mattylan

Gents,through a colleague at work, I have become aware of a potential restoration opportunity.

Car is a UK 1980 light metalic blue manual 4.5 updated at some time to wear an S rear spoiler and stickered up on the rear. It has 102k on the clock and the service book indicates it was properly serviced before it was stuck in a garage in 1989 and left ever since. Owner is now moving home and needs to move the car on.
Pictures (quite a few but I struggle with the fact that they can only be uploaded from the internet rather than off the hard drive,will try to upload some later)
http://i1281.photobucket.com/albums/a505/mattylan1/Photo-shoot_0085.jpg

show the obvious : tyres are shot, some pitting of the teledials, bodywork looks ok apart from a little patch on the rear hatch under the lock. However the interior has severe mildew with much of the black leather on the seats and dash covered and I suspect some of the cloth inserts are beyond salvation.

My question is this however, the visual damage is one thing, but I need to know what else should be considered / replaced to save this car, particularly from the point of view of the engine etc.

Unfortunately as we all know financially this car is likely to be suicide (10k spent to have nice 5K car etc, but I love the colour combo and it's a manual!!)

Please remember that I am based in the Uk, and whilst there are a few sharks over here, parts are in short supply compared to the USA, and therefore more costly to ship etc.

If someone has a definitive list of what needs to be reviewed/replaced and what it cost them to do it, I would be hugely grateful. If nothing else it would give me an idea of whether this car is recoverable or simply a potential spares car.

Thank you in advance for your help and advice.

Regards

danglerb

5 spds were common in early years, parked 23 years a very good chance coolant has turned acid and eaten away various internal areas. No way to know until the motor is apart. Figure all of the fuel system will need rebuilding or replacing, all the hoses.

Restoration and opportunity don't belong in the same sentence in reference to a 928.

Mold and mildew mean everything in the interior needs to come out, and the smell may never really go away. Anything porous I doubt can be cleaned. You will be VERY deep into this car before the worst is known.

Parts car.

Jadz928

Total BS. All depends on what one considers an opportunity.

Your cynicism continues to impress me.

Alan

Sounds like it will be a lot of work to bring this back - and quite a few unknowns without committing some $$ and time to it.

I agree that mildew on the interior means likely you need to replace much... could be rust in places you can't see yet.

You can dig down in a few places to get an idea...

Spare tire well and battery box bottoms, rear & front under the carpets.

Don't start it - but with fresh battery - what appears to work electrically?

Drain some oil and evaluate condition

Drain some coolant - and evaluate condition

Raise it and look at the underside for damage & corrosion

In the end you may need another parts car to make this whole again - early cars are quite plentiful - many are likely in better interior and possibly mechanical condition than this...

At the very least make sure its not a total basket case - if you buy it for the body and the body is shot...

Alan

mattylan

Thanks to those who contributed to this thread! The opportunity was passed at the time, but has reared it's head again with the possible involvement of a friend who is prepared to "nut and bolt" it !!

mattylan

well it appears that I am now the proud owner of two 928's!

Wish me luck!

Landseer

Congrats! Fun hobby!

ROG100

Congratulations - have you found the 928 UK forum yet?
Lots of great 928 people in the UK - John Speake for his technical help, Simon Watson for lots of used parts.
Email me at Roger@928srus.com if you need there contact info.
Need parts and I can help as we ship to the UK every day and I speak the Queens English with a slight, very slight Texas drawl 8>).

hacker-pschorr

+1

I'll never understand the negativity towards the idea of restoring any 928. Just because you will end up with more money into the car than current retail / wholesale value, should not be the only deciding factor.

I've been around a lot of restoration projects (few if any 928's) and most, I would say over 90%, end up with more invested than the car will ever sell for unless there is an unexpected spike in the market.
This includes Corvette's, vintage Porsche's, Ferrari's, classic muscle cars etc... The only exceptions are the very rare and sought after models like one Shelby Cobra, vintage Vette's with all the correct markings, history, paperwork, and options, E-type jags restored before that market spike etc...

If the chassis is straight, it's worth restoring. Even the chassis issue is debatable.

I've always seen the comment "$10,000 away from a $5,000 car" as a realistic comment, but not a negative one. Most of us have more into the car than it will ever be realistically worth. So what? Just enjoy the damn thing.

Those with race prepped cars must laugh hysterically at these comments. They have more in tires per season than most 928's are worth. Hell, the roll cage I want to have made for my 79 is worth more than I could sell my 79 for.

Unfortunately body work can be the kiss of death for most projects since few of us can paint our own cars and those costs can add up quicker than almost anything else. Thankfully the body wrap market is really taking off giving us another option.

docmirror

You're in it now. It'll be amazing how much better it will look after a real thorough cleaning up. Sure, there will be plenty of stuff you can't see, but getting much of the crud of the car will give a better idea on the paint and int bits. The thing to remember is that it was parked for a reason. Until you know what that reason is proceed with care.

Before starting engine:
1. Remove plugs and spritz WD-40 or equiv in the cyl and let sit a while.
2. Drain all fluids, flush coolant system with clear water.
3. Replace fuel lines. Don't even pressurize the fuel system without new lines.
4. Clean fuel tank, may need some Sea Foam, or other type of mineral spirits, take off fuel pump and investigate.
5. Inspect primary wiring for rodent damage. If you see damage to the hot side(usually red wires), replace to prevent a dead short which could start a fire. Clean all ground points.
6. Remove fuel injector head under the intake and have it rebuilt, we have a guy in the Colonies that can do it for you.
7. New parts before starting: All fuel lines, batt, coolant, oil and filter, fuel pump and filter, vacuum lines, ignition wires, spark plugs, air filter, timing belt.

Hilton

PICS!

AirtekHVAC

Amen!

mattylan

Thanks for the messages of support, I'm going to need all the support I can get I think, but the colour and manual box are the kickers for me! PS please note that it has had "S" rear and front spoiler added later, it remains a 4500cc engined car! as always pic's are preferred to descriptions, all comments gratefully received and thanks for the "what to do first list!"

Engine bay looks okay considering!




Interior looks unpleasant!




Spare wheel doesn't look like it's ever been moved ( but we all know that this will not be the case with the battery underneath!)









What looks to be pretty straight sides!

69gaugeman

Pull the air cleaner and afm off and look for corrosion. My barn find car required me to replace my intake as there was so much corrosion nothing moved.

See here. Post #36

mattylan

Thanks 69gaugeman , have been following your thread with interest!