924Board.org

doomer77 · Joined: 10 Jan 2006 Posts: 266 Location: Huskvarna, Sweden

Point of interest..

How many 924's actually go bad and need the kind of mantinance talked about on this site?

Out of 100, how many?
_________________
Why drink and drive when you can smoke and fly?
Carpe diem. and if that doesnt work; get drunk!

1980 924 n/a - engine swap begun
1989 Volvo 480ES

Belgian924t · Joined: 07 Jan 2006 Posts: 104 Location: Belgium

Hello,

that percentage is a bit out of date... Our cars are 20 years or older. So the maintenance through the years influence the figure.

Porsches are amazing: I also own a 911 SC and I must say that it is like a rock.
the 924's are also very good, maybe the best value for your money. Only, don't pay too much for it. But that is the same for a 911.

Our 911 SC and our 3.2 Carrera project car.

_________________
'79 931 with Carrera GT look
'86 944 turbo (sold)
'88 944 turbo S (sold)
'85 911 Carrera 3,2 (to be restored)
'80 911 SC "SOLD"
http://www.cardomain.com/ride/2224272

gohim · Joined: 02 Nov 2002 Posts: 4459 Location: Rialto, CA

The average 924 is more than 25 years old at this point, and has had 3 or more owners.

Most of the cars owned by Board members have been well used and abused in previous lives.

It is no surprise to me, and it shouldn't be to others that some parts have long since worn-out, and other parts are on their way out, and in need of replacement.

924s are no more prone to failure than any other 25-30 year old car, and in many/most cases much more reliable AFTER all of the worn-out of damaged parts are replaced, AND all the deferred maintenance has been taken take of.

To keep any car dependable, and reliable required constant maintenance, and an eye to details so broken or worn-out parts can be replaced, BEFORE the car leaves you stranded on the side of the road.

doomer77 · Joined: 10 Jan 2006 Posts: 266 Location: Huskvarna, Sweden

sweet cars

you seem to be a pro with porsches, been owning them long?

"The man who drives a Mercedes is king of the road, the man who drives a Porsche is god of the road"
- me

_________________
Why drink and drive when you can smoke and fly?
Carpe diem. and if that doesnt work; get drunk!

1980 924 n/a - engine swap begun
1989 Volvo 480ES

Smoothie · Posted: Tue Jan 24, 2006 9:36 am Post subject:

You could only get wild guesses on that question. Plus the question's subject to interpretation. Mine's been going good ever since I replaced the turbo in about '96, but other routine maintenance type items have needed attention during that time - alternator, starter, exhaust, wastegate, fuel pump and accumulator, valve adjustment, tune-up items, assorted hoses and vacuum lines, fusebox and grounds cleaning, brake service, clutch hydraulics, CV joints, gearshift linkage and more. The engine itself has never been disassembled as far as I know, clutch hasn't been replaced, no problems with the transmission, motor and transmission mounts are original...

Remember 90% of what you see here are problems. People rarely log on to say their car is running good.
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"..it's made in Germany. You know the Germans always make good stuff."

'82 924T, US version, dark green metallic, 5 speed Audi 016G gearbox

Belgian924t · Joined: 07 Jan 2006 Posts: 104 Location: Belgium

Started as a hobby, but became an obsession.

After hours I work on Porsches, mostly 911, most popular in Belgium. But the 924 model is very special to me. I always loved that car, being so basic and pure...
My 924 turbo is another history. I know that car since I was 12, 19 years ago (!), and last sumer the owner called me to ask if I was interested. So after so many years I own the car that came like a dream in my father's garage for maintenance.
There will always be more good 911's for sale, but the good 924's will become cars to keep. And the 931 is even more than that.
3 times a year we, me and some Porschefriends, participate in Porsche club ralley's and the 924 turbo always gets respect from the 911 driver's. But that is AFTER they where chased by it on small twisty roads. My friend's 924 turbo was always in their rear view mirror...
_________________
'79 931 with Carrera GT look
'86 944 turbo (sold)
'88 944 turbo S (sold)
'85 911 Carrera 3,2 (to be restored)
'80 911 SC "SOLD"
http://www.cardomain.com/ride/2224272

Neil924 · Joined: 18 Mar 2003 Posts: 4225 Location: Canada

I've put more money into my 98 540 in 4 months then I have in 4 YEARS of 924 owner ship. The 540 gets to 200 kph way faster then the 924 but it costs a lot more too.

Neil924 · Joined: 18 Mar 2003 Posts: 4225 Location: Canada

Khal · Posted: Tue Jan 24, 2006 5:44 pm Post subject:

Mine has been remarkably good.

The only parts that have "failed" have been the distributor rotor/cap and the fuel pumps. Oh, and lately it's developed a small coolant leak somewhere. And my starter had a spasm but I disconnected the wires and cleaned it up and it hasn't troubled me lately.

I replaced my fuel pump relay, too. But it hadn't actually failed, turned out to be the fuel pumps themselves.

But because of age/wear, I've had have some steering bushes replaced.

It's going in next week to have the timing belt replaced, the gearbox oil changed, the brakes bled and the sloppy shifter fixed. I'm also getting my air-con checked out while it's there.

And I do have some of the usual gremlins, such as switchgear that doesn't work (passenger-side power window and hatch wiper), some trim pieces that have fallen off, malfunctioning fuel gauge, etc...
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'80 924 Turbo

Mike924 · Joined: 12 Aug 2004 Posts: 2601 Location: IoW UK

When you first get an older car, you need to be a little suspicious of everything. Don't take anything for granted.

First off, give it a good service. Change the oil, filters (air, oil and fuel), spark plugs, distributor cap and rotor, timing belt (or at least adjust the tension), etc. Change the brake fulid and bleed the brake lines. Do the engine timing adjustments, etc.

This way you'll get to know your car mechanically and you'll probably find some small problems which you can fix straight away (instead of them finding you, on the road, at night, in the rain).

After a few months' driving you'll soon learn to know which bits you can trust and which bit may need further attention.

In answer to your original question: 100% - all 924s will need some sort of mechanical work at some tome! Don't forget it!

_________________
1985 Porsche 924 'Lux', Kalahari Beige (my ex)
1993 Porsche 968 Coupe, Midnight Blue, 6 spd

'There is no substitute for a little grease under your fingernails.' - Chrenan, 924board.org

morghen · Joined: 21 Jan 2005 Posts: 9102 Location: Romania

the shocks failed....also the fuel pump(i ran out of gas a few times)

the only thing that realy failed was the spark distributor...onde day it just did not work anymore.
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Supercharger and EFI kits
https://www.the924.com

timstar92404 · Joined: 22 Sep 2004 Posts: 2075 Location: richmond BC

what I had to replace on my car

-all the cooling hoses
-clutch cable
-starter
- replaced all the electrical connectors and ripped wires.
- muffler
-relays
-ignition coil
-oil, coolant etc
-timing belt belt, vbelt tensioner
-water pump.
-battery
-winshield wipers
- hatch seal, sunroof seal, sunroof latch-
- battery pan leak, now another leak above the driver dash.
--fuel filter
-air filter
-timing and fuel mixture had to be adjusted
-new tires

so far that's really only basic maintenance
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78 924 sold.
85.5 944

doomer77 · Joined: 10 Jan 2006 Posts: 266 Location: Huskvarna, Sweden

tim, i truly feel bad for you.. some people have luck, others dont, just like a friend of mine, whatever he buys always ends up #### up in a expensive way..

but are these cars "worse" cars in the sense of maitanence than other cars, like lets say a early mazda 626? or is it just that people scrap their mazdas when they #### over?
_________________
Why drink and drive when you can smoke and fly?
Carpe diem. and if that doesnt work; get drunk!

1980 924 n/a - engine swap begun
1989 Volvo 480ES

Ozzie · Posted: Tue Jan 24, 2006 7:46 pm Post subject:

My list was a bit more extensive than Tim's, but it had many years of neglect and inadequate maintenance.
Now I go anywhere without fear of breakdown.
_________________
Porsche 924 1984 (UK import) NA
Its AUTO and its BLACK
Montego Black on black/red
Engineer of Electro/Mechanical Systems Maintenance

Belgian924t · Joined: 07 Jan 2006 Posts: 104 Location: Belgium

My experience with the 924 follows. My friend's 931 has got some major problems that I have to handle: blown headgasket and eating oil through the turbo. But the car always starts and still goes strong. Do that with a Mazda, and it won't start anymore.
Having a reliable car means also maintaining your car...
Never use cheap oil, cheap filters, bad spare parts (not original or OEM) and always listen to the signals of your car.
We all are passionate about our cars, so when we buy one, we make it good.
_________________
'79 931 with Carrera GT look
'86 944 turbo (sold)
'88 944 turbo S (sold)
'85 911 Carrera 3,2 (to be restored)
'80 911 SC "SOLD"
http://www.cardomain.com/ride/2224272