JE_951

I have been doing searches on the web and on rennlist but i cant find out what years of the 944 turbo are the best. One of my fathers friends said that the 87's were the worst of the 944 turbo but didnt say why. So now im asking all of you guys, what years are the best, and what years/options/whatever should i look out for?

Ski

There isn't a bad year. 86 is the lightest of the bunch, 89 has the most standard options and the most stock hp, along with the 88 S model.

theedge

Only BIG changes between the years is the offset change for 87 and later, and the fact that 87 and laters are heavier due to standard ABS and airbags.

Price is different between them all though, 86 was most common.

Bri Bro

My 87 doesn't have ABS but it does have airbags. I like the 87 better then the 86 because of the wheel offsets and the front hubs. The Turbo S is the best and most expensive.

Bill

In my humble oppinion there are no bad years for the 944 Turbo. Now you may say that there are years that are better than others. This of course is up for discussion.

86 - Lighter because it does not have air bags, anti lock brakes. Some say best model to heavily modify, because you pay less for this model and modifing changes most of the 86/87/88 parts (excluding 88 "S" and 89). Most common at 10, 937 produced.
87 - Safer because it has air bags and anti lock brakes. Changed wheel offset, so you can use all late Porsche rims (996, 997, etc.). 4,974 produced.
87 - Turbo Cup produced for club racing in Europe and Canada. I think these were street legal in ROW. 99 produced.
88 - Same as 87 unless you get the limited edition "S". 2,865 standard 88's produced.
88 "S" - Big upgrades. Larger turbo. Larger brakes. Hardened first gear. Limited slip diff. Larger torque tube. Beefier spindles and hubs. Stiffer suspension. Adjustable shocks. Special exterior color. Special interior. You will pay a premium for this model, only 1635 made (Porsche stated only 1,000 were to be made, but increased the amount). It would be a shame to modify this model.
88 - Turbo Cup. 193 produced.
89 - All "S" upgrades came standard in this model. Probably the best stock street version of the 944 Turbo (excluding the cup cars, but these are harsh thinly veiled race cars). 2,718 built, deluted the specialty of the "S" model.
90 & 91 - Turbo built but not imported to US. 1,233 produced in 90 and 1,028 produced in 91.

RolexNJ

I agree with what alot of people said. No really bad years. I guess it gets down to what do you plan to do with the car? Keep it stock? Do some minor mods to it? Track it? Or.... build an absolute HP beast? I think that is a better question to ask yourself. Then from there people could ask you more specific questions, and then steer you in the right direction. I have a 1989, but before I bought that year, I knew exactly what I wanted to do with it. So for me, that was the best choice.

black944 turbo

Also the 86 came standard with the oil cooler on the tranny. Early offset is cool due to being able to run fuchs and a bigger lip on the wheels is possible. It is much easier to get wheels for the later cars though, unless you run spacers.

spyderman

Their are a few engine differences between the 86 and the rest of them. the 86 has a manual belt tensioner, the later have a Manual one, no big deal. Their is a smoother finish on the lower crankcase half on the 87 and later, again no big deal. and the balance shafts on the 86 have bearing caps that are held on with two stud and the the cover placed over them. the 87 and later the cap is part of the cover and is a lot stronger. the studs on the early ones tend to brake and the balance shaft says good bye and can cause a lot of damage. no big deal, unless it breaks

JE_951

Thank you guys for all the info!

But on what RolexNJ said. I plan to buy a fairly stock turbo with exception to maybe a few bolt-on parts or suspension upgrades. It will be have to be fairly reliable (porsche wise) and comfurtable. Later when im out of school ill go into big HP or highly modding it but for now it will be a daily driver and will see rain and take me to and from school.

which leads me to another question.

How reliable are these cars? Say i buy a car that has had new timing belts and a good tune-up. Will I be looking at lots of maintinence or will it be good to run for awhile? Now i know im just a kid but im good at keeping my toy's clean and well running.

RolexNJ

Based on what you just stated, I would think the best bang for your buck being in school is an 1986/87. Those will be probably, not always though, be the cheapest for you to buy - especially being in school. You can always add mods/upgrades to it later on, and not pay for it now in the price of the car.

And are these cards reliable? Remember, these are older type of cars, so they will need maintenance on them compared to more modern cars. If maintained properly, they are pretty damn relaible. For example, there are some guys on here with cars that have well in excess of 140K miles on them. I would look at a few 1986/87 models that are near your budget, then check the maintenance records of them. But regardless of what you decide to buy, you should get a pre-inspection done by a Porsche dealer or a shop before you even consider making an offer. If there are things wrong with it, you may be able to use those to negotiate down the price. I did this with my car.

There is a list of maintenance items that should be done to a car on a web site called www.clarks-garage.com. I believe he has a sheet that talks about what you should look for before you buy a car, and what you can expect as regular maintenance too. I'm not 100% sure of this though, but if you visit his site you will see for yourself.

I hope that helps you. But listen to what others have to say here too and good luck with finding one you like.

jmporsche944

In terms of reliability, my 86' Turbo has 198k miles on it and she still runs super strong.

KuHL 951

There were no bad years. The 86 is best if you plan to upgrade with aftermarket TRurbo kit and will surpass the stock Turbo S with just chips. A Turbo S upgrade (not suspension) for the 86 can be done for less than $1000 and will get you near 300 rwhp. The lighter weight and trans cooler is a plus on the 86 and you can run both early and late wheel offsets. They are all great cars if you get a good one. Good luck on your search.

EdC

Since you are looking for a driver rather than a project, plan on spending more initially for a well maintained model, rather than less for a fixer-upper. Choose a well maintaned example with high mileage rather than a low mileage neglected model. If the little things were neglected, it is
more likely the big ones were too.
The biggest routine maintenance expense is the belt/water pump replacement. Cracked dashs seem more common on those that have seen lot of time outside.

Eyal 951

86 is most abundant, so easiest to find. 87 has lots of litte (some big) differences. Basically, as you would expect, they get better through the years. My 87 does not have abs, and I like it that way.
Eyal

shortyboy

i have an 87 and i kinda wish i had a 86,only because i also have an 83 944 with some cherry fuchs i wanna run on my 951.hahahaha.if you want some air bags and abs stuff im stripping my car down so if you need those ive got em.