New Purchase 1978 911 SC - Sage Advice Needed

[cherrybar12]

Hello,

I'd very much appreciate any advice members may have in relation to a recent, somewhat complusive ebay purchase of a 1978 Porsche 911 SC...

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&_trksid=p4340.l2557&item=300695639755&nma=true&rt=nc&si=ynVCwANNEs%252B4LQ%252BBroJtNgO3Z5M%253D&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWAX%3AIT&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc

Any pointers on what I should be looking for prior to handing over my hard earned?

Many thanks in advance, Nick.

p.s. Might've been obvious but probably worth noting that this is my first Porsche purchase!

[JustJames]

Hi Nick

Congratulations on your purchase.

At that price, you can afford to do a LOT of work to the car before it stops being economically justifiable.

As VAS said in the other thread, I'd just drive it until you work out what the car needs, and take it from there.

If the engine capacity is 2.7 litres, your car isn't an SC (which had 3 litre displacement). That's a criticsm of the advertiser, not you or your car, and just something to bear in mind when looking for parts. F'rinstance, the SC had a different fuel filter and front brake pads - among other things - to the earlier cars.

James

[cherrybar12]

Thanks James, I can't tell you how grateful I am to get your opinions on this purchase. I've just returned from the UK where I tried (in vain) to import a beautiful and suprisingly cheap 993 much to my disappointment.

Again, appreciate any comments from other owners and interested parties.

Regards

Nick

[cherrybar12]

Sorry one other point, I've noticed that the car has a 'Turbo' badge under the rear whaletail, I'm assuming this is simply for show

...the turbo would be present in the engine picture I assume?

[JustJames]

Vas will confirm that the 'turbo' badge on its own is worth an extra 5 horse power (or 6 tenths of a second when you go on track).

If the seller got either the SC part or the 2.7 part, your car breathes in an unforced way. If you have more than 4 gears, you almost certainly have a NA car.

The surest way is to look for a snail on the exhaust manifold, but it looks to me like the previous owner, having made his car look like a 964 figured he may was well be hung for a sheep as a lamb and went the whole hog with the deception.

You'll have to look under the 'neath to be completely sure, but I wouldn't be holding any breath.

In this pic you can see the snail just above the outlet part of the zorst pipe.

[Guest vas930]

6hp, and an extra 2hp if Silver.

[hugh]

sounds like I need one of those badges.................with xtra boost!

[cherrybar12]

Hello again, literally just off the phone with the owner - took some time to finally get in touch.

So...according to the owner,

• Wiring loom is present and the lights simply need to be connected up
  
• Car has been registered previously in NSW, owner can't find the rego papers (these are apparently in storage) however he will provide the cars VIN number before preceeding with an actual viewing.
  
• Car is LHD
  
• Turbo badge is just that, a badge
  
• No rust apart from what you can see in the pics, left hand door, slight bubbling, around 5-6cms (ebay link - see my previous post). No structural rust, however this will be confirmed should the cars rego history and ownership be clarified (see previous point).
  
• Door trims are included and need to 'simply' be fitted.
  
• Interior roof (not sure what this is called) needs to be purchased and fitted.
  
• Owner is selling all 8 vechicles and 4 motorbikes to make room (all are stored at his parents place)
  
• Owner is unsure whether the car is a 2.7 or 3.0 litre (again said that the papers were in storage)
  
• Owner mentioned that the vechicle would need to be primed before attempting to start as it has been in storage for quite some time.
  
• Ignition coil has been removed/replaced as he lost the key...hmmm. Without proof of ownership/history I don't think I'll bother with a physical inspection...
  

So I guess I'll google where you'll find the VIN no and any other markings that prove the cars history, model and ownership...

Love to hear from you if you're a late 70's porsche enthusiast

Thanks again for all your feedback, it's been an interesting exercise thus far!

Regards

Nick

[hugh]

Hey Nick,

I would not only be checking the vin but also check the engine no. - could be from anything or anywhere. Note on rust: dont believe the claim! Worth also noting that this will be (and currently is) a hard car to sell - even if he manages to find some documentation. This could be your gain if you want to take it on, if it was me and I still wanted the car I would start to re-negotiate from much lower figure....................may ensure you get a better deal out of it.

Cheers, Hugh.

[T-Man]

Hi again Nick

Call me negative if you must, however I'm seeing a massive money pit here! If I may I'll relay a personal experience . Not Porsche related but relevant just the same.

My brother in-law loves little convertible English cars. He sees a 60's Triumph Spitfire on eBay and decides he wants to pursue it. He has a limited mechanical background so myself and the other brother in-law, who actually is a mechanic, go have a look at this car with him. Car is not running, but owner says it goes well. Current owner runs some story about space being an issue and the car being almost ready to drive. My excitable brother in-law decides this is the car for him.

So the deal gets done and a tilt tray drops this thing off. Manage to get this going and take it for a run. Gear box is grinding, car is shaking. Has oil leaks from engine, box and diff. Pull the box out and find that the clutch is shattered and the input shaft is shot! Have ordered a heap of parts from England, thank goodness they are cheap as chips. Still spent a couple of K with heaps to go. There are so many aspects to this car that have been covered in bog and paint and short cuts taken by previous owners.

He'll spend a little more and we will get the car to a standard that he will be happy with so he can go out and enjoy. I assure you though that Triumph and Porsche parts are at different ends of the spectrum!

You don't want the work to be so overwhelming that it takes the shine off your purchase. You haven't mentioned if you intend to do most of the work yourself. If that's the case then this may become a labour of love, which can be rewarding.

I just keep thinking about your earlier comments about budget. It's so easy to spend dollars on these cars to get them to a standard you may be happy with.

[thesnowdrift]

_{Just my 2 cents worth...Or near miss if you like....}

_{The trip to view a very similar car in QLD had me taking two plane rides and a train journey in one day.}

_{It was a similar ad on ebay car with over 90k spent on mods so I booked the flight to drive it home.}

_{The guy picks me up from the airport in it, straight away the paint all over the roof is cracked and full of bog, (fixable)}

_{Get back to his place to do the deal which started with a test drive, guess what, it won't start.(fixable)}

_{Its at this point i notice he is turning the key, flicking a switch on the dash and pushing what he claims is a primer button...WTF (fixable)}

_{After a push start we take it to his mates workshop to put it on the hoist...The End is Nigh}

_{There is OIL EVERYWHERE, (fixable), then i see the crazing and cracking on the inside of the tyres, (fixable)}

_{Check suspension mounting points is next due to known rust issues and its COVERED in sound deadner, can't even see what size any nuts might be its that thick, what do I find, fibreglass flares attached with timber screws...mmmm(big fixable)}

_{This is a car with QLD RWC and rego, whats next, wheel track is 40mm longer on the left than the right,(fixable) mechanic who signed RWC claims this is normal for road camber...WTF...}

_{Thats it, taxi to train station and train ride to airport then home...cost me about $800 in travel that day...}

_{A 90k car for 25k wass to good to be true...and the ball and chain said send a deposit before you go...PFFT...}

_{Its advertised a few months later in a females ebay ID, I ask if she owns it or if she is advertising for someone else, then the ad disapears and never seen again...}

_{Basically, car had been in a huge smash, and was a targa turned into a coupe to look just like yours...oh and was an import that had been raced...HARD}

_{I come home at 11pm friday night, wake up sat. morning and on the net at 6am...}

_{I find my 76 targa original deliverey with full service history and papers...}

_{Very original and has seen me pour around 15k in to it in 12 months but still only half the price of the qld frankenstein}

_{Even this has been fraught with problems due to very (reputable) known Porsche experts doing dodgy work and costing me more.}

_{The targa is straight as a dye, no rust anywhere, all new poly bushes through suspension, new engine mounts, koni adjustables, bigger sway bars, turbo tie rod ends, hollow torsion bars, upgraded brakes, stainless lines, turbo master cylinder, just need freshen up of interior all finished will see me pulling up to about 45k...}

_{Use all the info from the guys on here the can be invaluable and use extreme caution, detached the emotion, it is hard but it saved me many thousands of $$$...}

_{Of course each to their own. How fixable a car do you want??? How much money do you want to throw at it??? How much do you REALLY REALLY want THAT car???}

_{Good Luck Mate...}

_{Three good things have come from my experience}

_{Yes I still have pics of the qld beast to look at, its only motivation now to finish mine and get my next one to build better than what I thought I was in love with and the only one for me...}

_{I will have a very smart original streetable/track ready targa...}

_{And the connection with the guys here...}

_{PS. I never even looked at targa's and now she will always be my first P love}

[Chris-p]

Excellent post, I am sure the lessons you learnt and shared will save some pain for others.

Well done.

Cheers

Chris

[thesnowdrift]

Excellent post, I am sure the lessons you learnt and shared will save some pain for others.

Well done.

Cheers

Chris

I tried to keep it short...that was just one I looked at

[thesnowdrift]

I will try to keep this one shorter...

It was seen at an auction house, early 80's with all the fruit, totally original with under 80,000k's...

Reserve of $38,990.00...

Well it wasn't original had numerous paint repairs and that was the end of that venture...

A couple of months later I call a guy about a similar looking car on the net...

He won't take less than 35k and gives me the address, sounds familiar....

I take a drive on a very wet saturday morning and my thoughts were correct...

The address was a well known area in Adelaide for Japanese wreckers...

I got the story about how he imported it himself and done a LHD to RHD conversion himself...

The next question was did I see this at ? auctions...NO...

I think he was still talking and standing in the rain when I was driving off

[Doish13]

Hi Nick,

This may be stating the obvious however I strongly suggest spending time getying to know the subject.

I went through the same emotional roller coster mid last year and while I do have a basic mechanical understanding (even though I'm a Hotelier) I found the more time I spent looking for my dream car the less and less I really knew about 911's with so many subtle changes made even within the same model. Researching what I wanted was an experience not only rewarding and quite exciting it also helped me make my chocie as to what wanted - originally i just wanted a nine eleven and had no idea of the variety of options and idiosyncrasies within. For example I went from almost buying a 2.7 to a SC as I found this would better meet my budget and needs. I use my car as a daily driver in peak hour Sydney traffic. This also give you a bit of judgement should someone start trying to pull the wool over your eyes.

Lastly mate before the purchase get a professional to check out the car with a pre purchase. I was reluctant due to cost however it's worth every cent. I now exactly what's wrong with my car and can budget to fix these issues in the year ahead. I also know what's in good order - reassuringly.

Anyway I am rambling however just wanted to say I shared your confusion and there is a means to a better prepared end.

[J.J.]

can you back out of the deal?

[cherrybar12]

Hi Fucher, given that the item was so poorly described - I think so.

[cherrybar12]

All,

Message back from the owner, he's specified that the Porsche VIN is 9117302007.

Doing a web search this makes the car a 1977 Porsche 911 Coupe.

9117300001-9117302449 Coupe 911 911/81 2687cc 165 @ 5800 (RPM) 2449

Engine number is 6142845 - however I'm unsure what checks I can do with respect to this identifier. Can I use this to check the vechicle's history or ownership?

Many thanks again!

Regards

Nick

[Doish13]

Mate don't quote me on this however I did contemplate getting this info on a seller of my race motorbike as the deal was pretty good at the time. Mind you not through engine vin alone however through RTA.

I was advised by the RTA this info ie how long seller had it, mileage etc could be bought from the RTA for a fee.

Give them a call in the morning however be warned I may have my wires crossed.

DB

[T-Man]

When I recently purchased my 993 I did a vehicle history check which listed the previous owners.

I would think you could get similar information if the car was previously registered.

[hugh]

Hello again Nick,

Have you bought the car yet? If not I think we could put this to rest on a vote? I vote for dont buy it - you can thank me later!

[T-Man]

I second that!

[J.J.]

3rd that, dont buy it. its a bitsa and looks like a headache and a half, not worth it IMO.

your much better off buying the best car you can afford, not the cheapest one for sale.

[hugh]

3rd that, dont buy it. its a bitsa and looks like a headache and a half, not worth it IMO.

your much better off buying the best car you can afford, not the cheapest one for sale.

Good advice!

[jnr356]

not trying to be a smartarse,if you parted it out you "may" end up with more $ than the purchase price

enabling you to look at something a little better

this would take time and patience,however you would also gain valuable experience about the "workings" of these cars

just a thought,if you are committed to the purchase