Please Help

[mikeran]

About 2 weeks ago I found a Turbo at a garage sale and bought it.
At first it scared me and I tried selling it but had no luck so I decided to restore it.
The car needs new power steering rack (Current one leaks)
Exhaust was missing the tip on the muffler (Held up by bailing wire)
NO maintenance records of any kind.
The paint is really bad.
Foglights are broke.
Lots of minor stuff needs to be dealt with.

So I contacted a great guy on here , and he gave me an estimate of $1700 to bring the maintenance up to date on the Engine (Parts and Labor)
I got an exhaust from a local guy and a bunch of other parts from the people on this list.

I started working on the car to change the exhaust, soon I discovered I had very rusty fuel lines (see other posts about them) The straps on the fuel tank are rusty as well.

Now I am really starting to Question if this car is restorable or ready to be stripped.

I am a shade tree mechanic, I can do simple things like brakes etc... But a lot of this car scares me.
It seems every time I start working on something I find more things to be done, I feel a little overwhelmed right now.

Based on the list of stuff the car needs do you feel I should work to repair it or strip it?

So far this site has been the best I hope you all will help me try to figure out what to do.

Thanks

[zedsn]

As you well know parts alone are not cheap for these 944 cars and put a turbo in the mix and prices even go higher for parts. Not to mention if you can't make the needed repairs yourself and have to have a shop do them. Post some photos and let us help in your decision. Ed from Cleveland area.

[Techno Duck]

What did you buy the car for?

How well does the car run?

Its hard to say because the car is going to be worth a different amount to everyone value wise. But you should consider setting up a budget for it and then factoring the cost of all repairs needed to bring the car up to drivable / reliable form. Go over everything on the car and factor cost to replace.

Depending what you bought the car for, it may be worthwhile to just cut your losses and part it out, sell it whole or you may end up getting a decent car out of it once you work out the kinks.

Ive restored 2 944's so far for a friend and will be working on a 3rd this winter. There is a 968 that is in the works also, but it needs relatively minor work compared to the others we have done.

The first thing i would really take into consideration is the condition of the body. If there is rust (Which may be an issue considering the rust found on the fuel lines) developing on the body of the car i would be wary of previous accident damage. These cars usually dont rust (galvanized) unless there was an accident in its past or if it saw severe time in a very humid area of the snow belt. If the body is straight, that is a big plus. Paint condition in my opinion isnt a huge deal, you can get some pretty cheap 'presentable' paint jobs for less than $1500.

Rate the condition of the engine, how does it run? Belts, balance belt and water pump are probably a good idea to do right off the bat with no records. If the clutch has never been touched, this is a high expense item if you dont do it yourself, especially if your car still has the one piece crossover pipe.

Its tough to say really, the 951 or any 20 year old car for that matter can become extremely expensive very quickly, especially if your not doing the work yourself. But depending on what actually needs to get done, you may be able to end up with a half decent car for a reasonable amount of time and money. A big factor is if you feel your up to taking on some of the repairs yourself, unless of course you have large amounts of disposable income to pay someone else.

Based on your list so far, i would not be put off by the car as long as the body was straight and the engine atleast ran and boosted correctly. If the clutch needed to get done, thats a different story. Replacing the steering rack is not too bad a job.

[mikeran]

Car runs great, boosts correctly. I drove it home 60 miles when I bought it. Body is straight just bad paint. No body rust so signs of ay damage all the lines are straight and all the lines are even and smooth. No idea on the age of the clutch but it works fine.

Engine just needs to be updated, the price includes all new vacuum lines, venturi delete, new water pump new belts, all new hoses, throttle body Oring and more.

Funny thing is the clock is still working and the coolent tank is still white and clear.

[mikeran]

I'll combine all the pictures together tomorrow in this thread.

[mikepellegrini]

I'm kinda in the same boat as you. It sounds as if our cars are in comparable condition - mine had about 170K when I bought it.

The car didn't have any humongous problems when I bought it - it had just been sitting a couple years and had been neglected. First off, I did the belts and rollers and the vacuum hoses, heater hoses and the TPS and the cycling valve and the BOV, and cleaned the injectors and replaced one that leaked. Last week the starter solenoid went out so I replaced the starter.

My Foglights are broke, too - but I put new bulbs in, so they do work. And my steering rack (or the pump or the lines) leaks good.

My paint is crappy - the clear coat is peeling off in places. But the body is straight - and the car runs really great!

So far, I've spent about $1,600 in parts. I did all the work myself - none of the jobs were that difficult. I'll bet you could do most of that stuff, too. With Clark's Garage and these forums, it makes a lot of stuff possible.

Other stuff still to do: I think the water pump is going, I can hear the ball joints clunk sometimes; the motor mounts are shot; and I think the clutch is going.

But nonetheless I figure I got a great deal and wouldn't even think of calling it quits. God, it's fun to drive! You buy a 23 year old sports car that's probably been thrashed within an inch of its life, you gotta expect to make some repairs...

Don't even think of parting yours out!

[mikeran]

As promised here are what pictures I have taken so far.

Engine
Under car front Other than maintenance the engine needs a new Aux cooling pump, Washer pump, Air box, A/C doesn't work, hood shocks are shot, front "batwing is broken ", and Power steering leaks.

Roof - Paint
Hood - Paint
Drivers side - Paint
Rear of Car
Rear Under Car Exterior is typical, paint is shot and most seals are dried out and need replacing, which would be done normally when you repaint anyway I guess. Exhaust tip is gone and the muffler is wired up in back. Hatch struts are shot, foglights work but both lenses are broke badly. Some corrosion in the rest of the lights.

Interior - Drivers side
Interior - Passengers side So far The small plastic rods for the central locks are broke, the sunroof doesn't work. Otherwise full tool kit, tow hook, air pump, the plastic gloves, and the alloy spare are there. It had a very cheap and poor alarm system which I removed, along with the internal wiring for an old time car phone. Odometer stopped working at 143K so no idea on total mileage on the car.

Exhaust
Exhaust
Exhaust bolts had to be cut to remove the rear section, even after cutting the remaining bolt parts had to be heated and hammered out.

Gas tank Strap 1
Gas tank Strap 2 Tank straps need to be replaced.

Fuel lines
Fuel Filter 1
Fuel Filter 2

I have collected together a complete exhaust from an 89 Turbo S (Only 2000 miles on it), Aux cooling pump, Batwing, and other misc parts needed. Bought a "rebuilt power steering rack on Ebay but it was junk so got ripped off there"

[nynor]

maybe i am deluded, but i can't figure out why you are so worried about the external rust on the fuel lines. replacing the fuel filter is a must. also, just remove the tank straps, wire brush them, paint them with high gloss rust-oleum, done.

that said, the interior looks great and if it is only going to cost you $1700 to have the mechanical stuff fixed by someone else, this is a no-brainer.

[1986 944 Turbo]

How much did you pay for it?

[Techno Duck]

While it dosent look the most pampered car in the world i dont think its a bad start. I would absolutely replace the two lines going on both ends of the fuel filter (and of course the fuel filter also). Take the gas tank straps off and media blast or wire wheel them. Then repaint in something like Por15. I dont think they look to bad other than whats on the surface. I would also replace the fuel lines under the hood while your at it as this car looks particularly'weathered'.

Am i going crazy or did you put in sport seats halfway through the pictures.. .

Honestly i dont think its half bad, i say give the car a shot. Get a cheap paint job and drive the hell out of it.

It looks like the original color was slate / graphite gray which makes for a fantastic looking car.

And get a tetanus shot before changing those fuel hard lines .

[nize]

i have never seen a 951 with more rust. do they salt the roads in dayton or something?

overall, the car doesn't look too bad though, and i would totally restore it.

[mikeran]

Oh yea lots of salt here, I did spend almost all of yesterday under the car with a wire brush, and then the stuff someone recommended that you paint on and it turns black. Most of it was basic surface rust, the straps are gone, way too much rust on them to be safe, but I have a set coming from a member on here. I will replace the 2 lines on the fuel filter, the rest cleaned up better than I thought.

Thanks everyone for your advice and thoughts, this is the biggest project I have ever attempted, so I expect I will have lots of questions as I run into things I am not sure about.

As always I welcome any thoughts comments and suggestions from anyone on here.

Mike

Would anyone be interested for me to document on here the progress of this car?

[chrenan]

Originally Posted by mikeran

Engine just needs to be updated, the price includes all new vacuum lines, venturi delete, new water pump new belts, all new hoses, throttle body Oring and more.

Apart from the water pump and new belts, I've done all this work (and much more) to my car myself. I was too chicken to touch the belts so I paid a trusted mechanic. I'm the definition of a shade tree mechanic, so you should be able to do all this yourself as well.

[HWgeek]

Heh.. Not bad... At least its all together and running! So you didn't mention what you paid for it, hopefully it was only a few grand. If you don't want it I would be happy to fly out and drive it home and give you cash for it.
Translated : If you want to learn about the car, and get greasy and swear a bit, go for it! Its not so bad to work on these cars. Some one in Panorama magazine is advertising a full set of manuals for the car (944 + 944T suppl.) for around $100-$150. WELL worth the investment for the pix, and explanations on dissassembly/assembly.

Your local auto store should have sprayable undercoating. AFTER all else is done, get a few cans (or a gallon jug, and a harbor freight undercoating gun for 19.99) and hit up all the exposed metal.

Exhaust - replace all the bolts/nuts with STAINLESS. 4 years later on both my 86 951's and I can easily work on the exhaust. Use anti-seize lub (auto store) and you will really thank yourself for years to come.

Check your clutch. Once the exhaust is off, that is about 1/3 of the battle of doing the clutch to begin with. If its marginal, just do it. Again you will thank yourself down the road.

All the best of luck on this project. These cars are loads of FUN to drive!

--------------------
86 (2x) 951 / 77 911S / 70 911 Targa

[nize]

Originally Posted by HWgeek

Some one in Panorama magazine is advertising a full set of manuals for the car (944 + 944T suppl.) for around $100-$150. WELL worth the investment for the pix, and explanations on dissassembly/assembly.

you can download the full set of manuals and more for free now. i usually have the notebook computer open next to the car when i'm working on it these days.

[mikeran]

Yes I have a set, actually the mechanicals are caught up, the car still needs a lot of little things so the work continues, finding parts seems to be a bigger issue than the work.

Thanks for all the comments, still feel a bit overwhelmed but slowly getting there, I should be able to drive it again very soon, maybe that will make a big difference.