951s - what's up with ebay prices?

[larkja]

I currently have an '82 SC and was thinking about selling or trading for a 951. Had an '86 a couple of years ago and still love them.

I have been searching around e-scam, oops I mean ebay, and the prices seem to be all over the board. A nice car (1986) with around 120k miles will top out around $5,500 or $6,000 while another with 170k miles goes for $9,000 or more (I'm not referring to the '88 or '89 S models).

I purchased mine two years ago for $8,500. It has less than 100k and was pristine - perfect paint (charcoal) and perfect linen interior. Great looking car.

Just trying to illicit some feedback here.

Thanks,
Jim

[Porsche-O-Phile]

Shoot me an e-mail if you're interested. I might be interested in that trade. My 951 is in very good condition but the mileage is high (about 180K and counting on the clock). Mileage doesn't mean squat with the 951s or 944s in terms of affecting ultimate price. The things that seem to factor in more are condition, modifications (if any) and options. A 951 with a k27/8 turbo upgrade, chips, boost controller, and a couple of suspension mods will easily sell for a couple of thousand more than stock. Condition matters a lot it seems; 951s with great paint, no dents or dings, no dash cracks and seats with no rips will be worth easily $2K-$3K more than ones that need a little TLC.

The 951 is a great car; it's highly underrated.

[HY M8NC]

I agree, pricing is everywhere. There are a lot of variables, like records, updates, mods, maintenance, and general condition. I'm sure you are aware of the differences between 86, 87-88, 88S-and 89 models. The updated suspension, brakes, and airbags in the later cars is a premium over the 86. Of course, the 88S and 89 cars have the better turbo, M030 suspension, and a different computer. I'm asking $10k for my 88 (non-S), and have had a bunch of e-mails, but no buyers. I'd like to get between 9 and 10 for it. I'm not pushing too hard to sell it. It kind of seems like the market has fallen off. I suppose the timeframe of the seller is important. If they really need to dump a car, they'll take low money for a car that should go for a lot more.

For example, one of the guy's in our local Porsche club just bought an 88 S from Atlanta. 120k miles, nice nice shape-with records mostly stock for 9500. In my opinion, he kicked the guy in the nuts buying it at that price-but the owner needed out of it in a hurry-

All that being said-finding a solid, well-maintanied, honestly represented car is tough...and almost impossible on "the bay".

[legion]

I found that prices have a lot to do with geographic location. When I was looking at 944s this summer, I found that 951s were going for 8,000 - 12,000 in the Chicago area. (8,000 being a moderate to crappy one.) NAs in the same area were going for 2,000 - 5,000. I saw S2s (all cabs) go for up to 24,000. I ended up getting my 944S from a cornfield north of St. Louis and paid 4,200.

I've found that a lot of sellers think their cars are worth what they were 10 years ago, some think that a minor repair or mod should massively boost the selling price, and others hope you get stars in your eyes because it's a Porsche. I had a guy with a 951 with a sheered exhaust manifold stud (a repair that might mean a new cylinder head) insist that his car was worth no less than 8,000.

If I could have gotten a decent 951 for less than 8,000, I would be driving one now.

Edit: All of the 951s I looked at were '86 or '87, had between 88,000 and 120,000 miles, and were bone stock (aside from some modern CD players).