84 Porsche 944...What would I be looking at for work ???

[Nufy]

Thinking about this for a winter project...

http://calgary.kijiji.ca/c-cars-vehicles-cars-trucks-84-Porsche-944-parts-car-W0QQAdIdZ409216887



Any thoughts / ideas at what I may be looking at work wise ?

I know information is limited and that its a gamble...

[BananaFob]

Clutch = $$$$

[rage2]

Money pit. Engine might run, tranny and clutch is bad. These cars are surprisingly expensive to work on.

[Kloubek]

I would not touch this with a 10 foot pole. Both BananaFob and I had the same 944, and we both know how expensive they are to work on.

Just keep in mind you're paying for new *Porsche* parts. Porsche doesn't care that the car is so old... they're charging you top dollar for the new product.

So... at the end of the day, you spend lots of money (more than an old 944 is worth) and what do you have? An old, outdated, fairly slow car that handles well.

Get a Miata. Far cheaper, and the top comes down.

[Redlyne_mr2]

Too expensive unless you part it out to make money.

[Nufy]

I went and looked at it and it looked as if it was sitting in a field for a few years...

I decided to pass.

[danno]

i've wanted one a 944 for awhile but fight it, the fear of repair bills or just expensive parts stops me.

the same thing happens with a 93-95 rx7, although i may actually buy one of these one day. drop a ls7 into it and good to go.

[Kramerica]

Worked at a junkyard and we got one of these and put it up for sale, problem with them is that the transmission is mounted at the rear and the engine is a 928 V8 cut in half. Ours was similar to the one in the ad and we ended it selling it for something like $2000 to some guy just for parts.

[CanmoreOrLess]

2x for an economical Miata as a project, blast to drive with very little in mods.

[GT4rally]

If there's one thing I've learned from buying older cars, it is to spend as much money as you can up front and get the best example possible. If you buy a car because it's cheap (especially a niche car like a 944) you'll end up spending more on parts and labour than a mint one would have cost you to begin with!

BTW - Don't buy a Miata... might be a great car on paper, but men should be banned from driving them! ... unless you really wanna look like a 16-year-old girl!

[Nufy]

No to a Miata...

I just don't like the look of them

I like to look of those 944 coupes.

I'm not after a speed demon.

Just a peppy car I can drive in summer...

I'll keep looking and maybe pop back here once in a while for advice.

[benyl]

You couldn't pay me to take a 944. The clutch will always be a problem. Even if new.

[Kloubek]

I wasn't actually serious about the Miata. (Though if one had a V8 dropped in it, I'd strongly consider it)

My point was that if you're looking for a cheap car that is fun to drive, there are far more realistic options out there than a 944 for most people. They are simply too old and too expensive to work on for what you'll get out of it, when there are other cars that are just as peppy and handle well without breaking your bank to maintain.

[CD007]

An FC Rx-7 has similar body lines to a 944.

[Graham_A_M]

In Top Gear UK, they did a $1500 Porsche Challenge, and IIRC, someone bought a 944, I think it was Jeremy.

Man.....:nut: if there's anything that episode taught me, its not to fool around with older Porsche's.
Fuck sakes....

[natty54]

Love my 944 (951) I have had it for a number of years and it has been awesome to me!

I would suggest to look at something that doesn't need to much work


This one has been up for a bit and looks decent:

http://calgary.kijiji.ca/c-cars-vehicles-cars-trucks-1984-Porsche-944-Coupe-Need-Gone-W0QQAdIdZ398253781

or this is a cheaper option:

http://calgary.kijiji.ca/c-cars-vehicles-cars-trucks-1984-Porsche-944-Coupe-Fully-loaded-and-Low-Km-W0QQAdIdZ411954616

[Cos]

.

[Graham_A_M]

^ That car has had more shit replaced on it in the last 5 years then all the cars & trucks I've ever owned since I was 16. :nut:

[rage2]

I owned my 951 (944 Turbo) for something like 15 years. That car nearly bankrupted me over the years, worst money pit I've ever owned. I truly enjoyed the car for maybe a total of 8 months split up over 15 years when everything worked lol.

If I had to do it all over again, I wouldn't. I could afford it now and get one to somewhat reliable state, but it's not worth the time or money. The cars are not terribly fast, they're not reliable, everything breaks on a monthly basis, always leaking oil regardless of how many seals have been replaced, and the handling is overrated. They say it's the best handling car in the 80's, which is true, until you realize a new Hyundai today handles way better than the best of the 80's haha.

You want something similar, get a 240sx haha. It looks similar and is much cheaper to work on.

[r3ccOs]

Originally posted by rage2
I owned my 951 (944 Turbo) for something like 15 years. That car nearly bankrupted me over the years, worst money pit I've ever owned. I truly enjoyed the car for maybe a total of 8 months split up over 15 years when everything worked lol.

If I had to do it all over again, I wouldn't. I could afford it now and get one to somewhat reliable state, but it's not worth the time or money. The cars are not terribly fast, they're not reliable, everything breaks on a monthly basis, always leaking oil regardless of how many seals have been replaced, and the handling is overrated. They say it's the best handling car in the 80's, which is true, until you realize a new Hyundai today handles way better than the best of the 80's haha.

You want something similar, get a 240sx haha. It looks similar and is much cheaper to work on.

I 100% agree

back in the peg, a buddy of mine worked and reconditioned parts on these as a specialty, as his old man was a porsche wrecker...

the 944/968 were fun while they ran, but in all honesty a 2nd gen RX7 and a Silvia were just as much fun and much more reliable

he had a 944 for a while he used to auto-x and race, but he just said "eff it" and restored a couple old 914's instead

though a Miata looks like a "woman's" car, its a hell of a drivers car... took my neighbor's 93' out a few months back and even in RHD and almost 20 years old... what a hoot it was

[Zero102]

I had a 944 (well, actually, 4 944s including a 951) and an FC RX7, and honestly the FC is SO much more fun than a 944 and so much cheaper to work on. With the 944 even when everything is working you have to worry about shredding the R&P on launches, snapping CV shafts and about going over 5200-5500RPM if you want your rod bearings to stay in one piece. Add that to the fact that you will be plagued with oil leaks and expensive replacement parts and it just sucks all the fun out of them.

That said, there is a particular feel to a 944 that I have not found in any other car, and they still have a special place in my mind, just not in my garage :nut:

[Redlyne_mr2]

Originally posted by Zero102
I had a 944 (well, actually, 4 944s including a 951) and an FC RX7, and honestly the FC is SO much more fun than a 944 and so much cheaper to work on. With the 944 even when everything is working you have to worry about shredding the R&P on launches, snapping CV shafts and about going over 5200-5500RPM if you want your rod bearings to stay in one piece. Add that to the fact that you will be plagued with oil leaks and expensive replacement parts and it just sucks all the fun out of them.

That said, there is a particular feel to a 944 that I have not found in any other car, and they still have a special place in my mind, just not in my garage :nut:

haha we had some fun and not so fun wrenching days on our 44's back in the day... the black pearl.

[Nufy]

So there are a lot of experienced 944 guys on here...

Do you work for beer ??? LOL