PPI on second car looks pretty good

[krichard]

It is an '88 Cab with 91k miles. The compression came back lowest 180 highest 190. The highest on the leakdown was 6%. The car does need some work though.

1. The convertable top needs to have some stitching repaired near the back window. there are no tears just stitching that came apart.
2. The ac does not blow. I tried all fan speeds and they don't blow.
3. The passenger window does not operate up or down.

The owner is willing to come down on the price to cover the repairs so I wanted to get everyone's opinion on if it would be worth it to get a "fixer upper" with a strong drivetrain or an older SC or Carrera that is perfect???

[jerrykrug]

how much are they asking? Should be a great car if the price is right w/ a g-50 tranny.

[Typical Fish]

Just as an FYI, the top can't be stitched at the back window to any great effect w/o being taken off; minimum 350.00 labor. I JUST went down this road.

[91C2wrencher]

Oh boy! just a quick observation. The little things you mentioned as needing to be repaired sound like the tip of the iceberg. If PO wasn't taking care of these things just what was getting taken care of in the way of maintanance?

[nostatic]

Originally posted by krichard
The owner is willing to come down on the price to cover the repairs so I wanted to get everyone's opinion on if it would be worth it to get a "fixer upper" with a strong drivetrain or an older SC or Carrera that is perfect???

Depends. There is no such thing as a "perfect" older car. Mine was probably as close as it gets, and I still had to replace 2 swtiches that died soon after puchase, and am now sorting out the AC.

But in the grand scheme of things, pretty minor. Everything else on the car is fine. It depends though on what you are willing to put up with (are ragged seats ok? sagging headliner? puffy visors? small oil leaks?), and what you can do yourself.

The drivetrain is a big part of the car, but the other stuff can cost you a LOT of money if you have to R/R. The usual dogma is that it is cheaper to buy someone else's project.

[krichard]

he's asking 18k but he is motivated to sell and willing to come down after getting quotes for all the repairs.

[krichard]

Originally posted by 91C2wrencher
Oh boy! just a quick observation. The little things you mentioned as needing to be repaired sound like the tip of the iceberg. If PO wasn't taking care of these things just what was getting taken care of in the way of maintanance?

Yea I talked to the mechanic about this and he said the car could use a service but was in pretty good mechanical shape. The guy who owns it now has only had it for about a year and has put less than a thousand miles on it.

[ZCAT3]

Nostatic is right - "little" things, like the AC, can easily add up to 4 figure expenses. The AC on the pre 1990 cars is just plain bad, so if you want it to actually cool the car down expect it to be a big ticket item (that does not really detract from the car's value, IMO, as this is endemic to this car). It could easily be $500 to repair the top and another few hundred to repair the window. I think 18K for a mechanically and cosmetically sound 88 Cab is a good deal. If he goes to 17K it is a really good deal.

[91C2wrencher]

Richard, do you know what this owner paid for it? I mean just HOW motivated is he to sell? I wouldn't sell any car at loss in a year unless I was faced with an unwanted repair, wink,wink,...I'm not trying to talk you out of this by any means just playing the devils advocate here, as I know its hard to be objective when your wanting something.

[nostatic]

I think it is pretty common to find cars that have been owned for "about a year". The usual scenario being an under-educated buyer getting into a car that needs work, then they either get sick of bleeding money, or put off any maintenance until it's ready to die, then try and sell.

[krichard]

I don't know what he paid I only know he has had it for ~ one year. I haven't actually talked numbers with him yet I just get the feeling when talking to him that he is willing to make a deal. He did point out the obvious flaws that I mentioned and offered to come down from the asking price for those repairs.

[masraum]

It could be there are other problems, or it could just be a good deal. If you are in Texas, then you will likely need either the top or the AC fixed, maybe both. The window might not be too bad. $18K sounds like a pretty good price if the car is otherwise in good shape, and motivated to sell could be good for you. What are you going to use the car for, weekends, daily driver, track car? If it's mechanically sound, but not perfect in the little things it might be a good deal (as a daily driver you'll need to get the top fixed, and depending maybe the AC too). As a daily driver if it is not perfect then you don't have to worry as much. I have almost 160K on my '88, the engine has not been open and it is still running strong and just passed emissions with flying colors. If it's going to be your weekend car then you may want one in better shape. If it's going to be a track car then the shape will probably not be as important, but then a Coupe would also be better.

[91C2wrencher]

Originally posted by nostatic
I think it is pretty common to find cars that have been owned for "about a year". The usual scenario being an under-educated buyer getting into a car that needs work, then they either get sick of bleeding money, or put off any maintenance until it's ready to die, then try and sell.

My point exactly - nostatic, here you take the wheel, uhm, beer...

[krichard]

I am looking for a daily driver. I would also like to do what work I can on it. I am pretty knowlegable when it comes to electronics and have some experience with engines. I have no experience with porsche engines so it will be a learning experience.

The A/C and Top will have to be fixed asap. It is way to hot in central TX to go without some relief even if it is porsche ac.

[ZCAT3]

How much you will need to put into the car after purchase also really depends on you. Here on Pelican you are generally dealing with a bunch of anal owners and/or track junkies (excuse me, I meant to say "Porsche enthusiasts"). I am in this category for sure and after I bought my 87 Carrera (my 5th 911) I spent a fair amount of time and money fixing things that probably would be left alone by most car owners. I basically replaced anything that was in the scheduled maintenance that I could not confirm had been replaced recently (i.e. plug wires, cap, rotor, fuel filter, plugs, O2 sensor, etc. etc.) and borught all maintenance up to date to start with a baseline (brake pads, oil and filter change, valve adjustment, brake bleed, tanny fluid, etc.) I did all of this myself, but the parts alone were many hundreds of dollars. My car had pretty good records, but I still wanted all maintenance clean and fresh.

Now on my first 911, also an 87 Carrera, we owned it for 3 years and 30,000 miles and did almost no maintenance other than oil changes. I really did not know much about these cars until after I had sold that one off. Although that car was in what most people would consider excellent condition, it really needed most opf the maintenance I listed above to get it up to date.

[nostatic]

Originally posted by 91C2wrencher
My point exactly - nostatic, here you take the wheel, uhm, beer...

If I take your beer I'll spill my cocktail. If only someone made a cupholder for older 911s...

[Sonic dB]

Passenger window could just be a new switch.

$18 K is a reasonable asking price on an 88 Cab. Sounds like a good deal.

[makaio]

Offer him $15,000.

[jrdavid68]

Originally posted by Sonic dB
Passenger window could just be a new switch.

$18 K is a reasonable asking price on an 88 Cab. Sounds like a good deal.

Definitely could be something simple for the window. As MAKAIO said, offer him $15,000 and use the $3,000 for a NEW top and A/C repair.

I'm not a Cab owner so not sure how much a new top costs these days.

[imcarthur]

For what it is worth, some recent Ebay sales:

1988 Cab 70,800 $19,000 Feb 2003 Red
1988 Cab 61,525 $15,221 Feb 2003 Accident? Black
1988 Cab 70,014 $25,500 Jun 2003 Red Tail
1988 Cab 89,049 $16,000 Jun 2003 No AC White Tail