Whats the cheapest reputable porsche you can buy?

[James Crivellone]

I would disagree with your statement. I have FAR more experience working on the 996 and Boxster than anything else out there but I've seen a number of 993s and 930s come through my bay as well. By and large Porsches are in no way shape or form a car someone in their youth should consider owning, unless of course you have a sizable trust fund, in which case indulge yourself. My experience which applies to all Porsches is that they're chronic oil leakers, newer ones puke out valve cover gaskets and spark plug tube seals, older ones seem to seep everywhere. This does not necessarily constitute a bad ride though, just a generalization I've observed. Older cars have a belt drive system for the distributor, which is something that if neglected will leave you on the side of the road. Altogether they're not totally unreliable.

HOWEVER, cost of maintenance is obscene with a Porsche. Replacing parts or fixing leaks usually involves removal of your engine, on a newer water cooled Porsche this usually bills somewhere in the neighborhood of 10hrs, give or take a few depending on what is being done. I haven't dealt with air cooled stuff enough to comment accurately, but it's not cheap either. Basically labor times will eat you alive and doing it yourself is really not a viable option for bigger jobs, at least for most people. It's just a pain in the ass to drop a motor with no lift. Having someone else work on it requires money, something it sounds like Kruzen doesn't have(not knocking you here, I can't afford one really either).

All that said though, I love driving them. There really is no substitute for a Porsche and they are a joy to experience. Wait a while though so you won't be so strained by it all.

I'm not going to disagree with you at all, as you do this for a living.

I'm going off of my dad and godfathers experiencing on restoring over 10 older 911's, 914's, and one or two 930 turbos'.

Maybe they are giving me incorrect details, but the last time I was over at my godfathers and saw a near finished 911 resto, and that 930 turbo sleeper he is working on..

I dunno, I'm going off of family experience with Porches, and not talking about the newer 90+ Porsches...especially that POS Boxster :p

Also keep in mind we mainly only work on Air Cooled gear, as we believe the real ones didn't need coolant :p

[Mr Deagle]

I would disagree with your statement. I have FAR more experience working on the 996 and Boxster than anything else out there but I've seen a number of 993s and 930s come through my bay as well. By and large Porsches are in no way shape or form a car someone in their youth should consider owning, unless of course you have a sizable trust fund, in which case indulge yourself. My experience which applies to all Porsches is that they're chronic oil leakers, newer ones puke out valve cover gaskets and spark plug tube seals, older ones seem to seep everywhere. This does not necessarily constitute a bad ride though, just a generalization I've observed. Older cars have a belt drive system for the distributor, which is something that if neglected will leave you on the side of the road. Altogether they're not totally unreliable.

All that said though, I love driving them. There really is no substitute for a Porsche and they are a joy to experience. Wait a while though so you won't be so strained by it all.

They leak because of bad mechanics, i have seen numerous engines from other builders leak before they have even been run, and after they run they puke oil all over our dyno floor

our engines do not leak oil at all, nor do they break, unless the customer moneyshifts it

as for the belt drive, thats for the twin plug setup, if it breaks you still have one set of plugs to limp home on

on a better note, porsches are awesome to drive

[WillisE30]

Parts are not THAT much more overall, think of it this way, its another 70's/80's german car. All Bosch, huge aftermarket for common wearables, and most porsche's that I've seen with horrid bodys are still running and driving perfectly... they are true drivers cars, but not terrible in the reliability department either..

Most of them are pretty simple to work on, although the engine bays are pretty damn cramped.

I would disagree with your statement. I have FAR more experience working on the 996 and Boxster than anything else out there but I've seen a number of 993s and 930s come through my bay as well. By and large Porsches are in no way shape or form a car someone in their youth should consider owning, unless of course you have a sizable trust fund, in which case indulge yourself. My experience which applies to all Porsches is that they're chronic oil leakers, newer ones puke out valve cover gaskets and spark plug tube seals, older ones seem to seep everywhere. This does not necessarily constitute a bad ride though, just a generalization I've observed. Older cars have a belt drive system for the distributor, which is something that if neglected will leave you on the side of the road. Altogether they're not totally unreliable.

HOWEVER, cost of maintenance is obscene with a Porsche. Replacing parts or fixing leaks usually involves removal of your engine, on a newer water cooled Porsche this usually bills somewhere in the neighborhood of 10hrs, give or take a few depending on what is being done. I haven't dealt with air cooled stuff enough to comment accurately, but it's not cheap either. Basically labor times will eat you alive and doing it yourself is really not a viable option for bigger jobs, at least for most people. It's just a pain in the ass to drop a motor with no lift. Having someone else work on it requires money, something it sounds like Kruzen doesn't have(not knocking you here, I can't afford one really either).

All that said though, I love driving them. There really is no substitute for a Porsche and they are a joy to experience. Wait a while though so you won't be so strained by it all.

[Kruzen]

I'll definitely have to talk to your dad a bit, could be a fun project once I get some cash laying around in the near future.

[James Crivellone]

IMO you can't afford a Porsche that is worth having at this point in your life. They are too expensive to maintain. It took you at least 6 months to fix your clutch and a Porsche will brake twice as often and cost twice as much to fix. Don't get me wrong, having one would be sweet. I just think it would be a poor financial decision and you will regret it.

Parts are not THAT much more overall, think of it this way, its another 70's/80's german car. All Bosch, huge aftermarket for common wearables, and most porsche's that I've seen with horrid bodys are still running and driving perfectly... they are true drivers cars, but not terrible in the reliability department either..

Most of them are pretty simple to work on, although the engine bays are pretty damn cramped.

[James Crivellone]

Kruzen,

Talk to my dad, he has owned several Porsches, and our next project car is a 914/6 (and then a 930 turbo)

My godfather (otherwise known as the guy who painted my car) is currently finishing the restoration on a 911 hardtop, and a mid 80's 911 turbo.

Insurance for me was nothing more a month, in fact its less then my Nissan, they are older cars...although a Brand new 911 Turbo would only add 500 bucks a year to my rate.

[kidrobot]

Porsche = $$$

Can't have one without the other.
Want a kickass fast little car? Buy
a Subaru.

[e30Matt]

+1 944 Turbo...plenty of power...handles like a dream.

+2, 951 was one of the first cars I've ever actually been scared in. The damn thing just KEEPS turning in.

[europeanplates]

I have 77 911 I will sell 6000.00 Runs and drives, not a show car.

Tyler

[Tom@POLIZEI]

What about a Boxster S?

[Kruzen]

IMO you can't afford a Porsche that is worth having at this point in your life. They are too expensive to maintain. It took you at least 6 months to fix your clutch and a Porsche will brake twice as often and cost twice as much to fix. Don't get me wrong, having one would be sweet. I just think it would be a poor financial decision and you will regret it.

lol my clutch still isn't fixed. Too lazy to go without the car for a few days :) Runs fine enough for now. not leaking anything anymore at least.

But thats the whole reason I made this thread, to look at the realm of affordability, it'd be fun to own an old 911 but I really dont have a use for one.

[DarkWing6]

IMO you can't afford a Porsche that is worth having at this point in your life. They are too expensive to maintain. It took you at least 6 months to fix your clutch and a Porsche will brake twice as often and cost twice as much to fix. Don't get me wrong, having one would be sweet. I just think it would be a poor financial decision and you will regret it.

[SandyEggoE30Girl]

OK Something I finaly have some experiance in here.. LONG THREAD

I was raised in a Porsche family most of my life. Not for the "LOOK AT ME I DRIVE A PORSCHE" thing, but because my father had an affinity of the marque. That and he loved driving them the way they were meant to be driven. My earliest recollections of being in the garage with my father was working on 356 Super 1600s. We went to Stuttgart to pick up cars, and do vacations with my father there. I was lucky when he went in 1976 to pick up a 912e, which later became my car.
We had MANY 914s, 911s,912e, one 930, a 928, and just a few 356s. (those were my fathers cars).
The few autos that did not grace our garage at the time was the 924, or the 944 while my father was still alive. {more to come on that latter}

Porsche motor cars are a blast to drive, are definitively a well built car, and yes like anything today, it can cost more to fix if you don't take care of them. With all the models of cars that have run through our family, the only one I can remember that had a few more problems than the others was the 930. But DAMN! that car was a blast to drive once you learned how to drive it, and figure out what turbo lag, to turbo boost in a corner is all about.

OK so you want a Porsche? Well what model? What do you want to do with it? The first thing like some one else mentioned is you ALWAYS want to buy the best of what ever model you desire. Just a fact, (and it applies to our E30s too) If you buy some thing on the cheap, and say to your self I can RESTORE this, well............... It is going to cost you lots and lots of money!
The production numbers of Porsche's are a little lower than the e30, that simply means that you will find a smaller percentage of manufacturers for both OEM, and after-market parts. In other words it is going to cost more.
You will also need to look at what Porsche cars have cross-model parts.
Another thing that plays into buying old cars is the rust. Porsche did not introduce galvanized bodies until 1976. So that means that many of the Pre-76 cars have rust some where on them (it's a fact of life).
Another big misnomer was that Porsche' have interchangeable parts with VDUBS. Not really to true at all. All it takes is owning a few of these cars and you will find that out. Now that is not to say that there are NO parts that will not interchange, but the number is wayyyyy down.

We will just start with the 911 type auto. The 911 body was introduced in 1964, and basically (kinda sorta) stayed the same until 1997. Those years spanned many different engine combinations, and lots of suspension upgrades as well. One thing to driving a rear engined car like these, is the fact they are a whole different beast than driving a front, or even mid engined auto. You will need to re-learn how to drive all over again.

Personally if I was looking at a 911 to buy now, I would look to find a good 911SC (1978-1983) The reason for this is, they have a super tough motor (3.0ltr) that runs for ever, and the cars were made from galvanized metal.
The production numbers on these were relatively high as well, so you will find quite a few of these out there in really nice shape as well. Not to pricey either (low scale of 8000-20,000)
In 1984 (1984-1993) the Carrera came on the scene with a larger motor (3.2ltr), and is a great al-around car. One thing in the 911s is the climate control system was ok at best till the 87 model year. That is actually the first year that had an air-conditioning system that resembled some thing to AC.
You can still find lots of really great deals on these too if you look.
In 1994 We saw a major rework of the 911 (now the 964model) which brought to us the Carrera 2, and the Carrera 4. This model brought us yet another engine, the 3.3ltr and is a great motor, but now things are starting to climb sky ward as far as parts prices, and the ease of non certified porsche mechanics working on them. I had a C4, and it was a love/hate relationship mainly because I felt that I did not know anything about her.

I am going to skip over the 993 series (1993-98 ), and the 996 (1998-present). Only because I am talking about older Porsche's here.

The 912, and the 912e were built as an entry level Porsche in 1965-1969, and the 912e was produced only in 1976. The early ones had borrowed the 4 cyl motor from the early 356 cars, and in 1976 they used the 4 cyl from the 914 (411R motor)
The 912 did not handle like the 911, and had much smaller brakes, and other parts on the suspension. I would not suggest an early 912 for a first timer here, only because parts are on the WAY up there, and to build a proper 912 motor is anything but cheap. The 912e is a great little car, but there were only 2099 of them made, and they are becoming instant classics by many collectors (I would still have mine if an illegal family here in sd would not have crushed it with their chevy)
One thing cool about the 912, is that ALL the 911 suspension parts bolt right up to them.

The 914 (1970-1976) is a great little car PERIOD!
I have had so many of these cars it is scary. Everything from a 3.2ltr six, to the lowly 1970 1.7ltr. They are all fun!
You can still find great deals on these but the prices are starting to climb fast. The 914 is a true mid-engine car, and the center of gravity is so low on these. If you have ever driven one at a track event, you would be hooked right away.
There were 4 different motors basically installed in these cars from 70-76, The first 914 came on to the market in 1970 to be the entry level Porsche. The car was built in the VW plant and used the 411R motor(side note: The 411R motor was a borrowed design from the bus engine but the bus motor was quite different in many ways.)
The 1970-71 had the 1.7ltr with FI. and the other motor added at that time was the 2.0ltr six.
In 1972 there were a few minor changes to the 914. The passenger seat was now mounted to slide back and fourth, and we saw changes mid production to the transmission (side shift instead of the weak tail shift) also reinforcement in the front bonnet area.
In 1973 there were two engines available for the car the 1.7, and the 2.0ltr.
The 2.0 car also known as the S model, came equipped with front and rear sway bars, center console with gauges.
In 1974 there were also two different motors (1.8ltr & the 2.0ltr). Also now the car had front and rear bumperetts, and there were several different option packages the standard model (1.8 ), the 2.0ltr standard, and the Special Edition package which had the two tone colours, swaybars, center console.
In 1975 the car got a lot heavier with the addition of full impact resistant bumpers, more braces in the front and rear, and the addition of catalytic converters ICK! The car still offered the 1.8 and the 2.0ltr in the final years.
But the performance of these were not at all like the two previous years.
The 73, and 74 are the most sought after 914s for performance. When buying a 914 you really need to look for rust in a few very problematic places: Battery area, longitudinal panels, floors, rear boot. The good news is there are lots of after market parts for these cars.

Either later today, or tomorrow I will write something on the 924,944,968,928. I have owned 944s,968s, and a 928 (I still miss that car).

[Kruzen]

I don't want a porsche just for the label, I want it for the driving experience. So I guess i'm looking at a 944 turbo or a 911 in good shape.

[s0urce]

+1 944 Turbo...plenty of power...handles like a dream.