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I’m not much of a Corvette fan. Outside of the original ZR1 and some interesting classics (I’m a big fan of the flawed-but-beautiful ’63 Coupe), most just aren’t very interesting to me. However, take the same formula and drop it into a German car, and I take notice. Is this fair? Probably not. Nevertheless, the ‘German Corvette’ – the 928 – has always intrigued me.
I’m not alone, as the market star of early 928s is rising and the GTS models are still breaking records. So what better way to go than to split the middle? The S4 is just that – enough updates to have fun without the budget-breaking buzz of the last-of-the-run GTS. Sure, you give up some horsepower. But it’s not like the S4 is exactly slow – the 32-valve V8 cranks out 316 horsepower, if you’re counting – and here it’s hooked to a 5-speed manual and a limited-slip differential, as well. You also got the updated looks of the later cars, and the Baltic Blue paintwork shows those curves well. Slip inside and you’ll find Linen leather in the luxurious cabin. What’s not to love?
Last week I posted a 928S as a potential roll of the dice project. Like a lot of high-end cars, the 928 doesn’t always make for the best roll of the dice given how complicated they can be to work on and the cost to get everything back in proper order. But the color combination and general cosmetic condition really made me want to love it and for some it might be unique enough to take the risk.
This 928 seems a lot more secure and while we can never fully trust a seller without verifying that everything is as it should be, the level of detail here looks such that further investigation should be worthwhile. This is a Guards Red 1987 Porsche 928S4, located in Pennsylvania, with automatic transmission and 72,996 miles on it. The price certainly is higher than last week’s project, but you could easily invest more in that project without returning it to this 928’s apparent condition.
Value among Porsches isn’t always easy to find, especially if your typical checklist mostly is filled with a variety of 911s. But once we venture away from Porsche’s rear-engine icon we discover quite a bit more performance value for your money. For those who’d still prefer a healthy dose of the marque’s famed refinement and luxury to go along with that performance, the 928 can step in to handle all of those roles. Granted, prices do go up a bit with these relative to the rest of the front-engine Porsche lineup, but within the second-hand market we generally remain in reasonable price territory so long as we stay away from the 928 GTS. One of the best non-GTS examples is the 928S4, which still packs a healthy 320 hp and 316 lb-ft of torque and when equipped with a 5-speed manual like the one we have here, they serve the role of performance GT quite well. Here we have a really nice looking Black 1988 Porsche 928S4, located in Houston, with a Light Grey leather interior and just 26,262 miles on it.
There are a few dealers out there who seem to consistently defy the odds. It seems that every week they turn up with an improbably good condition, improbably low mile rare to find vehicle for sale. One in particular has been the subject of several cars we’ve featured – the eBay seller “european-cars”. The photography is always slick looking with the cars appearing to be near new. Since we search the web nearly every day and so do a lot of you, we’ve previously wondered aloud where some of these cars come from. Recently, I’ve been having a discussion with one of our readers when he sent in a few of this seller’s offerings. If everything on the surface is to be believable and the cars are as represented, then they really do appear to be some of the best examples on the market all focused in one dealer. Everything always works, there is little to no wear, and the cars are always reported to be garage kept and they are priced accordingly, usually right at the top of the value range for the models. The eBay feedback score is 100%, replete with dozens of stories of satisfied customers. Then, why are we always a bit weary when one of these listings pops up? Is it really too good to be true?
We all know that not many pristine Porsche 928’s exist in today’s world, which really is a shame. As a victim of a reputation for being high maintenance, many 928’s have fallen into the hands of careless owners who often neglect big ticket maintenance items. The few pristine that do remain attract significantly higher values in the marketplace than their neglected counterparts, and for good reason. There’s a saying in the 928 world “it’s $10K away from being a $5K car.” Nobody wants to be the guy with the $5K car that cost him $10K, and the way to avoid that problem with a 928 is to invest in a good one from the beginning.
This car appears to be a very well maintained 1987 928 S4 fitted with the very desirable 5-speed manual transmission. Owned by a well-known enthusiast in the 928 world, this car is about as clean as they come. Additionally, it sports the highly desirable black-on-black color combo and has less than 40,000 miles. Combining the condition, manual transmission, color combo, low mileage, and the well-known ownership history equates to a very desirable 928 that should fetch a significant premium over examples lacking any of these variables.
