1986 Porsche 944 Lux *Sold £5,750*

Description

• Guards Red
• “Excellent” history
• Lots of invoices
• Part of a small private collection

Meticulously built with top-quality components, the Porsche 944 was expensive when it was new. Today the 944 offers a lot for the money.

With almost perfect 50/50 front & rear weight distribution, the 944 was designed with the driver experience in mind. Its 2.5 litre engine provides loads of oomph to have bundles of fun with. With 2+2 seating and good rear load space, the Porsche 944 is an extremely practical classic, meaning you can enjoy it all year round.

Background

• This Porsche 944 is part of a small collection from the Isle of Man
• Registered 1 April 1986
• Covered around 10,000 miles since 2008
• Odometer shows 123k miles
• Large file of invoices, MOT’s and history
• Stored in an underground garage

The 944 model was a road-going development of the 924 Carrera GT which ran a 2.5-litre Porsche developed engine. The Carrera had Class wins and managed the creditable seventh, behind a 936. In 1982 Porsche delighted everyone with the production road-legal version of the race car, calling it the 944. The public could not get enough of them. The words ‘cakes’ and ‘hot’ spring to mind.

Inside

The interior of the Porsche 944s are considered by many to be some of the best.

On the inside, this 944 is in all original condition. The black leather seats, door cards and carpets are holding up well to three decades of time. There is the usual wear and tear, with slight fading on the seats. Some elbow grease and conditioning would not do any harm; but each to his own.

The upper section of the dash has some cracking, which isn’t unusual. Our vendor has a new one which he just has not got around to fitting; that will come with the Porsche.

We understand all the switchgear works, including the gauges, wipers, heater, electric mirrors, electric windows. There is the nice touch of a removable roof panel too. The pop-up headlamps have popped up, as you can see. However, they are now declining to pop back down again! Our vendor has sourced the usual culprits of such; the relays. Again these come with the Porsche for the new owner to fiddle with.

The carpets, headlining and other bits of soft trim are in decent condition. The rear load space is nice and tidy with the carpets and side panels in good shape.

Mechanicals

What made the Porsche 944 special was the all-new engine.

The all-new alloy 2.5 litre engine was in essence half of the Porsche 928 5.0 litre V8. Porsche cleverly fitted the four-cylinder engine with two counter-rotating balance shafts. These running at double the engine speed made the 2.5 litre four cylinder feel as sublime as a six pot. Drive it and you’ll see why everyone raves about them. We also understand that the 944 has had:

• Four new tyres
• Four new shock absorbers
• New suspension bushes
• New front brakes
• The fuel lines, have all been replaced

Along with other work as you can see from the stack on invoices in the Gallery

Our vendor says: “It starts first time every time and drives very well”.

Outside

• Galvanised body
• Guards Red
• Removable Roof Panel
• Cookie Cutter Matt Black Wheels

Porsche really knows how to design and build a sports car. These 944s were eye-wateringly expensive at the time, but boy were they well put together. The timeless classic lines will still turn heads today. Expect to be stopped and have a chat with someone almost every time you go out.

As you’ll see from the images, the exterior looks fine. Our vendor describes the outside as “requiring some cosmetic tlc”. The Black Porsche livery sets off the Guards Red paint very well. Bumpers, lamps and glass all look clean.

Bottom line

The Porsche brand stands for quality and driving experience. The attraction of the 944 hasn’t reduced with time. It still handles great. It’s quick. It’s practical. It can easily be your everyday car, or your weekend getaway. In this age of modern tech, it somehow feels better than it did before. This is a straight, un-messed about with, original 944, no crazy engine mods, no boosted engine. All simply as Porsche intended.

The added bonus is that this car has had a decent amount spent on it.  This is much more fun than sticking a few grand in an ISA and probably a better return too. Good luck.