On Nov 3, 1:48 pm, offwhitegh...@yahoo.com wrote:

Fast, compared to what?  :-)
It's basically a large 80's 4 cylinder engine - but model differences
make a huge difference. S2 and turbo (aka 951) models have more power
than the base 2.5 liter NA (normally aspirated)

If you're thinking "fast" in straight-line acceleration, the NA is
likely to disappoint you.

Back seat is nearly useless for transporting adults any distance and
most child seats won't fit well.

A well-maintained 944 will be a good DD; mediocre maintenance by
previous owners can drive you crazy looking for glitches. I get 30 mpg
in my '86 NA under normal driving.

Depends. I know some people do all their stuff in the driveway. In MI,
where I live, the driveway is too cold to use about 4-5 months of the
year.

Depends. Some parts are expensive (eg, clutch), some hard/impossible
to find, others are cheap and easy (e.g., you can use visor clips from
VW)

Biggest things IMO - maintenance records, recent clutch, and look for
separtion of the glass hatch from the frame. next up, make sure all
the electrics work the way they should.

This will get you started;
http://forums.rennlist.com/rennforums/forumdisplay.php?s&forumid=70
http://www.clarks-garage.com/
http://www.connact.com/~kgross/FAQ/944faq.html
http://www.tech-session.com/kb/index.php?category=3
http://www.pelicanparts.com/944/944tech_articles.htm

WRT mileage, several people have 250k miles on their cars, one guy has
350k miles on the original engine, clutch, tranny :-)

That 100k is pretty dubious, IMO.  5-digit odometer could have been
rolled once or twice by now. Even the 6-digit odometers broke fairly
often (don't reset the odometer while moving) and could be tampered
with.

other things; '83-85.1 had early "old-style" squarish dash, fender-
mounted antenna, sunken windshield. The 944 changed mid-1985, so the
late 85.5 on had hidden antenna in windshield, "oval" style dash,
flush-mounted windshield. Aftermarket wheel choices are limited for
'86 and earlier models.  I'll leave an explanation of the S, S2 and
951 to the links above.

If you want to take a peek at the early and late 944 owner's manuals
to see the differences in the dash, www.alordofchaos.com, choose the
944 tab

Good luck and best wishes on your 944 search.

In 1986 I owned an '83 944 and got into a car chase with a 'vette. We were
going down about a 1.5 mile twisting road that declined about 600 feet from
top to bottom and I entered a right hand curve with the downside on the left
at about 70 and foot on the gas and slid into almost a 90 degree drift. I
casually counter steered and got front facing forward again and continued on
while the 'vette went straight into the dirt.
Since then I have never driven a car that can handle like a 944. And, I have
driven a lot of *sport cars*.

I can tell you that a 944 is NOT the fastest car you can buy for the price
but I have not yet found a car that can handle as well as a 944, well not
for anything close to the price.

If you are looking for the most reliable car then the 944 is NOT what you
want. If, however, you want a car that you can own and drive for hundreds of
thousands of miles then the 944 could be for you. However, you will have to
learn how to work on your car.

The most major problem is the clutch. It could cost you a couple thousand
dollars. To change a clutch in a 944 is more complicated than in most other
cars and is not very easy to do in a driveway. It is also not something you
want to learn to do on for your first time unless you have a fully enclosed
building and a lot of time. Other problems to look for are cooling problems,
grounding problems, water seals around the windows, sun roof and back hatch.

A 944 is a great car but you will only be happy with it if you are looking
for a car for great handling and can live a very long life. Again, only if
you can do a lot of the work your self and know how to do it.
A 944 will NOT be a good car for you if you don't know anything about fixing
cars your self ( unless you are looking for a project car) or if you are
looking for a sport car that is great from green light to green light.

If you do buy a 944 then I would have to say that you buy one that is '85.5
or newer since they made some very good improvements at that point that
helped to improve the reliability.

I've owned an '83 and an '89 S2 and plan to get another one but will not do
it 'till I have a daily driver paid off to get me around until I know the
944 is ready for daily driver status.

Chris