Are 944's not selling

[gemmerson]

Is it me or is the market for 944 S2 slow to stop. Been tying to sell my 91 S2 ( £5K ono) for ages, well,since end of March and nothing. Couple of calls but thats it. I live in Glasgow which doesnt give me the widest population range to sell to but I thought a good one, which mine is, would have gone quicker.

Any thoughts, wrong time of the year, or is a sub 100k good condition S2 just not worth £5k anymore ? I am not desparate to sell it, i need the space in my garage more than anything so will hang onto it for the time being.....

Any thought welcome


George

 

[ukmastiff]

If you have no great need to sell I would defo hang on to it. 944S2 prices are stupidly cheap. There are one or two potentially very nice ones but with fairly high miles full history etc for sale at the mo for around £3,000. I know everyone will say you dont get a good one for 3k but sorry at the mo it is possible.

Im actually keeping my eyes out at the mo for one to stick away. I'm also looking at 968's and even good ones with history are ridicluously cheap, it's an insult to our cars.

The market wont be helped by the fact that middle earners like me have just been hammered in the budget either, lots of folk who would happily borrow a few thousand last week are now going to tighten their belts ( sensible too).

Maybe I'll drop the 968 and get a nice 2.7 lux or S [] why not I like them all ! (almost)

 

[robwright]

It probably is worth 5K mate but I don't think the market is up to people spending 5K on endulgences just yet. I had my turbo on ebay a short while ago for circa 5K and didn't have any luck either and she is worth every penny and I wouldn't have taken a penny less. I am actually kind of glad though as now I get to keep her []

 

[pauljmcnulty]

I know everyone will say you dont get a good one for 3k but sorry at the mo it is possible.

Absolutely. And, it's possible to buy the worst for £7K.

George, I'd think the biggest thing hampering your sale is location. With plenty of cars for sale, being in the South East or Midlands ups the potential market dramatically. Advice, as always, is keep it if you want to keep it, if selling is essential then you may have to take a low offer in the current climate. [&o]

 

[iputthebootin]

Ive had my 85 lux up for sale for nearly 4 weeks now and not one phone call or email about it. Its been on ebay twice and although there have been umpteen people watching it i got no messages or questions at all.
I think its fairly priced considering whats been done to it and its pretty much the cheapest on pistonheads but still no joy.
I know its not as sought after as an S2 but all the same i thought i would have had at least a call to test the water.
Although im not desperate to sell i cant go ahead and start 928 hunting without it gone. Id rather keep it than let it go cheaply as i know i'll regret it.
Shaun

 

[Northern924]

Think I've mentioned this before but, I saw this happening with 924's 4-5 years ago.

Personal opinion on this that the 944 is sufferung the same fate the 924 did, freefalling prices as the cars get to an agew where they need more care and attention, and of course money.
The years of them being bought for 6 months and then thrashed by people just wanting to see what their childhood hero car was like are finally taking their toll on most of the cars which is driving the price to rockbottom as people try to shift them before the bills start rolling in.
Knock on effect is that the prices for good ones are also effected, I finally moved from 924 via the S to a 944 last month and bought mine for £700, £400 later and its MOT'd, taxed and being used as my daily drive.
A lot of cars will be broken or scrapped over the next 2-3 years, and I'm of the opinion it'll take that long for things to start turning around for the 944

 

[robwright]

I know what you mean mate I had over 50 watching and over 1500 page hits and still not a stiff!!!

 

[Northern924]

Lots of people dreaming and no-one with the money to buy expect for the ones selling for £1-1.5k but these are the cars needing more care than most people will want to give them and sadly thats the cars that will die within the next 2 years

 

[Alpine]

I bet you can get a Boxster for £5k now, so only someone who really wants a 944 will buy one. Someone who just wants a "Porsche" will buy a Boxster. I'd price it at £4k if you really need to sell it.

 

[Northern924]

Very good point there Phil, thats something I hadn't factored into things when I as looking at it, the Boxster is fast becoming affordable, and the people in their late 20's who might now be able to afford a cheap Porsche and who grew up gazing at Porsches on the to school like we all did would have been gazing at Boxsters the way I gazed at 944's every time I walked past the dealership.

just had a quick look and you're right, Boxsters from 97-99 can seemingly be had everyday for around £5.5k [&:]

 

[Lowtimer]

I think that's the reality: the "cheap Porsche" brigade are on Boxters now, and 944s are now at the start of a population crash that will take out about 80% of them over the next three to five years, as many of the current owners will not have pockets deep enough to save them when they require expensive attention. By 2015 most roadworthy survivors will be (very) rare minters that were never allowed to get rusty, and a larger number of high quality refurbishments and / or ful restorations which have had a fortune spent on them, especially on the bodywork. By then they will be like the 912 and SWB 911 family are now: a car that was cheap and unfashionable for a long time, but which is now rare enough for supply to match demand at a level which (to some measure) reflects the cost of the necessary work. Obviously it will always be cheaper to buy one that someone else has paid to do up, but with the majority of the current cars going out of circulation I can easily see prices going up x2 or x3 for a good one in five years' time.

This is not intended to be a recommendation for a get-rich-quick scheme. Even though I reckon by the time 2015 turns up a good Turbo with everything working and no rot will be worth at least £10K to 12K at point of sale in today's money, I reckon by then, any such car will have had at least twice that sunk into it over preceding five or six years (assuming the work is done commercially rather than by talented amateurs who do not cost their own labour).

 

[JM1962]

The 944's time has not yet come, this is because there are still too many of them about, and the reason for this is because they were so well made. Take a look at Capri prices to see what I mean, the 944 is a miles better car in every respect, and there were originally less of them, but the Capri was a rust bucket and now there are few left and the prices are strong, as 944 numbers dwindle the price will strengthen. I regularly see 944's on the road, but Capri's are like rocking horse poo.

Personally I would pay 5K for a top quality S2 and even more for a Turbo, but I'm a sucker for 944's and even for me it would have to be almost perfect at that money.

Advertising cars is cheap, so start high, try your luck, and if you want or need to sell, gradually drop your price until you get some interest.

 

[robwils]

Just had a look at your add on Pistonheads, can you send me some more pics of interior, the one on advert isn't good quality when its enlarged.
Got someone looking at my mini tonight so my hunt for a 944 might get a boost in priority if mine goes.
I had seen your ad, not my ideal colour but looks a nice car.
They are still selling, but slowly in my view.

I've seen a few 944's and 968's over past few months that have been sold, most had to take offers though from what I gather.

Rob

 

[Helen Goff]

well i've just bought a 944S2. there was lot's to choose from for up to £3k i didn't bother looking at anything over that.

 

[tref]

Gentlefolk...

So we are finding our cars are depreciating... what would you buy that does for you what a 944 does for you that isn't?

Now putting it into perspective, how does the depreciation of a 944 compare to other similar cars, never mind new cars?

Consider the likely difference as money saved - it'll make you feel better!

 

[plenty]

Unfortunately the market for these cars is dwindling to a hardcore of knowledgeable enthusiasts.

As has been pointed out, the Boxster is now at a price level to attract those who want "a Porsche", and for those same people a newer car with typically fewer miles will also hold obvious appeal.

The front-engined car flies under the radar for most buyers nowadays. On paper, the likes of E36 M3s and Evos/Imprezas offer more bling and more performance for the same money. The qualities of the 944/968 are more subtle, and sadly unless you grew up with these cars, chances are you don't appreciate what they are all about.

 

[Copperman05]

I guess therefore then that prices will only appreciate when these cars are no longer bought as cheap Porsches but bought because they are classic Porsches, us enthusiats are the only ones doing that at present (both as a cheap car and a classic). Whether the 944 will be seen as a worthy classic for many remains to be seen, I personally think its one of the best cars from the 1980's, perhaps another 10-15 years is more realistic before we see any appreciable difference in the value of these cars.

Edd

 

[Lowtimer]

It all comes down to supply versus demand. At the moment there are a few very good cars around, plenty of visibly tatty ones. Crucially however plenty of cars around that look OK but which have substantial tinworm hiding away. Most of those cars will disappear off the roads by 2020 because most of the people who are interested in buying a £2k or £3K 944 are not prepared to spend what it will take to restore them properly (which is what they will need is they are to look as good in 2020 as they do now.

So in 2020, most of the currently visibly tatty ones will be gone. By then most of the superficially OK but actually problematic ones will also be gone. As I said before, I reckon that takes out 90% of the presently registered cars.

The only survivors will be in two categories:
1) the very rare minters that have never been allowed to rust (always garaged, slathered in Waxoyl, rarely put away wet and never parked at the seaside etc) and
2) those which have had considerable restoration work, with a LOT of money spent on them.

I reckon that means 90% fewer roadworthy 944s than there are today. That in itself drives up prices, and by definition, the people owning the cars in either category 1 and category 2 love and value them considerably, and are not going to sell them cheap. Mine will be one of those. So at that point anyone who wants to buy in will have no choice but to pay the value that tempts an existing owner of a restored to part with it, or pay the even greater price of buying one of the few remaining tatty ones and having it fully restored.

Jim's comparison with Capris is instructive. The massive reduction in the Capri population came earlier because the cars themselves were older but also because they weren't galvanised. The galvanisation of the 944s is wearing out now and the population crash is starting to happen.

 

[pauly]

Having owned quite a lot of V6 Capri's and RS Escorts I think the price they make now is comical but there is no accounting for old school nostalgia, as the 944 isn't generally regarded as a "real" Porsche the purists will never pay big money for them, in time they may make proper money but the best chance of that will be LHD cars sold in Europe.

 

[Lowtimer]

Or exported to the USA perhaps!