Considering Picking up a 1984 944

[Taxation]

First off, the seller's link: 944 on Craigslist

I'd appreciate any thoughts on the matter. It will be used as a daily driver in Northern Michigan. (Note that I can walk/ride a bike to work without much trouble) One significant concern I have is that I may not be able to fit my golf bag in it, unfortunately that would be a dealbreaker as it would be my only car. Cost of maintaining it may also be an issue.

Nothing more expensive than a cheap Porsche?

 

[Zenmervolt]

A 944 will:

- Hold a golf bag easily in the hatch area, though if it's a large bag you may need to fold the rear seatback down.
- Average between 25 and 32 mpg depending on how you drive it.
- Have a slightly notchy and vague gearshift linkage.
- Cost $1,200 for a clutch job if you pay someone else to do the work.
- Require replacing the belts every 3 years or 30,000 miles ($600+ service).
- Be more fun to drive than any car you can buy for a similar initial purchase price.
- Leak oil. (Hey, it's a 25 year old car, it will leak a little bit, but it shouldn't be leaving drops or puddles under it.)
- Be useless for drag racing (don't go beating on it in straight-line acceleration, you'll blow out the ring and pinion).
- Not be a "budget" sportscar.

They are fantastic cars to drive, great handling and a wonderful feel. But they require attentive maintenance and if you try to get things done on the cheap the cars tend to get expensive fast. (By "on the cheap" I mean letting "little things" slide, or putting off maintenance, if you're handy and can fix things yourself, there's nothing wrong with pulling a halik and saving money with rebuilt parts of solid used parts and wrenching on your own.) I say to assume about $2,000/year in repairs (not maintenance). Chances are that you won't get to that point if the car is solid, but be prepared for that and you should be OK.

What to look for on this car specifically:

- Proof of timing belt changes (one is coming up at 90,000 miles).
- Proof of water pump changes (should have been done at the 60,000 mile timing belt change). The water pump is driven off of the back side of the timing belt. If the water pump seizes, it takes out the timing belt too and you end up with valve damage.
- Proof that the clutch has been replaced with the newer spring-centered version. The original clutches used a rubber center to absorb driveline shock. This rubber degraded over time (time, not mileage) and an original clutch is essentially guaranteed to have a disintegrated center. If it has not been replaced, watch for driveline lash that would indicate a bad clutch center.
- Make sure that all the electrical things work (locks if it has them, windows, etc).
- Verify that the A/C works.
- Rust. The 944 series were heavily galvanized. They almost never rust. If there is rust on the car, it is almost always an indication of accident repairs.

ZV

 

[alkemyst]

Parts I didn't think were too bad, the labor is higher in time as the engineering is pretty extensive on getting things nice and tight.

I'd consider the 85.5 models over the earlier ones if budget permits. Also if you can swing any turbo it'd be much better on the fun factor. The 88 Turbo S or any of the 89 Turbos are the most sought after and command the highest prices but the 86-88 non-S are still fun.

Rennlist.org is a great resource.

 

[Taxation]

I wish I could afford the turbo but that doesn't fit into the budget. Thanks for your thoughts everyone, they are greatly appreciated.

 

[Zenmervolt]

Originally posted by: alkemyst
Parts I didn't think were too bad, the labor is higher in time as the engineering is pretty extensive on getting things nice and tight.

I'd consider the 85.5 models over the earlier ones if budget permits. Also if you can swing any turbo it'd be much better on the fun factor. The 88 Turbo S or any of the 89 Turbos are the most sought after and command the highest prices but the 86-88 non-S are still fun.

Rennlist.org is a great resource.

Turbo is a lot more trouble than someone looking at a $4,000 car is going to want. It's also not that much more fun than the NA cars unless you're going to track it. In some ways, the NA cars are nicer around town since the Turbo tends to need to be wound up. It's also a lot easier to get at things under the hood on the NA cars.

I agree about the 85.5 comment, the updated interior has far superior ventilation. However, the electronic control panel for the "automatic" temperature control in the 85.5 and later cars does tend to be a source of problems and replacements are getting scarce.

ZV