86 targa valuation

[samsnead]

Hello All,

Apologize for this being a repost, but there is new information relating to the car so I figured it would be best to start a new thread.

The car is a 1986 targa, white gold on nougat full leather interior. It is for sale at a reputable car dealer that has been in business for over 20 years and is an active PCA member.

Paint appears to be original and in great shape, car has just under 77k miles and the interior is in great shape with the exception of the steering wheel, which has some cracking. The dealer had sold the car to the previous owner 20 years ago, so they have had some familiarity with it. The car is fully documented with books(including service stamps) plus all of the service records going back to when it was put on the road.

When the dealer originally took the car in, they had the targa top redone and a full service performed. The AC was converted and seems to work quite well. As I became interested in the vehicle, it seemed to develop a slight hesitation and the dealer wanted to have it resolved prior to me having a PPI performed. He sent it to one of the best independant shops in the area, and active PCA member, racer and is very familiar with air cooled cars. Friends of mine have known this shop and it's owner for years and have always spoken highly of his abilities and character. What was thought originally to be a bad injector, turned out to be a bad valve stem seal. He dropped the motor and removed all the heads for inspection, ended up rebuilding one of the heads. All in all over 30 hours were spent on the engine and any issues found were addressed. New wires and plugs were installed and the car was gone through, with all issues addressed. I spoke with him after the work was completed and he spoke highly of the vehicle, and walked me through all the repairs.

I have just driven the car, and it is nice and tight, absolutely no squeeks when driving over potholes etc. The 915 shifts as well as can be expected and the car overall feels solid. I will have my own wrench inspect the car next week to confirm its condition.

Given the condition and the recent work the car has had, what would be a fair price? Unfortunately this will be a retail transaction, but I am familiar with the dealer, it is 2 miles from my house and I can have my own wrench whom I trust inspect the car.

Any input greatly appreciated.

[Colour me gone]

The car looks to be as mint as mine. I have an 87 Carrera Targa in GP White which is not a great colour but nonetheless it has had only 2 former Owners and I have a lot of documentation.

The fellow I bought from needed the money and I paid $20K cdn. Don't know if that helps but mine was an American car and has 87K miles on it

Good Luck.

[HugoBear]

I would think $35-40k

[NYNick]

Nice car, but it's a Targa. They don't command Coupe prices.
Top dollar is $30K IMHO.

[HugoBear]

At a retail shop, I don't think they would ask as low as 30k for that car. I think they will ask $39,995-they probably won't get that but it just takes one…. I would buy it all day at $30k if it checked out.

[NYNick]

Maybe Hugo. I think the market is a tad better in California for Targas....don't know for sure. Of course you're right about the retail part. The OP did say he was buying from a dealer.

I still think $30k is all the money.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-cars-sale/841539-fs-85-carrera-coupe-low-miles.html

Coupe!

[HugoBear]

I certainly am nowhere near an expert on this like a lot of folks on the forum are. You may be much closer than I am. That car just seems like a pretty nice one and some folks really get caught up on miles on the clock.

[HugoBear]

Yeah, the car you sent the link of is nicer in my opinion-a coupe and a really nice color. I would think he gets real close to that number for that car…I was thinking more like 35k for this car but at a dealer, I still think they will ask more than that. You noted that too.

[samsnead]

Thanks for all the feedback, it is appreciated. Couple of points:

• I do prefer coupes, but I already have a 3.2 coupe. Looking for something different this time around, plus targas/convertibles seem to be easier to get into these days
• The 85 appears to be a beautiful coupe, my only issue is that it has had a complete repsray. I am looking for a car with original paint
• I like the fact that this targa has had the engine gone through, over $5k was spent on the engine and all the internal are in great shape
• This would be the first local car that I have bought, and I can have my mechanic go through the car which is a plus

Keep the feedback coming, it is greatly appreciated

[NYNick]

Sam,
Agree on all your strongpoints. Nice car. I love original paint as well!

I just saw a really nice 86 coupe in NJ last week with 82K miles. The guy had 20 people looking at it, turned down $27K, and was holding out for $28K. The engine had been gone through as well.

It was a good buy, but no where near worth $35K.

I consigned my 89 Targa to a classy classic car dealer 6 months ago (a lifetime in Porsche values I know). I was asking/wanting $28K before consigning, and they jacked it up to $36,500 asking. Just saying, these dealers whack the living crap out of the prices, so even if they seem like they're coming down to make the deal, they're still making thousands.

Again, nice car. If it's the one you want, a couple of grand here or there isn't going to matter 6 months from now with that smile on your face!(and the golf clubs in the front seat?)

Nick

[HugoBear]

Good points from both of you. Good luck finding something great.

[CountD]

These cars are out there. I have not read the red book lately, but I think they made more 911s in '86 than any other year, and imported an a** load of them here to the States. You see clean later Targas all the time. Obviously they fixed all the things on the car because they want absolutely, positively top dollar. But you can find these cars in the $26K-$30K range (Targas) a lot of the time, maybe even a little less if you do all the small things that need to be done (like the top, AC, etc). Yes it's clean, but by no means rare, and I wouldn't pay more than $30K even in this market.

[HugoBear]

Sounds like around 30k is top according to two folks that know a lot about these cars. Interesting as I see such a huge range lately.

[samsnead]

Thanks for the feedback!

[gerry123]

Haggerty Insurance has a valuation tool on its website of recent sales which could be of some help.

[Nachtfalter]

Last year of full manual controls. Non-assisted 915's are fun to drive.