My 18 year old son wants a 944!

[YaMoff]

My question is do you think this will be a wise purchase for him? He was given a Peugeot to drive from our very kind neighbors, and he has been driving it for about a year and a half. But, he keeps telling me "Dad, I want to by my own car, I have saved my money for it!" He wants a 944. Black. Next year he will be going to college that is about 30min from home and will be living here his first year. My son has about $5000 saved for a car and has been craving a 944 for about 6 months. Also what will insurance be like? Is this a wise purchase? Thanks

[kicker1_solo]

I say yes. If he's saved the money for it, then by all means give him what he deserves and let him buy the car that he wants. Insurance won't be too bad since it's an older car. And he has suffered with the Peugeot for over a year, so yeah, let him have the 944.

[sparq]

Hell if he saved money for it why the hell not?

My dad has a 1991 S2 carbriolet going up for sale if you want to help him with his purchase :smoka:

[Cbass]

Don't let him go out and buy a 944, $5000 is not going to be enough to purchase and maintain it if he buys the wrong one.

If you are okay with it, and I don't see any reason why you shouldn't be, go to a Porsche dealer, and ask the service department guys to find one for you. That way you'll know it's been well taken care of, and he won't be spending $1000 a year just to keep it on the road.

Insurance shouldn't be bad at all, it's an older 2.5 liter 4 cylinder car.

[Genesis2]

I guess he saved up alot of money, so he sohld just do what he wants

[911GT2]

He'll get raped by insurance. I figured that an older 4 cylinder car would be easy on insurance, but full coverage on an N/A 1983 944 was about 7000 dollars CDN. I was 17 at the time, 19 now. It had 84K miles on it and was in great condition if you were wondering. Asking price was 8500 CDN.

If he can that would be amazing, but I'm skeptical. Couldn't hurt to check insurance prices.

[HikaRu]

he may be living here next year, but what about the year after that? i'm going to college next year too, and i really wanted to buy a 1991 mr2 turbo, but my parents wouldn't let me, i had the money saved up too. as long as it's always in use, you should probably just let him buy it.

[Cbass]

Make him buy a 924, the parts are cheaper and they're more reliable

Once he's had the 924 for a while, he'll either appreciate too much to sell it, or he'll be able to spot the difference between a well mainained 944 and a basketcase.

The difference is about $1500 purchase price, and $10,000 in repairs

[sethyetter]

I am 17 years old. I bought my 1984 944 with a turbo nose and tail conversionin december when i was 16. I searched for over 10 months for a 944 but for 5200$ i bought i beautiful, mechanically sound 944 that runs great. If your son is willing to do the homework he can get a great old 944 and i pay payments and insurance myself, it's not bad at all.

[arthur12187]

well its his money! he saved it, he earned it! ( courtesy of my dad's favorite phrase )

[chill]

I just bought my son a 1988 944 out of the auction he is doing fine with it and it didn't really cost too much to insure.

[ksaile]

I'd recomend letting him do it too. 944's are incredibly reliable if you stay on top of normal maintenance. If they've been neglected, well they can be spendy. I've got 205,000 very hard driven miles on mine, and it starts right up and is still a pleasure to drive. The key is to find a seller who is a member of the Porsche Club of America, these owners tend to have more specific knowledge of their cars and keep service histories(another strong recomendation). Don't be afraid to pay a little more for a nicer example then getting a deal on one that needs work. Check for timing belt replacement intervals and the condition of the clutch. Clutch replacements are $$$ too, so keep that in mind.

[blacktofu]

Ok- so its his money. Great. Truth is, while you're 30 minutes away at maybe 65-70 mile an hour, do you think he's really going to do that in his "new" porsche? no. He's going to fly. Granted, I don't know your son...but this is something I'd think about. The temptation is VERY high. When I first brought my porsche in, the mechanic said..."man, you don't see these much anymore." I said, "why". He replied, "they're all wrapped around trees". Hmmmm. Something to think about.

[baker84]

If your son is not mechanically inclined I suggest not to buy this car. It is very costly to keep up for a daily driver ;although the insurance is not that bad for just liability. The Porsche garages in Pa, are outrageous to perform work on these vehicles. But I dont know where you are. Baker84

[Fishguy]

sir, I, as an 18 year old in the posistion to purchase a 944, can tell you that the insurance is not that much more than a regular car (at least under my parent's insurance) as they are kinda old, (the car, well, my parents too, i guess) and really not that fast (just hella fun to drive, handling wise)

He may be tempted to "fly,"
i know i am, but my parents threatened that if i ever raced anyone ever (even a drag race to get to teh speed limit from a stop light) I would lose the Porshce... seems reasonable to me!

basically, just make sure he understands how he is expected to drive in any vehicle, even if its a Porshce.

and you cant fit very many friends in that coupe, so potentially less distraction!