car in some garage every few weeks and a perpetual For Sale sign on it. If the outside/interior has not been cared for, who's to say that the drive train has been? This applies to everything but my Chevy 4WD truck, which has a practically new drive train but looks like a POS. However, I'll kick new truck a** with it off the road. We called them "sleepers" in Tennessee. 928s almost never look like sleepers and if they run at all, they're not.

Lunch break is over....

Harvey

ceedee

i bought my 82 928s for 3k it came with a bunch of parts and warranty for the rebuild tranny.
i bet you seen her on ebay. she's driveable although some things need to be straightened out . brakes and such

nicobel

MIne: (S4 with aluminum rear flares,)
Cost of car: $6000 cash
Cost of Intake leaks fixin" : $ 450
Cost of new Torque Tube: $ 650 (prices include labor)
Cost of new steering rack : $ 450
Cost of typical maintenance: $ 400-500 /yr
Cost of ANOTHER torque tube and bearings: $ 120 (mech changed it under warranty)
Cost of FINALLY replacing rear torque tube coupler-to-tranny to keep shark from destroying bearings and tubes: $ 2200 (including A LOT of minor work by Mr Greg (thumbs up)).Lesson here: don't save on less expensive mechs, go to the pros and save yourself $$$ on the long term.
Cost of Alignmen job @ rocky's: $ 120 (cheap?)
Cost of new ECU or whatever left me stranded 2 blocks away from home: $ unknown yet...
(This is the good part)

Having the company i work for pay all the above: PRICELESS!!!!