Esio Trot

I have a 944 Turbo I bought with about 81k miles on it (now 86k miles) which has suffered, perhaps beyond repair. On top of the pain of seeing it hauled away on a flatbed is the knowledge that its present condition could easily have been averted.

I shared the car with a friend of mine who was the only one using it from about two years back up until recently (one set of keys between us). While it's my own damn fault for not being more vigilant about maintenance, the bottom line is that the car never got an oil change over this span of time. I confirmed this while I waited for AAA.

The breakdown happened when I took it out for a drive out of the city last Saturday (I live in Manhattan). I noticed that the fuel gauge was reading low and that the oil light was coming on whenever the car was headed up or down an incline. Shortly before I reached my destination I began hearing a strange sound; it sounded as if a coat hanger was trapped underneath the chassis and dragging along the asphalt. Not good. I headed to the nearest quick-service oil change place, figuring that even if low oil wasn't the culprit, the car was probably in dire need of a change anyway. Unfortunately, they didn't have the right filter in stock, and sent me down the road to another place, which also didn't have the right filter.

At that point it was past business hours so I started driving back to the garage figuring I'd have to find a local mechanic in addition to oil. Before long, however, the sound got worse--especially in the first couple gears and particularly bad with the accelerator pedal depressed. Soon after (and before I could find a spot to pull over) I lost all real power to the wheels--though I was in 2nd or 3rd gear, pressing the gas revved the engine like I was in neutral, and it sounded so horrible I backed off immediately, coasted to an emergency pull-off area, and turned it off.

I had it towed to the nearest AAA service station, a place in Hell's Kitchen (for those of you who happen to be in NYC). Heard from them Monday; they told me the engine was completely dry and after they had refilled with synthetic (for $200!) they did a quick diagnostic and said I'd need to either rebuild or replace the engine. Their recommendation was looking around for a used motor given the labor required to rebuild mine and likely extent of damage. It didn't sound like anyone there had any experience with 944s or Porsches, but for what it's worth, they said it sounded like the main bearing was toast and potentially rods, cylinders, and other parts. On a follow-up call they said they had found one motor with 81k miles on it and maybe another with 50k on it, either of which would run me $4700 (neither are rebuilds). With labor, they estimated I was looking at a $9-11k job if I wanted to go ahead and fix (obviously wouldn't make sense given replacement cost).

I was hoping to get some quick input on the below questions as I'm under pressure to either give the green light on an engine swap or get this car off the auto shop's lot ASAP. FYI they've put oil in the car and have started it up, but it still sounds like the main bearing is bad. So:

a) any reputable shops in the greater NYC area I should call on for a second opinion? If I get the motor rebuilt, I don't want it done by someone who's never done it before (especially at $120 an hour!).
b) isn't $4700 a bit high for a stock 944T motor? I found listings online for '86 2.5L engines for $2000-2500 with similar or lower mileage.
c) shouldn't someone at least open up the existing motor before buying a replacement?
d) ...and lastly, if it comes to this, would anyone be interested in a red 944 Turbo parts / project car?

I've tried looking at the PCA website for club-affiliated mechanics, but no dice--the directory on the NYC chapter's page seems to either be down or missing. A mechanic with a good "bedside manner" would go a long way here...

Voith

$1000 - $2000 should get you a good running motor imo.

Humboldtgrin

Sell it as a parts car if your not doing the work yourself. Put that $ towards another vehicle. At $9-11G's you can have a nice 944turbo and not have to wait, for you next future parts car. And yes they are ripping you off just like all shops do. And you engine is toast. You would need to repair the block(not cheap), new pistons(not cheap), turbocharger replacement(recommended), master rebiult kit(not cheap). Labor for a shop to rebiuld(bend over). Find a 951 enthusiast and sell it the them. It's still worth something. What year is it? Body shape? If it's not an S model then you can probably get $2-3G's for it. But seeing how you just told everyone in the world that it received no services which lead to the death of it not sure you'll get much more, because it needs to be gone thru entirely. Good luck.

Black51

What year is the car?

Auto_Werks 3.6

I am honestly not saying this to try to be insulting, but I don't think a 944 is the right car for you. These cars can't usually go several years without someone looking at the timing belt, let alone checking the oil. They are not robust in that sense. I would suggest looking at something newer like a Z3/Z4 M roadster, maybe an M3 or even a newer turbocharged 330. Even an air cooled 911 would be better. None of those are maintenance free cars but better. If you really want to weld the hood shut consider a miata.

and yes, what year is the car?

V2Rocket

I wouldn't pay more than $1500 for a complete used 951 engine.
Keep looking, try car-part.com...

Also, swapping in a used engine is something that can be done over a weekend, or if someone is very familiar with the car, in about a day.

Obviously a 951 has more stuff in the way but I once swapped engines between 2 944-Spec cars in about 8 hours. 2 driveable cars when started, 2 driveable cars when finished that evening.

One thing you might try is finding a guy on ebay who sells as "944reanimation"...he parts cars out "an hour from NYC" but knows his way around the engine bay well enough that maybe he'd help you with the swap. He has a mixed reputation for parts sales though, but I've never had an issue when I've bough from him before.

lart951

Great recommendation nice to know, maybe you can get the turbo engine that i was giving you for $ 1000.00 from him

V2Rocket

Don't worry Luis it was years ago...I wouldn't cheat on you.

lovemyp-car

If you go down the road of selling it as is I am close enough to come pick it up and would be very interested. Let me know.

Ethan

fiily

Rule #1)Don't share a porsche, even with your significant other
Rule #2)Don't defer maintenance
Rule #3)Don't take your car to a shady generic import/domestic garage
Rule #4)If you don't own a porsche, you don't understand the rules

Tom M'Guinn

Personally, I'd get the car back from that shop and take my time figuring out what to do. Tow it home if needed. It does not sound like they know these cars well at all, and then to list so many random parts undermines their credibility to me (main bearings, rods, cylinders? please...). Their $10k estimate sounds like it is based on little more than their unwillingness/inability to sort it out properly. Just my two cents.

Another thing that doesn't sound right about your story and their diagnosis is this sentence: "I lost all real power to the wheels--though I was in 2nd or 3rd gear, pressing the gas revved the engine like I was in neutral, and it sounded so horrible I backed off immediately..." If a car is in gear and the clutch is engaged, the motor cannot rev like it's in neutral without moving the car, unless there is something wrong with the drive gear (clutch, driveshaft, transaxle, axles, etc.). And those driveline parts are actually more likely to make terrible noises than the motor. It's possible the motor is blown AND the driveline is bad, but suffice to say their are enough red flags here that I'd want to slow down, get the car back, do some actual diagnostic work, then decide what to do.

Auto_Werks 3.6

I would wager that living in Manhattan he doesn't have a place where he can do that type of thing. It would probably cost more per year to have a workshop garage in the city than just paying whatever it cost for a competent shop to do the work.

fiily

Why would you want a car in Manhattan to begin with? Use public transportation, mass transit and eliminate the cost by getting rid of the car since the OP probably doesn't have the skill set/tools/space to perform any of his/her own maintenance the car needs.

Then download uber on your tablet, smartphone or comp-u-ter, and problem solved.

raleighBahn

Even a healthy 951 drinks oil with gusto (compared to "normal" cars). That and they actively leak oil from at least three spots at any given time (out of 57 known locations understood to be capable of leaking), plus another three secret spots that only Tom knows. If it was really two years, time to carve this up like a Thanksgiving turkey and pass the yams. That growing dark shadow you see is Lart circling closer like a big buzzard.

raleighBahn

The only thing that burns in porsche hell is the part of your 951 that won't let go of life, your memories, your attachments. Lart burns them all away. But he's not punishing you. Lart is freeing your soul. So, if you're frightened of your 951 dying and... and you're holding on, you'll see Lart tearing your car away. But if you've made your peace, then Lart is really an angel, freeing your p-car from the earth.