930, should I get a rear engine thing? Options

[butch]

input needed...

someone at work has been unable to sell their '82 930. Baby on the way and they just lowered the price from 20 to 15 K.

67K miles, repainted grey in lieu of original burgandy (pretty good job tho). GREY market car.

Thought I might offer the guy $13K, drive it around for a year, and sell ot for 15? If it was not grey market I think it might be worth 20?

Or take the motor out and put it in Tiggr?

Anyone have an opinion?

[TimT]

930's dont make the best daily drivers....

they are awesome cars though! Most of the street driving we do you wont be in the boost ... so the car can be a dog..

A 930 engine bolted to a regeared G50 is cool, also regearing the 930 box can do wonders.. If you keep the CIS your limited to about 450-475 hp... with EFI your wallets the limit

[Mueller]

sell the motor (or put it in Tigger (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) ) and install a Chevy small block with EFI in the 930 (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smash.gif)

supposedly a SBC weighs less than a complete 930 engine.....

[SirAndy]

for $13k, i'd take the engine and trans and put it in tigger and sell the roller for some $$$ ...

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) Andy

[0396]

A Turbo will bring a BIG smile to your face!
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

[TimT]

supposedly a SBC weighs less than a complete 930 engine.....

yea, why is that? 930 engine has a massive crank, all the rest is made of alloys..(except cams chains etc)

Cheby block is iron? crank is iron...

How did they do it?

[Mueller]

"complete" 930 motor...including turbo, intercooler and all the extra stuff

the SBC might have to have aluminum heads to beat the weight of the 930, but those are pretty common and cheap now...

Brad knows for sure, I'm sure he told me he had to lower the ass end of 930 converted to a SBC due to the weight difference....

[mightyohm]

Don't 930's usually sell in the mid 20s to 30s?

[krk]

butch:

Have you driven it?

I have a 76 930. It sucked in the city before the new engine. Low end was ugly, and the 930 tranny is set up to get you to 160mph -- 3 and 4 are overdrive gears. So... you drive in 2nd a lot. Forget gas milage. With the new engine (upgraded to 3.2L, and 7.6 compression), it's quite driveable, but the gas milage story is the same.

The grin factor is huge though. It's my toy -- I drive it on Fridays if there's no rain.

kim.

[butch]

thanx! give me more!

The grey market cars dont' seem to command the 20 to 30 K price tag that seems to be a typical asking price...

I drove it yesterday, in the rain. It was a dog till I got it on the pipe, then it just lit up the rear end...

Mueller has a good idea with the engine swaps...

[mightyohm]

does it pass smog?

[joea9146]

Be careful before you jump in, get a PPI done by a good Porsche shop before you purchase this car.
Know what you are getting into. Repairs on these cars can add up very quickly... But the fun factor driving this car is 10+++ (IMG:style_emoticons/default/driving.gif)

[krk]

So now you've driven it. Excellent. They ain't the greatest rain cars -- when the boost hits, the tires often won't hold it, which in slippery conditions, can create some excitement. (and usually when you are not exactly ready -- it takes off well and then looses it) But so what -- who drives in the rain anyway. I love turbos, but rebuilding a P-turbo engine is not for the faint of heart -- and it will do serious damage to your wallet.

So the engine is where I would start. (I'm not an engine mechanic -- these are the things you have ask questions. pursue answers, and such -- PPI's, etc) You need to be comfortable that the engine you are buying is in the condition you need it to be.

Cars with thermo's -- no, regardless of milage.

Past that, standard P-car purchase rules are in effect.

kim.

[nine14cats]

Being a former 930 owner (I sold it last year), I'll give you my take.

If it's for daily driving and want an easy driving car, the 930 won't be as comfortable as other cars and other P-cars. I had a 1988 930 that came with that 4 speed. The box is awesome, but as posted earlier you can't get into 3rd in city traffic. And on the highway it's fine in 3rd. 4th takes you to a different planet....fast!

I pulled the 4 speed and put a stock 915 box in the car. It made a world of difference in driveability and fun. The closer ratios are much better suited for everyday life. I still have the 4 speed box for a project in the future.

As also mentioned, the cost of a rebuild on an engine by the time your done is ~$10K, if someone is doing the work for you. I put SC cam's in mine and replaced the old turbo unit with a newer style one that spools up about 700rpm earlier. It really woke the car up.

My car wasn't in too good of shape when I bought it. I basically restored it, the sold it. I paid what you are thinking of paying ~14K for the car, then sank another $22K into it. I sold the car for over $40K, so I guess I came out ahead, but it was on stands alot more than driven.

As the 930 had become my daily driver, if it rained I would take my truck to work. And the gas mileage is poor. I got less than 14mpg.

All things said, I probably shouldn't have sold it. When I got her, it leaked oil, had a bad turbo, worn synchro's, etc., the normal for an old car. The reason I sold her was that it had an intermitttent short in the harness somewhere. We could never isolate it. Which meant that breakdowns would happen at the most inopportune times.

But...I probably shouldn't have sold her. They are unique cars and have beautiful lines and are very quick.

If it's not a daily driver, maybe go for it. It depends how much you want to work on the car.

Here's a pic of my 930.

Thanks,

Bill P.

[krk]

Hey Bill,

She looks good -- and one good turn deserves another! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

butch: my main point is that there is a dice roll with these puppies that has a bigger price tag on them than a standard 911. It's a great car and I love mine, but the learning process carried a bigger $$ tag than I expected. There are other turbo sites that probably have more grotty bits recorded, and if you have a trusty mechanic, you have the raw materials to get a sensible deal done.

kim.

[butch]

what's PPI? Car had been cared for at GD Racing. I thought I would have them give it the once over.

traditionally I have had too many cars at once, and having this one as a keeper would put me in that catagory again. I thought this would be a hoot to drive around for a year or so. With 67K on the car and a fresh clutch, I would hope to be able to put 20K miles on it and sell it with no repair costs. Just my usual detail to make her really pretty. Hmm... if any cars are masculine, this one is...

I joined PCA (again) last week. Maybe I can figuer out the selling prices of these cars there.

A clean, well cared for, well sorted grey market turbo has got to be sellable for $15K, no?

(it took me over a year to sell the Mbz 190-16V Cosworth for three grand!)

[anthony]

PPI = pre-purschase inspection. It's a good once-over that takes 2-3 hours. They do a compression check, pull the valve covers and check the head studs. On a turbo I'm sure they'd be looking for certain things.

To me at $15K or less, it seems like a no-brainer to snap this up assuming it's a very clean car. Where have these people advertised this car? They must not be doing a very good job of trying to sell it.

[red914]

regardless of what you decide you should test drive it several times, and discuss it at length for us here. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/mueba.gif)

[John2kx]

Interesting thread since I'm in the market for a new toy as well. The 930 with its flares and rear wing has always been on my wish list. I'm nervous about owning a turbo'd 911 engine due to the cost of repair (if and when needed).

My second option was a "turbo look" car but see very few of these for sale.

The 993 looks like a better choice and I've found several low milege 1995, C2s in the mid to high 20s. I like this version since it is "fresher" as compared to the 930 or turbo look body and in most cases, has fewer miles, original paint and appear to be unmolested.

From the research I've done so far, it looks like a "turbo look" chassis or early to mid 90s 993 will be my choice. I would like to keep purchase price below 25K. The aggressive look of the 930 body is what I really want but will go the 993 route if this is the smarter choice.

I am looking to drive my next car daily, in fare weather and prefer to buy something with minimal maintenance. Your opinions based on experience is appreciated.

John

[butch]

Gary @ GD Racing has been maintaining the car, and says it is solid and needs nothing.
The owner will take as little as $11K

Insurance is $412 a year. This is getting scary.