I hope it wasn't, I wouldn't be able to afford to buy this bronze 944 just to 'pass the time' i understand i will be learning about the car a lot more from owning it but then quickly selling it when a white 944 with the right interior comes up might not go as swiftly as expected.. then i'm going to be gutted! My mechanic friend also wasn't answering calls so i would of had to of gone down by myself, which i wasn't confident about doing as knowing my luck I would of missed something significant... [&o]
Advice needed on buying an 85' 944
- Thread starter Bloooor
- Start date
I hope you all don't think i've just been wasting your time, i keep searching everyday incase the right one pops up and i then frantically start thinking where to get the extra cash from to buy it! lol (The bronze one posted before still hasn't sold too.. which i'm surprised about as it looked immaculate in the pictures etc) but anyway... i've come across this.. http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=261203623107 email has been sent regarding belts/pump/seals/tensioner and additional pictures regarding rust, if it has any.. it's a million miles from me down south but has a lot going for it, low mileage could be an issue if it's been sat and things have began to seiz but i love the fact it's had 1 owner from new that was on my list of finding the right car for me to treasure. Awaiting a reply from him/her now, hopefully all is well with the car so far, will look through this thread again for things to ask (as there is some great advice in here) One thing i did pick up on is the interior, i'm sure i've only seen it in the later models..? I've asked him whether or not it's been changed by himself or whether he got the car with it in, i shall wait and see.. Either way though.. the excitement bug has come back [
] I so hope it's been looked after..
] I so hope it's been looked after..
andy watson
Moderator
At that price if the sills are ok then it's a bargain, rare to come across sole owner car with low mileage can't understand someone making an offer instead of just buying it, run a big risk of losing it!
"Dear bloooor, Hi, I'm not terribly mechanically minded. I tend to take the car to my mechanic who drives an old Porsche himself and have done what he suggests as I trust him. However,I have a bill to say the timing and balance shaft belts were replaced in may 2004 when the MOT from April 2004 shows a mileage of 62507. I didn't have the engine bay resprayed but as far as I know all the metal is sound. If there is any rust on the wheel arches it appears very superficial but I preferred to leave it for the next owner to deal with rather than to do a quick cover-up which I felt would be dishonest.One or two of the wheel rims would benefit from another refurb but that's not much money. I'm pretty confident that the underside is in good nick as I had it cleaned up and waxoyled (if you know what that is) as part of the refurb in October 2010 at my mechanic's suggestion. The interior is as I picked it up from Charles Follett's showroom in Mayfair in 1984 so I can confirm it is standard. Only the cd is new... a JVC with aux in. I obviously don't know the state of the other cars you've been looking at but I doubt they would come close to mine. There again if you want a 944 in concours condition you'll probably need to spend 3 or 4 times the amount I'm asking. I don't know where you're based but you'd be welcome to come and have a look for yourself. Best regards" "Thanks for the reply, I have been advised that the belts/pump and seals should be changed either every 4 years or 48,000 miles, whichever came first (some on the porscheGB forums even say 3 years and 30,000 miles to be safe so i'm a little worried about them not being done in the past 9 years. I live in Manchester os it's around 3 hours drive one way, I'm trying to see if anyone i know is close by they would be able to go round, when available, to have a good look around the car. I understand the rust may seem superficial from the outside but i've seen a lot of horror stories throughout the forums, some really badly repaired sills/rear quarters before and it almost put me off finding a good 944 (2 layers under the painted front sill layer can both rust through and from the surface it just looks completely fine) Few pics to show you what i mean. The sill looked fine, had a few bubbles, so he grinded back to metal all looked fine apart from the corner - http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f1/ed525sport/SAM_0982.jpg Then after poking back under that layer, he found this.. - http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f1/ed525sport/SAM_0985.jpg The other side as well - http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f1/ed525sport/SAM_1022.jpg Such a shame it happens to them, people have said the salt we use on the roads at winter really don't help. That's my main concern and with living so far away, i can't just pop round to check for myself so sometimes pictures would help just to clarify anything before making a journey down, hope you understand. Regards, - bloooor" "Dear bloooor, Hi I was quite amused when I saw the photos you sent. I mean there's rust, then there's rust and you can see from the attached what I mean by rust. As for the timing belt, they're only a problem if they go and so I don't think you should worry about the early years of the car. And since I had them replaced the car's only done 11000 miles and has been garaged for the rest of the time. I'm from Manchester originally by the way. Regards" I don't even know how to reply to that [] he doesn't seem to be taking anything in and just saying 'i wouldn't worry about that' when i'm spending £2500 on what could be a rust bucket..! Some people..
- http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f1/ed525sport/SAM_0985.jpg The other side as well - http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f1/ed525sport/SAM_1022.jpg Such a shame it happens to them, people have said the salt we use on the roads at winter really don't help. That's my main concern and with living so far away, i can't just pop round to check for myself so sometimes pictures would help just to clarify anything before making a journey down, hope you understand. Regards, - bloooor" "Dear bloooor, Hi I was quite amused when I saw the photos you sent. I mean there's rust, then there's rust and you can see from the attached what I mean by rust. As for the timing belt, they're only a problem if they go and so I don't think you should worry about the early years of the car. And since I had them replaced the car's only done 11000 miles and has been garaged for the rest of the time. I'm from Manchester originally by the way. Regards" I don't even know how to reply to that [] he doesn't seem to be taking anything in and just saying 'i wouldn't worry about that' when i'm spending £2500 on what could be a rust bucket..! Some people..
pauljmcnulty
Active member
Hi Adam, I'm confused here. Are the pics of the rust current? In which case that's not a well-loved 944, as rust coming through like that a few years after a respray isn't ideal. Again, if he's saying he uses a Porsche specialist to service it, and has owned it from new, it's very odd to say the belts are fine if you ignore Porsche's basic service schedules. I'd not even think about it, but I might be misreading the post. to me, your close-ups are from a car that needs the same again spending to get the bodywork and wheels sorted. If it was mechanically exceptionally good that would be something, but there's no mention of major work that WILL be imminent. I know it's boring, but 944s do have a clutch with a rubber centre that perishes regardless of miles; allow a grand. Head gaskets perish regardless of miles, allow a grand. Belt service can involve a lot of extras if they all need doing at once, allow a grand. Tyres perish regardless of mileage, so if not recent four tyres, all wheels refurbed, suspension refreshed and a decent alignment and, yes, another grand gone. If you do all the work yourself then fine. Paying a specialist at proper rates, I'd say this is a car that's going to cost nearer £10K from the ad (no real info about service history), and your pics of the rust. It might well not cost that, and an early lux with one owner and low miles, once restored, might be worth nearly £10K, but I'd say that perhaps your first early Lux should be a scruffy, but honest, cheap one. You can learn on it, and throw it away when it's broken. I'd even say go for a 924, simpler and half the price, and £2.5K would buy a really stunning 924S that's easily as good as an early 944.
I always hate seeing a reply from you Paul because you're usually right.. haha The fact that he's told me he has limited mechanical knowledge but then insists on telling me 'not to worry about the belts not being done just frustrates me, it's a terrible trate I have to get my hopes up about something but when it all works out, the feeling you get is great! I'm going to look for a more cheap but drivable car 924s/944 (not to throw away though, would be handy to have parts/spares for when i find my enthusiast owned cared for 944) but more so to learn from and just to enjoy as the sun is showing it's face a lot recently.. Thanks again for the info, i honestly can't fault this forum for information and advice i've received, has always been top quality. Adam
andy watson
Moderator
Well that is one misleading advert! the pictures that you have been sent are they recent or before the respray?? And belts, why does everyone try and blag it? [] it is in the handbook
] it is in the handbook
Just in the interests of completeness, the first 944s had manuals that said the belt didnot need changing. Porsche certainly amended that after the first year or so.!
Good evening, it's been quite a while since i last posted, had a few ups and downs with the family, work and general life but i'm happy to say, things are slowly getting back to normal. I've began my hunt again as the 944 has always been with me, i've just had to push it to the back of my mind until recently and started my late night searching for the right one.. I did in fact come across this one again.. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Porsche-944-2-5-Lux-Grand-Prix-White-lots-of-history-spent-recently-plate-/111158497426?_trksid=p2047675.l2557&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEWAX%3AIT&nma=true&si=dFdLJ%252FH6tWdtRwde9URxgILQgEM%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc I remember speaking to him a while back (before complications arose and i had to use my money elsewhere) and it miraculously re appeared again as Richard didn't sell and continued to use it over summer. Hoping everything goes smoothly, does anybody know him from here? Seems very genuine when speaking to him through emails but i've always got that voice telling me something might not be right.. i blame the news....
It's mine, hopefully.. I've put a deposit down and been speaking to him lots over email but i always rush ahead and never ask for important information like address and telephone number etc so i then get this pit in my stomach that someone i don't know, don't know where they live or who they are now has £200 from me.. i probably shouldn't of told my friends as they just make me paranoid! lol That's why i just wanted to see if anybody had met in person before so i could get some sleep tonight
Greg James
New member
Nice well done I'm really starting to get a thing for the square dash. I'm sure it will all be fine. Enjoy.
The CD was a fantastic Purchase and sounded even better on the drive home [8D] Never missed a beat on the way home, i've started a project thread so i can get stuck in on getting things sorted over winter and keeping a list of everything i've done (always great to look back through too) Put some pics up from inside the sills and also a vid of the passenger side, will take some pics of otehr areas tomorrow as it's meant to be sunny so will be getting her out of the garage and going for a local drive! Thanks again for all the help so far, link to the new thread if anyone is interested - http://www.porscheclubgbforum.com/tm.asp?m=798346&mpage=1&key=󂺊 Adam
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