New bloke

[quantic]

Hi all, just thought I'd introduce myself to the forum as a new 944 owner. I looked at a lot of the posts on here before mainly ignoring all of the good advice and buying a bit of a shed-like 944 2.7 off of ebay, in the dark, and unseen.!
Anyway, I had a pretty uneventful 80 odd mile drive home in it, and the initial impressions were: noisy gearbox, seemingly ineffective (and leaky) PAS, useless mirrors, horrid CD player with the brightest, bluest, chaviest display seen this side of McDonalds carpark, which also skips.. Performance is pretty much what I expected (feared?!) BUT overall its great, I love it and its what I'd call a proper drivers car!
So, a few little jobs to sort out-its never going to be a minter-but I think it'll be ok..
I'm aware of the pitfalls of 'cheap' 944s and I suspect it'll cause me a bit of aggravation, but hopefully it'll serve its purpose and that is to be an interesting runaround car.
Also on the plus side I used to run a little garage business and I've still got the workshop with all my tools and a 2 poster which may well become useful!!

I've a couple of questions already, if anyone can help I'd be grateful: Is it worth getting a seal kit for the PAS pump do you think, or shall I just get a (hopefull better..) second hand one? It seems that noisy gearboxes are fairly common-apparently the oil has been changed recently but have people had much success with different types of oil or additives (shudder-i always told people most additives are pure snake oil!!) or do I just live with it and pretend I'm in a touring car? Lastly the N/S mirror has a broken gear in it so the glass flops around a bit-is it possible to repair it with the gizzards of a second hand mirror?

Well that's about it for now-im sure I'll be a regular visitor in future, but in the meantime thanks for any help, and please go gentle on me for buying a 944 for a grand and hoping for the best!!
Michael

 

[GlennS]

ORIGINAL: quantic
please go gentle on me for buying a 944 for a grand and hoping for the best!!

Welcome. Hope springs eternal... []


You may not be aware but forum rules specify that any post from a new owner has to be accompanied by pictures of their new money pit.... err... sorry, I meant "car" []

 

[gajh]

Welcome, I guess you are talking about the gearbox whine? There is a article in the Technical articles about this, I have used swepco 201 oil for my gearbox and it has reduced the whine quite a bit not tried the additive. The PAS depends on where it is leaking, shaft or hose connections. There are videos on how to replace the internal seals etc.. and it is a straight forward job and not too expensive for the kit, if going down this route may be worth while putting the upgraded hose and connector on.

 

[quantic]

Hmm, no I didn't read the rules of course! I'll take a pic next time I see it in daylight and post it up..
Gavin, yes sorry I meant the gearbox whine""as for the pas leak I haven't put it up in the air yet so I'm not sure where the leak is from. I saw the clip about replacing the seals, I wonder if that would cure the heavy steering though or whether there is a more fundamental problem with the pump, ie it's worn out!

 

[edh]

My first one was under a grand

It's not a bad way of finding out how they work and what goes wrong []

 

[andy watson]

Hi and welcome,

Rules are pics 1st questions after [][]

Seriously though welcome to the classic, money pit I mean 944 forum [][] it is a great place and lots of help and advice always about, never be afraid to ask.

Whereabouts are you?

Good luck and enjoy

 

[quantic]

Here's a nasty picture from the ad...
I'm based in High Wycombe


http://i221.photobucket.com/albums/dd292/quantic_autosport/resize.jpg

 

[steve 944t]

Re the PAS, certainly fixing the leaks is a good idea. Can't really comment on the seal kits. But as a general comment, you will find the steering on a 944 is much heavier than modern cars, even when the PAS is working properly. The same applies to brakes - modern cars are over-assisted in both areas, so it may just be a case of getting used to the weight. I only say this so that you are not disappointed if you end up spending some money and it doesn't seem any better!

If you are not in any great hurry, I am not far from you (just the other side of Beaconsfield) and am happy to meet up so you can compare the steering on my turbo. Wll have to wait until some slightly better weather though as the 944 is tucked up safely in the garage at the mo []

 

[Copperman05]

Welcome, if you have a workshop and required skills you will fair better than most, its a great car (once sorted), enjoy.


Edd

 

[andy watson]

Fancy a trip out on 24th Feb? See the Rutland thread be good to see you there

 

[quantic]

Thanks Steve, I'm not too worried about the brakes-theyre pretty much what I expected really. The steering does want a bit of looking into though-i may well take you up on that if I get a bit stuck. It also doesn't seem too keen to self centre,
The Rutland trip sounds good in theory but I think at this stage I need to give it the once over first, and the next few weekends look very busy for me.. Certainly later in the year I'd like to see what events are happening and maybe come and meet some peeps

 

[steve 944t]

No worries. Mum lives in Naphill so I go through HW pretty regularly.

Heavy steering and lack of self centring could both be caused by geometry being a mile out.

 

[bighead]

Hi quantic welcome to our forum , you can get the steering rack recondition for around £200

 

[924nutter]

Hi quantic welcome to 944 ownership. I am literally just down the road from you in Marlow, and would be surprised if you were not put into region 19 should you be, or become a member, although the London Region has a convenient meeting place and I know of at least one R19 member who goes to the London Region meetings. I have a 44,000 gen mileage 944 turbo cab. I am also R19 regional organiser. You would be most welcome to bring your pride and joy to our next monthly meeting. From 12:30 pm The Novello on the A4 first Sunday of the month. Next meeting FEB.

 

[pauljmcnulty]

ORIGINAL: quantic

http://i221.photobucket.com/albums/dd292/quantic_autosport/resize.jpg

Here's a nasty picture from the ad...
I'm based in High Wycombe

Not another one! I only sent a new member welcome letter out last month to someone less than a mile from me, so the Wycome area seems to be home to a good number of 944s for some reason!

If you want to compare gearbox noise then I'm only a few miles north. You'd be surprised just how bad they can sound without it being a problem; mine's got the boot carpet out for the respray and it's VERY noisy once you take the soundproofing away.

 

[zcacogp]

Hi Michael and welcome.

I can't add any words of wisdom to those already spoken, but it'll be good to have another owner on here who is handy with the spanners. They are easy cars to work on, and if you have a 13mm, 17mm and 19mm ratchet and a decent pair of overalls then pretty much everything is possible! Having a lift is something I will envy for evermore ....

Keep us posted with the progress. There are some good technical articles here:

http://www.porscheclubgbforum.com/tt.asp?forumid=165

... and Clarks Garage is the definitive reference guide:

http://www.clarks-garage.com/

Enjoy the car.


Oli.

 

[quantic]

Well thanks y'all, that's a nice welcome and it's good to know there's a few other 944 folks locally. I'm not sure that I'll join the club 'proper' which is no reflection on the club at all-more the fact that I already have a massively time consuming and expensive hobby (no, not the girlfriend although that wouldn't be a bad description) and I'm not sure I can fit another one in!