14 Shades of red-Elderly 944 content...
Discussion
It was all too easy. I'd sold my last toy and the lockup was looking empty. I'd said to myself I wasn't going to buy another car but happenened to stumble across a Porsche 944 on eBay close to me for £600. I went and had a look but it had sat for a long time and would've been beyond my meagre mechanical skills to get on the road.
However this sowed the seed and after looking at a couple more I found a cheap one which has 10 months MOT and 6 months tax at a good price. It is an early square dash model with no power steering or sunroof. Somewhat surprisingly it is mostly solid and has had a fair bit of work done to it-the sills and battery tray have been repaired-not pretty but strong. The previous owner also fitted new brakes including braided hoses up front, new lock set, injectors serviced etc. As he had a 1960's vintage TVR in his garage he was restoring he came across as a genuine bloke so I took a punt.
Since I bought it I've changed the gearbox oil which quietened the box a good bit(didn't even have to jack it up to do this
)fitted a £5 ebay steering wheel which is so much nicer than the one it came with, also fitted a stereo and fixed a few electrical gremlins. The main thing it needs is 2 new front shocks as its a bit bouncy at the front, however it still drives well and has been terrorising Ayrshires B roads on a regular basis.The front wings aren't pretty and it has had some paint in the past, the person doing it may even have been in the same building as the car at the time but I'm not sure... It also has some faded paint on the roof and rear end which I'll tackle at some point however none of this can be seen from the drivers seat so isn't a priority
Anyway, here's some pics. Those of a concours persuasion may want to look away...
Brian
However this sowed the seed and after looking at a couple more I found a cheap one which has 10 months MOT and 6 months tax at a good price. It is an early square dash model with no power steering or sunroof. Somewhat surprisingly it is mostly solid and has had a fair bit of work done to it-the sills and battery tray have been repaired-not pretty but strong. The previous owner also fitted new brakes including braided hoses up front, new lock set, injectors serviced etc. As he had a 1960's vintage TVR in his garage he was restoring he came across as a genuine bloke so I took a punt.
Since I bought it I've changed the gearbox oil which quietened the box a good bit(didn't even have to jack it up to do this
)fitted a £5 ebay steering wheel which is so much nicer than the one it came with, also fitted a stereo and fixed a few electrical gremlins. The main thing it needs is 2 new front shocks as its a bit bouncy at the front, however it still drives well and has been terrorising Ayrshires B roads on a regular basis.The front wings aren't pretty and it has had some paint in the past, the person doing it may even have been in the same building as the car at the time but I'm not sure... It also has some faded paint on the roof and rear end which I'll tackle at some point however none of this can be seen from the drivers seat so isn't a priorityAnyway, here's some pics. Those of a concours persuasion may want to look away...
Brian
Edited by dome on Friday 27th July 19:17
Harrytsg said:
You cant beat TVR owners for being genuine 'blocks'!
Fixed that thanks, Freudian perhaps? jke11y said:
I'm sure that used to belong to a neighbour when I lived in Fairlie in the 90s - do you have much history with it?
Well its had a few owners so I suspect its been round most of Scotland, it did have an Irish plate on it at one point and seems to have been in the east for the last few years but there's no history going back that far. Well there's a stamped service book but whether it's actually for my car I'm not sure...
Thanks for the comments guys.
Next on list
Fit new tailgate struts
Fix leak from rear lights
Start to strip down front suspension with a view to seeing how hard it is to get the old front strut inserts out-not looking forward to this.
Drain and flush coolant and replace thermostat.
Drive it!
Next on list
Fit new tailgate struts
Fix leak from rear lights
Start to strip down front suspension with a view to seeing how hard it is to get the old front strut inserts out-not looking forward to this.
Drain and flush coolant and replace thermostat.
Drive it!
Well a bit of progress was made tonight. Front struts are off and waiting to be stripped down-need to get a shot of a set of spring compressors to get the strut apart and try and get the insert out. Most of the bushes etc seem ok so hopefully just a set of shocks and maybe a couple of top mounts required.
Also drained the coolant and replaced the thermostat-what an arse of a job to get the old thermostat out. Got it done in the end and got it bled ok, didn't seem as hard to bleed as some sites would have you believe.
The water pump seems ok and the belts all look fresh so they'll be getting left for the time being-especially as all the belts are nice and quiet which is unusual for these.
Brian
Also drained the coolant and replaced the thermostat-what an arse of a job to get the old thermostat out. Got it done in the end and got it bled ok, didn't seem as hard to bleed as some sites would have you believe.
The water pump seems ok and the belts all look fresh so they'll be getting left for the time being-especially as all the belts are nice and quiet which is unusual for these.
Brian
Seems topical to update this.
Fitted the new front struts which makes a big difference to the feel of the car. As I reassembled it I adjusted the camber to maximum negative just to get it back on the road. Interesting was not the word. On maximum attack it went round corners superbly, at any other time it was a nightmare. Light at the straight ahead and massive understeer at low speeds, especially in the wet. Using the Mark 1 Eyeball I set the camber to a better setting. What a difference, it now goes round corners like it should. Although of course now I've fitted new front shocks it shows that the rears are getting tired
The boot struts I ordered were wrong ones, I now have a new set waiting to be fitted. Reversing lights don't work, bulbs look ok but I'll chase around with a voltmeter to see where the problem is. Voltmeter moves when I engage reverse so it looks like the switch is working.
The taillights have been sealed in the past and I traced the leak to the rear hatch seal. It looks like the rear hatch closure can be adjusted so I'll give this a try and see if that helps.
New Thermostat is in and its bled up OK, cooling system seems to be behaving itself although I've a slight leak on the blanking plate on the water pump where the turbo pumps get their feed-I'll take it off and put some gasket sealant on it, hopefully not losing too much coolant in the process...
Would love a set of 16" wheels to give me a better choice of tyres, however don't really want to spoil the looks with a modern set of wheels and the period ones are expensive. Will keep my eyes open, early Boxster alloys aren't too offensive but I think need spacers.
I've just moved to Edinburgh from Ayr but the 944 is still in my lockup in Ayr, plan is to get the train down and drive it back. On B roads all the way...
Brian
Fitted the new front struts which makes a big difference to the feel of the car. As I reassembled it I adjusted the camber to maximum negative just to get it back on the road. Interesting was not the word. On maximum attack it went round corners superbly, at any other time it was a nightmare. Light at the straight ahead and massive understeer at low speeds, especially in the wet. Using the Mark 1 Eyeball I set the camber to a better setting. What a difference, it now goes round corners like it should. Although of course now I've fitted new front shocks it shows that the rears are getting tired
The boot struts I ordered were wrong ones, I now have a new set waiting to be fitted. Reversing lights don't work, bulbs look ok but I'll chase around with a voltmeter to see where the problem is. Voltmeter moves when I engage reverse so it looks like the switch is working.
The taillights have been sealed in the past and I traced the leak to the rear hatch seal. It looks like the rear hatch closure can be adjusted so I'll give this a try and see if that helps.
New Thermostat is in and its bled up OK, cooling system seems to be behaving itself although I've a slight leak on the blanking plate on the water pump where the turbo pumps get their feed-I'll take it off and put some gasket sealant on it, hopefully not losing too much coolant in the process...
Would love a set of 16" wheels to give me a better choice of tyres, however don't really want to spoil the looks with a modern set of wheels and the period ones are expensive. Will keep my eyes open, early Boxster alloys aren't too offensive but I think need spacers.
I've just moved to Edinburgh from Ayr but the 944 is still in my lockup in Ayr, plan is to get the train down and drive it back. On B roads all the way...
Brian
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