How hard would it be?

[heath]

I'm thinking about getting a 924 as a "my first sports car" kinda thing...

I'm a complete and utter porsche fan and I really would prefer the 944 but I don't know if I want to spend that much more money at this stage...although I know its well worth it.

ANYWAY!

There is a 1980 924 in my area for a fairly decent price only its an auto! Yeah I know I know! Who would buy a porsche and ask for an auto box?? So my question is...how hard is it to change? I'm a little bit of a DIY kinda bloke and I love getting dirty under the car....and working on them too :twisted:

So has anyone had much to do with the 924? and how hard is this conversion to the 5spd gonna be?

Getting parts for the 924 in my area are piss-easy as there is a euro performance place near my work.

SO I'm calling out to all my fellow porsche fans! Gimmie your feedback!

[666fast]

My guess is not only will it be expensive, it'll be a lot of work. Porsche has all kinds of special tools and whatnot. You are better off looking for a manual.

[tkach]

the 924 may be cheaper but. its a 4 banger and the conversion will cost you. not only in money but time. personaly id get a 928 stick if u want one of the ulgy porsches' cause at least that way you could go fast.

[sickx]

Don't even think about it. A buddy bought a 944 turbo as a "project" car to "fix up". Well, several grand later, and only an exhaust manifold to show for it (!!!) he never got it running right. Parts alone will break the bank. And they way that crazy engineering goes--they build them for performance, NOT maintainability!

[godspeed06]

plus the toyota prius could probably rape a 924, the thing only goes 0-60 in like 12 seconds. engine was built by vw i think.

[callen]

go 928 for sure. find one that is well maintained, a price premium at purchasing time will probaly help costly repairs later on...even if u do allll the work urself, parts, as sickx says are gonna cost u alot. if ur gonna do this u should as they say GO big or GO home! :lol:

[Epic2112]

The engines in 1980 924s were Porsche engines (I think, they changed around that time), in the older ones they used Audi engines.

The best advice that anyone can give about purchasing a 924/931/944/951/968 series Porsche is to spend as much as possible when you're buying the car. The more you spend on the purchase the less you'll end up spending overall.

[jaybv6]

Also when buying a Porsche it's not just the fact you can buy the car. Can you afford to run it. Check out the servicing costs at your local dealer, that will definitely give you a heart attack for sure.

[Fleischmann]

I agree with jaybv6. Buying the car isn't the only problem. Keeping it in a good condition is also very costly :(

[snacky]

1.)The Audi 924 plain sucks. 2.) Why convert an auto to a 5 speed ? put your effort into turbocharging and NOSing a 944/968, you'll get much more return on your effort.

[sickx]

I don't think Porsche used VW engines since the 914, but either way, you're better off saving your $$ for a 944/928. Bang for buck, the 928s are pretty cheap, and have good power-- a true Gran Touring car.

[hgt]

In fact I guess that Audi-powered 924s had written VW/PORSCHE as a manufacturer on a car's ID plate. Am I right???

[ChrisAW11]

Short history of the 924: Porsche developed it as a new model for VW. VW bought it but decided not to use the finished concept in their model range. Porsche bought it back and produced it, but didn't have the capacities with 911s and 928s already being produced in the Stuttgart factory, so Audi produced the car bodies (and the engine was Audi as well). After a while, Porsche decided to put a proper in-house engine in and used basically half a 928 engine with two additional balanceshafts for the 944 engine, which was then produced totally in-house.
I'd go for a 944, they are nicer IMO, quicker, and every part of them is (budget, but still) Porsche.

[aliendude012]

As everyone has already said, its not worth your time or money to get an old 924 and convert it to a standard. i've been looking into a 944 lately, and have found maintenance prices to be very unsettling :(. If you want a porsche, dont get the 924 at all, the 944 is much better. and they only get better. the n/a was good. the turbo was better. then the turbo got more horsepower, then in the early 90s they made the 944 S2. that car is like a poor(relatively) mans dream. 220 or so horsepower from an early 90s turbo4, handled like it was on rails, drop dead gorgeous looks(especially in red and black), and it had the Porsche name on the fender(if that means anything to you). keep in mind the maintenance costs for DIY are going to be outrageous, forget mechanics, and dont even think about dealer service charges.


i learned quickly that a porsche is not a good platform to start with if i was going to race it on a tight budget. :(

[8oost0ne]

Buy a Miata!!! I did and its the best thing that happened to me. :D

[ciprypop]

If you like Porsche so much,you should buy one.Try to buy a 944!!!!!!!

[FoxFour]

If you are on a budget, then I would suggest staying away from Porsche cars for now. Not only do the parts carry a premium but Porsche cars require more maintainance than some other automobile. And I would suggest staying away from a 928, more notably the older ones, they were prone to electrical problems that were later rectified in the last couple model years.

[mk1gti]

I don't think Porsche used VW engines since the 914, but either way, you're better off saving your $$ for a 944/928. Bang for buck, the 928s are pretty cheap, and have good power-- a true Gran Touring car.

VW still making engines for porsche, the Cayenne will now be delivered with a 3.2 liter vw engine, this is the same engine as you would find in the VW Golf R32 and Audi TT 3.2
Porsche has tuned the engine to approx. 250Hp

[itsthepham]

Look you know what your getting yourself into when your getting a PORSCHE - i have a 83 944 - Grrrrrrrrrreat - if you need any sites about getting a hold of Rebuilt Engines and trannys - hooollla at your boi - dont go for the 924 - underpowered and bottom of the line of that model range with the 944 and 968 .. buut all together if your gonna stick with a 944 the tranny with a new engine and blah isnt as much as you would think .. 944 Turbo 8V i think goes around 2500 bucks ...

[itsthepham]

Nooo its not the same engine as a VWR32 ... idiot ... the concept for the cayenne V6 derives from the VW model engine .. but they tune it and change it to a porsche engine ... you cant throw that engine into a R32 because its totally changed ... once again ... BASED .. not the same .

[graywolf624]

Parts are expensive, going to cost you a future. But if money is no object knock yourself out.