What to fix before selling my 82SC Euro — that slept for 17 years

[Dave B]

Time to sell my 82SC Euro with 158K miles. GULP… that’s hard to say after 33 years. New to the group, looking to tap into the massive wisdom here. (Sorry for the length, but the background seems relevant to for advice...)

I’d prefer to spend as little as possible on fixes because I’m starting a business, but of course money well spent is wise. So what work should I do on it before I sell it after it slept for 17 years — to receive the best net return, AND give the buyer the opportunity to customize it to their preferences?

BACKGROUND
I bought it in 1990 in “Fair” condition (Hagerty’s def'n) in the SF Bay Area with 95K miles as a daily driver. The PO had ridden it hard, which explained its condition — and why just a year later I ended up with a fully rebuilt engine at 105K miles. It was my daily driver until 1996 (kids) and 150K miles. Then I drove it only occasionally until 2006 and 155K miles -- when I noticed the clutch starting to go. Up to then it was running well, I had it to 140mph+ earlier that year.

Due to kids and work, the last 17 years it’s been sitting almost untouched in my garage (yes, I’m an idiot, but that’s another story). I did “wake it up” 7 years ago and did some work on it (replaced fuel pump, brakes, etc.) to sell it to a friend, but he changed his mind.

I decided to sell it 2 months ago, so I fired it up — and it turned over on the first attempt. It ran very rough at first, but I kept starting it up every day for a few minutes. And I took it around the neighborhood a bit with its limping clutch. It began to run much better... and passed smog certification three weeks ago. Then the clutch gave out. So here I am with a (rebuilt) 82SC Coupe Euro that’s running okay, but needs a clutch and a host of other fixes or updates due to its age and long slumber:

FIX? (broken/barely functioning):
Clutch, seat belts, gas gauge (could be float), front fog lights, back Euro fog light, back windshield wiper, back windshield washer, sun visors, headlight washers

UPDATE? (not broken, but could def be improved):
Paint (bad; white), front seats (driver’s is bad), front valance, bumper smile, fiberglass after-mkt whale tale (paint or remove?), shocks, driver door handle (sticks), chrome headlight rings (pitted, H4s), black window trim, headliner (1 tear), dashboard (2 cracks), sunroof seal (doesn’t leak), back seat deck, passenger door pouch

So there you have it… would love your advice. How can I spend as little as possible to get it sold for the best price possible, and allow for the next owner to customize it?

[ant7]

To be honest, I would leave it as is, and advertise it as honestly as you can, with the issues it has, considering you purchased it some 33 years ago, with today's prices, you still stand to make a great profit on your original investment.
Just my ramblings.
Good luck with it, what ever you decide.

Originally Posted by Dave B

Time to sell my 82SC Euro with 158K miles. GULP… that’s hard to say after 33 years. New to the group, looking to tap into the massive wisdom here. (Sorry for the length, but the background seems relevant to for advice...)

I’d prefer to spend as little as possible on fixes because I’m starting a business, but of course money well spent is wise. So what work should I do on it before I sell it after it slept for 17 years — to receive the best net return, AND give the buyer the opportunity to customize it to their preferences?

BACKGROUND
I bought it in 1990 in “Fair” condition (Hagerty’s def'n) in the SF Bay Area with 95K miles as a daily driver. The PO had ridden it hard, which explained its condition — and why just a year later I ended up with a fully rebuilt engine at 105K miles. It was my daily driver until 1996 (kids) and 150K miles. Then I drove it only occasionally until 2006 and 155K miles -- when I noticed the clutch starting to go. Up to then it was running well, I had it to 140mph+ earlier that year.

Due to kids and work, the last 17 years it’s been sitting almost untouched in my garage (yes, I’m an idiot, but that’s another story). I did “wake it up” 7 years ago and did some work on it (replaced fuel pump, brakes, etc.) to sell it to a friend, but he changed his mind.

I decided to sell it 2 months ago, so I fired it up — and it turned over on the first attempt. It ran very rough at first, but I kept starting it up every day for a few minutes. And I took it around the neighborhood a bit with its limping clutch. It began to run much better... and passed smog certification three weeks ago. Then the clutch gave out. So here I am with a (rebuilt) 82SC Coupe Euro that’s running okay, but needs a clutch and a host of other fixes or updates due to its age and long slumber:

FIX? (broken/barely functioning):
Clutch, seat belts, gas gauge (could be float), front fog lights, back Euro fog light, back windshield wiper, back windshield washer, sun visors, headlight washers

UPDATE? (not broken, but could def be improved):
Paint (bad; white), front seats (driver’s is bad), front valance, bumper smile, fiberglass after-mkt whale tale (paint or remove?), shocks, driver door handle (sticks), chrome headlight rings (pitted, H4s), black window trim, headliner (1 tear), dashboard (2 cracks), sunroof seal (doesn’t leak), back seat deck, passenger door pouch

So there you have it… would love your advice. How can I spend as little as possible to get it sold for the best price possible, and allow for the next owner to customize it?

[usera]

If you can do the work yourself or have a very low cost indy, I would say do everything. If you are going to pay market rates on fixing things then just keep it as is because you are not going to get any return for the investment i.e. if it is worth $10K now and you put $6K into it it may only be worth $14K.
The only thing is going to be speed of sale, if you sell it as is, there is a smaller pool of people out there.

[rwest]

I think you really need to fix the clutch so you have a running car to sell, otherwise people will assume that everything needs to be fixed including transmission and engine and you will get super low ball offers only.

Detail and clean it up as best you can. Maybe try and find a replacement seat as that will really help how it looks.

If you can troubleshoot the little electrical stuff, do it, but don’t pay someone to do it.

[bbturbo]

Agree with rwest. Fix the clutch and market the SC as a driving example. Be careful not going too crazy with the while-you're-in-there repairs. As we all know, a slippery slope can hit quickly. Also, this will give your mechanic a good opportunity to give the car a thorough PPI to your potential buyers.

A main negotiation point will be if your '91 engine rebuild was with steel head studs because if dilivar studs were put back in, there's a chance you have yourself some broken head studs that could be practical to take care of while the engine is out for clutch.

Either way, you'll have no issues selling the SC as-is in non-running shape, especially since it's a coupe. Best of luck!

[Arctic Rat]

Sell it as it sits. What will you do IF you fix the clutch, then drive it and something else brakes, fix that too. Slippery slope if you have no idea what the next problem might be. Just get it moved on and move on yourself. It's just a car, send it!

Joe D

[nickelplated5s]

Clutch and tires. Tires may look OK but they are old. My '67 spent a year and a half in a specialty shop. You don't want to know that bill. Way more over the years than it is worth. That said it was fun to drive this summer.

[Dan J]

Clutch, tires detail best as possible. Don't sell with bad clutch or you'll be giving it away

[berndtj]

Agree with many here. Fix the clutch and really that's it. That way it can be driven/test driven. Everything else is just a project for the next owner.

[Old H2S]

Dang, nice car.. where are you? I can do a clutch for you in my sleep.

[nospiners]

Be very careful with the clutch slippery slope , once you're in there , all kinds of "needs to be done"
show up !!!!!!! I started with a clutch only purpose on my 87 and ended up with a complete engine reseal...

[gsxrken]

Clutch, clutch cable, and sell it. It must be drivable or you’ll take a $10k hit

[wildthing]

This year's Excellence Magazine Buyer's Guide lists the SC from $25K to $55K, range is wide as condition dictates price. A running car that needs a lot of work is $25K. This is for US spec cars. I don't know how Euro / gray market affects the price. I suspect you can get $10K tomorrow and it'll be on a flatbed by the afternoon. Or you can fix it up for $15K and still get $25K depending on paint and other cosmetic work that needs to be done, or even more mechanical work.

Classic.com has similar values: https://www.classic.com/m/porsche/911/year-1982/ if you remove the outliers.

[Aztim]

Make it a driver if it makes financial sense

[Arctic Rat]

Now let's see if the OP even participates in the discussion.

1 post wonder?? Seems to be more of the trend lately. AI bot creating talking points?

[Dave B]

Actually, I simply had a very long day yesterday which took me away from my computer so I couldn't respond. Thank you all for your input -- you didn't disappoint with your wisdom.

I was leaning toward fixing the clutch, and that seems to be the 60/40 prevailing opinion here on that issue. I agree (rwest) that people may assume everything needs to be fixed if it’s not a running car. Thanks for pointing out the risk of that turning into a slippery slope (bbturbo, rwest and nospiners). In my case, I'm limiting spending anyway due to starting my business so I can hold the line if needed (famous last words?). If other fixes are identified along the way, at least that helps the buyer know what’s needed.

On the "fix everything else" issue, I was a bit surprised by on how many said to “sell as-is.” I’m not opposed to it, it's just that I’ve bought a half-dozen pre-owned cars and always thought that if the car had fewer fixes needed, it reduced my concerns overall and supported paying more. It made negotiations more clear.

But I guess it really comes down to the ROI argument (usera). No use in spending $1000 for $500 of value. I can do some of the work myself, but certainly not all. And there will definitely be no ROI if I pay to have them done at market rates. Good catch on the tires, nickelplated5s and Dan J — I did replace them a while back with “placeholder” tires so it could be safely driven for now. The buyer can upgrade to their favorites when it’s ready for some serious road time.

BOTTOM LINE
I’m leaning toward fixing the clutch, clutch cable (thanks, gsxrken), and doing a few simple fixes for items I purchased a while back. I’m leaving the vast majority as projects for the new owner (thanks, berndtj).

QUESTION 2
Wildthing, thanks for raising the issue of pricing on a Euro (ROW) version — what’s everyone’s take? I’ve always seen the higher 204hp as a clear value-add...

[pmax]

Originally Posted by Dave B

The buyer can upgrade to their favorites when it’s ready for some serious road time.

This.

Leave the fixing to the next owner, hopefully another enthusiast. Simply fixing just the clutch for cheap, may not even be what the next owner wants, doesn't make this a driver if I read this correctly and shouldn't be presented as so, it has already been what ... 17 years now.

Originally Posted by Dave B

But I guess it really comes down to the ROI argument (usera). No use in spending $1000 for $500 of value. I can do some of the work myself, but certainly not all. And there will definitely be no ROI if I pay to have them done at market rates. Good catch on the tires, nickelplated5s and Dan J — I did replace them a while back with “placeholder” tires so it could be safely driven for now. The buyer can upgrade to their favorites when it’s ready for some serious road time.

Questions on ROI and maximizing $$$ are best discussed in the Marketplace forum.

https://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-marketplace-discussion/

[Dave B]

Re the clutch, there are a few enthusiasts that have contacted me that ideally want to be able to drive the car. They want to see just where the car is at in drive-ability.

And thanks for the guidance, pmax, as a newbie I wasn't aware of that protocol to change threads as the discussion evolves.

[Dave B]

Old H2S, I appreciate the offer of you doing the clutch in your sleep -- that'd be awesome to see.

But I think we're out of luck -- I'm in San Diego.

[Showdown]

Sell it as is with full disclosure.

Any buyer will have to go through the car either themselves (or with their mechanic) and the ability to make decisions about what to repair/replace, etc… and to decide how it’s done is a huge benefit

Do they want a stock clutch, a lightweight pressure plate, etc… you may not be doing the next buyer, or yourself any favors by making a decision that perhaps they want to make.