Barn Find

Patton · 09-04-2007, 12:28 PM

I stumbled on a 1985 944 non-turbo today in the sticks of TN. Owner was not present but another guy says it runs, some knocking. The asking prices was $1,500.00.

The front of the car looks staight but there is some minor body damage on the driver side door. The top has a large dent and the sunroof looks like sh%%$#$%. Interior look very rough but it does have a new center consol, not installed.

I was thinking about offering $1,000 and selling off the parts, I didn't see any rust but will check it out more tomorrow. Is it possible to make a few thousand on this one?

I'll be the first to admit, I know nothing about 944's.

pdx944 · 09-04-2007, 12:58 PM

Id stay away you can find much better examples in say the $2000 range. Detonation in an NA thats really scary, with body damage, and on top of that you stll dont even know how it runs. I would run away, but its your choice.

Patton · 09-04-2007, 01:17 PM

Thanks for the advice. I thought that the front end, engine intake, case, cam, distributor and sensors + wheels and tranny would be worth the investment. I guess not.

Thanks again,

many944s · 09-04-2007, 01:59 PM

What kind of wheels does it have: Cookie cutter, phone dials, fuchs?

Could be some money if it has original fuchs, but if the interior is shot, and the engine is knocking, I wouldn't offer more than $500-$700.

bearone2 · 09-04-2007, 03:31 PM

dent on the roof could mean a rollover.

gt350mike · 09-05-2007, 08:09 PM

My son and I bought a car with a complete parts car for less than what you are thinking of offering. We thought it would take about 3 to 4 months to get the motor running and re-paint the car. Working a little here and there, we got the car about 90% complete after 12 months. My recommendation is to punt..............There are SO many things that could be bad that you will spend $500 to $1000 before you can blink an eye. Without knowing anything about the car, you can bet that the fuel system will need to be replaced (fuel pump, fuel filter, and clean/refurbish the injectors). You mentioned that it may have a knock so my personal opinion is that the owner needs to be realistic and sell the car for at least a 1/3 of the asking price.
I have been through 2 944 project cars; an 87 N/A (out of Columbian TN) that the PO thought the motor was bad and the 83 that I mentioned earlier. If I had to do it over again, the 87 was worth the time and effort because it was a NICE 944 with only 86k miles. I got extremely luck with the 87 because the problem was the DME, not the motor. By the time we got the 87 back on the road in perfect shape, we had $1500 in mostly parts and some labor.

The 83 was an ok deal because the PO sold a complete parts car with all the parts stored in plastic storage bins (I still have most of the stuff like the engine, trans, hood, etc.). Looking back I wish I had passed on this car because we have WAY too much time invested. It's a good solid car now, but I think for the money there are better deals.

Good luck on whatever you decide!

Patton · 09-06-2007, 02:31 AM

Punting......... Thanks for the help.

924Sman · 09-06-2007, 06:39 AM

Offer to haul it away for 250.00.......he pays you!

Dal

callmethewander · callmethewander's Garage

these are great cars, and one day it would be worth it to pay that much for one like that, but right now they're are still so many really good ones available for (what i consider) a bargain. if you've never had one you might want to look for a nicer example to test drive, but for now the car you describe does not seem worth even $1000