Can you help me decide if this 911SC is worth it? (Photos Included)

[ksluna]

Hi, you guys all helped me a lot in my thread "Should I buy a 911SC"

Well I was convinced enough and now I am talking to a potential seller.

It is a 1979 SC,

• Seller claims 10k in receipts done
• Transmission rebuilt
• Work was done by Deiter of HDI Consulting (?)
• Shifting sleeve, 3rd and 4th gear slider (I have not heard of this)

PO does NOT know if car has

• Upgraded chain tensioners
• If there are broken head studs or if they have been replaced (Does a PPI even check for this?)

Seller claims there are 38K miles. But has no info on if engine was rebuilt, but like stated earlier, the transmission has been. One of the photos here worries me - not sure if that is really bad rust or corrosion?

Photos: https://imgur.com/a/oRqCNJm

Thanks in advance. Hopefully I can join the p-car club soon.

[ClickClickBoom]

What is under the poorly done respray. Trans rebuilt, how does it work? The big question price, based on the photos, the car needs to be assessed by someone who knows how these cars, in person. You really need to step up your knowledge base. Start with chain tensioners, understand what and where the headstuds are and how to assess. If the only way you you will get stuff done is at "your mechanic" this car will empty your wallet, fast.

Read this post, then reread it 3 more times, this is your future if you wander into this uninformed.
915 rebuild.... starting to hate this car
Unfortunately because these cars have huge appeal, without knowledge to support the maintenance. If you take the car to a mechanic and say its doing this____, your money will flow like water out of a firehose.

[proporsche]

looks pretty clean to me..trans.work done is plus...if the price is right why not;-)
but...there is always a BUT..
that oil on the oil line from oil pump to tank is interesting-also on the case it self.The engine has been cleaned recently....and the oil is new ask about the leak...

Ivan

[glewis80SC]

Get a PPI done no deal without it.

[juanbenae]

Porsche Marketplace Discussion - Pelican Parts Forums

[tirwin]

Agree with ClickClackBoom. You need to pay someone to look at this car in person before buying.

If it truly has only 38k original miles, it shouldn't need an engine rebuild. Or a tranny rebuild either.

Paint is not good.

Nobody is going to fess up on head studs. The only way to see an obvious problem is to drain the oil and pull the valve covers to see if there are any obviously missing or broken. No mechanic on a PPI will want to touch them if they are intact out of an abundance of caution. There's really no reason for a previous owner to replace the head studs on a low mileage car, so just assume that if they are intact, you will have to do that in the future.

As far as the pic you were worried about... that needs to be inspected in person. The factory put some stuff on the camber plates to preserve the original camber setting. It could be that someone chipped it away to adjust the camber (car may be lowered?). Pretty common. Or it could be rust. It would take seeing in person to confirm.

Looks like there is a bunch of RTV sealant on the engine case in one of the pics. Would check into that. I'd want to have a look at the underside after a drive and while idling. Too easy to clean things up for a picture that is a snapshot in time.

Engine case has an unusual scuff in one picture. Could be nothing. Maybe just a result of road debris.

Depends on what your overall budget is and if you can get this car at the right price knowing that you might have some work ahead of you. It's low mileage. But definitely get a PPI. I'd want to get compression & leak-down numbers.

[Solamar]

Just my .02 -

This looks like a CA specific SC ('78 and '79 had EGR assy in California) which is a really good thing if you need to smog it in CA. If not in CA, just extra stuff that I'd remove.

The picture that concerns you is just a tar substance the factory put on the strut tower. When you get an alignment it's typically required to brake the tar loose around the strut top.

38K miles is meaningless without substantial documentation to back it up.

If PPI checks good it'll probably sell near $30k, plus or minus a few thousand.

If the paint job bothers you, plan on at least $10k for a redo.

I'm coming up on almost a year since buying mine, haven't even driven it yet...


Edit - just saw the Craigslist ad. At that price I'd expect perfect original paint and lots of documentation of milage and service.

[toddetch]

@ksluna I guess the way I would look at it is every Porsche is "worth it" ... depending on your point of view. That's a combination of your knowledge, your budget, the price, your tolerance for future work, etc. Given what I've learned over the last couple of years, that car could very well be worth it, if the price is right, but there are also enough flags (only 38k miles but looks fairly well used, not a lot of history, etc., etc.).

I did four PPIs before I bought mine, and got a little lazy on the last PPI (long story) and while I love my car and in many ways it is really great, I probably overpaid a bit and some things weren't disclosed. Also, I don't think the exhaust stud was broken when I got it, but it broke about a year later - that's the risk you take when you buy one of these and you have to expect it.

For the first three PPIs I paid for, I did some Google research for reputable shops in the area the car was, called the shop I chose and talked about it. What I found was that the PPIs were very good and I passed on all those deals.

Anyway, the long and short of my advice is determine your budget, both in terms of purchase, your own time, and ongoing maintenance; get a PPI; come here with specific questions; make a call based on a lot of factors.

Feel free to contact me directly if you would like some more thoughts.

[pampadori]

I question that its actually 38k miles. The plastic odo gear might have been broken for a couple of decades. Who knows. But 38k is VERY low. Esp if the trans needed work already. They don't wear from sitting still.
The picture that you say concerns you - This area usually has a thick putty like substance covering it. It is missing from this image so I suspect someone altered the alignment settings and removed it in the process.

Somewhere around $30k-35k might be reasonable but its going to need things so have another $15k laying around.

[ksluna]

Thanks for all the replies guys.

To clear up some information, the reason why I posted is because I am located in Dallas, TX and this car is located in Orange County, CA. I wanted to get some expert opinions on here first before checking to see if a paying for a PPI would even be worth it in the first place.

I absolutely would not buy a 911 without a PPI; however, I would be OK with buying a car sight-unseen should it pass a PPI (one that includes leakdown and compression test) and if possible, I could find someone local to the car who is an expert in 911SCs, and pay them a fee to check it out for me. I feel like this is more viable than flying out halfway across the country to look at a car that I may or may not buy. If it was local, I would 100% look at it myself.

The car ad is actually here for those wondering - Feel free to scoop this up from me should you be interested lol.

38K miles, 42K OBO.

Thank you all again for your input, I have wanted a Porsche 911 since I was about 5 years old. I am 25 now and single and no obligations, so I thought now would be the time to buy one before it's too late. I don't mind if this is not the right one, I will patiently wait for my dream car. I have also been looking at this one. Budget is somewhat flexible. 40K-60K. This is my dream car like I said, and I don't plan on ever selling it. I plan on slowly making it my own and rebuilding what needs to be rebuilt to keep it with me until my grave, lol.

I have read the 915 rebuilding thread many times. I am an IT consultant, not a mechanic but I have a desire to learn and am comfortable with doing basic maintenance. Comprehensive engine work require me to go to a mechanic but I have the time and desire to learn how to do low-level to mid-level complexity work on the car.

From my research the main things to look out for on 911SCs
1. Service Records (engine work, tranny work, accidents, rust)
2. Chain tensioner upgrade
3. SCs are susceptible to broken head studs
4. CIS may be finicky if not adjusted correctly

These 4 were my main questions to sellers in my search - if I am missing any, please let me know!

[wildthing]

30K would be my first offer. 35 tops.

[eastbay]

you are from Dallas,
first thing- everything is more expensive in California and people willing pay these higher prices
second thing- Pelican board is full of cheap skates, listen to them and you will never get a car
third thing- everything is cheaper in Dallas, buy a local car

[Mark Salvetti]

Just a few things I noticed:
1) AC belt is off, I would assume the AC doesn't work. You probably need AC in Texas, so I would budget $3k-$4K to sort that out.
2) I don't think it has the chain tensioner upgrade. If it did, I believe one of the oil lines would be visible passing through the AC bracket.
3) It looks like the transmission type is 915/61. That would be for a 1978, not a 1979.
4) There is a 30 amp blade-style fuse visible next to the left strut tower. What's that for? Maybe the heavy-duty sound system? I'm curious if the fuse box has been butchered.
5) It would be nice to see some photos of the battery area and the underside of the front pan.
6) Looks like a later Carrera steering wheel.

Mark

[ClickClickBoom]

42k?
Wait a few months while you seek the knowledge necessary for owning a 40 year old sports car. Don't rush into a buy. I looked at dozens of cars before I bought either of mine, the '84 took almost a year.

[mike5876]

$42K???? NO WAY I HAVE A 1988 CARRERA with no stories for $47500

[gtc]

It looks like it was maintained, but no way does that car have only 38,000 miles. Even 138,000 would be optimistic. I bought my '84 with 180k and it might have been a bit cleaner than this one.
Some good indicators are the amount of wear to the carpets and the condition of the parts under the car (I'm looking at the transmission crossmember, and how the paint appears to be worn off by road grit).

That said, I think condition and maintenance trumps low mileage for a car you intend to drive.

[Geronimo]

How many 80's 911's have you driven? If you haven't I would suggest getting connected with local owners, drive a few see if the childhood hero car lives up to what you want out of a sports car.

I would plan to have $20-25K on hand as a "in case it breaks" fund, unless you are okay with letting it sit while you fix or save funds.

A car like this or any 911 could be hiding very expensive mechanical issues, or worse substantial body rust issues, either way they can drain you funds and fun rather quickly.

[jac1976]

I would agree with others regarding location. There are plenty of SCs around, especially in the DFW area. Moreover, your area has plenty of independent shops with some of the most knowledgeable Porsche guys in the country (Mayo, Zim, Buckley to name a few) as well as local Pelicans. Have him help you locate a car or inspect one that you find.

[ksluna]

Thanks guys

I think I will pass on this SC. The reason why I posted this thread was because to me, it didn't look like a 38K mile car, which is why I was unsure if I wanted to shell out $$$ for a comprehensive PPI or a flight to LA to check out the car myself.

I search for 911s multiple times a day (it is becoming an unhealthy addiction) on cars.com, autotrader, craigslist, pca marketplace, and the classifieds on rennslist and pelican. I'm not sure if you guys have seen the market lately, but 42K for a 911 with this reported miles seemed like a great deal to me (if 38K miles really was the case)

Anything less than 40K in the market seems like a car that is really beat down. I have been looking for about 6 months now and have test driven an '86.

In the mean time, these past few months I have done extensive research forums and YouTube on maintenance on these cars and how to keep them in good shape. One thing that I find conflicting is that one thread will say that the 3.0/3.2L are the most bullet-proof engines Porsche ever made, and then another it's like they are ticking time bombs, lol.

Also, this 911 will NOT be my main form of transportation. I have a reliable daily driver for that. I'm not looking for a project by any means, but I don't mind have a decent driver that needs some wrenching every now and then.

[nomore]

Never buy a 42k Porsche unless you look at it and drive it yourself AND have a PPI done. This is especially true if you are not going to "wrench" on it yourself. This car doesn't look at all like 38k
miles. I bought my '74 targa for 25 k almost 2 years ago off ebay from a total scumbag ripoff artist who was handy with a black rattle can. No real worries though as I DIY everything cuz I like too. It is turning in to a really nice car, if not infuriating at times.
I know it is hard to heed this advice, but there really is ALWAYS another deal out there.
The long time and regular posters really have your back on all things 911. Good luck. and take your time.