Hezath Posted 4April, 2012 Report Share Posted 4April, 2012 This is a bit of an introduction and a hasty request for advice in one. I'm new to Porsches, never even been in one but I'm pretty damn interested in buying a classic 911 and this one seems close to what I have in mind. I would prefer dished wheels and a wide body rear end etc but it probably isn't gonna happen, so here goes. This car is for sale in the states and I am very close to putting some money down on it and bringing it to Melbourne, to Club Reg it and leave it LHD as a bit of a weekender. 1978 model SC Targa, 3.0L, 'no rust', reasonable looking body with the whale tail (not sure if that's original or repro? fibreglass?) The car is advertised as being a Euro one, but when I put the VIN number into Porsche Cars Australia, they told me it was a U.S. spec car, and it wasn't a Californian one (which would have more emissions gear I imagine) Interested in hearing some opinions from other Porsche owners... http://www.remington...0_147132946.veh Features/upgrades: Carrera tensioners, MSD, electronic ignition, different airbox, DANSK stainless exhaust (no heater ducting etc), electric windows, mirrors, got a high quality stereo albeit a little outdated perhaps. Been told it drives/performs awesomely, had $3k USD spent in the last little while on a tuneup, ignition etc and the other motor work quite recently was estimated at at least another $6k USD No heater sounds a bit crap but I could probably fix it if I was willing to spend a bit on those SSI pipes or similar later on down the track? Or can I even just fabricate up some less sophisticated ducting to get a half-arsed heating effect happening for the odd brutal morning? I know the fan is still there but I don't know how much of the other hardware is still in place. I don't need aircon; my other cars don't have it and apparently the early A/C is not very good anyway. Porsche Cars Australia tells me that the trim on the car is just leatherette - is the insert in the front seats original or has someone else done that? Because the rear seats are just plain leather without perforations. The insert in the front seats seems like the only spot where there are rips in the trim. 16" polished Fuchs wheels original for the car? Are they the same width and offset front to rear? It is fitted with 205s and 225s but the wheel size may be constant - I don't know; doesn't seem obvious in the pictures. Would it be expensive to buy a pair of wider rear wheels? Or a set of reproduction wheels in a more aggressive size? Is there anything that stands out on this car that I seem to have overlooked? How big a drama is it that it isn't euro spec? Have most of the differences been changed on this example anyway? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustJames Posted 4April, 2012 Report Share Posted 4April, 2012 Hezath, I'd be very wary of an unknown car from an unknown seller a long way away. Unless you have a trusted source who can carry out a pre purchase inspection for you, you really don't know what you are getting. Looking at the ad, I questioned the power output claim for starters. Why has the car lost its heater boxes? A North American would certainly have had them; maybe not necessary in Hawaii or California, but the northern states would certainly need a heater. I'd be really worried that an unseen car - and a few small pics can hide an awful lot of unpleasant detail - would turn out to be a money pit. Apologies if I am coming across all negative. Edited to Add: On Carsales you can find 911's from AUD19K, which also makes me question how great that price is - although in fairness some of the cars on there are erm, challenging. James Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hezath Posted 4April, 2012 Author Report Share Posted 4April, 2012 Yeah I contacted a firm in the States today enquiring about organizing a pre-purchase inspection The output claim I didn't really pay much attention to either, but the list of work sounds appealing. It has had a leakdown test done, had a very recent tune-up and valve adjustment, the hydraulic tensioners (and presumably a new chain etc) done by the last owner. I actually have about 60 photos that the seller has e-mailed me that go into a lot greater detail, maybe I should have mentioned that. But I spotted that brown 911SC Targa on carsales today which is RHD and asking marginally less than this car would cost landed. I was wanting something that wasn't much of a project though - don't really want to buy a car that I need to weld up rust holes and respray; I've already got a project I'm supposed to be doing that stuff on haha Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustJames Posted 4April, 2012 Report Share Posted 4April, 2012 Maybe try a post on one of the US based forums (fora?) to see if anybody knows anything about the car, if anybody can recommend somebody to do a PPI for you and just as important, see what kind of reputation the seller has. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
randall Posted 4April, 2012 Report Share Posted 4April, 2012 But I spotted that brown 911SC Targa on carsales today which is RHD and asking marginally less than this car would cost landed. You are not underestimating the cost of transport and import duty? Don't forget you will likely need engineering report, registering the car,etc. I would think taking those additional costs into consideration would not make it as attractive seeing there are some local cars for not a great deal more than the asking price of the car you are looking at. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hezath Posted 5April, 2012 Author Report Share Posted 5April, 2012 Engineering report for a set of pipes? Just gonna club reg it so all that stuff should be a breeze. Need to get some headlights that dip the other way to suit our roads and maybe borrow a set of ADR-compliant seatbelts if I get picked on that. Got quotes for towing, shipping & import approval, and pay GST on the purchase price, should be about $23k nearish to on the road including inspection and stuff if there are no hidden surprises. Don't really know what I should do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PCM911T Posted 5April, 2012 Report Share Posted 5April, 2012 Hezath, I'd listen to James advice.And pass on some advice from Jim Richards who knows a thing or two about Porsches - " Buy the latest Porsche you can afford, because each model is better than the previous one". This one is cheap because it will need as much again spent on it as the purchase price to get it right. Hawaii land of volcanoes, sulphur dioxide and salt water, a roof that does not fit = rust for sure! Having said that mine is a 1970 car in excellent condition, but it took me 4 years to get it from a reluctant seller (the cash in my hand changed his mind) and I have spent over $12,000 on various refurbishments over ten years of ownership.Don't rush in, but go test driving as many as you can get your hands on, decide your model, be patient and the right one will turn up. Just have the money ready to pounce as the good ones, go very quickly. Watch the Porsche Club forums in Australia and look for solid service histories. Most older Porsches are owned by enthusiasts. Be realistic, a reasonable 911 is in the vicinity of $40,000 plus. Cheaper option is a 944, neat car also. Good Luck Paul M Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hezath Posted 5April, 2012 Author Report Share Posted 5April, 2012 Appreciate all the opinions so far guys. I'm only 21 haha, I don't think I should spend more than $25k on a car that I don't even need (I already have another two). If it's gonna take $40k to get a 911 that I'm happy with, well - I won't be getting a 911; not at this stage anyway. But I don't know if I believe that, it looks like in the states I could get lots of nice original 911s quite cheaply - what interests me about the one in the original post is that it has already had a lot of cash dropped on it and has a lot of the upgrades that I was going to want to carry out myself. I should be test driving the brown/bronze one tomorrow. The wide Fuchs make it look grouse, talked to the owner on the phone today, it's a Euro car that was converted in the late 80's. Still has some of the old head studs and I don't know if it has had the tensioners upgraded . Apparently the paint is pretty bad. Spraying a car doesn't scare me but the time it takes puts me off a bit. Has the stainless pipes with the heat boxes which is nice, Only $20k but it doesn't come with a roadworthy or anything. If nothing else I will learn a bit from inspecting it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doish13 Posted 18April, 2012 Report Share Posted 18April, 2012 Hi hezath, How did you go mate? Am interested as was looking down that same line once however information as per the above swayed me. It took many months and gut wrenching " I should have been quicker" moments before I was lucky to discover my ride. By then too I had learned far more through research and believe made a more educated decision as apposed to emotional. DB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hezath Posted 29April, 2012 Author Report Share Posted 29April, 2012 Sorry for the delayed response. I haven't bought anything yet, just been watching the market and stuff, resisting jumping at anything and seeing some good cars. Basically everything I'm looking at seems to go for $12-20k, and I don't think I'm 'underestimating the cost of transport' - I've had quotes for everything and I'm allowing extra anyway. The difference in value is huge, and it isn't a mystery - it has always kinda been that way and that's why people bring cars over from there. Re-reading this thread I'd have to say that there was a fair bit of discouragement from people who sound like they haven't imported cars before and seemed to have a fair prejudice, that made me lose interest in this thread a bit but I came back to see if anyone had replied anyway. The statements made might apply accurately to the Australian market and owners who aren't very hands-on, but international cars are a different ballgame and I tend to think I can spend less than your average Porsche owner by carrying out any suspension/bodywork/mechanical/electrical work myself, as long as nothing goes wrong with the K-Jet stuff lol. Back on track, you're struggling to find a $30k SC in America, eg. a fully restored one with $40k in receipts is for sale for under $25k haha. I'm sure this will sound naive to some of you but it looks like I can quite easily afford a car that is better than I expected. If you guys are biased towards RHD cars then that's cool, everyone has their own opinions about what is and isn't important etc, for me that doesn't matter - importing looks like I can get better value for money on stuff that matters to me. I checked out the bronze Targa in Melbourne and it seemed like a nice honest car but would have required more hours than I'm willing to dedicate to fixing the body up and the motor was really an 'unknown' with moderately high k's. Wasn't a bad car but not for me, and the value for money just didn't grab me - consistent with all of the other Australian cars I've seen haha Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hugh Posted 30April, 2012 Report Share Posted 30April, 2012 Hi Hezath, I too bought my first porsche at 21, and still own it to this day. Whilst I'm not a mechanic or would be described as 'hands on' I am and have always been interested in cars - Porches in particular. The thing I soon realised once being involved with Porsche 'circles' prior to ownership is how or why these cars hold or maintain their value. History is everything to a classic car enthusiast, Porsche owners are no exception. In relation to classic Porsches, values are based on history, year & model - generally in that order. So, when you start referring to O/S cars on a forum of mostly purists it could be mistaken for uneducated owners who have'nt imported cars - but the fact is US cars are cheaper because they are not worth as much on the Australian market. If you want 'value for money', sure buy a US car - but the lesser price is due to the fact of it not being worth as much as an OZ delivered car. The decision you have to make is 'bang for your buck now' or investment for the future, thats the key to making classic car ownership work for you. I payed more for my 911 than what the cheapest on the market was at the time (8 years ago), however I now have a car with an agreed insurance amount of 3 times (yes 3!) the amount I payed for the car originally. In relation to receipts, the amount spent is worth nothing if you dont know the quality of the work. I have seen people spend 30k+ on engine rebuilds that are rubbish. Better off buying a good original car and having someone you know do the work................... Cheers, Hugh. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hezath Posted 2May, 2012 Author Report Share Posted 2May, 2012 Well, there's nothing in your post that I would really argue with. I suppose my priorities are just different. I get valuing the history of a car, I do, and it'll probably be something that is more important to me as I get older but the cars I've had in the past have always had unknown history and no real 'pedigree' so I'm not used to thinking it's a big deal. Since writing my last post, I've actually found a '75 911S with an '81 3.0L motor installed, with some other go-fast goodies and quite a few invoices. Car is currently at a reputable shop in California getting a fairly comprehensive inspection done, and I'm trying to figure out as much as I can about what bits I should buy and get chucked in the car before it goes in the container, but yeah I've basically bought it. Pretty exciting/scary, only 13 times as expensive any other car I've bought. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doish13 Posted 3May, 2012 Report Share Posted 3May, 2012 13 times more expensive than your current 2 cars with a budget of 12-20K? Reminds me of when I owned 2 120y Datsun's at $400 a pop ...mind you when I finished with the white one it was capable of high 12 second quarter miles on retreads...... Now that was scary! Got a pic of your new girl? Congrats. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hezath Posted 5May, 2012 Author Report Share Posted 5May, 2012 Yeah I've never paid over $1000 dollars for a car haha. My first one started off pretty unexciting and in a few years I'd turned it into this, wasn't running 12's though. http://img.photobuck.../P1060513-3.jpg Hopefully I won't need to do that much restoration work on this new Porsche! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doish13 Posted 5May, 2012 Report Share Posted 5May, 2012 This is "that" car from the states? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hezath Posted 5May, 2012 Author Report Share Posted 5May, 2012 That's the car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest vas930 Posted 6May, 2012 Report Share Posted 6May, 2012 Looks good, mate. I think after all the importing issues this will turn out a good buy. As long as it is what it says it is. Have you had someone over in the US look at it for you? Big project for a 21 year old. Well done and good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T-Man Posted 6May, 2012 Report Share Posted 6May, 2012 Don't know much about the 80's cars but this one looks clean. Good luck Hezath. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hugh Posted 8May, 2012 Report Share Posted 8May, 2012 sits low, 8"s on the rear and a ducktail - looks pimp. I like. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hezath Posted 11May, 2012 Author Report Share Posted 11May, 2012 Yeah genuine 7"s and 8"s. Lowered all round, bigger swaybars, got one of the better types of strut braces. Apparently 'had some dollars spent on the suspension' but I'm not sure how far that goes into it. I can get bushes and so on at a bit of a reduced rate in Australia at least. SSI's, safety locks on the chain tensioners so they don't collapse and introduce engine components viciously, MSD box, no smog pump, no aircon. Rebuilt gearbox with the early transaxle ratio of the 2.7L car. Carrera oil cooler in the fender Paint is pretty fresh apparently, 2k. Missing the front spoiler and has one ding in a guard. Comes with the standard flat engine cover too so if I get bored with the look I can mix it up a bit New carpet, fresh black trim on the 'S' front seats with big bolsters. Not sure if it's leather or vinyl Hopefully when I put it up on the hoist I don't find anything that the Porsche specialist who did the inspection missed. The car has been paid for and arrived at the dock in Stanton, CA a few hours ago. It'll sit there while Canberra take their sweet time to approve my import application. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hugh Posted 12May, 2012 Report Share Posted 12May, 2012 Nice work, be sure to post some pics when you get home....................... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doish13 Posted 12May, 2012 Report Share Posted 12May, 2012 Nice work - look forward to seeing a few more photos of it. Love the way it sits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doish13 Posted 23May, 2012 Report Share Posted 23May, 2012 What's the status Hezath? Really interested in how the experience went as it was something I put in the too hard basket - you seemed to be making great progress. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hezath Posted 23May, 2012 Author Report Share Posted 23May, 2012 Just still waiting on Canberra. There is apparently a three week expected turnaround for them to stamp a damn form. I'm considering buying an IROC kit or similar (don't want the big square mouth of the IROC kit but want the rest) and having it shipped over with the car. Making some enquiries... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hezath Posted 11June, 2012 Author Report Share Posted 11June, 2012 I would say that Canberra sent me my Import Approval, but a more accurate statement would be that Canberra did approve my Import Application, and then sent it to someone else. The person who received my Import Approval, very kindly mailed it to me because my address was printed on it. Sure do love our Government Departments. If I was getting paid $50 to look at a piece of paper and stamp it, I like to think I'd take a bit more care. Anyway, the car will be loaded up this week; progress is progress. Need a front spoiler and prefer the recessed factory foglight look but too much of a tightarse to buy new parts. Hmmmm... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.