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Just about to buy.....

A

AntB

New member
Hi All,

After some pointers and advice if possible..

Am just about to say yes to buying a 1989 2.7 944

The car has done 78K with full history... Body is pretty much immaculate and the only sign of wear is some dash cracks and a little bit of Drivers seat wear - but nothing thats not repairable,
Its had new Koni Suspension, Turbo ARB and all re-bushed...

The car has been very well maintained and serviced over and above specification,

Cam belt and all bearings / rollers was done at 64K - although that was 4 years ago so would want a new belt on it this year even though its only covered 14K.

So i have read most of the buyers guides and taken all that in, but does anyone have anything that they think I should look out for specifically based on the specific car details above... Sills are mint as are the rear arches...

I'll be using the car daily but will not be covering masses of miles - probabily 6 - 8k per year.

Thoughts - and thanks in advance

Anthony
 
ORIGINAL: AntB
Thoughts - and thanks in advance
Click to expand...
I really fancy a cup of tea, but I don't have any milk.
I've run out of biscuits as well.
I have a meeting in an hour's time which I am not looking forward to as the other people who will be there are exceedingly incompetent and very annoying (and I don't suffer fools gladly.)
Blandford Fly is an excellent tipple.
Tory MPs are less corrupt than Labour ones, and their party leader has shown much more real leadership over the whole scandal than the Labour one.
I need to get on and book a holiday.
The 10-year-old macallan is a better choice than the 12, in my opinion.
When will the recession end?

What sort of thoughts were you after?


Oli.
 

ORIGINAL: zcacogp

ORIGINAL: AntB
Thoughts - and thanks in advance
Click to expand...
I really fancy a cup of tea, but I don't have any milk.
I've run out of biscuits as well.
I have a meeting in an hour's time which I am not looking forward to as the other people who will be there are exceedingly incompetent and very annoying (and I don't suffer fools gladly.)
Blandford Fly is an excellent tipple.
Tory MPs are less corrupt than Labour ones, and their party leader has shown much more real leadership over the whole scandal than the Labour one.
I need to get on and book a holiday.
The 10-year-old macallan is a better choice than the 12, in my opinion.
When will the recession end?

What sort of thoughts were you after?


Oli.
Click to expand...

Well - lol - they are very nice thoughts - but was thinking of anything along the lines of the car I mentioned :)

A
 
My thought would be ... why not ask some definite questions, then we'd be able to answer them!

This is a 944 forum, so everyone here loves 944's. No-one will tell you of their downsides.

I trust you have read the various buyers guides and considered (if not gone for) a PPI?

How much are you paying for the car?


Oli.
 
Sounds great - buy it [:D] no, really, I mean that, it will be a lovely car from your description, although pics and price would help. 78k is very low - most people drive their cars a lot. Check all the electrics - little stuff that can pack up through non-use like window switches

but back on topic:

I'm just going to make a cup of tea - feeling a bit thirsty
I'm in meetings all day - the biscuits are free (and I'm being paid to be here [:D])
Tory MP's are much more corrupt - but on the whole richer (An ex-colleague of mine is now a Tory MP - I am looking forward to seeing his expenses [:D])
Taylor's Landlord for me please
have you ever tried Springbank? - worth seeking out
early next year is my bet
 
OK great - thanks for the elec pointer...

Will get a pic up to show you..

One specific question I have - whats the average fuel consumption (MPG) reckoned to be achieved on these engines?

Cheers
 
Anthony

Hi and welcome. Based on my own personal experience check these following areas:

1. The heater matrix. It's a cooper coloured looking thing under the dash, make sure there are no signs of leaks or you'll be removing the dash to replace it. Still, if your dash has cracks...

2. In the engine bay, below the windscreen is a plastic cover shrouding the heater blower. Make sure it's not cracked or missing. If it is, it isn't expensive, but it'll mean your heater blower is probably not long for this world.

3. Does it idle when warm? Test by getting it up to temperature, turn off wait for five minutes, then re-start. If not, it's the idle valve, easy fix but fiddly.

4. Get under the car toward the rear wheel, driver's side. Hopefully you'll see some thin solid fuel pipes - if you see braided fuel hose then they've been repaired. Not ideal, but not an MOT failure either - tends to make car smell of petrol however.

5. Check the condition and efficacy of the brakes. Budget for new pads anyway, unless you've got evidence of a recent change, on the basis that if the owner has fiited Konis and turbo ARBs, he's been a keen driver. Same with tyres, and if it's got Pirelli P6000s, no matter how old budget for replacement as they don't work at all well on our cars. Falken FK452, Toyo Proxes or Goodyear Eagles are good choices based on the experience of those on the forum.

6. Under the rear of the car, passenger side look at the gearbox. Check for leaks, or evidence that the oil has ever been changed. If it hasn't, it's highly likely that the drain plug will be seized solid. Not a deal breaker, but these cars do benefit from regular gearbox oil changes.

7. Back in the cabin, check the gearshift - is it floppy? If it is, then you can live with it, or it's a new gear shift stick for the front and/or the selector on top of the gearbox. The latter is fiddly.

7. Check condition of rear seats. Any water marks suggests a leaking sunroof seal. Again only £60 but it all builds up. While there check the correct operation of the sunroof, should go up and down with the engine on, but retract the lifter bars in IGN 1 position to enable the whole panel to come out.

8. Check the condition of the headlining, - they lift away sometimes. More of a nuisance than anything.

9. Check everything electrical works. Look for the speedo needble jumping around when on a run out.

10. Check the front seats. Sit in the driver's one a rock back and forth. If it moves, the runners are either not bolted down, or worn. Unlikely given the mileage but you never know.

11. Check under the driver's side front wheel looking forward for leaks from the power steering pipework. Check for any leaks for that matter.

12. Check under the passenger side front wheel and look at the radiator - you should just be able to see a blue drain plug. Check it's not weeping coolant, as they tend to crack. Buttons to replace, but involves draining and bleeding the coolant system.

13. Check for the feel of the clutch, although this is difficult to determine unless you've driven other 944s. Not a cheap job to replace, so if it's slipping budget hard (i.e at least £500 off) or walk away.

14. Check history for general good housekeeping of the car, trips to the OPC network to buy small items etc, etc, showing the owner is an enthusiast of the car, not of the brand. For example there should be no trim missing, as everything is still available for our cars, and bit just aren't expensive. I'm thinking switch blanks, carpet clips, spare wheel retaining bolt, that sort of thing.


Meanwhile I am currently enjoying some Auchentoshan Three Wood, and a Clynelish 12 yr old. I am a big fan of Rosebank too, but it's getting expensive as the distillery closed it's doors in 1993.

Hope that helps

James
 
The big things to worry about would be the bodywork and the clutch and the cam belt.

Broadly, rust is starting to be a big problem with 944's. Lux's seem to fare a little better than S2's/951's, but check those sills CAREFULLY. They can be (and often are) tarted up cheaply for sale, but start to look very ropey very soon after.

Cam belt - just make sure it is changed regularly.

Clutch. At that sort of milage it is likely to be original, and will possibly do a fair few miles yet. But check it's condition (you can measure the wear underneath the car by measuring the position of the release arm) as changing it is either a big or expensive job. Not much change from a bag of sand for that one.

That's a low milage car. Which isn't a good thing. What's it's history? Broadly, ones which have been driven are better than those that have sat. I'd strongly suggest that you use it every day, and fairly hard; they improve massively for regular use.

Fuel - my S2 averages around 27mpg, and I reckon a full tank of juice will get me between 350 and 400 miles. That's fairly mixed motoring, but I live in London so it will be more traffic than most. I would expect a lux to do better than this.

On topic:

I'm just going to make a cup of tea - feeling a bit thirsty
Make me one as well then would you? White, 1/2 spoon of sugar, stirred anticlockwise ... thanks!

I'm in meetings all day - the biscuits are free (and I'm being paid to be here [:D])
Great - you can bring a biccie with the tea then! I'm being paid to be here too, amazingly!

Tory MP's are much more corrupt - but on the whole richer (An ex-colleague of mine is now a Tory MP - I am looking forward to seeing his expenses [:D])
Call-me-Dave will have him publishing them on-line - it'll be easy to see ...

Taylor's Landlord for me please
OK. I'll have one of those after the cuppa you are bringing over ...

have you ever tried Springbank? - worth seeking out
No, never heard of it. Tell me more ....

early next year is my bet
Fat hope. This is a biggie. 2012 before we're back where we were in 2007/8.


Oli.
 
Oh yes, and everything that James mentioned above ^^^.

(Buf if he's on the hard stuff this early in the day then he's definitely an alkie[;)].)


Oli.
 

ORIGINAL: zcacogp

Oh yes, and everything that James mentioned above ^^^.

(Buf if he's on the hard stuff this early in the day then he's definitely an alkie[;)].)


Oli.
Click to expand...

Very good. Actually, all this talk of tea means I was just about to put the kettle on!

 
Tea with Clynelish? Tut tut tut. [:D]

At least it's not ice. I'll give you that.

Apologies if I seem to be out-of-sorts in this thread. An evening with an old friend and a bottle of Laphroig has left me feeling distinctly as if I would rather be elsewhere this morning. [&o]


Oli.


Oli.
 

ORIGINAL: zcacogp

Tea with Clynelish? Tut tut tut. [:D]

At least it's not ice. I'll give you that.

Apologies if I seem to be out-of-sorts in this thread. An evening with an old friend and a bottle of Laphroig has left me feeling distinctly as if I would rather be elsewhere this morning. [&o]


Oli.


Oli.
Click to expand...

Oli, genius stuff once again - clearly should be a writer or on stage somewhere...![:D]
 
ORIGINAL: edh
(I don't like Islay malts - I find you get the same flavours by winding the window down as you drive past the Coalite plant nr Chesterfield [:D])
Click to expand...

HEATHEN! BURN HIM!
He drives a turbo too - no taste, no style, no mercy to be shown!

(Thanks for the link BTW).


Oli.
 
What are you guys like! [:D][:D]

One thing to add, check the sills from the inside, as they can look fine from the outside. Pop the black vent in the door jamb and you can shine a torch down or even get your hand in and take pictures with a camera or phone. Slight signs of corrosion are inevitable, and it's a good time to treat the sills to prevent it spreading. If you can see daylight that's not so good.

Car sounds cracking from your description, if it's that good it's worth paying a bit extra.
 
Well am making a 2.5 hr drive to Somerset to go and look with the means to buy and take away..

The guy who is a great guy and very Porsche knowledge-able has sent me MANY pictures that pretty much cover every angle top to bottom back to front in and out!!!.. I wanted to make sure it was worth my while before I travled.

this is the Pistonheads add:
http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/sales/1028570.htm

Cant wait!

A
 
hiya ant, sounds like your getting a nice one and good luck, are stickers in place, any gaps in the history and all fluid changes done on time,yes mileage is low, as she been sitting about for a long time not being used? do you have all previous mots and hpi report,are all the electrics working regulary?i think you can only try and cover yourself and you seem to have done that apart from ppi , so all the best and your buying a great car [imho] in the 944 regards jason p
 
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