1986 Porsche 944

A 944 Turbo is quick, but when you add upgrades (chip upgrades), the power becomes unleashed and you really scoot.

Being an 80's car, they generally have issues with vacuum lines being old, cracked, and leaky. The dashes on these cars are typcically cracked ranging from very minor cracks to a gaping maw (the older, the worse... in most cases).

These cars do not ride like Cadillacs nor like a Geo Metro, these are sports cars. The suspension might seem a little rough, but it handles quite well. The weight ration from front to rear is at about 51%/49%, the car will see both over steer and under steer, so it's best that the driver take it easy and understand how the car handles. Once you get the hang of it, you'll sink into the seat when you're accelerating and around turns you will be stuck in your seat as they grip you.

1986 944 Turbo see's 217hp and 249Torque. An ECU upgrade and wastegate shims will bring you up to 270~hp and 300torque... One heck of an upgrade! Boost kicks in at 3,500rpms and stock hits about 13~psi. The aftermarket for these cars is not like a Honda, it's smaller but you will find all the upgrades you'll ever need. The turbo is oil fed and water cooled. These cars have an auxiliary water pump that turns on after you turn the car off which cools the turbo down after you've turned the car off. It's basically a stock turbo timer, the fans for the radiator kick on and the pump flows coolant to the turbocharger.

The interior is nice and not intrusive. Simple climate controls keep you warm or cool (if your a/c is charged). The rear seats are... well, if you had no legs you'd fit okay, but for small children its okay, the front seats might have to move forward a tad. The leg room is fantasic in the front! I am 6'4" and can still move my seat back. If back all the way, I'll have too much leg room.

I tend to do spirited runs quite often, the turbo lag is hard to get adjusted to as the power band is above 3,500rpms, if you dip below it takes a brief moment for the power to kick in and when it does, you have to be careful as to not spin out around a turn. Time and patience is the key in this area.

I would buy a 944 Turbo again, but it would not be a 1986 model, it'd be a later 1987 and up Turbo S model (89 Turbo is the same specs as a Turbo S). They came with a larger turbo, more power, beefier sway bars, better wheel offset, ABS, and i am sure other things as well but generally speaking, they cost more.

My '86 944 Turbo has treated me well, it has needed some work here and there (vacuum lines, clutch master cylinder) but it has all been general maintenance. This car pulls strong at 140,000 miles and being a car thats 21 years old.

These are great cars, go test drive one and see if it fits you.

Porsche. Sometimes, a word stands on its own, and "Porsche." is more than just a complete sentence... its a statement. You can buy most 944s for $5000 or less. I picked mine up for $1525. Please be aware that the timing belt and balance belt on a 944 should be changed every 30,000 miles, however, and if the previous owner hasn't done it recently (with receipts to prove) then this should be done the day you own the car. An import garage will charge you $1600 or so for this procedure. Resources such as Clarks Garage and Rennlist give you step by step instructions to make this a DIY project. The friendly folks at Rennlist also recommend you change out all the rollers, water pump, front engine seals, and flush ALL fluids. Figure around $1000 for parts and a weekend's worth of work.

Pricey? Not really. You can easily find yourself a complete car (or do the work yourself) and come in under $5000. For the money, you've got an 80s super car that to this day still looks futuristic. The front end of these cars look pretty blah, but the rear... just look at those wide angles and the sweeping rear window... it screams power. The car commands attention, and will turn heads. Try finding another car for $5000 that can do that.

Powerful? Not so much. While turbo models are faster off the line (approx 5.5-6.5 seconds for 0-60mph), the naturally aspirated models tend to 0-60 mph in about 8.5-9.5 seconds. Not bad, but not drag-racable. All told, a NA is playing with around 160 hp. The quality is in the handling of the car, which is impeccable.

Unlike the Porsche 928, the 944's front mounted engine is a true Porsche, not a Volkswagen. You'll still get grief from other Porsche owners who claim that only a rear-mounted engine represents a true Porsche. Most people see the Porsche crest and are impressed right away.

The online support for these cars cannot be overstated. Rennlist has a forum dedicated to these cars, and the passionate members are knowledgeable and ready to help you... online, over the phone, and even in person (if you live close enough).

I wouldn't hesitate to buy another 944. I love my NA model, and next go-round, I may just pick up a turbo. If you're interested in the 944, you won't be disappointed.

This is an awesome car. With the turbo, it has plenty of power, and the handling is very balanced and predictable. Some replacement parts can be expensive, but there are lots of sources on the web, including ebay.

The best bang for the buck in a German sports car PERIOD!Great off the line spped, the turbo is thrilling. The car handles better than most and is extremely responsive.

The 944 turbo is by far the best bang for the buck on the track and street economy. The particular car I bought was for $3400 which I knew was a fixer. These cars are unparalleled on the track especially for 25 mpg street economy. As usual, there are details/problems omitted by the seller through lack of knowledge or by intent though it didn't matter as price was the most important thing to me since I work on 944s specially for 15 years. Problem a buyer should look for when buying one of these cars is the clutch and timing belt. The car I bought had a worse existing clutch problem than stated and when I brought it up with the seller, he lowered the price to $2925 voluntarily. sites like rennlist.com or pelicanparts.com have forums where enthusiasts worldwide post about anything and everything that can possibly to wrong with these cars and how to fix them.

Do not fixate on odometer mileage as I have seen altered mileage often since the odometer gear a $5 part which people change out. While they were in there, the mileage becomes lower mysteriously. Moral of the story, trust what you see and what you hear when you look under the hood or drive the car and not what the odometer tells you as the condition of the car/maintenance history is much more crucial for a 22 year old car.

These cars are incredible bargains for what you get (4 piston brembo calipers, 216hp stock and easily modifiable to 265hp with "hot" chips, and durability rarely seen as I have owned an 86 944 turbo with originally drivetrain driven to near 400k miles and still runs great). I have driven an 86 turbo from the state of Washington to Los Angeles and can definitely say the car is comfortable enough that I did it non stop (other than food and gas). From my experience, the car has high quality material/parts in almost everything from lifters to the steel they use for bolts.

All in all, these are excellent cars but buy one with the expectations of the car being more than 20 years old.

Excellent performing car for 22 years old. If you want a Porsche but cannot afford the price of a 911 then I recommend a 944 Turbo. The car accelerates and handles nicely. I own a 911 as well and this car is quite comparable in performance. As as this car has been well cared for it should provide driving enjoyment well worth the price.

Was very good on gas. Which was why I bought it. At my age, I had a little problem getting in and out of the car. Which is not a fault of the car. I was not happy with the people with which I called to transport the car. They gave me one price and when it arrived, they charged a higher amount.

A 944 Turbo is quick, but when you add upgrades (chip upgrades), the power becomes unleashed and you really scoot.

Being an 80's car, they generally have issues with vacuum lines being old, cracked, and leaky. The dashes on these cars are typcically cracked ranging from very minor cracks to a gaping maw (the older, the worse... in most cases).

These cars do not ride like Cadillacs nor like a Geo Metro, these are sports cars. The suspension might seem a little rough, but it handles quite well. The weight ration from front to rear is at about 51%/49%, the car will see both over steer and under steer, so it's best that the driver take it easy and understand how the car handles. Once you get the hang of it, you'll sink into the seat when you're accelerating and around turns you will be stuck in your seat as they grip you.

1986 944 Turbo see's 217hp and 249Torque. An ECU upgrade and wastegate shims will bring you up to 270~hp and 300torque... One heck of an upgrade! Boost kicks in at 3,500rpms and stock hits about 13~psi. The aftermarket for these cars is not like a Honda, it's smaller but you will find all the upgrades you'll ever need. The turbo is oil fed and water cooled. These cars have an auxiliary water pump that turns on after you turn the car off which cools the turbo down after you've turned the car off. It's basically a stock turbo timer, the fans for the radiator kick on and the pump flows coolant to the turbocharger.

The interior is nice and not intrusive. Simple climate controls keep you warm or cool (if your a/c is charged). The rear seats are... well, if you had no legs you'd fit okay, but for small children its okay, the front seats might have to move forward a tad. The leg room is fantasic in the front! I am 6'4" and can still move my seat back. If back all the way, I'll have too much leg room.

I tend to do spirited runs quite often, the turbo lag is hard to get adjusted to as the power band is above 3,500rpms, if you dip below it takes a brief moment for the power to kick in and when it does, you have to be careful as to not spin out around a turn. Time and patience is the key in this area.

I would buy a 944 Turbo again, but it would not be a 1986 model, it'd be a later 1987 and up Turbo S model (89 Turbo is the same specs as a Turbo S). They came with a larger turbo, more power, beefier sway bars, better wheel offset, ABS, and i am sure other things as well but generally speaking, they cost more.

My '86 944 Turbo has treated me well, it has needed some work here and there (vacuum lines, clutch master cylinder) but it has all been general maintenance. This car pulls strong at 140,000 miles and being a car thats 21 years old.

These are great cars, go test drive one and see if it fits you.