How (Un?)Reliable is a Porsche 944?

[RAMd®d]

Seriously.

I don't think you can afford to fastidiously maintain a Porsche of any flavor, and the 944s aren't particularly attractive to begin with. (Judgement call.)

Unless you've knocked off a local crack house that we don't know about, do as BG suggests-- get a Corolla.

Drive it, change the oil, go places, come back, and save money. Lots of it. Then buy something with a little more HP and flair, but reliable nonetheless.

[microchip13]

I get that.


I will not buy a Corolla, driving one now, I hate it. It's boring, slow, ugly, fuel-inefficent, and pretty far from fun.

[Filliam H. Muffman]

[quote rgG]Get a Miata instead.
Yeah, I forgot to add the Miata after my Civic comments. They seem to be priced a little higher for ten year old cars. Fun to drive and generally cheap to maintain. I am not sure how comfortable they are in the winter or how they last in areas that drop a lot of salt.

[Mac1337]

I meant 924. 928 was pretty decent from what I remember. Also, brown was a popular color in late 70's, and I understand it is making a comeback of sorts.

[davester]

I second the Miata recommendation. Fantastically fun (probably moreso than the Porsche) and sporty, reliable, easy to work on, cheap to maintain. If you're worried about that silly "girl car" stereotype, just buy yourself a rollbar and stripes (or alternatively, be a man and ignore stupid stereotypes). For cold weather, make sure you get one that comes with the factory hardtop.

[Filliam H. Muffman]

[quote microchip13]I will not buy a Corolla, driving one now, I hate it. It's boring, slow, ugly, fuel-inefficent, and pretty far from fun.
What year is it? It might not be a Civic, but it should get decent mileage unless there is something really wrong with the engine. A friend has a 1984 Corolla automatic. It is a little boring but even with 200,000 miles it still gets 34 mpg on the freeway.

A set of low profile 15" or 16" tires alone would make a stunning difference over the crappy stock ones. Many years ago I replaced the stock 155/80-13 tires on a Mazda wagon with 205/60-13 and was able to take freeway cloverleaf exits almost 10 mph faster. With some Koni shocks, lowered springs, a monster sway bar, and a performance alignment, I was able to embarrass some pretty expensive sports cars at an autocross (dude, your 911 got beat by a 10 year old subcompact station wagon). Be careful though, it can turn into a hamster (apologies to Peter). I know someone that recently spent about $8000 on a Civic and failed to get it really competitive for the national runoffs.

[Yoyodyne ArtWorks]

Honda Prelude from between around 1989 to mid Nineties was a nice car, reasonably sporty and stylish. The last generation Honda produced was very boring looking, but it would probably be out of the running based on price anyway.

[microchip13]

I am looking at '92 and up Preludes, but they're hard to find.


I am also taking a look at a 318is tomorrow though.

[davemchine]

I have a friend with an older porshe. He saves his money month after month so he can fix it, drive for a week, and then park it because it broke again. He is insane.

I agree with the above posts, if you MUST buy an inexpensive sporty car go for the miata.

Dave

[AAA]

[quote microchip13]I get that.


I will not buy a Corolla, driving one now, I hate it. It's boring, slow, ugly, fuel-inefficent, and pretty far from fun.
But, it's saved you speeding ticket costs right? So, you go that going for you.

here's a list:
http://cars.ign.com/articles/780/780250p1.html