Porsche Enthusiasts Club Forum

Hello people I need your help.

photos

http://s255.photobucket.com/albums/hh14 ... mview=grid

I really like the 944 and have been looking into getting one for some time when….

Long story very short, have recently been given a 944 think it’s 1983ish (waiting for log book from DVLA) 2.5 auto 35,000miles been off road for 8 years in a barn. Needs quite a bit of work doing to it. And a re-re-spray (look at photos and you will see). The Big Question, What would you do? Break it for spares or Repair & MOT and get the old girl back on the road.

What I know so far, Engine turns over fine, but no fuel getting to it, fuel relay needs replacing and fuse box has got wet years ago so there is a small amount of electrical repair required (some corrosion). Brakes need overhauling, but work. And interior needs sorting.

So is it worth me throwing money at this car or should I just break it of parts and put that money towards buying one that’s a bit more together.

Thanks for you help

Richie

My first 944 was in a similer state (off the road for 8 years) interior trashed, engine not that well, although no rust.
I restored it but then i was looking for a project at the time.
For what i spent i could have prob payed for a concourse car. but it was rewarding and i now do all my own 944 work without fear.
Shame its an auto but the mileage is very low.

I'd want to verify that mileage. It's also an auto which is fine if thats what you want. Have to warn you that I just spent over 3K fixing a car that was mint by comparison to yours. (Could be much more but I stopped counting when I got to 3K) Otherwise I'd look for another. Theres a 2.7 auto breaking on ebay that looks mint apart from a broken gearbox.

Going to get a flaming for this, but I would say that car is beyond reasonable economical repair.

Shame.

If only it had led a more cherished existence things could've been very different.

I have to agree, the fact it's an auto only devalues it more. The costs of doing a proper restoration on this will be huge. Also their are loads of these being broken so the spares will have limited value.

If you can ascertain the milage is geniune and the engine and gearbox work fine, then I think it's worth saving. If you are confident you can do the majority of the work yourself it needn't cost the earth. Most of the trim bits you should be able pick up reasonbly on ebay.
I would start by checking the underneath and sills very carefully for corrosion and this will ultimately make your decision for you. Also, I would want the reason it was left in a barn, previous accident damage?
Of course, in purely monetary terms you'll be wasting your time, but in the end you could end up with a cracking 944 with very low milage and the pride of rescuing this porsche!

All the best,

Andy

Andy, I think you're underestimating the cost here. To do it properly it's a full strip-down and rebuild IMO. Not to mention a full glass-out bare-metal respray, as only then will you ascertain the true severity of the corrosion.

Sad but there comes a time when you have to let go otherwise it can be financially ruinous. It sounds like the car has very little provenance tbh, and there's not even a good explanation of why it has been stood so long. 8 years is about 1/3 of the cars life to-date!

Adam

I am an erteral optimist when it comes to these things but in this case I think its all over for this one.

I agree that a full stripdown, rebuild and repaint will be mega money but if your not worried by how it looks for a while it should be possible to get it to a point where it can be MOTed. From there you can take your time to do the cosmetics. As Richie has been given the car I would say that he has about 1500-2000 pounds to get the car on the road (roughly the cost of a 944 with 12 months MOT). I think this is possible.

All the best,

Andy.

The sort version of a long story of why is been stored in a barn for 8years.

Basically a friend of my father had this 944 from nearly new and stored it at his dad’s house when he moved to Hong Kong quite a few years ago; it was driven from time to time serviced etc. But his dad died and the family sold the house and the 944 went to another family member’s house. I think it was at this point the car suffered a miner breakdown, water leaking into the fuse box through battery tray. And was stored in family friend’s barn. Were it was left for 8 years, apparently was fixed but had no mot etc, so they just turned the engine over from time to time etc… my dads friend had been sending money home to pay for the upkeep of the 944, sadly the 944 had not seen a penny of this for years, and the crunch recently he had to come home for another funeral, the family member in question panicked that he might want to see his car so had it re-sprayed on the very cheap, too try and make it look good. Things just get messy next but you can guess what happened when he saw it.

The result of this was my dad said to him that I fix cars and get them back on the road etc.. So sent the car to me, I said it would be cheaper for him to go out and buy a clean example, than pay me to sort it.

But as I don’t charge myself labour and can do the work, it’s only parts and time and because this 944 was free, I just don’t know what to do. Don’t really want to kill this one it’s gone through so much, it needs a happy ending.

how about turning it into a stripped out racer?

well Ritchie,what youve got there is a bit of a basket case,but if you try hard enough you can fix anything. Its a very sad story and shame on the friend who took the money but didnt spend it on the car. Ive seen cars in a much worse state than that restored to perfection,but it all depends on how much you want to spend and how much you want to do it. As some of the guys have already told you ,it will cost more than it will be worth. Have a look at http://www.porkaparts.com to see what you can expect to pay for second hand parts. try to get the engine running then youve got a known quantity. any competent upholsterer could stitch up that seat for you,mine were similar and i paid £30 to have the front seats stitched up. You could easily find a replacement steering wheel,I paid £40 for one.The cracked dashboard is a common problem,mines cracked too but im not doing anything about it,I think its called patina.The worst thing about yours is the corrosion on the inside of the rear window,that could be tricky. look at club autosport.com ,they do fibreglass sills for about £40 per side.As you say you fix cars I assume you can do most jobs yourself or have mates who could help you so I would say do it.It would certainly be nice to stand beside it and tell the story of all the abuse the car has been through. I hope it does have a happy ending! regards John

I'd want to know the condition of the bodywork and extent of the corrosion before I invested any money in restoration. The only way to know for sure will be at least a good poke around the rear quarter and sills. Also have a look under the rear boot carpet and passenger footwell carpets, especially the front as on early cars the battery is known to leak and cause rot.
If things are ok bodywise it may well be worthwhile saving and it would be lovely to see it returned to its former glory.

Don't get sentimental. It's just a car. And a rusty one at that looking at the photo's. You can fix it. But for lots less than the price of sorting the body you can get another with a tidy body & a better interior. If your engine is that good you can swap it into the other! (& ditch the Auto.) Your going to spend thousands sorting this. In the last three years mine has cost 12K (From 3 owners). It's now exceptional. But for 12K what else could you have bought? If you decide to do it then it's because you want to. It doesn't make any other sence.

I was thinking this afternoon - I seem to remember a thread a while back discussing the idea of a TIPEC project car.. in for a penny, in for a pound