924Board.org

[motogonzo]

I'm a previous 928 owner and I have been longing for another porsche ever since a Prius totaled my beloved ride. I'm not trying to spend a ton of money right now, so I thought a 924 would be manageable.

I just bought a 1987 924s with ??? miles on it. The odometer is broken as I discovered after I bought it. It's clean and I love it already. It has a number of little issues that I think I can handle, but also a few I don't know how to approach.

I thought 924s didn't have power steering, and this car feels like it doesn't, but then I learned through a lot of forum reading that I am supposed to have it... Not sure where to start with that.

As long as I have the dash off to fix the odometer, I want to sort out the issues with the heater. I did a lot of forum searches but didn't get much closer to an answer. The fan volume knob connects to nothing. It doesn't appear to be snapped, but I think a female part is missing from the heater switch. Aside from that... When I'm driving, hot air comes out the front vents, but I can't get it to come out the defroster, which is what I really need. How convoluted is the heater system? Is it possible/not too expensive to fix?

Assuming I can't do it, are there any places in Southern California that really know the 924? I'd love a recommendation.

The other major issue is that it eats fuel like crazy. I don't know whether to look for a cracked line or if something is wrong with the fuel system.

And it gets frighteningly hot in traffic.

And the sunroof doesn't work and I have no idea where I am supposed to actuate the hatch release motor if it even works.

[emoore924]

Welcome to toofah ownership and congrats!

Your car is essentially a 944 in 924 bodywork. That's a good thing. You get more hp than the rest of us, and later running gear. If you find someone who knows 944s you're in luck for most of the mechanicals on your car.

I'd pop over to Pelican and check in there. There are folks here who can help with the 924s but I think you're more apt to find knowledgeable 944 folks there.

Oh, and BE SURE you know the last time the timing belt was changed. If you do not know, or if it was more than 30k miles or (I think) 3 years, I would PARK the car until you have the work done. The do fail and when they fail, you wipe out the top end of the motor. BTW, belt change is probably not a DIY job because of the need to properly tension the belt (there are LOTS of opinions on this -- see Pelican).

Again, Welcome!

[motogonzo]

Thank you. So I guess I should get a Haynes manual for the 944 engine and another for the 924 chassis? I'll check out pelican.

[fiat22turbo]

[motogonzo]

Thanks so much for the detailed reply. Really helpful.

I figured out that it's leaking fuel from the tank today. I am not too happy about it. Is it even worth trying to fix?

[!tom]

Common problem.
I discussed my saga here. Includes the final solution, which was a failed fuel sender gasket, as well as a rotten fuel filler vent hose.
_________________
78 924 NA
5-lug

[fiat22turbo]