Porsche Enthusiasts Club Forum

This month, For the first time the I can remember after travelling back and forth for over 30 years, I spotted a red 944 in Germany. In the town multi-storey car park sat a superb 944 S2 looking fabulous amongst the rows of silver Mercs and White BMW's.

....and then tonight just after joining the M23 toward Brighton from the M25, in the failing light and winter gloom ahead I spotted a late 90 H reg 944 S2 in (Baltic?) Blue carving it's way up the hill towards Gatwick. I was in my Jag which seems massive compared to the 944 (if it was you tonight, I was the idiot in the black Jag XF following and eventually overtaking you and paying far too much attention to you!)

I could not believe how low and tiny the 944 looks compared to todays modern cars. Even a recent Ford Ka seems large in comparison.....but the one thing that stands out is the sheer presence of the 944....it just looks simply stunning and very very special. Why oh why they are so lowly valued I cannot understand!

regards
Jon

Too many are being cut up just to make breakers a quick buck, now I have one I am using for parts but the rear quarters are shot and it is rotten past the inner sills into the floorpan, so is beyond repair now and I am a welder by trade (back in the day).
This will though, eventually push the prices up IMO and make these stunning cars as appreciated as they should be, I feel like the luckiest guy in the world that the car I lusted after as a teenager is now dirt cheap, although with the money I am pumping in to get it where I want it is maybe not so cheap . As the scarcity increases and the prices rise we may see some repo panels come along like the 911.
Every time my garage is open people stop and point, I have put it next to the likes of Continental GT's and Ferrari's and people want to talk about the 944 first.
I also think 924 prices will skyrocket soon.

I guess the that's the wy of the world. Back in the 70's i had my hnd o all kind of exotica for very little money ...well compared to the values today.

As the car numbers thin out, no doubt the values will rise but like you, for now I am enjoying the Porsche experience at a very low initial cost....however the appropriate running costs are still those of a quality car and I guess some people will try to run the cars on a shoestring which will also be a quick route to the breakers, especially with the current low value!

The costs can be crippling, my 84 car has done 97,000 but no SH (could probably chase some), so before she goes back on the road just the engine will need belts, tensioners, water pump and I am going to get the oil seals done as well and I am lucky that I work with a guy who worked at a well known garage Garage in Malvern that will do it free of charge (labour), then there is just an interior retrim and respray, maybe not so cheap after all!!. The upshot is I have a car for years that at least I am confident of its provenance.

I also have an 84 car, it is in very good condition with superb provenance and only 78000 miles. It had only 48000 when I bought it seven years ago....but the first two years still cost me £6500 ro rebuild steering, suspension, brakes, belts, water pump, master cylinders, slave cylinders, tyres etc and on and on.

Since then the mileage has increased at about 4000 miles per year and maintenance has averaged between £50 to £100 per month to keep it in as good condition as possible. This month it is belts, rollers, radiator, coolant hoses, temp senders, engine mounts, arb bushes, drop links, dizzy cap, rotor arm, plug leads, cam followers, brake hoses plus the usual service.

Its a never ending job. The HRW has stopped working...not the relay, the bonnet struts are begining to weaken and next year will be a new clutch, torque tube bearings and a rebuild of the gearchange linkage and gearbox mount whilst I am in there.

Oh the joys of classic cars...I love them!

It's ok you can get a new HRW from rose passion for £4300, so no worries
I have a spare one of them too, don't know how well it works though.

Only £4300, a snip I say. Fortunately it looks like its a wiring issue between the relay/fuse board and the window...hopefully anyway. I've. olle ted a host of spares specialisng in paying way over the odds for spares I'll never need or use

If that's the case, do you have some spare grey/beige seats and door cards plus an uncracked brown dash, that would be nice

This is sounding all to familiar. . . . . . had £2000 to spend on a 944, buying and a bit of tinkering i thought. . . . . .oops,
car was £2300 ( lacedr,s lux, thanx Dave ), then belt kit and w/pump, £355, then i saw the wheels i so so wanted £250, tyres are going to be £400, got a few paint issues to sort out, oh dear. . . . . . . here we go then. . . . .

Yeah my plan was to spend 2k on the car and new belts, insurance and tax. It was all going to plan until the HG blew a week after I got the car then when taking the head off a badly scored bore was revealed. (Ching!) New engine please. Oh and the clutch was on its last legs so a new one please (Ching!).

Oh well. At least a few big jobs are done.

Still like the car just frustrating now that progress has necessarily slowed.

I paid £4250 for my S2 cabby, then sent it for belts and water pump etc. By the time everything had been sorted, including a new clutch, the bill was about £4500. Welcome to Porsche ownership! I had a total budget of £7000, so £8750 wasn't that painful in the end. In the whole of this second year though, I've probably only spent £150 on things that needed to be done, but plenty more on stuff I just wanted doing. Someone on this forum recently said words like "quality remains, long after the pain of cost has been forgotten". It's very true as I never think about that huge first bill when I turn the key and drive away in my Porsche.

Cheers,
Bryan

Its good to see you guys taking care of 944's (and 924's and 968's), they are special cars and need to be cared for, as a really good well looked after example can be so special to drive and once you hit a certain point the big expensive jobs almost stop and you are left with something which gives so many grins per pound spent.

Sorry no...if I had an uncracked brown dash, I can guarantee it would be recoloured black and installed in my beastie by now

There, that's fixed it for you Jon !

Spotted a white S2 Turbo being well track dayed at Goodwood today. I was there to see friends and drove my 944 but could not stay long and speak to the S2, which was a shame.