Adk46

I've now owned a 928 for 13 months. I've done many of the standard maintenance tasks - myself, which has greatly improved my confidence and nerve regarding owning an old car. I've had no seriously frustrating moments, and I've not been stranded. Perhaps I should admit to being over-confident, or lucky.

I prefer to drive my 928 than my "new" 2009 Cayman S. Never expected this. The Cayman is an awesome car, the easiest fast car there is - the fastest car you can buy that gets 30 mpg, etc. The only challenge to it is avoiding jail.

So here is an interesting development: This week, I will be contemplating trading the Cayman for two cars at my local Porsche dealer. It should be fairly close to an even swap. One car is an '08 Cayenne with 113K miles, the other is an '08 BMW 750Li with 84K miles. They're both awesome vehicles with potentially debilitating maintenance requirements, but thanks to my 928 ownership, that's OK. The depreciation on cars like these is breathtaking, to my benefit.

Also, and more interestingly, my wife stumbled upon a local CL advertisement for a 1959 Austin-Healey Bugeye Sprite. There's a connection to the 928: the "bugeyes" were supposed to be like the 928 headlights, but cost-reduction prevailed. I hope to make a deal for it. It's fun to think about transplanting a 928 mechanism into it or crafting something more to scale, but of course, that would be Wrong.

Hobibill

Good for you! You are getting a lot of vehicle in exchange for the Cayman. I too got rid of the "new" car and now maintain a fleet of older, paid for, vehicles. Two 928's, a vintage BMW, an M3, Mini Copper JCW and my trusty Volvo V70 wagon. My reasoning is that if one breaks I have many others to choose from while fixing it. It's am awesome feeling knowing you and your mechanic are one in the same person. Rennlist, BMW2002FAQ, NAM and Brick Board are my best resources.

Adk46

Pretty sure this would be wrong....

dr bob

The bonnet on the Sprite is not even close to ready to support a set of retracting headlights. If you decide to go down this path, find a spare bonnet to do the surgery on. IMO the bugeyes on the Sprite are as iconic as the flip-ups on the 928. Fitting something different would be close to blasphemy on either.

On the Sprite--

The cars are amazingly simple and fun to drive. In stock form they are amazingly slow, handle poorly by any modern standard, and have incredibly ineffective brakes by modern standards. Many are 'upgraded' with later A-H and MG parts so they can be driven 'safely' on highways. But 'safely' is a very relative term. No seat belts originally, absolutely no passenger protection, etc. Great cars to putt around in locally, certainly a fun car to arrrive in.

Frame damage shows up easily, predominant in te area where the cowl sits over the frame. Rust is a devil demon on these cars, never intended to last this long. Like buying a 928, a competent PPI will help you appreciate what you are looking forward to.

----

In the mid 1970's I sold a MG TC I'd frame-up restored to a family friend who "just had to have it". I asked him pointedly before the purchase whether he wanted it just to have it, or if he was planning to drive it. He said both. I outlined the list of joys that are part of the vintage sports cr ownership experience, but enthusiasm deafened him. Within months he was after more power so it could cruise at maybe 50 MPH, better brakes, and in SoCal can we put air conditioning in it? And we have to do something about the horrid ride and handling so he could drive it more than maybe 50 miles at a crack. Like most older cars (it was 20 years old at the time), the car needed very regular attention in spite of having very sound but original mechanicals. At the time, almost all parts were still available from Moss Motors in the SF bay area if they weren't from British Motor Car Distributors conveninetly located in nearby Anaheim.

Oh, in his 80's now the old neighbor still has the car. It's on blocks and covered in his garage, unseen and untouched for at least the last 20 years. Not mothballed, not 'stored' or 'preserved', just parked it one day and that was that. Mechanicals were all great when he parked it, and it ran fine. He just got burned out on the constant attention it needed to keep it nice.

Adk46

Thanks for the encouragement, Hobibill, and the advice, Dr. Bob. I am prepared for the transition from an insanely fast car to the opposite. Although, with its 1150 cc Mark 4 engine, it might reach 60 in less than 20 seconds. Not that I'd want to go that fast. Holy smokes, it has lever-action shock absorbers.

Not gonna risk eternal damnation by modifying the headlights, but note that flip-ups would mount on the frame. Still fun to think about it, correcting an act of the bean-counters against design intent.

m750rider

There is nothing more fun than driving a vintage British roadster. As long as it's not raining, not too cold or too hot, not after dark, and not on an interstate. Always keep the top down and you won't be tempted to take it when you shouldn't. Fall is the best time - go for the Sprite.

Daniel5691

Of course, at this point you simply must look up and read the old
"Nigel Shiftright" comics from Road and Track magazine......

Adk46

The Bugeye getting the eye from me. No mistake, it ain't no GT like the car in the background. I'm going back tomorrow to drive it - I neglected to consider the rain.

Current owner is selling since he just had two knees replaced. After getting in and out of the thing myself, I'm wondering if my knees are up to it.

dr bob

Those wonderful leather seats with horsehair stuffing, lever-action friction dampers (albeit easily rebuildable), 13" wheels and bias tires. It will make "Turn the other cheek!" a very regular requirement. The Sprite was a kids' car, entry level economically, and suited for those less, um, concerned about things like access, heat, rain and such. Easy access to the boot too- just toss your soft bag over your shoulder to stow it. Crawl into the back to recover it later though. They were almost cult cars for a very long time.

Adk46

The first car the owner (67) ever bought was a Bugeye. He apparently was overcome with nostalgia and did something foolish on ebay seven years ago (you always want to bring your wife along to get the true facts from the owner's wife, whose enthusiasm about the car is actually about its imminent departure).

Note how he has a work light mounted permanently over the car. There's kitty litter under the engine. Anything with oil inside has oil outside, too. There are two odd-looking contraptions where the throttle body is supposed to be. It's a three-footer cosmetically. It may help me with another bucket list item: learning to weld (yabadabado!) On the other hand, the MM/OPG job looks like a one-beer job.

He has it priced as though it were a Hagerty 3.5 car, but it's only a 4. Taking his wife and his bum knees into consideration, he'll take less. I've got to have it, if only to take a good picture of it and the 928 together. My wife likes cars, but I've already had to say to her "I think you're missing the point."

WallyP

Way off-topic comments about the bugeye...

The headlights were to rotate longitudinally, leaving long bubbles on the bonnet, not flip up. Production cost would have been way too high, considering the rest of the design.

Unlike the TC, the lever-action shocks on the bugeye were hydraulic. The lever arms were the top suspension arm.

The day we first drove our old, well-used, well rusted bugeye, we hit a sudden summer rainstorm. We were soaked from the water coming up thru the floor, as well as around the removable (not retractable, removable) top and sliding side-curtains.

dr.bob neglected one of the greatest joys of driving a TC or a bugeye - looking to your left and up at the lug nuts of the semi front wheel above and very near your head. Not much fun in our heavy traffic.

A friend drove his from Burbank to Marietta, Georgia when Lockheed moved him. He is pretty close to James B's size...

upstownal

we used to mix STP in with the damper oil to improve handling while running in gymkhanas, I bought my first one in '74 and still have 90% of it, bought another in '04.