ALFAPU

Here's an '83 in Lynnwood:
http://seattle.craigslist.org/see/cto/2108294714.html

An '84 in Graham:
http://seattle.craigslist.org/tac/cto/2107565890.html
(I have a rear wiper, fenders and a valance for it)

Camsti

Yea ive already looked those up

Camsti

I emailed the 83 in lynnwood, just waitin for a reply.

Camsti

it says best offer for the one in lynwood..heres what he sent me in a email.

Unfortunately, my main computer quit on me, and all my pictures were on that, but it looks just like any other 944 - the bad part is mainly the paint - it'll need to be redone if you want it to look pristine (a wax and claybar might actually bring it back to life), and the interior definitely looks like it's 26 years old. No rust and no body damage though.

It's definitely daily drive-able. The engine runs strong and starts every time. I drive the car several times a week. It also comes with 2 extras headlight bulbs and 2 extra tires (+1 spare).

- Josh

Camsti

like $2500 maybe?

Camsti

Alright have an update on the 83 in lynnwood, He bought the car last march, and he immediately took it to a porsche repair shop and had the timing belt (which was only 1 year old) tensioned, and an alternator strut replaced. Oil changes are current and he recently had the coolant and brakes flushed, The clutch is decent and smooth. I'm not really sure how much its worth not knowing the condition of the interior..what do you guys think would be a good offer? He said it starts up fine and drives fine.

ALFAPU

You really should go check out the car before you make any kind of offer.

If he wants you to make an offer then either he doesn't know what the car is worth, he thinks it's worthless and just wants it gone, or he wants to find an idiot that will offer him $5,000. Personally, I love it when a seller says "make an offer" and I always lowball them at first just to find out how much they really want. I think this is simply a case where the seller doesn't know what the car is worth to him and with the holidays coming up, he is getting desperate for cash.

If it were me, I'd offer him $500 at first, but I'm kind of a jackass when it comes to buying cars. Remember, it's your job to buy the car for as little as possible and it's the sellers job to sell it for as much as possible. If he doesn't want to do his job then lowball the hell out of him. Just because he declines the initial offer of $500 doesn't mean the negotiations have to stop. It's just a way to find out where the sellers head is at.

Also don't let him dazzle you with receipts for work done years ago. If he paid $2,500 for the car and put $2,000 into it, that doesn't make it a $4,500 car, it's still only worth what the market will bear. Right now the market won't bear very much because this is the worst possible time to sell a 944 and you are probably the only person willing to buy it.

Camsti

Yea i totally agree, i just never bought a car from a private seller before. My plan is to obviously look at it first and drive it.. then offer him an amount. If i went to go look at it say..this weekend, My budget would be $2400. I was actually going to first start at $2000 lol..theres my lack of negotiation experience for ya. Since im not much of a jackass lol..would starting at...$1000 be good? Then if he doesnt like it...$1200?

ALFAPU

After the first few minutes of examining the car you should make a mental note of the maximum amount that you would pay for it (this comes from research and experience). If you can get it for less than the price you've got in your head then it's a good buy.

I think $1,000 is a good place to start and if the owner doesn't laugh you out of his yard, then you know you're on the right track with your offer. What will probably happen is the seller will say something like "well, I was hoping for more like $2,500" and that's when you point out that the interior is trashed and the paint needs work, so you offer him $1,500. He will say "how 'bout $2,000?" then you will mention that you looked at one last week in comparable condition that you could have picked up for $1,500. You will both settle on $1,700 and you will drive it away.

BTW, I have owned five 944s and haven't paid more than $850 for any of them. They all needed some kind of work (don't they all), but I drove them all home. I'm a bit of a jackass by making lowball offers, but I am never rude about it. Don't tell the owner that the car is a piece of junk and he should sell it to you cheap, if it was a lump of crap then why would you be making an offer on it? Don't play dumb and try to convince the seller that you don't know what you are looking at, he will instantly raise the price because it's a "Porsche". Instead, prove to him that you have done your research and explain why you feel that your offer is fair.

ALFAPU

Also, stop off at a Department of Licensing and get a pre-printed bill of sale and proof of purchase price for the seller to fill out. I don't know how the DOL works in your area, but whenever I try to transfer a title with a hand written bill of sale and without the paperwork to prove the purchase price, they always try to tax me on the NADA value of the car. NADA is somewhere around $6,000 so that's around $600-700 in taxes and fees!

ALFAPU

...and last

If I'm negotiating with a seller over the phone I will say something like "if the car is as you describe it, I'll offer you $x,xxx for it". If my offer is reasonable to the seller then I know it's worth my time to drive 1.5 hours to go look at the car. This does not mean the offer price is set in stone, you can still make a new offer after you see it.

ALFAPU

Here's a pretty nice one for $2,500 or trade:
http://seattle.craigslist.org/est/cto/2115513157.html

Do not pay more than $2,000 for the '83 in Lynnwood!

Camsti

Hey guys I've been busy the last few days looking and talking to a few people with 944s, today i went to go see a white 84 in kirkland. It's really clean inside/outside, no signs of oil leaks or power steering leaks. clutch is good, shifts fine, alignment is spot on and ride is good, the drivers side mirror fell out so theres no mirror in there. While driving and idle, the oil pressure was right on from the buyers guide that i went off of, 2-3 at idle and between gear changes. The Temperature guage has no signal and i think it might be from the sender unit. The coolant overflow tank had no signs of previous over heating, has 142k miles on it. It has the Porsche sport seats, the lights work good, its all stock right down to the airbox. I drove it on the freeway and at 60mph the steering wheel started to wobble and i read that its pretty comon at those speeds. I read that it could be a ball joint or one of the front wheels to be out of balance. I went on this on ramp for the freeway that is basically a big circle and i cant believe how well it handles. I was telling him that i had an s2000 before and from what i felt, it would keep up with the s2000. It does not bottom out, wheels are in great shape, new tires.
It does not smoke at all, even when revved.
http://seattle.craigslist.org/est/cto/2115513157.html

I got him down to $2100 and ill be picking it up thursday, just wanted to let you guys know and that im pretty happy with it.

Camsti

It also had a new coil, plugs, wires and he had a shop install it.

ALFAPU

Good deal!

I've got a spare drivers side mirror glass if you need it.