Considering selling my Targa, what to ask?

[sc_rufctr]

No offence taken Denis. I appreciate your candor and it made me ask myself some hard questions.

[onewhippedpuppy]

Originally Posted by speeder

I should amend my remarks to say that there is nothing wrong w being an enthusiast who only buys the best and purchases mint original or correctly restored old Porsches. If you are a busy professional who can afford them and have highly valuable weekend time, I get it.

I'm in the category of DIY types who like to restore things, houses/cars/motorcycles/vacuum cleaners, you name it. It's actually my favorite thing. I'm balls-deep in a 1963 Airstream trailer as we speak. If I was a zillionaire, I'd just have a better shop and be restoring more valuable stuff.

Have you posted recently on your Airstream? I remember when you bought it, very curious how it turns out.

As for the 911, I totally agree that it would be a fun and pretty easy project. Somebody will probably make out nicely from that purchase.

[1990C4S]

Originally Posted by speeder

If I was a zillionaire, I'd just have a better shop and be restoring more valuable stuff.

If I didn't have a shop full of valuable stuff to restore I would be a zillionaire.

[speeder]

Originally Posted by onewhippedpuppy

Have you posted recently on your Airstream? I remember when you bought it, very curious how it turns out.

As for the 911, I totally agree that it would be a fun and pretty easy project. Somebody will probably make out nicely from that purchase.

If the right person bought it, they just scored big. As with the old saying about investment RE, "you make money when you buy, not when you sell."

Even a checkbook guy could come out fine on that car, as long as he doesn't take it to the guy in L.A. who charges $40k to paint an old 911.

[speeder]

Originally Posted by 1990C4S

If I didn't have a shop full of valuable stuff to restore I would be a zillionaire.

I resemble that remark.

[fintstone]

Originally Posted by speeder

I would have had that car in new factory quality paint for around $6k, (only the outer shell needed repainting if you look closely @ the pictures, I wouldn't touch the mint condition original door jams or under hood), I would have taken the glass out and all trim off, though.

Refinish wheels, new tires, service all mechanics, the interior would have been incredibly easy. The sport seats would come out and be put on a shelf, (I hate them and they weigh a ton each), I'd find regular stock seats and recover them in correct black leather. I'd put lightweight RS door panels on it and also put stock ones on the shelf to worry about later. The car has an almost mint original dash, (one very small and repairable crack), only the speaker cover is trashed and someone makes those reproduction now. It also needed new, correct square weave carpet mats, (the floor part), because they are missing. I would only clean the existing carpet on kick panels and rockers, it looks excellent. The rear seat area looks very good for age.

This is a low mileage, bone dry car that has sat in a garage for 30+ years. It starts and runs well, shifts well, etc. I would anticipate some engine-out resealing but that is SOP for any old air-cooled 911 at this point. It needs new targa seals and other new rubber, that is some $$ but I'd personally be hard-pressed to put $15k additional into that car and it would be an excellent example compared to most of what is for sale these days.

As for my weekends, I'm completely self-employed and not limited to working only weekends on a project like this. I could justify spending a few weeks on it and it would pencil-out to a very high paying job for myself when considering the final value of the car.

I'm constantly amazed that on what is ostensibly a Porsche enthusiast BBS, so many members seem to have no gift for being able to look at a car, no clue about values and no ability to restore or repair the cars.

I have to admit that I although I have had Porsches (all midyear or G50) for many years and done almost every possible restoration task outside an engine rebuild or a full, glass-out paint job myself...I would just never dream that these can be worth what they are apparently worth today. It was not that long ago that I turned down much better condition long-hoods for less than $10K. As one with limited time, and more a checkbook mechanic than I once was, I would have never dreamed you could make much money on one of these unless you bought it at a distressed price (plus, I cannot get a decent $6K paint job...maybe area, maybe lack of appropriate contacts).

Due to time, most of the jobs on my own cars drag out into years rather than weeks and my garage is strewn with half-done projects. I would have guessed...without research...that fully restored (at least to a very nice driver level) would only have made this car worth about $45-50K. Obviously, I am way out of line on prices. Both my current cars ('74 and '89 Targas, are almost flawless...yet I still think of them as drivers...and $20K cars at best)...I am not sure what they are really worth dollar value, I would prefer either as a driver over this car (even repaired/restored as you describe). Maybe if I were retired and time was not an issue, the numbers would seem better to fix up a 911 to sell, but for me, the time, prices of parts and pain of getting work done by "professionals" is too daunting.

[speeder]

Oh, I would have bought that '71 and drove it. Good luck finding another good 2.2 911S, all original for less than serious 6-figure money. They are gone. Bye-bye. And that's the real 911 driving experience, makes the later air-cooled cars feel like tanks in comparison.

If I wasn't trying to buy a house right now, I'd have been on that thing like a polar bear on a baby seal cub.

[speeder]

Originally Posted by onewhippedpuppy

Have you posted recently on your Airstream? I remember when you bought it, very curious how it turns out.

As for the 911, I totally agree that it would be a fun and pretty easy project. Somebody will probably make out nicely from that purchase.

I have an Airstream thread going here somewhere, I'll update it soon. Lots of work and progress.