Have you got a link to send us? Or pictures? I would just make sure that the chassis is straight and that there is only minor (preferably NO) rusting or body panel damage. Check to see if the body lines are symmetrical (pictures are usually sufficient, if the car isn't close) and check to see if the front portion of the unibody has been pushed in (look under the nose panel from up above) and check beneath the rear carpet for evidence of body damage in the rear.

Good option codes to look for are 220 - limited slip trans and 474 - sway bars. Sway bars are kind of minor, as you'll possibly want to run stiffer bars than what comes on the car, but a factory limited slip is a great find - aftermarket limited slip can get pricey.

joepaluch wrote:


This is always a tough decision for me, pay for a good running engine only to tear it down anyway to prepare it for racing with bearings and such, or just start off with a less expensive car that the engine may not be at that level? If you are doing a full rebuild it would seem to start cheaper, but if your rebuild was just bearings and gaskets I guess then it is money well spent.

GT944 wrote:


Thanks for the codes to check and other things, this car is close maybe 45 minutes away so that sure helps.

I have to decide if doing a build myself on the 944 is the right choice for SCCA ITS and NASA GTS1 or I've been considering a BMW that is ready to go for ITA.

the big risk when you have non-running unknown car is you don't know what you does not work. For me I look at cars in two forms. 1) Parts 2) complete working cars. I have bought cars for parts just hoping there were enough valueable parts on the tub to make it worth it. However for those cars I will be tearing down for parts not really worring about entire systems working.

If I buy a complete car knowing it runs and drives and is something I can test drive is nice. It tells me that it is just not a bunch of parts, but something that works as a system. So not only does the engine work, but so does the fuel injection, clutch, and gearbox. Steering works and the suspension is reasonable. I also check to make sure gauges work and the cooling system holds and brakes stop the car. So really basic stuff.

I still may want to rebuild, but I at least know the car will run and drive. I have seen many cars stuck with wierd electrical issues that cost time sorting out. Back when we started this class I always considered 3000 for donor car. Why? You could get a $500 car, but it would probably take 2500 to make sure it runs and drives. A $2000 car may just need new t-belt and waterpump. So in the end it was $3000 for 944 in running condition either due to purchase price or purchase plus repairs. On top of this you needed 3-5k in race prep.

Now doing rod bearings is not the most fun job in the world, but can by done with the engine in place. If you are doing the front suspension the most of that comes off during the rod bearing job. Parts are cheap for a rod bearings. I figure $200 for pan gasket and bearings. Time is about 4-5hrs. Plus it gives you a great chance to look and see how the car runs.

If you leave the exisiting head gasket there is a risk it will fail on track. However a poped head gasket is a minor deal other than lost track time. Spinning a rod bearing will cause engine damage so you never want that to happen. Head gaskets.... Heck that can be done at the track if needed but results in no extra damage. So if the motor works. Pull the pan gakset and change rod bearings and drive it. See how it runs. Do the head work later on after you have the car running.

As I have worked on my car, which was $1200 for a well running car, I neglected to think about one thing and that was how long the car had been sitting and where it spent a lot of its life.

I have had one HELL of a time working on this car due to rusted nuts and bolts. Extra hours and a lot more frustration while working on this beast. I sometimes wish I would have started out with a $3k car that was driven regularly and wouldn't have had so many issues.

Just something else to think about or look at when looking into a 944.

To throw some more ideas out there I'll tell you my story.

I bought my car off Ebay - Chassis and trans (open) with a 16-valve motor (blown headgasket) only. The paint was horrible as well and the interior. I pulled out 2.5 alarms systems and a in-car phone system too (the ancient kind). I paid $1200 and went to Las Vegas (from Utah) to pick it up. I used the Block as a donor for another car and tossed the rest behind my relatives house in the barn/shed. FFWD 6 months.

I bought a 1988 motor for $1000 - 90K on the motor and it was out of an automatic No over-revving! That is why i paid so much.

I had a spare LSD Trans so that went into the car as is.

I slowly pieced the car together as the $$ came in. I was in college working full time at the time.

I have NOT rebuilt the motor. Just did T-belt and rollers. I rebuilt the brakes and added the SS brake lines. Bought suspension from Paragon among the other bits and started racing. The car has been fantastic this whole time. (Qualified 5th at Nationals)

IMO, Get a chassis that is straight worst case is that you find the other parts from the classifieds. The above posters are correct - motor is "cheap", Trans is "cheap", a straight body is priceless.

The rust issue is a big one - but - the body (so long as there is no body work done) is all Galvanized so no rust on the body. Your components may be rusted but thats OK as you will be replacing/rebuilding most of it anyways. I would invest the extra $$ for a weld in cage. I think you get a lot of chassis stiffening and space savings from a weld is vs a bolt in. I was on a budget at the time so a bolt in from Autopower was my choice.

I have chosen to repaint the car since then and modified and cleaned it up more as time and money have allowed. The paint was a weight increase but the aero benefits are a big plus. And Maaco made me a great deal

Start by finding a good chassis (be picky) and a solid, known quantity motor. As for how to do things or advice - steal shamelessly from us. I always look at others racecars for ideas and knowledge especially when i was building the car. I have seen some awesome things from other racers and I have helped other too (I hope). The creative process in this sport is pretty awesome (as artsy fartsy as that sounds). Besides - as a good friend once told me - "A race car is never truly finished, there are always things you would like to improve or modify and that's part of what makes this sport so much fun"