William_Jackson

I find myself in the market for a Porsche 928. Like some, I have always wanted one since I was a teenager back in the 80s. One in good condition to be used as a daily driver and for trips with my wife. I would like one that has been properly maintained with a nice interior. I enjoy wrenching on vehicles and don't mind outsourcing when a project is more than I care to tackle. There are two cars currently on the market which I am considering. My question, all things being equal such as same mileage, comparable price, comparable service history and condition, which is better? A 1984 928 S w/4.7l engine or a 1989 S4 w/5.0l engine? By better, I am asking which is more reliable and most likely to last longer. I am not interested in devalueing a concours class vehicle by putting 300,000 miles on it. I do want one around 80K - 120K miles and hope with proper maintenance to get 500k miles or more on the car in the next 30 years. My wife has expressed her interest in the S4, she prefers the updated interior. Please feel free to voice your opinions. I'm looking forward to hearing what other 928 owners have to say.Happy motoring!

William Jackson
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Mrmerlin

1988 Grand Prix white just rolled in, Project

this will give you an idea of what a S4 might need to be nice
I would estimate this car would be worth about 35K and would give it 4/5 rating

It sounds like a lot till you start adding all the subsystem work.

Make sure the car you buy has had an intake refresh (the S4 versions are now going approx 8 to 12 K)
NOTE this is one reason the S4 cars are being sold as the owners are not interested in adding a large chunk of cash to an old machine.

Usually an intake with fresh color on it will mean an intake refresh has been done,
NOTE it also depends on who did the intake refresh as corners can be cut.
though when an owner does this job,
they add many years of useful life to the car, so their is that.

NOTE for the early 16V cars they should have already had the cam tower gaskets replaced as well as the head gaskets .
if this is not been done then it should be figured into the price for a long term purchase.
The 16V cars are also less refined , so they come with a more rough flavor, a bit more noise in the cabin,
though they still excell at using a few tanks of gas in a day.

kawi825

I would list your location as many people would have somewhat local suggestions. The 84S is at the end of the models with the smaller displacement which is less HP, but also less complexities and cheaper to operate as well, as I'm told. I have not had the newer versions. I currently have a very nice 84S that I may/may not be selling this year depending on life situations. Auto/5-speed? You'll hear lots of opinions there as well.

Shark2626

Get the very best one that you can afford. Simple.

MoD

I have a very clean S4 for sale. It’s going on BaT soon if I don’t sell it on RL but figured I’d place it here first.

here is the link to the classifieds:
https://rennlist.com/forums/market/1178765

There is a discussion in this forum below about it. I went ahead and ordered a few things the people recommended as well.

Wisconsin Joe

The S4 is the better car. Bigger, more powerful motor. EZK ignition & LH injection vs green wire & L-Jet. More power, by a fairly large margin. Better brakes, slightly different front suspension & exhaust.

Looks are subjective. If your wife prefers the S4, go for it. Not sure what 'updated interior' means. The interior didn't change all that much over the years, that I'm aware of. Memory seats, digi-dash & airbags are what I can think of off hand.

However, the 84 US is the most affordable to acquire, and the 16v cars are somewhat simpler. Its also a bit lighter and feels more nimble.

That's not to say they aren't expensive to own & maintain, but if you do your own work, its more manageable than many think.

Read through the "New Visitor" stick, and check out the "For Sale" sticky. Keep in mind that you want to read the "For Sale" thread from the back, the beginning is old and many/most of those cars are gone.

As was noted, get the best car you can afford. Its cheaper to have the PO pay for the work (you rarely recoup the money you put into it).

928 DesMoines

If you can afford a well sorted 89 S4; then that is the one. It will fulfill your teenage dreams and (hope I’m not crossing a line here) when you see your wife behind the wheel, she will go up at least one more number on your hotness scale.

Get the 89!

🙂

worf928

So, you want a 928 with good paint, a nice interior, 80-120k miles that's been properly maintained.

You're 15-ish years 'late' in terms of how plentiful are 928s that meet your criteria. The vast majority of these --^ 928s have been be purchased and have either been 'totally gone through' by their owner who will be buried in it or have been neglected to the point were they need to be 'totally gone through' in order to be used as a reliable daily driver and stress-free trip vehicle.

What you want still exists but finding it is going to take patience and knowledge (so that you can determine if any particular example meets your definitions.)

We can help you with the latter.

Also, the fact that you don't know if you want an S or an S4 suggests to me that you have not driven any (or not more than one or two) 928s. 928s have vastly different characters depending upon type (S, S4, GT, GTS) and transaxle (5-speed or Auto.)

I would suggest posting your general location. There may be some 928 rennlisters in your area that can help you determine what you're looking for and what it's going to take to get it.

Mrmerlin

Oh one other thing you would be very smart to read the FAQ at the top of this page,
it takes about 4 days but many question will be answered,
and much info will be in your pocket even before you sit behind the wheel.

Also this wisdom will possibly save you thousands of dollars if you put it use prior to purchase
best bet put the check book away,
drive a a few,
hang around here for a few months to get a hang of whats cooking,
good luck on your search

atb

If better = reliable and last longer, its going to be dependent on the individual car. A generalization based upon year is not going to be very accurate - the one that was better maintained will be more reliable. As far as lasting longer, I would say that they are similar enough that two equally maintained '84 and '89's would be the same as far as durability.

The best advice for buying a 928 is to go out and drive as many as you can so you know what you like. They have some distinguishing characteristics although the package they come in is comfortably reminiscent whether you are sliding behind the wheel of a '78 928 or '95 928 GTS.

Generally speaking, I think a new owner is going to prefer an S4 over the S for the reasons that Wisconsin Joe has stated, but you won't know until you drive one. The automatic S4 is going to feel sluggish off the line compared to the '84, but the S4 is going to feel a lot more powerful through the rev range. Both cars provide a true GT experience, with comfortable interiors and rock solid handling, but the 84 will feel more responsive in the throttle at lower revs and have a lighter feel. The 1984 928 was touted as the fastest production car in the US with a top speed of 146mph, which sounds impressive until you get into your S4 and hit that speed with one gear still to go on your way to your top speed. At high speeds 120-165+ is where you will appreciate what may feel like "heavy" steering in the S4 driving around town. You begin to realize that the S4 was designed to function safely and effectively at those high speeds, and so the lower speed performance parameters had to be sacrificed a bit to move the performance envelope upward to those high triple digit speeds.

928 owners are a friendly group. Post your locality, meet up with some locals and go for some rides. Find what you like in the different model years, and then determine which 928 is most attractive to you. Find one that is well maintained, or one that you don't mind putting in the investment to bring its maintenance up to date, and buy that one. Each year has its quirks and attractions, so I don't think you will find any generalities as to one year or model being better than the other. In my opinion, the basic design of the 928 is consistent enough through all years that any mechanical concerns are really going to come down to attention to maintenance and not model year.

Be warned though, after a few years of owning one, you are going to want to other as well. Those that want the (comparably speaking) torquey lightweight feel of the early models later invariably want the continent crushing cruise missile experience of the S4, Likewise the S4 owner later wants a change from the "sleeping giant" persona of the S4 to the more user friendly characteristics of the earlier model to dart inbetween traffic on a congested commute.

The Forgotten On

After owning both for years I can say that my 81 was the happier car in the canyons and I could cruise about 15 mph faster in the twisties.

The 89 S4 is a highway cruise missile in comparison. Its updated aero make it much nicer on the highway at high speeds and it feels more modern.

The statements above are very true, the early being more raw, the later more refined. Drive them both and see what you like more.

SwayBar

Which one looks better to you?

Then buy the best example you can afford.

slownrusty

This will turn into a long thread where you'll get equal opinions on both sides of the camp, just buy MoD's car posted above and call it a day.

j.kenzie@sbcglobal.net

Agree. Looks like a fantastic car at a used Honda price. You could not go wrong.
Good luck,
Dave

jwbeck17

Interesting. I got my '89 (5-speed) in 2013 and at the time my wife did not to even ride it in it.
Did I forget to mention that she's my ex-wife? Never ever rode in it, and couldn't be happier. Girlfriend seems to like it very much though...

Bear in mind that even 928s that are claimed to be well sorted and daily driver ready will require work...and probably on the drive home. Like many, I recommend getting one that has clearly had the critical refreshes done (intake, timing belt, suspension, fuel lines and other rubber connections, etc.) so that you can spend the additional money you will need on convenience refreshes and upgrades, and do as much of that as you can yourself as a learning experience about the car. Example: this summer I replaced the front seat leather (Classic9) as it was well torn, took out the the interior to clean all the fabric, resealed the doors and hatch, replaced the leaky quarter panel window seals, then added a spare tire well subwoofer. The smell of fresh leather that is supple, combined with some of the most comfortable yet supportive car seats ever made, and the best soundtrack ever made (engine) with a very complimentary stereo sound... You realize that every drive is a gift in her.