I've seen a couple of posts about a 924S... seriously consider one. IMO, they are kind of an ugly duckling but the cool thing is you get the 8V 944 drivetrain with the retro dash in a newer car.
I had an '87 944S and an '88 924S. Neither were full time DDs but with a little AC work, both could have easily been. A little dialing in and they were pretty bullet proof. Both ACs would take a charge and blow ice cold but they both had leaks that I never bothered to fix.
So, I would probably do a 924S. Here's why:
While I like the look of the later 944 dash, the guage lighting can suck without replacement/refurbishing of the mirrored prizms that direct the light to the guages. Also, the AC control is an electronic "auto climate sort of" job. Mine had an issue with a harness that would come loose and cause the system to default to full heat. Not good in July. I found the 924S with the old dash didn't suffer same.
But with the 924S, you get the later 944 8V valve train, the one with the automatic spring tensioner for the timing belt... easy peasy to service but make sure you tighten the bolt that locks it.
I would avoid the twin cam cars (S and S2). I mean, I guess if you know they maintained and the tensioner is up to date, they are fine but the way Porsche designed the camshaft drive is a bit more complex than the simple 8Vs. If you're looking for a beater DD, why worry with complexity?
In general, either buy a car with a new clutch or plan on having to do it. The clutches are kind of expensive but I had to do the one in my 924 because of the elastomer spring center failing. Supposedly, this was a weak link of the car but in all honesty, mine failed at close to 20 years old. I think that is probably a reasonable service life. A traditional clutch with coil spring center superseded the elastomer, so no problems with newer ones.
Finally, I ran staggered Boxster 16" wheels on the 924 because I found a set cheap. To do it over, I would avoid staggered. I had to roll the fenders a little to get it all to fit. IIRC, 3mm spacers were all that were required on the front. To me, it looked a lot better than the phone dials.
Post pics when you get one
