Everything is just so expensive.

[cvriv.charles]

Im flipping through Lindsey and im thinking,... why is everything so damn expensive. Not just on lindsey but for porsche in general. I mean seriously. Most of the stuff on their site i will probably end up not buying because its just to expensive. Im not the only one too. im pretty sure that only few people actually splurge and buy what they want. You think if they were to offer everything for less that more people would buy. I would. Hell, if everything was cheaper I would end up pulling a "Walmart" and end up buying more than I need because the prices are good. You cant tell me that it costs more than a 1000+ to make one exhaust system for a 951. Or $170 to make a single AC delete. I mean really. They are secluding people. Straight up.

Just venting.

[wild man]

You would think they would realize that most of the people who are running these old cars do not have the excessively high piles of cash lying around, like the buyers of the new ones would.

[cvriv.charles]

Exactly. Im not asking that prices be dirt cheap. Just,... a lot less than they are now. There's a fine line between profit through quantity and profit through high prices. I know for fact that if everything was more affordable,... i'd be raping there site of all their products. I'd end up getting into trouble financially. Really. Once I was done doing one car I'd move onto another. Because I could. you know? Whatever. I'll end up skimping liek most people do. even the guys that buy the newer porsches,... doesnt mean they want to spend tons of money on one little thing. If everything was cheaper they would end up raiding the site too.

[Pops944]

We're trapped in a twighlight zone. We want parts for a) a Porsche b)a "classic". The people making the parts feel that the two add up to acceptable overcharge for the parts. There are so many things I need (removed by PO's) and want, but can't get because of the prices. With any other car I'd already have everything fixed or replaced withing the first year; but with this car it's been 3 years and I'm only about a third of the way. I guess being "poor" is a crime and we must pay the price.

[jsb944]

I think only a part of it is markup due to the P-car name.

Fact is that most 944 owners own 944's because they are cheaper to get into than 911's.

Looked at another way...944 owners generally have less disposable income to spend on toys.

This translates to less volume for the aftermarket folks...necessitating higher markup....lest they disapear all together.

One could argue that volume would increase if price came down...but it may be that the lowest pricepoint that Lindsey could drop their 'stuff' to is still higher than the price point that would create enough volume to lower cost and maintain margin.

either way....it's the story of the 944. Same reason they are inexpensive and mostly not maintained....it's as a friend would say "a self-licking ice cream cone".

[mikepellegrini]

Okay, okay. I feel your pain, Charles, and I have an answer. Two words: FORD TAURUS.

Don't laugh.

They're a sporty little car in their own right - chick magnets supreme. There's a bajillion of them around, so parts are cheap. There are quite a few upgrade paths available (like adding a turbo) but parts are still plentiful and cheap compared to a 944. OMG! Just think of the endless possibilities you could enjoy with a Taurus. Heck, with the money you're gonna make parting out your car, you could buy 4-5 of 'em! Jeeze!

Seriously, if you want some sticker shock, look at the prices on Pelican or Lindsey, then go price the same part at your local Porsche dealer.

We're really, really lucky to have such a large enthusiast community with all the different sorts of buying options available.

944's are a serious addiction but it's worth every penny!

Happy 4th!

[porsche4life]

You do realize that designing and building parts is not cheap.... When those parts are low volume its hard to recover costs...... Thats why the custom parts are high...


And most of the OEM parts aren't bad compared to that Corrado I owned.... $15 sparkplugs....

[Cocacolakidd]

Sometimes we just have to shop around and know where to get the same parts for less. I have cross-referenced many of the Porsche parts to VW and find them to be the same part at half of the same price - Same part in a VW box is quite a bit less always. Almost every one wanted $600.00+ for a 944 Oil Pump, I found one for $385.00 by shopping and looking. Even on eBay now the prices of used parts have gone up considerably. Probably because the sales are less because of our recession and the sellers still need to make money so they mark then up for much more.

Build or restore a Chevy, or Ford, or Dodge and it's 60% less than trying the same thing on a Porsche. Our clutch kits run about $700.00, where as a Chevy is $125.00. Does it take different metal or different machining processes to make a brake rotor ?? A Ford brake rotor is $40.00 where as a Porsche 944 brake rotor is $100.00 and more.

To me it's what ever the traffic will bear and the name Porsche

[KevsPorsche944]

What gets me is when someone jacks up prices because I drive a Porsche.

[porsche4life]

Originally Posted by KevsPorsche944

What gets me is when someone jacks up prices because I drive a Porsche.

I tell them to pound sand...

Of course chevy parts are cheaper... Tons more are sold in a year than Porsche parts.... Its really simple economics... Porsche doesn't sell that many parts a year, therefor they have to charge more for them. Add shipping from Germany to the mix and ya they are higher.... Worth it in IMHO...

[KevsPorsche944]

My latest example was I pulled a waterbottle from a salavage yard. One guy quoted me $10 Then when they found out it was off a Porsche they wanted $80. I told them I could buy it new for that price. Either take my $10 or kiss my ass.
They took my $10.

[Tervuren]

As a machinist, I do not find the prices that bad.

Look at a part this way - how long would it take me to make it in hours, multiply it by how much you make an hour, divide by say, half, and you come out to what its worth.

I made my own RC chassis once, if I'd of spent that time and effort at my job, I could of easily bought a new one and had change left over for the hours spent. I wanted my own thing. Doing something like making your own reliable vented brake rotor, would give you a little bit more respect for the prices.

[flash968]

when it comes to aftermarket, as somebody who makes a lot of things for these cars, i can tell you that the prototype process is incredibly expensive - i spent $11k developing a cat-back that will never go to market - another $15k and counting on the development and testing of the supercharger kit - these costs have to be recouped somewhere - it's not just the individual item cost

also, manufacturing on such low quantities is also not terribly cheap - when you run things in batches of 10 or 20, it can be pricey

the packaging and shipping process is also something not often factored in by the consumer - it has taken me the better part of 3 days to pack up 10 supercharger kits, and i'm still not done

then there is all the running around dropping stuff off and picking stuff up, all the shipping costs of components to here, so that i can package stuff - it all adds up

that being said, i do think that OEM porsche parts pricing is high relative to other marques, but then again, the quantities are low, and it isn't going to get any better as more of these cars find the graveyard - the older these cars get, the higher the prices will get, due to less availability

[Quikzilver]

Parts for the 944 are no different than for a Corvette. Once you get above the Camaro/Mustang crowd, you are going to get it with the additional "tax".

[flash968]

the production volume is very different - if i were able to make 100 instead of 10 of something, my costs would dramatically decrease

there just aren't that many of these cars around, and certainly not many people who own them willing to spend any kind of money on them - when owners are talking about penny pinching on things like rebuilding slave cylinders, and waiting until something breaks before replacing it, it pretty much tells the tale of what to expect in parts sales

[nynor]

Originally Posted by Quikzilver

Parts for the 944 are no different than for a Corvette. Once you get above the Camaro/Mustang crowd, you are going to get it with the additional "tax".

a guy at work was telling me it was $2800 in parts to repair/replace the center differential in his 70's corvette. i was blown away. it is a GM car, how many of those were made?

[fmartenies]

Another factor besides volume is also at play. The level of precision involved on some of these mechanical parts is pretty high compared to a large displacement low compression motor out of Detroit. That adds extra engineering and tooling costs and the tooling has to be maintained/replaced more often. Tool and die work ain't cheap.

[brucen]

Lets not forget that a lot of the parts we are buying for our 944s were manufactured years ago - not last week! One justification for prices climbing is the cost of warehousing this stuff for many years. Having said that - I know that Volvo is guilty of doubling the price of some parts (seemed to be when the car that they fit hit 10 years old) like fuel injectors and points. I think Porsche is likely guilty also.
And why would strut mounts for an S2/late Turbo cost $733 Canadian as of last week? I appreciate they are an improved design over the earlier 944 but for that money they should come attached to a Koni with a sport spring :-)

[Komenda Fan]

My experience suggests that there is a big difference in the durability, engineering and quality between a Porsche part and a Chevy part. Not really apples to apples. And as a much smaller market, all those costs to produce have to be shared between far fewer consumers. Frankly, since my car is 23 years old, I think I'm fortunate anyone is making the parts at all, at any price. Just think of the price of parts for a early 60s Maserati Sebring...

[944Spec_bound]

Originally Posted by KevsPorsche944

What gets me is when someone jacks up prices because I drive a Porsche.

You nailed it, simple and spot on....no economics, no supply/demand explanation, no "superior parts cost more", no other BS. It's naive to fool yourselves in order to justify that the parts should cost more for any other reason than it says "Porsche" on the car.

When the identical Audi or VW OEM part costs much less, it's hard to argue anything else.