Matt: He's got an offer north of $1,500, so you'll have to do better and he apparently has OTHER dismantlers who will beat that. Let's keep bumping this up, the more we find out about this car, the better. I think it will get more interesting.

I just found an empty potato barn for rent. Maybe I will join the bidding. I just have find out about the local FIRE CODE.

 

I'm not sure where you guys are coming from. This car is definitely worth more than his buy-now, period.

 

I would fix the problem and continue your restoration.

Just my nickels worth (inflation).

 

By you 'guys', I think you mean Steve. The rest of us know it's worth more... hence the at the end of my 'bids'.

 

Probably. If the holes in the ad don't bother you, then have at it. As I said originally, I would like to see the car live, but the ad doesn't do it justice IF Chris is not covering up something. The ad glosses over major points. The problem is with the ad, not necessarily the owner, but the information is in 2 OR 3 places here, and not in the ad. Car is not as pictured. Ad does not use standard eBay form with mileage. Has transmission issues. Looks like it has been keyed. Radio is missing, floor mat where the "fire" was has been removed. Sorry if I was sarcastic in original, Alan said it better; anybody is welcome to disregard. If it's so valuable to the "dismantlers" I'm sure they will be bidding. IF it is JUST a harness, somebody should be all over this.

Matt rolls eyes continuously, pimps me and offers $2 more, what is that about? Seems to be about me, not the car. Be my guest.

 

Here's what I think:

If you see a fellow Rennlister sell their car and you have issues with their veracity, then either PM them or post here for all to see. But don't keep going on and on and on ad nauseam.

If you think 3600 dollars is too much for a keyed, harness-fried, tranny-troubled S4 with real potential for restoral, I just don't know what your expectations are. But 3600 for an S4, unless the engine is toast also, seems really good. The compression can be tested.

Lastly ... when a fellow Rennlister tries to sell HIS PROPERTY, why the heck would you want to get inbetween him and a sale? I mean, if you're interested or have some sort of srtanding, I understnad ... but why oh why put YOURSELF in the way of his selling his car?

No offense intended Steve, but what you're doing is making everybody unhappy. He won't be able to sell his car now. No matter how good it is. Why would you take that upon yourself?

 

Chris-

Invest the time with Scott M. and see if you can get the wiring in shape. It will be easier to work on the car with the door off anyway. Depending on your results with that, decide whether to put the new door on or the old one, whether to drive it home or have it picked up. Drive it home and keep it.

$3600 is less than the value of just the used motor that just had the expensive front stuff replaced. The car sounds like it was OK before the cat fire. Maybe it wasn't a garage queen but so what. I'm amazed that vultures haven't bought this already. Instead, they sit on the fence making snide comments about the car's description.

So I say fix it. Takes you a day or two and a $grand, that pegs the value at $5-7k ready to roll in your driveway, paying yourself a couple grand$ out of that for your risk and effort, and including Scott and having to fill his 'fridge. The numbers all say fixit. Do it before the vultures swoop in and start ripping at the flesh.

 

Thanks all. I figured out that the insult was just someone's attempt at price negotiation. Phone offers have already reached the BIN price, but I'm trying to weed out the dismantlers and thinking a lot about how to find time to pull the dash out and install the wiring harness.

I really wanted to make this car reliable enough to replace my Infiniti as a daily driver. Right now my guess is that the wiring harness, (and MAYBE the DME?), would accomplish this. My 911 is too small to carry my bags to the airport on some trips, and is so low that I don't want to drive it much in heavy city traffic. The 928 is a heavier car that would provide more protection if a soccer mom hits me with her SUV, and I actually prefer sunroofs instead of targa tops these days because I like to shut the roof when a phone call comes in.

By the way. The tranny is perfect on this car, and was rebuilt in 2002. Also, the eBay auction is listed as an Engine and drivetrain for sale, with a car included, but no wheels. Shipping is not listed as an option only because eBay's price calculator would not work with an item this large and heavy.

There is no rush on this sale, but one caller sounded sincere and has made a reasonable offer that I am considering. He had a vavle/piston collision and it sounds like he has more spare time to work on his car that I do. This week I'm visiting my reps around Florida, and most weeks I visit at least one other state. If

I thought I could install the wiring harness in a weekend I would not be selling the car. Having restored several 1950's Mercedes and built numerous hot-rods, I have the ability to turn a wrench. However, wiring repair is tedious work, under-dash work hurts my back, and I have precious few hours to spend with my kids (and my 911) these days.

You guys are great, and I intend to always be an active Rennlister and to always own at least one Porsche. My timing belt party had about 8 sharks at my house, and it was one of the most satisfying days of my car experiences to date. Those guys all live about an hour from me and I truly appreciate the time they shared, as well as all of the time invested by Rennlisters on this thread and others I have posted. If there was ever one single moment in my wrenching history that I could take back, it would be the moment that I left that hidden coil wire off.

 

Heinrich: Membership does not automatically make anyone honest any more than eBay does. Since none of us here is actually bidding, as far as I know, this is all just rhetoric. But I thought Rennlist was about a free exchange of information . . . . . . . and opinion. I really don't think I can make people feel bad at least not with this keyboard alone, in other words the car, or engine as it were, will stand on its own. I'm sure Chris is a fine fellow who has refurbished numerous cars and made a costly mistake on this car, and questions are lost on him. (Hint: on eBay: When someone asks about options they aren't asking about the milage or the sunroof.) True, this has far more attention than it is worth. The ad is an example of how not to list a car. I spoke with him about the car. If anyone reading this is going to bid, do your homework.

While editing this, I see you have already replied. You seem to want to have the last word. Please be my guest.

 

I say, if you think 3600 is too much for a POS S4 you are wrong. What would you like him to sell it for then .... free?

 

Engine, trans, and S4 have sold for the BIN price. The same buyer also agreed to buy the wheels.

He got a good deal, and the following prices are current market values listed in 928 Specialist catalog and/or 928 International catalog.

$4500 USED engine (plus mine has new tb/wp)
$ 950 USED auto trans (plus mine was rebuilt in 2002)
$2250 Per 3-piece turbo-twist techno wheels = $9000 when new

$7,000-$10,000 total value