i have been looking for a 928 for a while now.. but ust found my new car yesterday.
Originally i had a budget of about $12-15K MAX... but then y wife's cadillac sts timing belt broke... bye bye motor.. so i had to buy her something else, she got a 2003 xj8 jag.. so there went $8K of my budget...bummer.

so i was looking in the $8-9 k range.. after driving all over nc, sc, and va looking at cars i was torn between an s4 and the 85-86.. i like traits about both..

well abter looking at several s4's in the $6-8K range with trashed interiors, high school autoshop paint jobs, etc.... i found my new car yesterday.

It is a gold 85 with 105K miles. The interior is in great shape, the rear interior quarters are perfect, a few cracks in dash, but seats are good, as is armrest and center console. the hatch release and sunroof are the only non functional items..well the headlights come up slower than the others i looked at.

as for service it has just had the following done in the last 5K miles.
timing belt/pump/tensioner.
trans service
cv boots
motor mounts
steering rebuild
all new silicone vac lines
new dist caps, plugs and wires
K&N filter ( i know i should change this)

the cons:
it has a few spots of clear coat chipping on front edge of hood

the front window wipers are really slow... any ideas?

also the climate control is quirky... only works on defrost, and only on high.. ideas?
needs rear shocks

the sunroof motor comes on and turns and roof panel begins to move, but then stops like it is getting hung up on something... ideas?

the PO has not cleaned any grounds recently so this is first on my list, second will be the sunroof and shocks..

oh yea, the car also came factory service manuals....

all this for $4k.... woo hoo,
this will leave some money to keep the jag running....(died yesterday while i was in Maryland looking at the porsche)

thanks in advance for all the help i will be getting from you guys....

 

I would not run away from this; the maintenance has been done so it is just the little stuff that needs to be addressed. I have rebuilt 6 of theses so far all with similar problems, if the interior is good and TB was done go for it.
Picture please

 

Congratulations!

"the front window wipers are really slow... any ideas?"
Pull the wiper motor, clean and lubricate. Clean the fuse contacts and grounds.

"also the climate control is quirky... only works on defrost, and only on high.. ideas?"
Swap Relay X (blower relay) with Relay XII (horn relay). If that fixes the problem, get a couple of the "53" relays to keep in the glove box - you'll need them. Check/clean/change Fuse #17. Note that it is a 30-amp fuse.

"needs rear shocks"
Leaks? Bouncing?

"the sunroof motor comes on and turns and roof panel begins to move, but then stops like it is getting hung up on something... ideas?"
Clean and lubricate the tracks. If you continue to operate it with high resistance in the mechanism, you will break the ends of the cables - $$$. Make sure that the screw in the center of the gearbox is tight.

Do searches here for help on doing all of this - there are really good write-ups on all of the common (and lots of uncommon) repairs and maintenance. Go to http://www.nichols.nu/tips.htm for simpler tips.

Let us know if we can help - we are in Spruce Pine, NC

 

Welcome . Lets see your ride!

 

If you are in MD you will be able to get a ton of help from the NoVA and MD folks, myself included.

 

Congrats sounds like a steal

 

Did you see any other cars in VA, NC and SC that were worth an honorable mention?

 

LOL. We're such suckers for these poor neglected beasts, aren't we?

 

That sounds like a good car to start with really! Just a few little things! Sounds almost like my EURO85 that I got about a year ago out of CA for $3600! Every now and then you come across a diamond in the rough and just have to be ready to jump on it! Many of the same issues as my EURO that you are dealing with too!

Good luck and welcome to the group! Now it is time to join the 928 Owners Club so we can get you all plugged in with those guys up your way!

www.928oc.org

Come join us!

 

Congrats! '85s are awesome.

Replace the fuel lines.

 

i have really been torn between the s3 and the s4's
there are things about each that i like better... but something about this one got me as soon as i saw it.
you know how that goes.... i pulled up, looked at it, and the background music started, birds were chirping, the clouds parted and rays of sunshine blazed down on her in all her glory....LOL

I have not been impressed with any of the ones i have looked at.. there is an 88 in goldsboro that is super clean with carrera rims, but it is $13K.
there is one in rock hill SC that is an 89 sunroof delete. 175 K miles, ratted out interior, high school auto class paint job, momo rims, owner replaced motor after he had a tbf just after buying... says he did h2o pump and belt, but never did the tensioner, the tensioner warning was on, and when i asked about it, he said, oh, it has done that for the last 5 years... i poped the hood and when peeking around saw a pool of oil behind the fill cap sitting in the v of the heads... a pool...
an 83 in rocky mount for 4500 that is totally ragged out.. i described it in a post last month..

 

Contributing to the bipartisan rhetoric of violence!

Please move to P&C.


(just kidding)

 

i live on the coast of nc, morehead city...
as far as i have seen there is no one close by.. bummer..would love to have someone close by to spin some wrenches with..
after i take delivery, i will get the few qwerks sorted out then i will want some more hp...
just bought the wife a 2003 jaguar xj8... that thing will scoot.........no way i will stand by and have the wife's car smoke my toy...lol... but i am afraid that unless i can tweak the 928 that is exctly what will happen, so i will need a little help from you guys in order to put that cat in it's place...lol

 

It'll be sort of funny if that Jag ends up costing you more than the 928.

Congrats on a great deal.

The relay trick for the HVAC head is probably right; I've been told that the defrost setting has a separate relay, so the symptom you describe is classic for the diagnosis.

 

Nice car (even though I had to move my monitor sideways to look at it).

85's are nice and light and can really move with the Porken upgrades. Is it an auto or 5 speed? If it is an auto get that flexplate checked and release the preload.