How nice it is to be old sometimes

[TurboFoFo]

Okay so for my birthday, someone got me the Ultimate Porsche 944 book. I was interested to see that in the back pages where it listed production dates and amount of output for those years. Around 298 produced in 1985.5 and then something like 10,600 in 1986. My numbers may be off by a few, I'm going off the top of my head.

So I checked my vin number out and asked the dealership and my cars production date was the 85.5. So I assume 1 out of 298.

I mean this really does not matter at all or anything but then I'm like COOL my car is even older than I thought! Hahah because on the title it says 86 but a lot of times I see on parts and other things it says 85.5. Assuming some cars have been totaled, wrecked, parted out, the number must have declined by now. So making the car even more stand out in that crowd. Now of course I'm still jealous over all you guys with the newer 88's and 89's but yeah i don't really know where i am going with this.... okay i'll shut up now.

sorry i was just thinking out loud.

[Ninefourfour83]

Haha thanks for sharing!

[CJFusco]

I am only 2 and a half years older than my car...

[Clowd]

My car is 1 year older than I am!

Humans are built much better than cars, I think.. My timing belt(heart?) isn't in any danger of going any time soon!

[scheistermeiste]

im 4 years older than my car, and my socks are always tensioned correctly

[TurboFoFo]

haha yeah, i'm only older than my car by 1.5 years. people make fun of me because of that.

[Zero10]

I'm 3 years older than mine, but I was only 2 years older than my last one

[michaelathome]

I had just entered High School when mine was being built. Go figure.

Michael

[procon]

11 years older than mine.

[will944]

I've got my car by a good 6 years....not too bad

[tifosiman]

Originally posted by TurboFoFo

So I checked my vin number out and asked the dealership and my cars production date was the 85.5.

Being an 85.5, I would assume there is no third brake light then on your 951? I have seen a few US-spec early 951's that don't have the third brake light at the top of the hatch. Does your registration say "85" or "86"? If you want to see the month it was built, it is on the black plate in the engine bay near the fuse-box.

Boy, you guys are a bunch of yungin's. When my car was made in April 1985, I was almost 15 years old and becoming a porsche nut thanks to my best friend (whose dad had a 911 Carrera and they were in the middle of restoring a 73 914). I remember seeing a 951 sometime in 1987 after I just got my drivers license, and thought that was such a cool car that I wanted a 944 someday. It looked so modern compared to the 911 Carrera series cars of that day.

Of course, I had to wait until I turned 30 and had some disposable income (house and other life responsibilities always get in the way, darnit!).

Take care,

T

[profssr2017]

Ya'll a bunch of young pukes!!!

I'm 2.5238095238095238095238095238095 times older than my '84. However, I am the same age as my 1952 BMW motorcycle.

By the way - today's my birthday - thanks for all the freakin' cards! lol :-)

[michaelathome]

Happy B-DAY Professor!!!

[TurboFoFo]

Habby Bday to you too! I turned 21 last week as well.

[TurboFoFo]

tifosiman- My car does have the third brake light. My registration says 86 but the car is stamped 85.5 made in November.

[SidVicious]

My 85.5 did not have the third brake light.

I graduated college the year my 951 was built. I used to ride to the gym with a buddy that had a pretty nice little 914. I remember he wanted to buy a new 944 when he graduated. Never heard if he did.

[tifosiman]

Originally posted by TurboFoFo
tifosiman- My car does have the third brake light. My registration says 86 but the car is stamped 85.5 made in November.

November 84 or November 85?
If November 84, then that is certainly an 85.5 model. The hatch has been replaced, if that is the case. As Sid stated above, my 85.5 doesn't have a third brake light either. If November 85, then that is more than likely an 86 model, especially if that is the original hatch. Unless a thrid brake light was added after the fact...

Take care,

T

[PCA 944]

I win. My 1986 944 is exactly the same age as myself, which is part of the reason I bought it.

I have heard a lot about the 1985.5, but how does it differ from a 1986? Does it have a late model dash design or the older design?

[tifosiman]

I have an 85.5 944, and it is basically the exact same car as the 1986 models, it just does not have a third brake light. The 85.5 and 86 944 cars are what I call the "betweeners". They have the late-style dash, larger fuel tank, alu suspension parts of the late (87-onward) cars, but still retain the early offset (23.3mm) of the "early" cars.

85.5 (in the states) was the intro year for the new dash. The 85 cars had the old dash and the steel a-arms, etc. The 85.5 models also came off the line as the Turbo models, so they used a universal chassis that shared the same mounts in common as the turbo cars. This means that the turbo rear underspoilers, side skirts, etc, are all direct bolt-ons on 85.5 and later 944 cars. They are not on 85 and older cars.

IMHO, the 85.5 and 86 944's are my favorites of the 944 8V cars. They are fairly light (pre-airbags and pre-ABS, generally less-optioned), have early offset (can run the Fuchs and early offset phonedials), and have the niceties of the dash and other components of the lighter cars. If they had the 2.7 litre motor of the 89 cars in them, they would be just about perfect, IMHO.

[SidVicious]

I'll add to tifo's comments that of the three 944s I've owned (85.5, 87 951, 89 951), there was something special about the 85.5.