944 as a DD, am I crazy?

[911boost]

I haven't really posted a thread on it, but my 1992 911 Turbo was delivered to its new owner a few weeks ago. It now resides in the Indy area.... After the divorce and renting a house for a year, it was time to buy and the air cooled turbos seem to be at a recent high and mortgage rates are pretty low....

With that said, my commute is 62 miles of smooth highway driving each way, with some stop and go but not a lot, it takes me 20 minutes to get across town which is 8 miles and then 40 minutes on the interstate. I don't do it every day as a lot of the time I am driving to the airport which is about the same distance.

We do have bad weather some, but I have my F350 for that (which is currently serving as my DD).

I have thought about an older wagon (Mercedes E320, Volvo V70 both the R and non R, but I don't want to spend more than $8K or so....

I'm thinking a well taken care of with receipts and up to date service history 944 would be a fun little car to drive to the airport and around town for quick errands and not set me back over my budget.

I am not scared of DIY'ing.

Do I need to get slapped?

Thanks!

Bill

[black_falcon]

Nope.. you're perfectly sane.

A well sorted 944 makes for a comfortable and reliable daily driver that will return pretty good fuel economy as well. I used my 86 n/a daily for around 2-3 years, and plan to do so again this summer. Maintenance costs can be astronomical so if you can do the work yourself you're already ahead of the game.

Early or Late dash?

This is the biggest factor for most. Personally, the HVAC in my late dash is one of the best of any car I've owned. Heat warm enough to melt you after just a few blocks. AC is above average for a car of its vintage. After driving my 944 back to back with a 00 Boxster several weeks ago.. you'd never guess the 944 came from two decades previous.

With that said, the early dash oozes retro charm in spades. It completely transforms the car and IMO they are two entirely different driving experiences. The 83-85 cars have a vintage feel about them, the HVAC system is anemic by comparison, but on fun factor alone I'd take a crisp 83 over my 86 all day long. I love the early tach!! It all comes down to what you're looking for and how you intend to use it.

NA or Turbo?

The turbo is beast compared to the 8v NA cars. Not even in the same ball park. Mind you, it also brings a lot of complexity to the table. More things to break and more labor involved when they do. Most consider the S2 a nice compromise; turbo-like power with NA reliability.

Conclusion

Go for it. It's a highly underrated 80's icon. It will put a smile on your face, and those around you. Do your research and know what you're getting into; they have a long list of "gotchas", but if you buy a car that's been well loved with those issues sorted out, you shouldn't have much trouble.

[Jim Bremner]

Saw DD and thought it was a chest thread.

[Heel n Toe]

These early 944's are on the East Coast, but seem to be gems.

Nice 1984 Porsche 944

FS: 1983 Porsche 944 (NY/NJ/CT area)

[Schumi]

I DD'd a 924S, which is a mix of early and late 944 parts (mostly early), for a few years, often taking trips back and forth across the state on 3 hour drives in stupid hot midwestern summers. Drove it in pouring rain, snow, everything. Did regular maintenance with the help of the 944 forum here, did a clutch job on my own with hand tools in a barn. Awesome vehicle.

Still one of the easiest sports cars to live with ever, in my opinion.

[dewolf]

Go 86' or later. I have had 5 944's, two turbo's. Love 'em. The early dash is deal breaker for me as the steering wheel sits to low.
Like Schumi says, very easy car to live with and still look fantastic for their age.

[Tim Hancock]

I have been daily driving 924S with 16" Boxster wheels with all season tires for a couple years now. Gets around 22 mpg which is not great, but better than my truck or my 911SC. It is due for a timing belt/water pump change soon. I also have a 1987 944 Turbo that I might dig out of mothballs and start daily driving this summer.

[fred cook]

I DD'd a 1988 924S for about 6 years. Other than a few "old car" type issues it never missed a beat. The only reason I don't still have it is that I had an opportunity to trade it for a 911SC coupe that I REALLY wanted!

[onewhippedpuppy]

Totally sane, they are fantastic cars. black_falcon had good thoughts above. Personally I would go with a 1986+ S or S2, or maybe one of the 1989 2.7L models. The turbo is a great car but will require more tinkering to keep right, and the lag under 2500 RPM can be frustrating when stuck in stop/go traffic.

[greglepore]

Great commuter cars, actually. Drove an 85 that way for a long while, only downer was I lacked a decent place to diy it and they're expensive to maintain if you have to pay shop rates.

Just to throw a monkey wrench, you can buy very nice late W124 E320's for 4-5k all day long (look for the 95's) and still have money left to fix any common issues not addressed (usually the head gasket). Not nearly as "fun" but as a DD an awesome car, all the Benz refinement in a practical package-one's my current DD.

[onewhippedpuppy]

One other comment, $8k should buy a mint NA 944 or a good driver 951 or S2. There is a lot of neglected crap out there due to these being affordable cars, so take your time shopping. Prices for parts are no different than your 965, and trying to get a neglected car right will quickly get you upside down.

A little more money buys you a 968, the ultimate iteration of the range. Just sayin.........

[BReif61]

For $8k I'd find a "driver" S2 and call it a day.

I've actually been DD'ing my 944 over the 996 the past couple weeks. Completely different/more connected feeling and the more you drive them the better they get.

[VaSteve]

They are great cars. If I hadn't "ruined" my car by putting in track seats and a cage, I would driver it more. The S2 I have had the BEST A/C I have ever felt, until the compressor broke and I took it out. I would almost make ice in the cockpit.

I know of a 37,000 mile all original original owner 84 model that might be coming for sale. That said, it's a early model and Gold.

[UconnTim97]

Go for it. My '83 was my DD for many years. It ran better when I drove it daily. It was essentially problem free for the years it was my DD. When it became a weekend warrior is when it seemed that it required much more maintenance.
I would gladly drive a 944 as a DD again.

[95avblm3]

I've seen a couple of posts about a 924S... seriously consider one. IMO, they are kind of an ugly duckling but the cool thing is you get the 8V 944 drivetrain with the retro dash in a newer car.

I had an '87 944S and an '88 924S. Neither were full time DDs but with a little AC work, both could have easily been. A little dialing in and they were pretty bullet proof. Both ACs would take a charge and blow ice cold but they both had leaks that I never bothered to fix.

So, I would probably do a 924S. Here's why:

While I like the look of the later 944 dash, the guage lighting can suck without replacement/refurbishing of the mirrored prizms that direct the light to the guages. Also, the AC control is an electronic "auto climate sort of" job. Mine had an issue with a harness that would come loose and cause the system to default to full heat. Not good in July. I found the 924S with the old dash didn't suffer same.

But with the 924S, you get the later 944 8V valve train, the one with the automatic spring tensioner for the timing belt... easy peasy to service but make sure you tighten the bolt that locks it.

I would avoid the twin cam cars (S and S2). I mean, I guess if you know they maintained and the tensioner is up to date, they are fine but the way Porsche designed the camshaft drive is a bit more complex than the simple 8Vs. If you're looking for a beater DD, why worry with complexity?

In general, either buy a car with a new clutch or plan on having to do it. The clutches are kind of expensive but I had to do the one in my 924 because of the elastomer spring center failing. Supposedly, this was a weak link of the car but in all honesty, mine failed at close to 20 years old. I think that is probably a reasonable service life. A traditional clutch with coil spring center superseded the elastomer, so no problems with newer ones.

Finally, I ran staggered Boxster 16" wheels on the 924 because I found a set cheap. To do it over, I would avoid staggered. I had to roll the fenders a little to get it all to fit. IIRC, 3mm spacers were all that were required on the front. To me, it looked a lot better than the phone dials.

Post pics when you get one

[VINMAN]

My '86 had basically been my DD for close to 20 yrs. 80-90 mile round trip commute to NYC. Recently turned 300,000 on it. Did one clutch replacement on it. Other than that, never had any issues with it. ( Except for the belt I tossed on it the other day. But that was due to my own fault. Dont leave the covers off while you are waiting to do a retension...) Only bad thing about commuting with it , is the stop and go traffic, but you get oblivious to that after a while.
Overall, the only complaint I've ever had with it , is the lack of power it has. But now that the engine has issues, I might do a SBC conversion.

[Porsche-O-Phile]

I have two - an 85 and an 89. Both have seen dd duty at one point or another. So did my dearly departed 951. They all did fine. I personally think the early cars are better due to their simplicity and low cost of maintaining, although there are still a few things that can go wrong that are a lot of work or pricing (clutches, timing belts, etc.)

In short go for it. I'd love to pick up a cherry 968 at some point, maybe in a couple of years.

[Jferr006]

Originally Posted by black_falcon

With that said, the early dash oozes retro charm in spades. It completely transforms the car and IMO they are two entirely different driving experiences. The 83-85 cars have a vintage feel about them

OMG yes!.. I have no desire for late one. I'm planning to get another non-hot rodded 944 and it will have to be early because they are simply charming. Finding a good one will be more of a challenge though..

[spinner]

Been DD my 88 951 for the past 2+ years w/o any issues. Sun/Rain/Snow - all good. Life's too short to waste time driving boring cars

[VaSteve]

Originally Posted by Jferr006

OMG yes!.. I have no desire for late one. I'm planning to get another non-hot rodded 944 and it will have to be early because they are simply charming. Finding a good one will be more of a challenge though..

Hit me up if you want info on the Gold one....it's in VA.