Rare Wasser Porsches: 1982 924 Turbo and 1988 924SE

If for some time the Porsche 944 is one of the most under appreciated cars in the 1980s German car world, the 924 is even the more red-headed stepchild. But get past the stigma of the 924 as the “poor man’s Porsche”, and the details are quite good. They’re nice looking, aerodynamic coupes that are rear drive for enthusiasts. Like the rest of the Porsche lineup from the late 1970s and 1980s, they had great build quality overall and were solid products. Many of the “big brother” 944 items work on the 924, too – especially true in the later 924S models, so they can be updated and modified just like the 944s. They enjoyed a rich racing history in both naturally aspirated and turbocharged variants, with the first “Carrera GT” being a 924 model. Plus, the 924 was the development model which resulted in the much more prized 944 and 944 Turbo. And within the lineup, there are really some great hidden gems of classic cars that can be had on a budget. Today I have two nice examples of some of the rarer models of the 924; a late run 924 Turbo and a last of the breed 924S Special Edition:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1982 Porsche 924 Turbo on eBay

Year: 1982
Model: 924 Turbo
Engine: 2.0 liter inline-4
Transmission: 5-speed manual
Mileage: 71,780 mi
Price: Reserve Auction

Due to my declining health, I must let go of my beloved 1982 Porsche 924 Turbo. This car has been my daily driver for the past 10 years. The car had 35k miles on it when I got it and I understand I am the 3rd owner. This is a rust free air conditioned Florida car with 72k miles on it. This car has been converted to electronic fuel injection (EFI).

The car has recent urethane paint in original Guards Red and the wheels have been refinished and painted by RimFx http://www.rimfx.us/Home.html After the wheels were painted, new Goodyear tires were installed. I have not gotten to the interior so that will have to be your job. New sunroof and rear glass seals were installed after the car was painted so hopefully the water leak is fixed but not sure since car is garaged.

The car is offered as is/where is without warranty but you have to promise it a good home. Obviously it would be great if you could inspect it before bidding if possible. You can drive the car away or make your own arrangements to ship.

It’s pretty hard to find non-tatty 931s these days, but this 1982 Turbo sure looks good overall. Off the bat, it’s the preferred 5-bolt model with 4-wheel disc brakes. It’s Guards Red which looks very nice and the Porsche decals on the side look good too. I love the ATS made wheels and this set has been refinished and features fresh rubber. There are some details that it would be nice to know, though – chief among which is how bad the leak from the sunroof was and how much it has ruined; the seller states rather unceremoniously that if you buy this car the interior will be “your job”. As I stated above, though, there were plenty of 924s and 944s made, so sourcing parts or even an entire interior isn’t impossible. The second question is regarding the EFI conversion; who did it, what system is it running, and how well does it run? It’s a big “if” on an older turbocharged car, though systems like Megasquirt have been proven to work well on Audis. Overall, though, this car appears to be one of the nicer 931s we’ve come across and the price should remain affordable, though the reserve is still on.

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1988 Porsche 924S Special Edition on eBay

Year: 1988
Model: 924S Special Edition
Engine: 2.5 liter inline-4
Transmission: 5-speed manual
Mileage: 22,000 mi
Price: Reserve Auction

This is a rare time capsule 924S LeMans 1 of 500 Made for the USA. It is as new off the show room floor no flaws period. Investment Quality that will out preform the stock market or a savings account at your local bank. Though it only has 22,000 miles on it we preformed a major service of new timing belts by a certified Porsche Service Center, with all rollers, new water pump, new fluids, new battery, new tires. There are no cracks in the dash, the interior is flawless, the radio is OEM Blaupunkt with cassette deck. Everything is OEM working and as new. Including the Sun roof with its coverbag, and the Special 1988 LeMans Plaque.

In 1988 Porsche offered a limited-edition 924S Le Mans to celebrate the company’s win in the 24-hour race. The Le Mans featured uprated and lowered suspension (10mm at the front and 15mm rear) and ‘telephone dial’ wheels. It was available only in Alpine White or Black, with ‘Le Mans’ decals down each side. The interior boasted distinctive striped fabric seats and an electric sunroof as standard.980 examples of the 924S Le Mans were built. ONLY 500 CAME TO THE USA!

In 1988 specification the 924S was actually faster than its 944 cousin as it was lighter and had a more aerodynamic body style – probably not exactly what Porsche had wanted to achieve.

LE MANS 924S special edition built to celebrate Porsche’s 12th outright win in the famous 24 Hour race. Between July and September 1987 a total of 980 LE Mans models were manufactured: 200 black and 50 white cars were sold in West Germany, 500 black (but no white) in the US, and 113 black and 117 white elsewhere in ‘Rest of the World’ markets.

Paint finishes and interiors were only offered in two colour choices – Alpine White with Ochre/Grey detailing or Black with Turquoise detailing. The exterior side stripes were broken by scripted ‘LE Mans’ logos on the lower part of the door, while the rims of the holes in each wheel were in the appropriate Ochre or Turquoise. Inside, the cars featured sports seats. Upholstery was grey/ochre striped flannel cloth with ochre piping for Alpine White cars, or grey/turquoise with turquoise piping for Black cars. All the cars had the 360mm (14in) steering wheel, with, as a final flourish, the cloth door panels colour-coded to match the detail colours. All cars came with a 160 BHP engine plus an electric tilt/removable sunroof fitted as standard. It was also lowered 10mm (0.39in) at the front and 15mm (0.59in) at the rear, and fitted with stiffer springs and gas-filled shock absorbers all round. It was further given sport anti-roll bars with diameters of 21.5mm (0.85in) at the front but 20mm (0.79in), rather than 14mm (0.55in), at the rear. Wheels were ‘telephone dial’ cast alloy 6J x 15 at the front and 7J x 15 (at the rear).

Eagle-eyed readers will remember this car from earlier this year; back in April I wrote this very car up. Back then, I pointed out that it was not a ROW “Le Mans” model as the stickers would suggest, but rather a Special Edition 924. The Le Mans model was never offered in the U.S., so the seller is confusing their facts. The linked article also has the earlier sale of the car included, where notably there are no decals on the car. So the current seller applied the decals and then was asking a pretty outrageous $35,000 for the car. Fast forward seven months to today and it’s no surprise that the car didn’t sell; it remains, however, probably the nicest 924S Special Edition in the U.S.. The $35,000 price tag is gone, replaced by a reserve auction which I would guess is probably set too high. It’s interesting that the seller has included the stock photos of the interior from the earlier sale rather than current photos, but has maintained that this is a Le Mans model rather than the Special Edition example. Regardless, it’s a very neat and special 924S that is in very rare to see condition; arguably much better overall than the 931 and probably one of the nicest 924Ss in the country. Which would you want?

-Carter