Thinking of a porsche project...

Im thinking of spending £400-600 on a project car, and I think I'd like to got for a porsche 924. Now I know it gets snubbed by the 911 lot, but is the 924 an ok little sports car? Which models are the 'hot' ones, and why?

Can engine transplants be done easily? Say If I get the lower model can I stick the turbo engine in it easily?

Any help appreciated...... or I got get a 205 Gti!

Reply to
dude
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Most of the "hot" models are the 911, 968, Boxster, Carrera, etc... But there are many good cars to be bought.

Check out 944s in your area, they are a bit more costly than what you would like to pay, but well worth the cost.

IMHO The 924S is the "best" model in the 924 line to get as it has the 924 body with 944 engine and transmission. Another good model is the 924 Turbo/GT/S/R but they are pretty costly.

In looking at 911 & Porsche magazine (UK edition), the prices for a 924 in reasonable condition are about £1500-2000 through the adverts. If you buy any Porsche model for £400-600, you are probably looking at some very expensive repairs.

Mike Osborn

1987 924S
Reply to
Mike

Well, a month ago I bought a 924 in decent condition pretty cheap (under a grand). Mechanically, it's totally sound but if you're only looking at £400-£600, you really are going to get a project car! Have a look on eBay, some go really cheaply on there but there will be things wrong with it at that price - some more serious than others.

The bog-standard 924 has a 2-litre Audi block with a Porsche-designed cylinder head. It's got 125 bhp as standard, the same as the 205 GTi which you're also thinking of looking at. I believe a 205 weighs less though (a

924 is ~1100kg, not sure on the 205 but I think it's just under 1000kg) It's by no means a very fast car by today's standards, but it will shift and what you'll get with it that you can't get with a 205 GTi is rear-wheel drive and fantastic road holding. The 205 GTi is a fast car and fun to drive as well, but it really does depend what sort of driving experience you want as to which car you prefer. A 924 sticks to the road like glue, doesn't roll much and you get a great driving position to boot. A 205 is a more 'immediate' sort of thing - you sit more upright, higher, with more roll. IMO, what you get when you launch a 205 into a corner is more of a skin-of-your-teeth driving experience with understeer, a lot more tyre noise and the infamous lift-off 'oh look I'm heading towards a bush' oversteer. Yes. It is fun - but it seems to me that people often buy them, spend wads of money fitting something like an Mi16 engine and then spend a hell of a lot more trying to get it to handle like a really fast car should. Step into a 924 and you can launch it into a corner with less drama and more speed without first spending an arm and a leg on modifiying just about everything - and you can also cruise down the motorway much more effortlessly.

Right. I think I digressed into handling a bit too much there. Post -85

924's are badged as the 924S and have a 2.5litre Porsche designed engine. It is faster and the 924 chassis is more than capable of using the power. You won't get one for £600 though and the insurance will be higher. Costs are also likely to be higher as well - having an Audi block has quite a few advantages in terms of parts availability and prices - a 2.5l Porsche engine is a more expensive thing to maintain.

The good thing about a 924 is that it is *the* cheapest entry into Porsche motoring - to buy and to maintain. I would even go as far as to say that it could well be cheaper to maintain than a 205 GTi - first off a 924 has galvanised bodywork so rust isn't as much of a concern as it is on a 205 and Peugeot parts are pretty expensive anyway. However, the other thing about a 924 is that it is primarily VW parts underneath the bodywork and an Audi engine. If that is a bad or a good thing I leave up to you to decide.

Drive them both (a 924 and a 205), and see which one you prefer. They're very different experiences - both fun though!

And a final note, if you want a turbo, buy the turbo model - don't try transplanting a turbo engine. It really isn't worth the hassle.

HTH,

Chris.

Reply to
Chris B

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