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Car Forum / Porsche / Porshe 944 / July 2005Neighbor boy inherited a 944, need help
I'm trying to help a fatherless boy get his '84 944 running. It's his first car, the family is very low on funds, and I'd like to help him, so I thought I could get some tips from the 944 forum Here's what's wrong 1. Battery drains overnight. Checked for current draw while removing each fuse, found none. Current draw when off is 4.2 milliamps 2. Cooling fans stay on with ice cold engine. This is not causing the battery problem though, the fan relay was unplugged while testing battery. 3. It was hit in left front fender. Left wheel is canted out slightly at the bottom 4. Engine idles rough and is weak, but only has 68K miles. The kid drove it some, I think while the fan relay was unplugged. I hope he didn't overheat it. 5. Needs a left front fender, front bumper is pushed in and stuck. Is there a shock on bumper This may sound like a lot but the car is in very good shape & low miles -- Laneman944 1. most probably the battery is dead - try disconnecting the battery and see if it still runs down - I expect you will have to buy a new battery 2. cooling fan - the temp sensor in the radiator is defective - it has to be replaced - easy to change - test it with an ohm meter to confirm - other possibility is that hte damage to the fender pinched the wires 3. fender - teach him body and fender work - remove fender (a bunch of bolts) hammer straight and reinstall - unless it's severly damaged - did this with my daughter - takes time but it's a good learning experience. Use AllMetal putty, not bondo - costs a lot more, works much better 4. there is a bumper shock - they appear on e-bay all the time for $10 or so - you can also just pull it out for a temporary fix 5. engine rough and weak - check for vac leaks, check spark plug wires, etc - be sure air cleaner element is clean, run some fuel injector cleaner through it - if still a problem, try the diagnostic procedure in the manual - there is a PDF file with the full porsche manual on line - I've posted the link a zillion times but right now I can't find it - you really need that manual. 6. this is VERY important - check the timing and balance shaft belts. 7. wheel canted - if the A arm is bent, that's $$$ though you may be able to find one at a wrecking yard - use the manual and measure carefully to find out what's bent. Houston European has been helpful and had good prices when I've needed parts (much better than the local wreckers here in LosAngles for small parts). 8. even though he is low on funds, don't take short cuts on mechanical stuff - do it right. The car will serve him for the next decade or two if you fix it right and teach him how to do the work - and they are not expensive to keep going IF YOU DO ALL YOUR OWN WORK. But, if you use duct tape and bailing wire and don't fix things right, you can quickly end up with a dead car that is worthless. teach him that it's better to walk and save for a $100 part than to destroy the car with the wrong fix. Teach him to use and read the manual. Teach him the value of good tools (and how to go to a swap meet to buy them cheaply). > I'm trying to help a fatherless boy get his '84 944 running. It's his > first car, the family is very low on funds, and I'd like to help him, so I [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] > > This may sound like a lot but the car is in very good shape & low miles. Thanks for the detailed reply. Turns out it's a 1988 model. The battery is new, so the drain down is in the wiring somewhere. We already checked all the factory circuits by pulling fuses and checking with a meter. I think it's caused by something installed by his dad (stereo, amp, etc.). We're still getting 4 milliamps of current with everything off, plus the battery cable sparks when hooking it up, so something is drawing current with the key off. Can you give me a tip on testing the temp sensor? What reading should I see when cold/hot, and can I test it without removing it from the radiator -- Laneman944 "Low on funds" and "Porsche" don't even belong in the same universe, much less in the same paragraph. Do him a bigger favor and give him some money for the car, or help him sell it and buy some cheap and reliable transportation that isn't going to kill him financially. if I may say so, "nonsense" - if YOU DO YOUR OWN WORK a 944 is no more expensive to maintain and operate than a toyota, maybe less so. If you abuse it and don't do your own work, it can be expensive, but from my experience (over 250K miles on a car I bought new), it's reliable and economical > "Low on funds" and "Porsche" don't even belong in the same universe, much > less in the same paragraph. Do him a bigger favor and give him some money > for the car, or help him sell it and buy some cheap and reliable > transportation that isn't going to kill him financially. > if I may say so, "nonsense" - if YOU DO YOUR OWN WORK a 944 >is no more > expensive to maintain and operate than a toyota, maybe less so. <scoff> Yeah, ok... whatever you say... paddington, I am not going to debate with you - I do speak with some authority, I have all the maintenance records for my car and for two others that I keep going, so a total of over a million miles. I stand by my statement. >> if I may say so, "nonsense" - if YOU DO YOUR OWN WORK a 944 >is no more >> expensive to maintain and operate than a toyota, maybe less so. > > <scoff> > > Yeah, ok... whatever you say... > paddington, I am not going to debate with you - I do speak with some > authority, I have all the maintenance records for my car and for two others > that I keep going, so a total of over a million miles. I stand by my > statement. Well i'm not trying to get into a debate, but all I can say is I only wish my 944 cost less to maintain than my (previously owned) Toyotas and Mazdas. I'd be a richer man right now if it did. ok, let's just for grins, try an experiment (presuming I can still find that data) - do you have records for a 10 or 15 year period for any of those cars? if yes, and I can find my records, we can compare the total cost (or average $ per year), and the $ per mile. while I'm looking for that info - maybe I'll find it - this link will take you to a spreadsheet with 250K miles of fuel consumption data on an 85.5 NA - you can compare that to a toyota/mazda because fuel is one relevant cost of ownership http://home.labridge.com:8100/~wnoble/pors_mi.zip >> paddington, I am not going to debate with you - I do speak with some >> authority, I have all the maintenance records for my car and for two [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > Mazdas. > I'd be a richer man right now if it did. I have a Toyota MR2 and the parts are definately more expensive than 944 parts, generally. Not near as expensive as Saab parts though. Now there is one major mark up on parts car. By a factor of five. I can see the previous poster's point. To argue that it is NOT more expensive to maintain a porsche is a little disingenuous. Anytime you have to special order a part, the costs are going to be more. Even if you do the work yourself. Thus far, the big difference for me has been parts. Especially if you go for the "genuine" porsche ones. There is no Porsche dealership around here, and Autozone may or may not have what you need in stock. And even when they DO have what you need, it could cost some serious $$$ ($150 for spark plug wires????). However Ebay has been a big help here. It can be a shock to someone who has never owned a true "foreign" car before. Toyotas or Nissans don't count. I'm talking something where parts are a "special order". I use to own an MG, so this is nothing new. > if I may say so, "nonsense" - if YOU DO YOUR OWN WORK a 944 is no more > expensive to maintain and operate than a toyota, maybe less so. If you [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] >>for the car, or help him sell it and buy some cheap and reliable >>transportation that isn't going to kill him financially. spark plug wires are "special" shall we say - but on the other hand, on my car at least, they were good for over 10 years so compared to closer to 5 years for more typical wires, that's "only" about double. But, brake pads are about the same, water pump is about the same (the last toyota water pump I changed was $300). Clutch is expensive, but again, I got 150,000 miles on mine, the japanese cars I've worked with typically get 30 to 50K, so again, cost is comoparable. fuel/oil - same. filters - more $, but not a lot. I'm really not trying to be disingenuous - over the lifetime of the car - or if you don't like that phraseology, over a decade or so, I believe, based on my data, that the costs are about the same for a 944, or for a toyota/honda/whatever, if you do your own work. Now, if you say 911, all bets are off (don't ask me why I know this). now to somewhat disprove my point, I did a quick check on the price of water pumps - I picked an 87 toyota celica - $42, same year 944 (rebuilt) $110. that's about 3X the price. on my 85.5, the first water pump lasted 90K miles, the replacement was fine at 250K miles. that's a lot longer life than most, so I feel cost is justified. But if you really have zero dollars, then maybe the best car is something else (like a 1968 dodge dart) that has no value to anyone and uses exteremely common parts you can get in a wrecking yard. but, if you can afford the cash flow for an "economy" car, then you can also afford a 944 > I can see the previous poster's point. To argue that it is NOT more > expensive to maintain a porsche is a little disingenuous. Anytime you [quoted text clipped - 22 lines] >>>for the car, or help him sell it and buy some cheap and reliable >>>transportation that isn't going to kill him financially. |
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