Could be wonderful, could be an expensive mistake - the point being there's precious little info to go on!
The MOT is a positive in terms of gross problems, but do you know whether there were any advisories which would give you more of an idea of imminent costs? What is MOT history under his ownership? Will give you some idea of what's been attended to when you check advisories and fail points going back a few years.
Unless they have been done recently by the seller, then at 80,000 miles you would need to change engine mounts, possibly rear transmission mounts, and shocks all round as they will be tired and it's a heavy car! The braking system is superb when functioning properly, but again at this mileage you probably have pad lift in some or all calipers which will be jamming the pads and preventing full braking action and affecting pedal feel. As previous poster said, timing belt is probably due as they should be every 4-5 years regardless of mileage, and other parts of timing belt system need to be checked for wear at same time (water pump, tensioner pulley bearings, cam and oil pump sprockets). Probably a long time since diff and transmission oil changed, if ever! If car changes gear smoothly (firm but not harsh) then transmission oil level correct at least. Parts of the HVAC system (actuators, solenoids, temp sensors) may have failed by now and need replacing but they are relatively cheap - the thing is a vacuum problem anywhere will pull down the whole system unless it's been capped off. The most potentially expensive parts of HVAC system are aircon but only if compressor or condenser needs replacement. Is aircon working well? You need it with so much glass in a 928 and like the brakes, it's a fantastic system when working correctly. Usual used car caveats apply regarding checking wheel bearings for wear, upper and lower ball joints, track rod ends and steering rack bushes. 928 has power this and power that and lots of relatively sophisticated systems for its age, so you want to check all these are working ok, or at least identify which are not and give you some negotiating room.
At 80,000 in our cool climate most of the rubber under the intake should be OK, but aged knock sensor connectors could be losing you some power as the ignition retards. If still original this would be nice mileage to replace plug leads, coil leads, distibutors and rotors. the ignition lead set for S4 is a bit pricey - around £200.
Also agree that all bets are off if the crank end play has been allowed to move beyond spec, to point where crank thrust bearing has suffered damage. This should be checked as part of inspection.
I think the best thing you can do at this point is have it looked over by someone who really knows 928s.
Above is counsel of perfection. You could always buy the damn thing, take your time checking/fixing things, and if it's a disaster move it on with faults declared and you won't take too bad a hit! Even really nice 928s are a work in progress — sophisticated cars so there's always something which can benefit from attention. Assuming the block is ok then the only really expensive items if you're not doing it yourself are the engine mounts and timing belt jobs. If you're not planning to do all or most of the work yourself, then be prepared to spend a lot on catch-up maintenance, even on this promising example.
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