Benjamin Cherry

Hello all,

I've absolutely LOVED my 981 Cayman (recent pic after a hand wash at home, with Prisma filter), and the Porsche bug has bitten me hard. I've been looking at 944s and 968s recently, in part because I'd like to be able to see and learn to work on an engine. As much as I love the 981, I don't have a lift and the procedure for accessing the engine from the front and rear seems awkward.

So, which car is the best for a technically competent but novice wrench-turner to learn how to work on cars, specifically engine and exhaust? Non-Porsche suggestions also welcome, preferably sports cars.

I used the search function and browsed through a few pages of results, so I hope this is not a duplicate thread. If it is, would appreciate a link to similar threads that might already answer this question.

I thought the 944 platform might be a wise place to start researching this since it was widely produced and hopefully this translates into available parts and wisdom available on the forums. Is there a better place to start, e.g. 924? 914?

catamount

Ask anyone that has spent a good amount of time working on cars and they almost universally will tell you the first car they learned on was an air cooled VW Beetle.

V2Rocket

i learned everything i know from my 8-valve 944 over the years.
a lot of noise on the internet about "complexity" but its really basic stuff.

a 914 might be fun because they are still cheap and there are a TON of parts available or workable due to the VW connection. also, no radiator

yorkee

I learn the very basic from a single cylinder air-cool 2 stroke motorcycle. Then a 4 stroke lawnmower, where I learn about cam, valve, etc.

Then I forgot... some where between a honda civic, a suzuki sidekick or a 2 cylinder 4 stroke motorcycle to learn about cooling system, electric starter, vacuum, brake booster, hydraulic, brakes, axle, and all those "minor stuff". I have learn how to do stuff the wrong way before the 944.

mikehayes

I second Spencer. My 944 was my first car. I had no tools, no garage, no knowledge. Four years later (and with a lot of help from Spencer and various other people on this forum), I have a garage, I've upgraded the suspension, built and swapped motors, rebuilt the whole drivetrain, painted, made custom pieces for and daily my car with confidence. I know just about every nut and bolt on the car, and I'm happy to have learned on a cool car that I love.

Things to consider-
Price: 944 parts are nowhere near as dirt cheap as say, Beetle parts, as catamount suggests (except the parts they share!). But they are certainly available and compared to Cayman parts I imagine they're relatively affordable.

Complexity: It isn't the simplest or most well thought out (in terms of wrenching), but this does teach you to get creative and use tools that you wouldn't on a simpler car. And as Spencer says, once you do your research and learn how everything works (usually by fixing it once, or twice), it's pretty straightforward.

Reliability: If you're expecting a car you're learning to wrench on to be reliable, don't (or get a Toyota). The 944 is a pretty reliable car when everything is maintained properly, but inevitably while learning to wrench, you'll make mistakes, big or small, that will take your car off the road. And that's fine and a good way to learn, but you don't want to wrench under pressure.

Passion(?): I don't know what to call this category, but regardless of what car you choose, my advice would be make it one you really love. Wrenching can be a ton of fun and a cool learning experience, but it can also be a huge, endless, grinding chore. If you get a car that you think will be easy to work on, but you have no desire to drive it because you don't think it's cool, you won't be very inclined to fix it either. One of the most rewarding parts about learning to wrench is that feeling once you're back driving on the road knowing you fixed the problem with your own hands.

tempest411

For ease of wrenching I'd go for an older domestic. If gas mileage weren't an issue I wouldn't even be playing with a 944-I'd get a mid 90s Corvette. Any American OHV V8 is going to be way less fussy to work on than the engines in 944s, and they're cheap to work on with huge support in the aftermarket.

HenryPcar

My first car was a Ford Pinto. Fix or repair daily is a necessity and its true that a dying horse leaves you no choice but to walk.

fasteddie313

E36 BMW with obd2 would probably be most relevant to modern cars while still being easy to work on and understand..
I'd vote for that, then turbo it and learn standalone with megasquirt, build an engine for boost, then you would really know your stuff

944s are a good car but less relevant to modern efi, and you will be working on it a lot more for maintenance and less for modification.. A 944s modification potential is pretty much "sell it and buy a 951 turbo" and turbos are for an advanced mechanic IMO, hard to work on so I read..
924s with CIS are the least relevant to modern engine management, but are very good for the theory of fueling in general, physically easy to work on.. I wouldn't recommend one to learn "cars/engines" with..

You could do a heck of a lot worse than a 944 for sure, but I think the BMW and the upgrade path would have you learning the most and best information..
They are darn reliable too, so you would be choosing what sort of projects to work on on it rather than it choosing what project you will be working on for you..

thomasmryan

2nd the air cooled era but the most modern mill I like is the Mercedes M104 3.2 liter straight 6.

ample room to work and similar to the MAF controlled 968/993 injection system.

Squid924

It really depends on what you want.....you have a modern sports car. Do you want your other car to feel more vintage? Are you planning track days or autocross?

VW Bug or Karmann Ghia - My dad is a bit of a car guy, and has a 997 and a Z4....a year ago he purchased a one owner 73 Beetle, it is a running project car and he just put new carpets in the car and recovered the seats with new padding, etc. Parts are cheap, less than $ 500 for full carpets and seat covers, shift ****, etc. He loves the car, gets lots of looks and waves from people when driving around and someone always stops to talk to him about the car (not the same response with the other cars). Simple car, simple mechanicals, simple gauges, manual windows, door locks....just a different experience from today's cars.

944 or 924S - Great cars, I have owned my 924S for 21 years....it has been reliable, fairly easy to work on, enough power to have fun and very balanced in the corners. When the A/C is charged it still keeps me cool, and you can upgrade with suspension parts from the later Tubo and 968 cars. I used to want a later 944 with the newer interior now I look forward to seeing the 3 gauge pod on the dash with the backwards swinging tach.

BMW E30 - The E30's are great cars, I have had a handful, they give you that vintage feel with some modern amenities. They are reliable. Plenty of forum support and upgrades available. Going up in value

BMW E36 - Easy to work on, bullet proof engines, good torque and hp. Plenty of upgrades available, could easily pull daily driving if needed.

If you can find some local to you, take them for a test drive.

EJnMN

Triumph Spitfire is cheap and easy to work on. The whole front of the car opens forward, fenders and all, which makes the engine very easy to work on. There are 3 fuses in the fusebox, so wiring is simple... if not a bit sketchy. Parts are easily available, but don't just swap bolts from your ace hardware . (Moss Motors/Victoria British). They're a hoot to drive, even with only 50 hp.

Chalt

A beetle was the first car I worked on! My second was a 924.

thomasmryan

Otto Mechanic

My first car was a '71 1.7L 914 and I'd recommend it since you said you don't have a lift. The way you work on a 914 engine is to raise the car on a jack, then drop the engine out the bottom. There's very little you can get to on a 914 with the engine still in the car, and a lift doesn't really help.

Of course, a lift is still very valuable for suspension and drive train work, but you did mention the engine. 914s are amazing cars and very rewarding to drive. I wish I still had mine. On top of that, engines are pretty cheap, it's a type IV VW bus.

PS: I should mention I wouldn't personally buy a car made after about 2000, though I own a 2005 Chevy K3500 Dually Crew Cab. I suppose that means I don't practice what I preach, but in gact my wife bought it and it's really hers.

It seems to me the big car makers have decided their best interest is to shut out owner mechanics, which I don't agree with and don't support.

odonnell

You asked on a 944 board so I'm biased. But a 944 NA is stupid easy to work on. I knew very little going in, and it was fine. They're reliable enough to trust but there's always something you can work on. Parts aren't that expensive in general and it's more exciting than standard fare.