Automatic 944 - What's worth knowing?

[C70R]

I'm toying with the idea of a semi-practical weekend classic at the moment, and the 944 is one of a number that might potentially fit the bill. My 'toy' budget is relatively light (£3-3.5k), but it seems to put me in the sweet spot for the few auto 944s that I've seen. They appear to be typically a bit better engineered than a lot of other modern classics, which is ideal for my circumstances.

The snag is that I live quite centrally in London, this means two things:
- I won't be commuting, but the car will spend the majority of its life in slow-moving traffic. I have tried to live with a manual, and it's just miserable. To get any kind of enjoyment, an auto is a must - I'm happy to sacrifice some of the fun on the odd occasion I do get out of town.
- I will be parking it on the road. I need a car that can be driven 4-5k miles a year and parked outside without the need for frequent, expansive (rather than "expensive") maintenance. I'm happy to tinker and service myself, but don't have the space/time to run a full-on rolling resto project.

I realise the auto 944 is hardly the pinnacle of Porsche (or indeed automotive) perfection, but I'm reasonably confident that it could do a job for me. I'm keen to hear any opinions or experiences, particularly around:
- Models/Years to look for
- Options to have/avoid
- Pitfalls generally, and pertinent to the auto

Thanks in advance!

[rubystone]

What about a high mileage W129 Merc SL? Well built, rust resistant, convertible and hard top makes it usable all year round/storable outside in the winter. Auto 944s are very slow.

[C70R]

Thanks for the reply! I gather from my research that you're considered a bit of an authority on the 944, so I'm keen to hear your thoughts.

I had considered an r129, but I think budget is probably going to be the killer there. They seem to start a lot higher than the 944 for a runner, and the 280/300/320 are similarly uninspiring.

Truthfully, I'm not hugely bothered about outright performance, particularly given that a typical journey will be done at <20mph. With this in mind, do you think the 944 may work?

[EGTE]

Well 994s are surprisingly practical and parking on the street should be fine.

But the biggest achilles heel of 944s is tha they rot from the inside of the sills outward, so look at that very carefully indeed (and protect those sills with Bilt-Hamber stuff, or something).

Preferably your car would have no sunroof, either, as these tend to become pathways for water ingress. Also, keep the drains below the battery clear of leaves, or you will get all sorts of problems.

But otherwise, they're a great little car.

[C70R]

EGTE said:

Well 994s are surprisingly practical and parking on the street should be fine.

But the biggest achilles heel of 944s is tha they rot from the inside of the sills outward, so look at that very carefully indeed (and protect those sills with Bilt-Hamber stuff, or something).

Preferably your car would have no sunroof, either, as these tend to become pathways for water ingress. Also, keep the drains below the battery clear of leaves, or you will get all sorts of problems.

But otherwise, they're a great little car.

Thanks for that reply, particularly on the rot point - something that seems to be a bit understated on the guides I've read.
Is there a cast-iron way to identify this? (any trim that can be removed? any spots to focus on particularly?)
Would it typically be picked up on an MOT check?

On the battery point, does this only apply to the earlier cars with the battery up front?

[eldavo]

There's a vent grille on the B-pillar with the door open, unclip it and carefully lower a phone down there with the lens pointing to the front of the car. If you put it on video and turn the flash to permanently on then by slowly moving your hand around you can get a decent bit of footage to review. If it's a bit of surface crud that's fine, if it's full of cavity wax and otherwise solid then that's great - if it looks like Spongebob's Doorknocker then walk away!

Re: the battery - the drainage tubes exit in the rear wheel wells under the battery in the back and on the opposite side - if these ar connected up properly then water will pool in the wells and rot them out. It's easy to see in the driver's side but not under the battery so could be missed unless you're looking for it.

[rubystone]

I'd just add that you do have to push down on a little tab to us clip those vents - if you try to wrench them off, you'll likely rip off the tab and really piss the owner off! The vents can be fixed any way up, so you may find the tab on the top or bottom of the inside of the vent.

[blade7]

I've read if the flex plate needs replacing it's very expensive.

[eldavo]

Yes - but I believe that there's a workaround that uses a manual clutch part (although I can't remember if that then makes the car a manual or an auto)

[GC8]

Series one 944 automatics are terrible and series twos, which used a different transaxle, aren't a great deal better. The attrition rate for series one automatics was very high, so theyre very few and far between now.

The Achilles heel for both is the cush drive, which is knackered on virtually every auto and is usually the reason for sale. The replacement part costs £1,000 before you have fitted it.

This doesn't mean that all automatic 944s are bad, but it does make them a poor proposition, especially for a new buyer.

Caveat emptor.

[GC8]

eldavo said:

Yes - but I believe that there's a workaround that uses a manual clutch part (although I can't remember if that then makes the car a manual or an auto)

Its a nasty bodge using a manual flywheel and a rubber centred clutch. The idea is that this acts as a cush drive and absorbs the lash. The obvious issue here is that the rubber centred clutches are all failing and new replacements have springs to counter the issue... Even if they were all fit, then the small vulcanised shock absorber is a fraction of the size of a proper damper.

A bodge to be avoided, but likely to be found on some of the cars that you look at.