Porsche Enthusiasts Club Forum

Hello!

Been prodding at the idea of a classic for quite some time now. For two reasons mainly, passion & hopefully an investment.

The 944 turbo is now at the right time to be a classic over here in Malta as they started in 1985. This commands a very cheap € 8.00 annual road tax which seems to be creating quite an interest in classic cars now.

I'm willing to do some work (kind of wheeler dealers amount) but definitely not a full restoration or even replacing half of the car. Preferably, it should be a mechanically reasonable example as if bought from the UK, I would really like to drive it back, just for the fun of it.

Well that's my story, please share your thoughts/ideas/experiences/prices.

Where can I read on-line to learn more & especially what to look for when buying??

Some queries do come to mind like which is the most desirable or most likely to appreciate in price, 944 or 944 turbo?

One issue that does give me concern, especially as I would also like to enjoy it, Aircon; is this standard??

Where should I start this adventure if I were to go forward apart from Autotrader & Ebay??

Not sure if purchasing a 944 for an investment is a good idea .
Passion of ownership, driving experience, performance/value for money are IMHO reasons to get one.
I purchased a good one 8 years ago and have spent more than the purchase price since to keep it in really good fettle, as I am sure other owners have.
(My agreed insured Value is £14,000 to be upped to £15000 next month!)
Air con is an option but on older models may well need re-gassing to latest spec (£500+)
Here is a link to a buyers guide
http://forums.tipec.net/download/file.php?id=3002e

see also 924/944/968 section for lots more information
http://forums.tipec.net/viewforum.php?f=25

Porsche 944: All models 1982-1991 (Essential Buyer's Guide Series) on Amazon
look on Pistonheads.com for Porsche 944's for sale (some at near £16,000 !)
This Forum (obviously) and possibly PCGB (which I did join in 2004 same time as TIPEC but left some years ago ) although I believe you may need to be a member to use their forum!

FWIW a copy of a previous post :-
These cars can be expensive to get into tip top condition, not likely to get your money back when sold; so are you looking get one you intend to keep for a long while?
I started looking into my Porsche ownership in 2004 and had books out of the library and test rides/drives in numerous models eg 911 968 928 944 but started with a reasonably priced 2.7 944 to see if I liked the Marque and Model. (That car is the ONLY car I actually sold for more than I paid for it - apart from Belts/rollers for peace of mind!)

Within a few months I hankered after more Power/Torque & purchased an S2 (Cab).
The difference in all the 944 models needs to be tried as the Cab road handling was not so good as the 2.7 Coupe (naturally!) but great for wind in the hair motoring if you like that sort of thing.
As mentioned in previous post it would make sense for you to get drives/rides in the other models.
My progression of 3 x 944's is shown in my signature resulting in the last 8 years enjoying a tastefully tweaked 199MY Turbo.
Good luck with your search, spent Months rambling myself during the 1st 2 years (2004 to 2006), still rambling on.......
HTH
Clive

951Torqing wrote:Not sure if purchasing a 944 for an investment is a good idea .
Passion of ownership, driving experience, performance/value for money are IMHO reasons to get one.
I purchased a good one 8 years ago and have spent more than the purchase price since to keep it in really good fettle, as I am sure other owners have.
(My agreed insured Value is £14,000 to be upped to £15000 next month!)
Air con is an option but on older models may well need re-gassing to latest spec (£500+)
Here is a link to a buyers guide
http://forums.tipec.net/download/file.php?id=3002e

see also 924/944/968 section for lots more information
http://forums.tipec.net/viewforum.php?f=25

Porsche 944: All models 1982-1991 (Essential Buyer's Guide Series) on Amazon
look on Pistonheads.com for Porsche 944's for sale (some at near £16,000 !)
This Forum (obviously) and possibly PCGB (which I did join in 2004 same time as TIPEC but left some years ago ) although I believe you may need to be a member to use their forum!

FWIW a copy of a previous post :-
These cars can be expensive to get into tip top condition, not likely to get your money back when sold; so are you looking get one you intend to keep for a long while?
I started looking into my Porsche ownership in 2004 and had books out of the library and test rides/drives in numerous models eg 911 968 928 944 but started with a reasonably priced 2.7 944 to see if I liked the Marque and Model. (That car is the ONLY car I actually sold for more than I paid for it - apart from Belts/rollers for peace of mind!)

Within a few months I hankered after more Power/Torque & purchased an S2 (Cab).
The difference in all the 944 models needs to be tried as the Cab road handling was not so good as the 2.7 Coupe (naturally!) but great for wind in the hair motoring if you like that sort of thing.
As mentioned in previous post it would make sense for you to get drives/rides in the other models.
My progression of 3 x 944's is shown in my signature resulting in the last 8 years enjoying a tastefully tweaked 199MY Turbo.
Good luck with your search, spent Months rambling myself during the 1st 2 years (2004 to 2006), still rambling on.......
HTH
Clive

Many thanks for the insight.

I do see 944 Turbos already increasing in price as the good ones are becoming less available, especially as they are getting closer to becoming classics.

So the task at hand is to find a reasonably good one, both body condition & mechanical for the right price. Hopefully aiming at enjoying the car on the occasional weekends for a few years & when the time comes to sell, try to make a profit. If not in the right condition for the right price, repairs can get expensive as you state which will supersede the increase in value, if any.

I just can't get the 944 Turbo Mike Brewer bought on Wheeler Dealers out of my head!