924Board.org

[Davemonfl]

Hey all,

Just joined the forum after buying my first Porsche, a red 1987 924s with 5 speed. Didn't really do everything I should have, ie. have a porsche mechanic check it out, etc., but brought a friend with me who is a decent mechanic and works on his own cars and motorcycles.
So the test drive was good, car ran great, shifted well, windows and headlights went up and down, even blows cold air, (living in FL that's good!) All the lights, turn indicators, wipers worked, oil was clean, belts looked good, brakes and battery good, no dents or rust and mint leather interior....so I bought it for $2600...

Drove it around a decent amount and then drove it home and on Monday drove it 8 miles to work. When I turned the car off to park it the starter kept running!! Turned it on and off a bunch of times but the starter kept going!! So not having a wrench I headed toward my VW mechanic a couple miles away to get a wrench and pull the battery cable. Well after about a mile it started smoking, I pulled over and opened the hood and smoke was pouring out and I saw flames under the car!!! I pulled off my shirt and dove under the car and put out the flames on the starter!!!

Long story short, the rubber jackets on the starter cables were all dry and crumbly and shorting out and thats why the starter wouldn't turn off. I had my VW mechanic replace the starter and cables and on Friday drove it on home....Anyway I will continue the saga in my next post because it gets even crazier!!!!





Here is the shirt I used to put out the fire:

[Davemonfl]

So after getting it back I drove it home and took it out a few times that evening to show people and all was good. The next day I tried to start it and it was completely dead. Jumped it and drove it and parked it and drove it again and all was good. About five hours later went to drive it again and it was dead again!!! At that point I noticed the headlights were not going down all the way, but figured it was cause of the battery being low. So I tried to lower them manually and noticed a rubber hose was under the metal piece coming off the shaft that moves the headlights up and down. Was gonna try to remove the hose but didn't want to mess it up more so I jumped it and dropped it back at my VW mechanic. So it turns out the coolant hose coming from the coolant tank to the radiator was completely wrapped around the shaft that moves the headlights!!! Somebody that worked on it at some point in time had actually zip tied the coolant tube to the shaft that moves the headlights!!! $20 later my VW mechanic had it all untangled and zip tied in the correct place.




Anyway, I picked it up at my VW mechanic and drove it straight to a Porsche mechanic he recommended and parked it so that he could replace the timing belt and other belts for me....should have it back on Friday!!!!

[Grenadiers]

Wow! Good luck. Nice color interior and exterior.
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'83 944 Track car.
'88 924S Track car.
'89 944 Turbo
2004 Winnebago Vectra monster RV
2012 Jeep Wrangler
2014 Kia Soul
2001 Ford F350 powerstroke

[Davemonfl]

Just heard from the Porsche mechanic and my 924s is ready a day early!!! Looks like a beautiful rain free weekend down here in sunny Sarasota FL so I am PSYCHED to get it back and start driving!!!!
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2007 Porsche Cayman 5 speed tan leather
1987 Red 924s 5 speed tan leather
2009 2.0T Jetta Wolfsburg Edition 6 speed
2003 Jetta VR6 GLI 6 speed - Sold
88 VW Rabbit Cabriolet - Sold

[jason c]

Welcome. Davemonfl, can you post a pic of the area under the hood between the engine and windshield?

Am I the only one who noticed this car has a late 944 interior?

[Davemonfl]

[Davemonfl]

[Davemonfl]

So the mechanic checked out the whole front end, made sure bearings were tight, struts, etc. are solid and said it all looks good except for the tires, which look fine, but are old and shot because he said the right front tire wobbled like crazy when he pulled it off and rolled it on the ground. So he put that one on the back and now it rides much better when accelerating and changing lanes. Long story short I need to buy four new tires, which is better than major front end work...for now it is good to drive until I can save up for 4 new tires and then it will be even better!
_________________
2007 Porsche Cayman 5 speed tan leather
1987 Red 924s 5 speed tan leather
2009 2.0T Jetta Wolfsburg Edition 6 speed
2003 Jetta VR6 GLI 6 speed - Sold
88 VW Rabbit Cabriolet - Sold

[michaelodonnell123]

Great looking 924S. Keep the pics coming.
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MOD
1988 Porsche 924S
2007 Jaguar XK
2012 Fiat 500

[Davemonfl]

[Rasta Monsta]

[Davemonfl]