Porsche 928: Better Buy It Now?

The 928 has a strong following, but prices have been soft for decades. Is now the time to snatch up a good one before it's too late?

http://classicmotorsports.net/articles/better-buy-it-now-porsche-928/

You could have bought one for $3500 or "trade for bass boat" in our local newspaper a few months ago.

No chance of 928's ever becoming a hot item.

Only Porsche people are willing to pay big money for a Porsche, and Porsche guys don't like 928s. Unless owning a 928 will elevate your status at the country club, forget about them ever fetching big money.

I've always loved these but when you're at a Porsche Club event and one of the independent repair shop owners say "friends don't let friends" buy 928's (he is not a 911 is the only real Porsche mindset) it does tend to put you off. Lots of niggly bits to go wrong on them. Still love them but I don't see them going way up..............naturally I could be way wrong about this.

  Tom

All of the expense of a 911 (and then some), none of the cache. The 944/951 does everything that a 928 does for less money and with more sportiness.

just seen one for $6000 looked nice but my inner voice kept saying $2500

The later ones like the GTS bring big money.....in some cases over 100k, so they aren't all dirt cheap.

There is a guy local to me that has 5 of them parked at his house, might be more in the garage. I should get a picture. It's pretty crazy considering its a pretty standard suburban neighborhood. I always wonder which ones are keeping the other ones alive. He keeps three of them on the streets, so those pretty much have to run.

I thought those have been cheap for a while. I honestly never expect them to go up in value much. Kind of seem like a 7 series BMW sort of thing. Do you think those will be worth more in the future? I doubt it.

I was given 3 928's once in exchange for clearing them off of some property. Yeah, I don't think any of the "plebian" models will ever be worth anything.

The 928s are great cars, especially the manual trans versions, but they are guaranteed to break you if anything does go wrong.

They are sort of like buying a nice non-rusty Jag XJ12 sedan. If the engine goes out on you, you hand the keys and registration to the tow truck driver and walk away. One guy that failed to take that advice now has approx. 2.5 x the value of the car into the rebuild, when he could have just bought another one for 1/2 the engine overhaul cost.

The only thing I can think of that is worse than buying a 928 on a budget is buying a Citroen SM with hydraulic issues.....

The 928's design continues to look modern, but that doesn't make it attractive.

Winston wrote: The 944/951 does everything that a 928 does

Having had both (although I had an s4) this is not true at all. I would take an s4 over any 944 every day of the week. Yes they are cheaper but remember that the 928 was not a sports car like the 944. The 928 was in the world of super cars for its time. The 944 was never a supper car nore was the 951,s2 or the 968.

I want to chime in here. Regardless of what you got one for a few years ago, nice examples of the 928 have increased in value by about 15% in the last 18 months. Also nice cars have really started to dissapear from the market. This usually is an indicator that there is interest in a car model.

Also the comparison to the 944 is irrelevant. This was not a sports car but a world class touring car, think German Aston Martin.

To drive a nice example of one of these cars is to really understand how great they were.

In reply to Andy Reid:

Sounds like you're planning a 928 as your next restoration project in the mag. ;-)

Sure they were good luxury GT's, a friend of mine owned one of the early ones in the day, but it should be obvious that not that many people seem to want them now.

Any young man who came of age around the time of the movie "Risky Business" had two things to lust after in that film: First was Rebecca DeMornay, and second (by just a little bit) was the Porsche 928. A supercar in it's day that has perhaps not aged well and always had it's share of detractors, but a car that I would be happy to own if the opportunity presented itself.

Scratch that--my wife hates the styling!

Andy Reid wrote: To drive a nice example of one of these cars is to really understand how great they were.

Exactly this. A 928 in proper condition is a very enjoyable car, if you're looking for the kind of car that it is. It's not a track star, but this also means that cars aren't getting cut up to turn into race cars (ahem 944). Plus side is that the cars are easier to find, minus is that used interior/electronic parts are not.

The main thing holding them back is that the Porsche purists hated them because it had a liquid cooled engine not in the wrong place. IMO.

Now I'm wondering what the difference in entry price is between a C5 and a 928 in similar condition. The C5 will be all over the Porsche for power, but if you're more concerned with interior quality/feel, even the 928's cobbled interior is nicer.

A friend of mine is ultra happy the prices are low. He got 2 of them for $5,000. One is in beautiful shape. Everything works, including all of the electrical stuff. The other is a parts car that looks ugly but also works, but has no seats or tires (complete working drivetrain, though). He drives the good one all summer and loves it to death. How long to they go before they wear out, anyway? I think he just crossed 100k miles.

Actually have been thinking of the 928 for a long time. I ideally want a early 5 speed 928S 2 valve car with sunroof delete. Very hard to find, especially in great condition. My next car may well be a S2 Lotus Esprit in White. I have in fact already located the car and am in negotiations.

Now that 911s are water cooled, I'm wondering if that may cause the "real Porsches are air cooled" mentality to start dying off - or to become increasingly rabid.

I've always liked the 928, but have never driven one. I think as a fast GT car it would be great, but even as a BMW and Alfisti the parts prices have always scared me. I'm sure I could DIY most smaller issues and be fine.

Maybe someday when there is more room in the garage.

The only 928 I've driven was a 500hp beast with an GM sourced LS engine installed.

While the exterior has aged very well IMHO, the interior was much less impressive. The design was fine, but it was squeaking, creaking and falling apart. Although this was a butchered car, the interior was left nearly stock. Time had not been kind to this car's interior.

The GTS models will be the collectible ones,as they were the pinnacle of 928 performance. The rest of the line-up suffers from expectations of high-cost in relation to performance. Why take the risk with a 928 when a E36 or E46 M3, or 968, or 944 Turbo, or C5 Corvette will perform as well--or better and likely cost less to own and run.

For me, although I think they are cool, it's a case of diminishing returns, and frightening potential costs.

Interesting comments. I have owned my '82 928s Anniversary special for 17 years. Delightful car to drive. Seems complex at first but its just simple good engineering once you get stuck in. One of the cheapest cars on the planet to maintain if you can avoid dealers. I buy my parts from an English man living in Texas who sends stuff all over the world. Parts are cheaper than Honda/Toyota and even less than home grown GM/Ford stuff. Leather trim and paint is where you can spend plenty of money. Plenty of them around have done 600,000 miles, try that with a Ferrari!

The market for the 928 is exceptionally strong. With good examples of late model GTS cars selling for over $100k and early 78/78 fetching in excess of $20k it has never been a better time to get into a 928 supercar. I own a business selling 928 parts and we have seen exponential growth year on year for the last ten years. There is an amazingly large 928 community with a thriving Owners Club and at least five forums dedicated to the marque. I believe your comments are correct "now the time to snatch up a good one before it's too late". Where else can you buy a true supercar for $20k. Really the only true Porsche as it was designed and built from the ground up unlike some of its family members. Initial deferred maintenance can be expensive but that is reflected in the initial purchase price. Once the car is maintained it is a fun, fast and ultra-reliable steed. Drive a 1000 miles and suffer no seat fatigue and get out as if you just sat down - most comfortable seats I have ever driven in. Cruise all day in the triple digits where it is allowed. The car comes alive over 100 mph and its cornering abilities are better than many of its current Porsche family members. I own about 15 of these supercars including a 93 GTS, 88SE, two 82 Weissachs and an 83 Jubilee.

In reply to tr8todd: Real Porsche guy's appreciate every car produced not just the 911.

I've driven a couple and really like them. The cost of repairs scare me a bit, but I've owned a 944 and 951, and they both suffer from the same owners that ignore maintenance. I think finding a good one would be a good experience, but buying a poorly maintained one would be expensive as you have to fix all the neglected items.

As far as driving, it was a very different experience to the 951, but ultimately I don't think the speed difference was all that much. And given a choice as to which one to take on a trip, the 928 would easily win. Also, the sound of the motor was fantastic in comparison to the 4cyl cars.

Both of my experiences were the automatic variety, and even then they weren't that bad. It suited the car pretty well. I'd like one also, but it would have to be a good one, and they seem difficult to find these days.

I would agree with Andy also in that it needs to be compared to an Aston or a big Jag. I would also maybe stretch that to even a big touring Ferrari.