924Board.org

[ratedK]

So, I'm helping my buddys mom move last weekend. lo' & behold someone half a mile away has a black Porsche parked in their yard that looks like they've been mowing around it all season. Drove past it half a dozen times in the process of moving. So I stopped & asked. It's a 1988 924s. It was the wives car & she admittedly was pushing it to see how fast it would go & blew something. Needless to say I'm getting a good deal & I'm going to pick it up this weekend. The front quarter panels have huge rust holes but the rest of it is in good shape.

It may be worth fixing, but I'm half tempted to part it out, & use it to upgrade the 81 NA (ie. brakes, switch blanks, power goodies) I'm currently working on: http://www.924board.org/viewtopic.php?t=26943 or I could slap quarter panels on (from the NA) & start this project anew.

AND because I'm close to my wits end with the NA, I'm even considering giving parts away to anyone who can make it drivable, or come show me how.

I'm just thinking out loud. Comments appreciated. Since I know many of you have been down this road before - what do you think?
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1981 Porsche 924
1987 Porsche 924S
1994 Suzuki Sidekick JLX 4 Door - Just died. Parting it out on a Suzuki forum

[Slam]

Such a common story here...
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'84 944 - kid blew motor
'83 944 - resting comfortably. For 12 years
'87 944 - sideswiped by trucker
'80 924 - gone
'78 924 - gone
'77 924 - rusting comfortably

[ideola]

Hey Gadlage, is that the same one you told me you looked at? Pretty funny if so!

ratedK, before you decide your course of action, I think you should evaluate whether the 924S engine can be resurrected.

Option A: If it's beyond affordable repair (which is probably likely based on your description), my advice would be to stick with the car that's currently running. Scavenge all the good bits you want for yourself, then pick the donor car clean and use the bits to subsidize your maintenance expense on the 81.

Option B: OTOH, if the 2.5L can be resurrected, I think you would ultimately enjoy that car more than the NA, and it would be worth trying to bring it back.

What I would suggest is pick a number you would be willing to dump into the S to get it running irrespective of your current investment in the '81. Then go figure out what's wrong with it. If the resurrection will cost more than your original figure, go with option A.
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erstwhile owner of just about every 924 variant ever made

[mgatlag]

That's bs on a stick!!!!
Yup same car. I went to see it and was told she wanted $2500 for it, since that's what she paid for it. I offered her $500 cash on the spot and she said, "Oh, no way, it's a Porsche". Even though I told her she'd be lucky to get $1000 for it, she wouldn't budge. So I went away. Now, Mr RatedK comes along and guess what.... she took the same thing I originally offered!! I'm jealous . Great buy though RatedK, you definitely came out good! Keep us posted as to what you find with it.
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Michael
'77 1/2 924 N/A- 5 speed Audi box
'04 Ford Taurus - gone!!
'92 Jeep Cherokee Laredo - gone!!

Porsche... better than tea with Miss McGill
(Slap Shot)

[ratedK]

In yo face! J/K . I can only thank you for making her see reason, otherwise she wouldn't have even considered my offer. We'll see if it's worth it. Only time will tell.
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1981 Porsche 924
1987 Porsche 924S
1994 Suzuki Sidekick JLX 4 Door - Just died. Parting it out on a Suzuki forum

[alexvex]

Wow, she wanted $2500 for a non running car? Gotta love that, when people think it worth something just because it's a Porsche. I picked up a 87 924S with 44k miles with a bad waterpump for $2k in indy a few years ago. Car is up somewhere in WI or MI now.
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--Alex--
1992 Porsche 968 (VW 2.5L I5 Turbo swap in the works)
1995 Audi 90 Quattro Sport (4.2L V8 Swap)
2010 Touareg TDI
Past Pcars: 80 931, 87 924S, 87 951

[924guy]

its an 88, that means it must be saved.....
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Eric
78 924
82 931 SE "smokey"
99' VehiCross
Y2K Honda Insight
http://www.cardomain.com/id/924Guy
Performance by Pasha

[Joes924Racer]

Yes Slam I hear you man...... .

An 88 must be saved (Ha - ha) any 24 must be saved in my book these days cause there heading for the way side. Then theyll be gone.
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1979 porsche 924 Na
1980 porsche Turbo 931GT Replica
Have u ever driven a turbo.

[cgalyon]

I love my '88 924S! It's been a great car so far and, provided I maintain it well, I believe it will continue to do well. It's responsive, quick and fun to drive. Assuming it's possible, I say save the '88!
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1988 924S Navy Blue - Phone Dials

[ideola]

I missed the part about the model year...you need to check right now to see what kind of interior it has. If it has the burgundy and grey pinstriping, that changes everything re: whether to restore or scavenge...
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erstwhile owner of just about every 924 variant ever made

[gohim]

The rust holes doesn't sound promising. Since it's a 88, it should have been 100% zinc coat steet, so if it rusted, the odds are it was previously in a/some significant wreck/s and not properly repaired.

You should know the the speed only reads to 100K, then rolls back to zero, and these cars often have many more miles than what is on the speed, because the speedo breaks easily.

I suspect that you are going to find that the timing belt and the balance shaft belts have broken, jumped, or skipped time bending vales and possibly resulting in a cracked cylinder wall or two, and a totaled engine block.

SO, i STRONGLY RECOMMEND THAT YOU PLACE THE TRANSMISSION IN NEUTRAL, AND AVOID TURNING THE ENGINE OVER BY ANY METHOD UNTIL YOU DETERMINE IT'S STATUS.

If as I suspect, the belts are broken and you decide to part the car out, I would be interested in buying the engine for parts. I am in CA, and can arrange for truck shipping (through my neighbor) if you can remove the engine and place it on a pallet.