tone3721

Well, where do i begin? I bought my first porsche about a year ago, at first i was weary about buying a porsche thinking that they were unreliable and parts were very expensive. After some research, the feedback i got on 944's was that they were pretty reliable, and parts werent too bad, and they were just plain fun. I decided to buy one, I live in phoenix and i answered an ad on autotrader.com, about a 944 in excellent condition in las vegas. Well vegas isnt far for me, so i called the guy. He went on about how great of a condition the car was in and how well it had been maintained. I got to vegas to see the car,the interior was trashed but the body was good, the odometer read 152,000. i thought ok interior trashed, I know an ulpholsterer, no big deal. all the belts, pump etc had just been done, and i had the receipts for them in front of me. My thought was, well interior is trashed, but as long as the powertrain etc had been takin care of the way it seems i should be fine i can fix the cosmetics, and maintain whatever mechanicals come up as long as i dont have to do any "major" engine work. Well about two weeks went by, and as im driving down the road whatya know the head blows. I called the guy in vegas, and turns out he was selling it for his cousin who lives in greece...yeah. At this point he still had the title, i tried to get him to knock off an extra 500 because of the interior, he wasnt budging, but i did get him to knock off 200. I still owed him 300 dollars so he kept the title til i sent him the rest. Well obviously I refused and after arguing for a week, with some guy in greece his cousin finally convinced him to let the 300 go and send me my title. I got the title, and about 2 days later, the odometer jumped from 152,000 to 252,000. Whatya know!!!!! Weird huh??? Obviously i was sold a lemon. Well sometime went by and eventually I saved up enough cash to fix the head thinking itd be done, then i could get to the cosmetics. I had a local mechanic do the head job which ended up costing me about 1000, I thought everything was good. I was just about ready to go to paint and ulpholstery when low and behold, the head blew.... again. Turns out the mechanic did the valves too tight. So...i gotta do the head again. Well, about two weeks after that, as im just about to go back to the mechanic, the tranny goes. Well, im done I am not doing anymore maintenance to this 944. If it were a 5 spd and not an auto i might consider keeping it. The thing is I really loved this car, despite the problems. So Im really not sure what i should do here. Part it out? would i get more in the long run doing that? How long should i expect something like that to take? Do you think i could find a buyer to take it off my hands out right? I realize im going to lose money. I have close to 6000 in it now. My hope is to get as much as possible for it, and put some more cash down for a 944/951 that has actually been taken care of. Ive definately learned alot about what to look for when buying a 944/951 now. What should I do? Im really starting to become very discouraged with my porsche endeavors. I want to believe they are reliable, but damn, im almost scared to touch another one now. Please tell me, that i just got hosed and that there is hope!!!!!

livewirevoodoo

250k is alot of miles. If in fact thats how much it had on it Head and tranny gone, with $6k into it (after the original purchase) is alot.

I would say part it out. It would take longer, but in this case the total is worth less than the parts. I am biased tho, seeing as how its an auto and I;d be looking to grab some odds n ends from you.

On another note.. If the head blew a 2nd time b/c the valves were done too tight, I'd have expected the mechanic to stand behind his/her work and correct the problem.

Best of luck man.

PorscheDoc

Parting out an NA will not get you even close to 6k with a blown tranny and trashed interior and blown head. We parted a 951 with a motor that just had a $5k rebuild, and was just hit in the front end, and i think we made around 4-5k. The parting it out will take as long as you want it to, or as short as you want it to depending on how quick you are with the teardown. In the condition it is in with high mileage, blown head, blown tranny, sold as a whole, you are looking at probably 500-1000 bucks.

PorscheDoc

Oh and if you want to own a 944 or turbo, the only way they are affordable is if you do the work yourself. Otherwise they are a losing battle cost wise.

tone3721

Well,
I do do most of my own work. With the exception of major rebuilds, I dont have the space, tools, or time for that. I did my brakes/control arms/struts etc myself. Im guessing that i shouldnt have to worry about my head and tranny blowing on me a couple times a year. Other than those things, most I can do myself. Are 944's always one major thing after another like this??? I can keep up on it, but not if im gonna have to do major rebuilds constantly. Thats just ridiculous!!!!

PorscheDoc

I wouldn't say that major things happen all the time, but it is the small stuff that nickles and dimes you to death and you dont even realize it. I would think that if a mechanic did the head, that he should be responsible for the work. The tranny of course is a different story. Long story short, you will never get out of these cars the time or money that you put into them. They are purely a labor of love.

tone3721

Yes, and i love laboring on my porsche. But major work like this is not acceptable. The nickel and dime stuff i minimize by doing the labor myself. I would love to find a 951 that has actually been taken care of, that i could baby myself, i can cover the nickel and dime stuff. My problem is i got a lemon, now im gonna have a hell of a time trying to catch up, to be able to do this right again.

M758

you got an old car in poor shape. I hope you did not spend more than 1500 on the car to start with.

Right now complete it worth maybe $500. You can get more itf you part it out, but that will take lots of time hassles.

Why did the head go the first time around. If the belts were just done and NOT retightened they can fail. I have not head of heads blowing-up for anything other than timing belt failures. If you tech did the had and admitted he screwed the vavles then he should be on the hook for fixing the head. With the tranny the best thing is to look for a replacement one. 20th St auto has them . I figure you could get one for 500. auto tranny's are not worth much and should be avalible. What blew-up in the auto box.

Andriko

tone3721,
Trojan Horse
Sorry to hear your expieriance with your 944. The machanic should fix the head with no extra cost infact he should compensate you by half price rebuild on the tranny. Then find a second had interior or get it refurbed. If the bodywork and wheels are perfect then it'll be worth it at the end.

Good Luck
Never trust a Greek bearing gifts. I should now!

AJBERB

I would have to agree that the best person to work on your car is you. It sounds like you aren't afraid of tackling the small stuff but not having the resources to tackle the large stuff can be frustrating. I cannot advice you on whether or not to fix or part your car anymore than everyone else has. There are several schools of thought, and they all pretty much come down to time and money. I can however offer to sell you an automatic transmission from an 87 944 with 72,XXX miles on it. The car was wrecked and parked until I picked it up. I posted the entire story in an earlier thread. Pics of the car and proof that the trans worked when I removed it can be seen at this address.
ajberb.home.insightbb.com/944.htm
I would like to get $500 out of it. At this price plus shipping you can have anything else that I still have that pertains to the trans. Also, if my uncle comes to IL and I can convince him to take the trans back to Phoenix, then you may be in luck.
Feel free to send me a private message if you need more information. Hope this helps you make your decision.