Hello everyone, never thought I be in this section of Pelican Parts, but here I am. Been on Pelican for about 7 years, have had 914's, 912's,(still have a 912E), and had never even stood close to a 928 until the day I bought this 1979 model.
I hope to get the car back on the road just as a challenge. I was looking for a work car for my wife one day, and went to see a guy in the next town over. So I get a long story ( kind of what you're getting here....lol) that his uncle had just passed away, was a auto mechanic who just collected cars to work on, and so forth.
The BMW he was trying sell was more apart than what the ad depicted, so I passed on it, but we struck up a conversation about all the cars I was seeing. I mean, this was a residential neighborhood, but I counted almost 10-15 cars that I could see on the street. I'm sure the neighbors were happy to see cars leaving the area.
So I tell him, I'm going to have to pass on the BMW, need a running car for the wife, and that I'm "more of a Porsche guy". He says "Oh really?" and says to follow him.
Now I have dillusions of grandure (sp?) that he's about to show me some Euro-spec 930 Turbo Cab w/ 5000 miles on it, right?
We go to the back/side yard where there's a make shift fence, he opens it up, and , I kid you not, the first time I laid eyes on the 928, I thought of the Tom Cruise movie "Risky Business" and the best line of the whole movie when the Porsche manager comes out and asks "Who's the U-Boat commander?"
I've only ever seen a 928 driving on the road, never having stood next to or sat in one ever. Of course, there was a little dirt and leaves all over it, but it had been running only 3 months before, was all there, and nothing was torn up. The two leather front seats, I'd like to think, are worth more than what I paid for the car.
I told him, I know NOTHING about these cars, more of an air-cooled guy. Based on that, I offered him $600 if he could tow it to my house nearby.
Now even as I'm offering him the $600, I'm contemplating what manner of death my wife will have in store for me because I was supposed to be looking for her car, and now we have another non-running Porsche at the house.
He immediately says no to the $600, and rightfully so, as I agreed, that if it was running, it was worth way more.
Well, maybe not WAY more, but I reminded him it WASN"T running, I knew nothing about these cars, again, and to think about it. Said Thanks, and walked away.
So, I'm sitting in my truck talking to my wife, waiting to be sent to the next car she's found on the internet, and the guy walks across the street to my truck and asks "how soon can you get this car out of here?"
I said I'd pay him (he offered) to tow it to my house for a $100, but when things came up, and he decided he wouldn't be able to do it, he took $500. Hell, I was still going to give him the $600 and still pay for my own towing!
As it turns out, while waiting for the tow truck and doing some paperwork, he told me if I hadn't bought it, it was probably just going to go to the salvage yard because his aunt was just GIVING cars and tools away. He said he had to take over getting rid of the vehicles, because she was just answering callers, and telling them to come and "take what they want". He said guys were showing up and taking welders and all of the guys tools and toolboxes. Kinda sad.
So my plans were to see if I could get this running and use it as a fun car. My wife was actually glad when she found out it was an automatic that she could drive, unlike all the Porsche's I've had, and tried to teach her how to drive a stickshift. (I'm still recouperating 30 years later from that whole episode, mentally and physically...lol)
So, I've been lurking here for a few weeks, doing searches on likely problems and their remedies (grounds, people, think grounds) and have started to remove the old mobile phone, radar detector, stereo, Clifford alarm system and the accompanying 20lbs. of wiring.
It supposedly had been running just a few months before when there started to be electrical issues with relays and fuses.
So I have at least a direction to start, I'm sure I'll be on here regularily asking questions, seeking advice (yeah, I know, dump it while I still have the chance!).
Thanks, Bob
