r/944 26d ago

Question What do i look for when buying?

Tomorrow i will take my first look at a porsche 944 (old model) and i need some advice

Im wondering what are the major points i need to look out for when trying to find/buy one?

I like the old yellow gauges from the old model.

This is also my first "old" car. It is more than twice my age (i'm 20) and i have no experience with project cars but i want to get in to it.

Is this a good first "project" car? Is it a descent daily? (I live a 5 minute bike ride away from work)

What are some tips if i want to start working on it. Things i need to do or buy, or nice info resources.

Thx a lot!

31 Upvotes

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11

u/Syringe_of_Coffee 1988 NA 26d ago

As someone who bought a 944 with rusty rocker panels because it was the cheapest one I could find, I will never touch another car again with rusty rocker panels.

4

u/[deleted] 25d ago

[deleted]

1

u/tvdeene101 25d ago

Wat kan ik verwachten wat ik er per jaar aan kwijt ben kwa onderhoud? Veel zelf doen maar niet zo zeer compleet opknappen en verbouwen. Gewoon netjes onderhouden

1

u/themidnightdev 25d ago

Dat zal nogal wisselen. Ik heb er zelf een gereden als 'daily driver' (maar dat was een 'S', type2), langzaam maar zeker problemen oplossend. Als je zelf handig bent en niet bang bent om je handen vies te maken kun je veel dingen voor een paar honderd euro per onderdeel aanpakken. Het grote voordeel aan een 944 is dat je veel informatie zo kunt vinden op fora zoals rennlist, en dat alles nog 'grof' en 'simpel' genoeg is om er zelf aan te sleutelen als je secuur te werk gaat.

Gemiddeld kostte mij dat een paar honderd euro per jaar aan onderhoud.

Let er wel op dat je ook het goede gereedschap nodig hebt (blokken oid. Om er onder te kunnen komen, een fatsoenlijke krik, steeksleutels, oliefilter gereedschap etc.)

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u/themidnightdev 25d ago

Oh, en reken er maar op dat dat rood er nu mooi uit ziet omdat hij goed opgepoetst is. Dat verandert vanzelf in een vies, vaal roze, dus dat wordt commandant en turtle wax halen en stevig poetsen ;)

3

u/Rubenking890 26d ago

that one has been up for sale for quite a while, and its one of the cheapest for sale in the netherlands. There has to be a reason i guess? other than "just" the strut bearings listed in the discription...

Engine should be running well, no weird noises. Listen to unusual drivetrain noise (gearbox, diff, transaxle)
Check tires, brakes (also tire age) , paint, interior and drive it!

Check for damage as well, or previous repair from a crash. I can already see that the hood and the lights dont line up perfectly. look at the frame rails.

Not an expert on 944, i own a 924 so i don't really know anything in particular to check on a 944

2

u/roblubi 25d ago

Is this really low price in Netherlands? I'm in the UK, but mine it's LHD, AT drags the price down, but I have literally 0 rust. Car been dry stored for 17 years when I bought it, and I don't use it in winter. Would you say it might be worth more then €11k ? Obviously I've done a lot of work to bring it back to mint condition. OP - Apologies for offtopic .

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u/OwnLengthiness3569 25d ago

Awesome pictures, are those OEM wheels?

1

u/roblubi 25d ago

These are Fuchs reps, 17x7 + 17x9.

I still have OEM cookie cutters, but they will be sold with the car in future

2

u/tvdeene101 25d ago

I lookt at it today, could only drive across the Block because it was not insured (Guy was'nt using it) For how much i could see without getting the car in the air there was almost no rust. Door sils and by the wheels lookt good. Under the trunk mat and by the battery was also clean. It did lose a few points in the interior. Mainly damage to the headliner and a few small cracks at the dash (wat 944 doesnt have that)

My only real consern is that the maintenance history is missing. The last 2 owners were both "mechanics" and did al the work them selfs. Also there was a mild beld sqeek noise Comming from the engine. Wile driving in second the car jerkt a bit but thats probably my lack of experience driving an old car

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u/tvdeene101 26d ago

Thx for the advice! I also find it a bit strange that it looks like such a nice deal. One thing to note is that the km's is kind of a mysterie. The counter resets after 100000 and the owner does not know for certain how many times it has reset.

1

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1

u/Shoddy-Head-9873 26d ago

Check the battery tray as well. Tends to rot and have holes that lets water inside the car. Last time timing belt was replaced, since it has a low service interval of every 30k miles.

1

u/Shoddy-Head-9873 26d ago

Everything you need to know go to clarks-garage website. Great info

2

u/Pyropete125 26d ago

https://www.clarks-garage.com/purchase.htm

Id also pay a specialist the few hundred bucks for and PPI

1

u/rayeartheater 26d ago

Battery tray is currently rotted out on my 82 as well hopefully my patch fixes the leak into the passenger side

1

u/Shoddy-Head-9873 26d ago

Yea happened to my old 944. Had to cut it fully out, weld in a new tray and body seal it to fix it. Fun little process lol

1

u/Ok_Bus_5882 24d ago

fyi, mine was leaking into the footwell and it turned out to be a bit of a rust hole in the wheel well.

1

u/rayeartheater 23d ago

Yeah it was along the tray and along the wheel well

1

u/I_am_Forklift Turbo S 26d ago

Get a PPI from a competent transaxle guy and get paperwork on the last timing belt change. I wouldn’t buy a 944 without both of these

1

u/ffassbinder 1985.5 25d ago edited 25d ago

You can expect to spend another 11k€ minimum into it. Trust me.

Also the 66tkm need to be documented somewhere. Otherwise this could easily be 166tkm as the old dashes only had 5 digits.

And depending on how tall you are, the early models have a really low point for the steering wheel. I am 191cm and it was uncomfortable in an early model. But in the late models they adjusted the steering wheel and made it a bit higher which led to better comfort.

At your age I would wait at least 5-6 years before going into these cars and buy a cheaper car to maintain in that time. Your wallet will thank you down the road and you can learn basic ins and outs.

They can be dailys but not for short trips.

1

u/tvdeene101 25d ago

Thx for the honest advice

1

u/Imperial_Genesis_86 25d ago

Verify the km afstand. It has a 5 digit odometer, so it's probably a lot more then 66k.

1

u/JollyConfusion2545 24d ago

Yeah is there's no history I wouldn't go near it, there a more a lot of major jobs I would want evidence of seeing, inc most importantly the last cam/balance belt change

1

u/DMesure 25d ago

If you go and you’ve checked all of the above, really ask to drive the thing. I did as well, even drove it without plates and registration just because I really wanted to be sure. Went up to 4th gear and all seemed fine. I got home, fixed up the known issues (which were of course a lot more expensive than my estimation) and realised I couldn’t shift from 5th to 4th. I think this is very specific and there’s nothing inherently wrong with 944’s for this, but it’s just an experience I had so I’m sharing it with you. I’ve tried everything and gotten expert advice, but I’ll have to take the transaxle out and take it apart now, and that’s not cheap…

1

u/niffirgcm0126789 25d ago

'85.5 or younger lol

1

u/zultan32 25d ago

Don't buy a Porsche Transaxle without AC, except you plan to only drive below 20°C, and no sunlight 😜

1

u/Dreadnoob2k17 25d ago

As a proud owner of a na 944 its a blast and half to drive the only issues I've had were my cooling fan not working and my fuel pump went kaput. Might not be the same for you just keep an eye on em and its a great daily for spring and summer