eBay purchased 928s- what was your experience
11-14-2007, 02:27 PM
#46
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Dan we both know that you are far from the typical 928 buyer. Most buy one because they would like to DRIVE it , not work on it 
or pay someone to "fix" it. You have the knowledge ,time ,and desire to work your way out of any bad car deal , even if it means parting it out .
or pay someone to "fix" it. You have the knowledge ,time ,and desire to work your way out of any bad car deal , even if it means parting it out .
11-14-2007, 03:27 PM
#47
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I hope I didn't stimulate a bias against Ebay 928 buying with my remark about $$$ and time... It's more a lament that I have to work for a living, have home responsibilities and would like more time to work on my 928 than I have so that I can finish it sooner (which is why I'm subleting to my mechanic). Two related things.
One - I fully endorse the comment about buying parts on Ebay. I've saved tons by judicous (key word here) buying of parts on Ebay - example radiator - Porsche dealer price - about $1,800+ (my opinion - go to 928 speciality sites before buying from Porsche dealers - same quality, save lots), EBay auction (used) $350 (and it checked out with radiator shop leak test! - lucked out I guess).
Two - If you are somewhat mechancially inclined you can acutally work on a 928. I've had Japanese rice rockets (incl. Acura RSX) and you can't fit you hands in there to work on 'em... The Germans have engineered 928's for working on them - if you have the tools and time. I installed the s/c kit by myself (noone helped) in the driveway including pulling off / putting on crank pulley, MAF, radiator, fans, etc. My general experience is that working on 928's is within the reach of the weekend warrior mechanic (with a little help from the Rennlist forum ;-) ..
My purpose here is an experiment. I'm looking to end up with a near supercar as a daily driver. A 928 seems to be a great platform to start with - 5 liter V8, excellent brakes, handling out the box and classic styling on a level of Jaguar XKE (IMHO) - except 928's have modern meachanicals / electricals. I started w/88 928 S4 at $9K, will end up with about another $10K+ for maint. AND S/C kit. So, let's see $20K+ for a 400+ HP (rear wheel HP) Porsche quality handling / braking / classic 928 look and once maintained 200K mile expected life... seems worth the experiment to me. my 2 Duetsch Marks....
One - I fully endorse the comment about buying parts on Ebay. I've saved tons by judicous (key word here) buying of parts on Ebay - example radiator - Porsche dealer price - about $1,800+ (my opinion - go to 928 speciality sites before buying from Porsche dealers - same quality, save lots), EBay auction (used) $350 (and it checked out with radiator shop leak test! - lucked out I guess).
Two - If you are somewhat mechancially inclined you can acutally work on a 928. I've had Japanese rice rockets (incl. Acura RSX) and you can't fit you hands in there to work on 'em... The Germans have engineered 928's for working on them - if you have the tools and time. I installed the s/c kit by myself (noone helped) in the driveway including pulling off / putting on crank pulley, MAF, radiator, fans, etc. My general experience is that working on 928's is within the reach of the weekend warrior mechanic (with a little help from the Rennlist forum ;-) ..
My purpose here is an experiment. I'm looking to end up with a near supercar as a daily driver. A 928 seems to be a great platform to start with - 5 liter V8, excellent brakes, handling out the box and classic styling on a level of Jaguar XKE (IMHO) - except 928's have modern meachanicals / electricals. I started w/88 928 S4 at $9K, will end up with about another $10K+ for maint. AND S/C kit. So, let's see $20K+ for a 400+ HP (rear wheel HP) Porsche quality handling / braking / classic 928 look and once maintained 200K mile expected life... seems worth the experiment to me. my 2 Duetsch Marks....
11-15-2007, 01:48 AM
#48
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Dan we both know that you are far from the typical 928 buyer. Most buy one because they would like to DRIVE it , not work on it or pay someone to "fix" it. You have the knowledge ,time ,and desire to work your way out of any bad car deal , even if it means parting it out .
or pay someone to "fix" it. You have the knowledge ,time ,and desire to work your way out of any bad car deal , even if it means parting it out .I drive the 928 too - when it runs. I just had the convertible out for a spin last week.
I may be wrong here, but if you are going to pay someone to work on one of these cars based on what I have seen in bad and costly repairs you both have to be a professional Basketplayer (PO of convertible), a successful auto wrecker or just be prepared for wasting a lot of money and experiencing endless disappointments.
I am helping a friend transplant a Euro S motor to a low mileage 78. So far without the cost of the motor we are $2500 into parts and the motor is still out of the car. There are so many other issues like rack bushings, brake master, clutch parts, timing belt change and bad hoses that the price of parts just keeps climbing. That is with using good used parts when possible, after market motor mounts and fabricating wiring harnesses. Add in labor and this is well into a $10K job without rebuilding the motor.
Dan the Pod Guy