And all I have to say is that thing would make an awesome track car. The one I drove was semi-beat up, and still drove great. The one I drove was NA and still decently fast...I would love to drive the turbo version.

I took it up to about 115 on the highway...the owner, who has done a few autoxes, was in awe, and told me later that no one had ever driven the car as well as I did...needless to say I said "then you better come to VIR in a few weeks". He's mulling it over. What a great little car though. I'd love to have one someday.

 

yep 944 turbo's can be made to some serious track hardware. look at wayne's (nsx files) or Vision Motorsports (they got some bad *** 944's).

 

It didn't win the award for "best handling car sold in America" for nothing.

 

I already knew it was a great-handling car before I drove it...it felt nice and predictable, a lot like my R. If I ever bought a car to convert into a track car (that wasn't a Honda), this might be it. I really am hesitant to slap a bar/cage/fire extinguisher in my R, it just seems too nice to strip down like that.

next on my list to drive: 911

 

Just out of curiosity, how much would a 944 turbo in decent condition, decent mileage, run? With the intent of being completely stripped and full cage, everything. I'm not sure exactly what years they were produced.

 

My dad has a 89 944 turbo with a stage 2 chip and 3 inch exhaust it makes 2 bar of boost thing hauls serious ***. he also has billstein shocks on all 4 corners. brakes are awsome only thing i dont like is the shifter. it has 35000 miles on it bought it for 13000, but that was a great deal



[Modified by civicsity, 9:01 PM 2/3/2002]

 

Former 944T owner - HPDE at Sebring, Homestead, Moroso - the car was awesome, not too expensive to purchase, but expensive to maintain. I had an '87 Turbo with Antilock brakes and limited slip, stage II chip, ported/polished head, Carillo rods, Bilstein shocks, 17" wheels/tires, 928S4 brakes (didn't come stock until '88 S and '89). Nothing really too radical done to the engine and it was pushing around 300hp flywheel. The car would keep up with almost anything else out there, including early 911 turbos. The 993 turbos would pull me on the straights, but I'd catch up in the corners - no BS. (some of this was the driver )
Sold the car about 3 years ago for $11,000. Great buy for the new owner.
Several things to look for in a 944, especially the Turbos. They build them from 1985-1990, but only imported them to the states from 1986-1989. The 1988 Turbo S and the 1989 are pretty much the same and are great performers. Stock 247hp, with a stage II chip easy 275hp, with chip and bigger turbo easy 350+hp. Brakes were off the 928S4 (Brembo from the factory), excellent handling, Limited Slip Differential, forged alloys. You'll see them from about 10k-18k, depending on mileage and condition. You've got to watch for maintenance on these: motor mounts, timing belts are critical - also some had problems with "mixing" of oil in the coolant.

If you are seriously looking for one, my recommendation is to get your hands on this month's issue of "Excellence" magazine - just for Porsches. Each month, they do a market survey on each model with write-up on the different models, differences between each model year, and recommendations, along with up-to-date market prices for each year. Great mag!


[Modified by nc-rsx-s, 4:52 PM 2/3/2002]


[Modified by nc-rsx-s, 4:53 PM 2/3/2002]

 

Acckk!!!! Run away.... run away...

me thinks that would make the car handle like *** - adding that much weight to the front of a 2300 lb car cannot be good. The rotary engine is pretty light, and wouldnt want to foul up the weight balance. The car handles pretty damn good stock (limited slip of course) and if you were power hungry you could guy a GSL-SE and swap in a 13B-REW engine... all the power you need, reliable if built right and taken care of.

-Ryan

 

I wouldnt do that...the 1st-gen RX-7s are ugly cars. The 944 is really beautiful. Plus, it's a Porsche.

 

this is true....those are pretty cars too.

 

It'd be a nice looking car if the paint wasnt all faded...............

 

n/a 944's are plentiful and quite inexpensive; they were made from 81-90 i think. the 944 turbo (known as the 951 by porsche buffs) was produced 86-89; i believe the specs were something like 3100lbs and 230hp. for 88-89, they also had 944 turbo s with big brakes, lsd, bigger turbo, etc; i think it pushed out almost 250hp.
n/a 944's can easily be had for $4k, but lower mileage will land you $5-9k.
a 951 in good shape with about 4050k miles will put you at $13-17k.
a 951 s in the same condition will put you about $18-22k.
when a connecticut driver put my R into car hospital, i was going to buy a 87-89 951 with the lowest miles i could find. i've talked to several 951 owners, they said the integra R would be a better autoxer, but the 951 will rule the streets and track. the R got her front end frame realigned and she drives nice so i'm keeping her, but i'll definitely get a 951 or a 964-911 if something happens to the integra.

 

why do a 302 when you could "drop" in a 3 rotor with a single turbo conversion? hehe, drop in, lol...

 

Screw you!

Al
1982 RX-7 GSL (MARRS SRX-7 #88)
1984 RX-7 GSL (MARRS SRX-7 #19, totalled)
1983 RX-7 GS (soon to be street car)


[Modified by Crack Monkey, 9:43 PM 2/3/2002]

 

Al, you mean to tell me your race car is pretty?

In widebody sports-car trim, they look rather nice.

 

Aren't you tired of crashing yet? All it took was one big one for me.

Warren

 

If it wasn't bent and in need of a paint job...

Now the '83 is gonna be purty. Shiny red with the optional 14" wheels (faux BBS mesh things).

 

Warren - I had no idea how fast I was going until the kid told me later. It never seemed that fast to me, I was guessing we went 80mph tops.

the same thing happened to me when I drove my almost-finished ITR a few days ago. I got up to about 105 on a side street, and thought I had been taking it easy until my mechanic told me later how fast we were going. What exactly does this mean? I'm not comfortable in the car unless I'm flying? wtf?

Al - they do look rather nice in street trim. The red one will be your street car right?

 

I think it means your sense of self preservation is non-existant.

Warren

 

It's always been this way. Ever since I first started driving, I always felt like I was crawling, and just felt more comfortable at high speeds. In dry conditions/clear highway traffic in my ITR, I won't let off the gas until I hit 100mph.

Before anyone condemns this and uses my accident as an example, the accident was not due to excessive speed. it was wet out, and when I had taken my car to get the rotors machined, my mechanic had done me the "favor" of switching the front and rear tires, without adjusting the pressures. So I had bald-*** RE010s on the rear, and incorrect tire pressure. The accident happened in a straight line...no warning, just sudden oversteer after hitting a pothole.

 

*NOT* trying to be a nerd.... just trying to be objective...

would this have been avoided if you were going 20mph slower (like the speed limit?). Remember, the engergy the car carries, is proportional to the square of its speed (KE=1/2*mv^2) - just look at the braking data from new cars. One may figure "well whats 10mph on the highway?' But the increase in braking distance from 60-0 to 70-0 is about 50% (rough figure here, say from 120 to 180 feet). Speed is always a contributing factor.

-Ryan

 

Ross, really, take it from people like Warren and I.. We screwed up once, and It made both of us slow down, save the speed for the track.. Really, you should slow down as well.. JMO, take it or leave it..

Dude, and also, don't make excuses about what happened, when I wrecked the prelude about 2 years ago, there were a million reasons why it happened to me then, but now, I just know I f*ed up.. Not trying to be an ***, I just really don't want to see you get hurt..

 

Ross did you pay for your ITR?

 

This is very good advice. Before you hurt yourself or someone else (if you're going 115, and you come up on stopped traffic can you stop in time?).

My story: For several years, when i had my old 92 Saturn, i drove like a bat out of hell most of the time, banging redline on every shift, 100+ on the highway, not a care in the world. I would generally do this when the roads were empty, not during rush hour traffic (i never cut anyone off or made unsafe lane changes). I got one speeding ticket for 88 in a 55 (route 66 in centerville, sunday morning) but i paid my fine and went on with it. Last spring i got busted for doing about 80 in a 35, residential area. I got arrested, thrown in jail (had to be bailed out at @ $1000). I went to court, after paying $800 for a lawyer and $400+ in court fees and fines, license was suspended (restricted) for 6 months, a missed vacation (to mardi gras!!!) because of this, i missed work, and i spent 2 full weekends (friday afternoon to sunday afternoon) in the county jail (4 more weekends were on suspended time provided i kept my nose clean) and a world of hassle.

Edit: I paid for all of my fees, fines, lawyer for this. I had the cash in hand and ProParts on the phone to do a custom coil over setup for my car when this poo poo hit the fan.....

The result: I drive like a normal individual on public streets, keep my speed fix on the autoX course/track, and i'm glad i never hurt anyone driving like a jackass.

We should all learn from our stupidity... i'm sure we've all done stupid things in our lust for speed.

-Ryan

[QUOTE]We screwed up once, and It made both of us slow down, save the speed for the track.. Really, you should slow down as well.. JMO, take it or leave it..[QUOTE]




[Modified by Type-RJ, 9:39 AM 2/4/2002]

 

Just noticed all the replies in this thread and thought I'd bring it back -

I see people mentioning braking distance. No braking was involved in the accident. And as far as the speed limit? I was going about 45mph in a 55 or 65mph zone, don't remember what the limit was. In any case, I was under it.

Corey, thanks for your concern. Morgan, I had some help. See you all at VIR.