Another point I want to make is not to overpay for a grey market car! While the crowd here loves the ROW for it's lack of options and the extra power, the average buyer outside this community (the majority!) thinks very differently. They worry about butchering in federalization, parts availability, insurance and title woes, mileage, rust etc. It's all manageable, if you do not overpay for the "rare" and "fast" euro model.

George

One word: Rust. Rust-Rust-Rust-Rust-Rust-Rust-Rust-Rust-Rust-vRust-Rust-Rust-Rust-Rust-Rust-Rust-Rust-Rust-
Look carefully for Rust

1982 Euro SC on eBay?
 

Hi, I'm a NEWBIE here with a few questions...I've never owned a Porsche, but have longed for one many years. There is currently a 1982 Euro SC (ROW?) car on eBay that I have an interest in.

Porsche : 911 - eBay (item 160523536899 end time Jan-02-11 10:52:57 PST)

177K miles, 'ZZZ' VIN, original paint & interior, imported to CA in the mid-80's...still has mid-80's CA license plate. There are two labels present...one lists the shop that did the FMVSS conversion, the other is the CA Bureau of Automotive Repair Info/Emissions? Tag.

Opening bid is $15K (What should it be?) Hopefully those in the know will look at the auction and offer any concerns or 'BEWARE OF' items that come to sight or mind.

I ran the smog cert info and the car has had 10 CA tests performed. The documented smog test history starts in 1999. Back in 2003 it had an ABORT and subsequent FAILURE two weeks later. It passed nearly a month later. In 2009 it had another FAILURE, but passed later on the same day...Should this history be a concern?

The car has what appears to be LARGE rear impact bumper pads...were these a federal requirement on cars entering the U.S.?

In addition to the DMV and rust concerns provided in this thread, is there anything additional I should be concerned with...cam tensioner/airbox upgrades etc...??

Thank you for any help you can offer...

Get a rec on who to take it to in your area for a (must have!) PPI before finalizing sale.

Can't tell for sure from the pics, but if they are the fat bumper blocks I'd want to know if there'd been rear end damage and the bumper replaced - I've never seen a ROW with fat blocks.

The fog/driving lamps are missing (I think they were std. equip.).

If you buy it you'll definitely want to get the front, rubber air dam. W/O it, these cars start to get floaty at 70+ mph.

15k is probably a bit high at this time in this mkt - but if it checks out and you like it...

Good luck. I like mine - see post #15. Incidentally, the PO put a Carrera front bumper on mine (thus the integrated fogs).

from the pic I can tell it has not had the tensioner upgrade...I just paid 10,800 for my 84 targa in june with 88k miles...I think that price is too high

I find the scare stories about ROW cars blown way out of proportion. My SC ROW is very reliable and rust free. Not having driven a US version, I can't compare, but mine feels pretty strong for a 200hp car. Of course, I don't have to deal with emissions tests since it's excused being over 25yrs old in Texas.

I own a 1983 RoW SC, and I just smogged and registered it here in Los Angeles. It was Stored for 14 years, without a non-op, and I received NO PAPERWORK. I got it cheap and knew I wouldnt be losing at all so why not? Well, DMV fees were up to $800 after 14 years of no one paying for them. Anyway I took it to get it smogged and passed the second time after having my mechanic adjust the Air/Fuel mixture. It does have a cat and an O2 sensor which I gotta see where its hooked up to. The car is pretty much untouched and was not really messed with when Federalized. The doors havent been rigged for impact bars, the height is Euro, and no Rust of any kind. Oh the techs at the smog place were a bit confused by a lack of sticker but a book they were referring to helped clear things up, or not, and they gave up. Haha. Either way after it was smogged the tech said it was one of the best cars he had ever tested due to low emissions per allowance. Ive not looked back since.

Without a proper PPI the price is difficult to nail.

Fogs were an option as mine has fog-less front valance as well. I think it makes the cars more unique.


The rear bumper pads are ROW as well.
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1293981063.jpg

Thirty years ago, there were some problems with "Federalizing" gray market cars. Some Pelicanheads apparently have long memories. Any Euro market car that's been in the US 10+ years has been sorted out.

The biggest difference is that PCNA specified some basic options for the US market, and ROW delivery SCs may not have come with sunroofs, forged wheels, leather seat surfaces, etc.

smog
 

One word of caution. The picture of the engine running shows there's a smog pump added to this engine. If a complete smog system has been added like is on my '78 I'd be wary of the EGR valve operating correctly on this car. I've got it on good authority that if you run the engine with the smog pump disconnected (ie belt off) it'll burn up the EGR valve and from what I've heard they're pricey and hard to find. I haven't actually had to look for one, but that's what I've heard.
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1293987668.jpg
Also, to my eye, the bumpers in the pics on ebay look like it has the small bumperettes, not the big ones, in the rear.
Good luck with your decision. :)

My two cents:

That car is interesting more because it is a sunroof delete. It is also a later Euro and should have the higher compression Pistons. However, at 177k do they still have a lot of life left? This would be a good car to build a 911Spec race car because of those two things.

At $15k you are in 3.2 Carrera territory. With this comes some nice upgrades like EFI, biger & better braking system, and more power. Especially if chipped.

For some reason euros seem to be valuable whey you are the buyer. However, when you are selling they can become a Gray Market car and something to avoid.

Thank you all for your input...Scott & Oh Haha, a picture's worth a thousand words. This auction came and went w/o a bid...I'm still interested, but not at that opening price and thanks to the education received here I'm armed with plenty of questions for the seller.

Upon further inspection based on your input the bumper pads do appear to be the smaller versions...the seat surfaces seem to be cloth and bearing 'Porsche' in a diagonal pattern.

It was suggested by multiple posters that a PPI be done...what exactly is that?

Of course it would be nice to speak with a PO and be standing in front of the car in order to aid in a decision...Thank you again :)

I think it is/was advertised on San Francisco Craigs list if you want to follow it up.

Tone of seller's add sounded stern and like a don't waste my time kind of guy in my opinion.

The rear pads are euro size. The US sizes are about twice as wide.

George

PPI-Pre purchase inspection

Have an independent mechanic look the car over and perform a leakdown test. This will give you a better idea of the engine's condition and the car overall.

The car has an SCARGO license plate frame. It may not hurt to go call them and see if they know anything about the car.

Here is my input:
1. Car is way too expensive.
2. There is oxidation on the fan housing that does not look like it came from California. This speaks for fair weather use either back in Germany or in the US rust belt. This is not good both for the sheet metal as well as the head studs that tend to do worse in fair weather (they break).
3. The headliner is shot and the sun visors are puffy like cushions.
4. There is a ton of road rash on the front of the car / stone chips.
5. The Fuchs wheels have faded centers.
6. The dash is warped (note around the center vent).
7. The air pump is disconnected.

You can do a lot better than this car. Unless you can get it for $10k and expect a project, I'd keep looking. $15k will get you a very clean US SC or 84-86 Carrera.

Good Luck,

George

I have to agree with aigel...I don't have to, but I do.

Good catch on the SCARGO. They are very slow. Back in the day, skinny little Frenchmen in 2CVs would eat them for lunch.

If I were looking for an SC now days I'd take a serious look at this one:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-cars-sale/567791-1978-cashmere-beige-911sc-norcal.html

Note the build of the engine. While most people are probably turned off by the color I think it would be cool to have a unique color like this one. You won't get lost in the crowd of red, black or white ones. It's almost as cool as my Talbot Yellow.