Hey everyone! I'm excited to say that I'm a new owner of a '88 928 s4. It belonged to my uncle before me and now it's turned into my project car.

It's black and has 92k miles on it. I thought that was pretty good, but after lurking around here some today I saw some that were bought with around 35k!

Anyway, the car sat in his drive way in the open for the last year and half without it being driven. Since having towed it to my place I've replaced the battery and begun to work on the common no start problem.

I've done some reading up and tried to narrow down the problem. The car turn's over, but doesn't start so I used some starting fluid and was able to get the car going, but just as soon as it starts it dies. I attempted to give it some gas when it got going, but it did no good. I then pulled a spark plug and checked it for a spark and also noticed it was wet, so it seems to be getting gas. I checked some of the fuses and there seems to be some corrosion, so I intend to clean those next. I read that some of the relays can cause problems as well, but I am afraid to pull them out for fear of breaking them. Do they simply pull out or is there a special trick? I'm not 100% sure about my LH, but I think it is ok.

I'm glad to have come across this site with so many knowledgeable people and DIY's!

Oh, and any recomended tools I should pick up? I noticed some people suggest getting the hammer for diagnostics.

 

Welcome to the board!

Where are you located? Might find some local help. Tools? All of them?

If it runs on starter fluid, it has some spark, maybe not enough. Sounds like you have some fuel. Could also be a bad vacuum leak. Starter fluid will make anything run for a couple seconds with a little spark.

 

Sounds like you have a nice car, black 88 with under 100k, nice.
Is it a 5 speed?

 

Welcome - sounds like a great project car.

The relays pull straight out, but they can be very difficult. Disconnect the battery and use an L shape tool to hook under the bottom of the relays, once you get a little movement rock it back and forth to help get it out. It is a good bet that from sitting that the relay internal contacts have some corrosion so I would recommend replacing the three critical relays and go from there.

 

Before you put anything L - shaped under the relay, make sure it's not metal or the battery is disconnected...

 

Already have some good advice in here. I live near Destin, Florida and it's an automatic. I'm a bit bumed out about that, but I'm still very excited.

Repairs on this car will be pretty slow going till I graduate this december, but maybe some hard work and cleaning connections I can get it running before then.

 

The wet plugs are a possible telltale. When you have the key on but before you crank the starter motor, do you hear the injectors clickity-clacking a storm under the hood? Hood up, your head out the window, listen for it. If you hear that, start saving up your spare nickels for a fuel injection brain. common age-related failure, unfortunately.

I have the same car but a year newer. Just broke 90k on it. Black with cashmere interior. Mine hasn't been sitting out for 18mos though. Take advantage of the knowledge and experience of other owners in your area. There are a few particular watch-outs when the car isn't running right, so if/when you get it started be sure that you don't let it run poorly for any length of time. Risk of fire from overheated catalysts if unburned fule passes through the motor, for instance. I'll warn you now that these are not cars for those with thin wallets, especially if it turns into a serious project. Be patient with the car, and don't try to shortcut stuff on the cheap. Do it like you mean it, remembering that you are working on a car that cost as much as many houses when it was new. The fact that you got it for cheap doesn't change the need for proper love (same as 'money and attention') when it comes to your new baby. First-year costs on better 'project' cars can easily exceed $5k on mechanical maintenance stuff alone if they haven't ben taken care of.

If you haven't done so already, browse the new user FAQ at the top of the first page. lots of good tips there, along with links to many of the better support pages.


LBNL, Welcome to Rennlist and the best 928 model support available. Greatfolks here will help you avoid many of the sometimes costly mistakes we've made. You are blessed with having one of the finer supercars of it's time. Enjoy the experience!

 

Destin? I'm in Pensacola / Daphne. 30-40 minutes away. If the board doesn't get you straight and you're still having issues in a week or so I'll drive the Shark down and lend a hand, or at least an eye.

Another Gulf Coast Shark! We're catching up on the DFW crowd now.

 

Welcome to rennlist! I hope you can get it running, so you can experience the perma-grin many of us experience when driving our sharks.

 

This could be interesting. Count me in, I live 15 miles for Destin. Santa Rosa Beach to be exact and also can get my hands on a hammer.

We might could even get Blitz928 to drive over from PC.

By the way welcome...

 

Welcome! Congrats on the new toy.

Now STOP!!!!

Before cranking the engine again, remove the two air tubes along side and above the heads, and look down in the small holes on the black belt cover just behind the distributors. Use a flashlight and inspect the belt carefully. Turn the engine by hand with a socket on the crank bolt and look at the whole thing. If it doesn't look absolutely perfect in there, you need to investigate closer. If it looks good, you can continue, but be warned, that if you have no knowledge of the timing belt age or condition, it is to be assumed that it needs a timing belt job right now.

Failure to heed this warning has cost new owners many thousands of $$$$$ to repair.

Next, you'll need to check the thrust bearing play. Search for TBF or thrust bearing check and follow that too.

Failure to heed this warning has cost new owners many thousands of $$$$$ to repair.

Best of luck, read the FAQ at the top of this sub forum, and ask direct questions like your relay question. It's been answered so I'll give you another bit of advice. Lay in the pax footwell with a pair of small pliers and remove all the fuses one by one. Clean the contacts and check continuity then replace them.

 

Good job on knowing what you want..now it is time to really get to know what is going on with a 928. Anytime a member says "STOP" then you should . No more starting fluid !! I got my 1988 S4, AT, Indischrot red in Sept 07 and I have only just scratched the surface. If you have a place to work, try to get the car off the ground to look at all underside issues. I assume your uncle just about gave you the 928, so you are already miles ahead of us as far as money goes, but that is where it stops or starts !! It is all you now.. Check that Timing belt or wait and let Ricer or someone show you around. The 88 automatics typically will have issues like : torn steering boots, torn axle boots, leaking or seeping oil pan gasket, fried knock sensors, a good look around underneath will show you alot. Also, you will find that cleaning all the grease and dirt from under the car will show you everything. READ the books, either off the CD or look for the manuals...the wiring diagrams alone are crucial. Good Luck and do the homework before any further attempts at trying to get it to run. These cars are not Fords.. you can really create more $$$$ and work for yourself . Keep on asking questions...Join RennList... Buy a case of good beer and invite the locals over.. Good Luck, Kevin

 

Welcome and good luck.

Spend some time doing the research and resist the temptation to try cranking it over in between each test to see if it will start.

Why was it parked in the first place? Did your uncle have problems with it? Did he give you whatever service history he had on it?

Definitely do some research on the timing belt and thrust bearing failure (TBF) that can happen to automatics.

These cars are finicky about deferred maintenance. Actually they are very strong runners and usually several things have to go wrong before they actually stop running completely. Unfortunately to someone who's already considering taking it off the road or selling it, these warnings go unheeded so by the time you pick up a non-runner it often has a complicated array of issues to be sorted out.

Start by cleaning. Cleaning. Cleaning. Clean the contacts, clean the grounds, clean the bottom of the engine so you can see if it's leaking from anywhere. (or everywhere)

Between the research and the cleaning you should have plenty to do until some of the Florida crew can come over and show you how to inspect the belt and possibly check the tension.

These cars are not for the faint of heart, but if you really have a passion for it, you found the right place to hang out, learn, get support, and get your car on the road and cruising where it belongs.

Good luck and keep us posted.

Oh, and another thing.

Need pics please!!!

 

Welcome, We need more 928s in the panhandle, PM me sometime, sine I am just down the road from you.

 

That's it. Panhandle GTG. Let's pic a date guys and meet up in Destin. PC is a bit far from me. Let's have a beach meet for some cool photo ops. I can bring the RV so we can bbq on the beach. I know of at least 2 or 3 other panhandle sharks. Mark Silva may still have his Euro, though it was on craigslist.