[ZCAT3]

I probably am nuts to even think about this car, but it is calling out to me to save it. Here are the details:

84 Carrera
180K on the odo
3 owners, all in NorCal

The good:

The interior is in good shape - no tears in the leather, dash is good, carpet looks fine, etc.

The engine is bone dry - first time I have seen a 911 with this high of mileage that has had no engine work and the engine is totally dry. Compression was 160 - 175 on all cylinders, and leakdown was 1-2% - truly a testament ot the 80s Carreras.

Fairly new clutch and transmission also in good shape.

Brakes are decent and fairly new.

Body is straight and paint is good, but there was a poor repair job when a rear quarter was hit and now the paint is cracking at the weld seam. Quoted $1200 to fix this.

Has what appears to be complete records (including the original sticker) from new and the complete original tool kit.

The bad:

It looks like the last three owners treated this like your every day honda. They did the basic maintenance, such as oil changes, valve adjustments (probably only when a mechanic told them to), brakes when needed, etc. But nothing else. When I climbed under the car everything looked original - the shocks (Bilstein sports - from the factory - completely dead at 175K), the bushings, tie rods, everything.

The A/C does not work (big shock there).

So my PPI comes back and says the car needs just about every wear item replaced - shocks all around (the test drive definitely confirms that), fuel filter, cap and rotor, plugs, ox sensor, tie rods, ball joints, tires, wheel bearings need adjusting, CV joints need to be repacked, and probably every other service item you can think of.

Total estimate for parts and labor is in the $5K range. Now before you all start thinking this is a shop trying to screw me, I can assure you it is not. This is a very reputable shop and as an owner of 7 911s over the years I have enough experience to know that the items they are saying need attention, do in fact need attention.

On the plus side, almost every item on the list (other than the paint work, mouting new tires, and the alignment) I have done on my own in the past. SO I may be able to knock the total down to $3K if I do most of the work.

But still, at the end of the day I have an 84 Carrera with 180K on it.

What is a decent offer? I almost feel like telling the owner he should part the car out as he will get more for it.