1985 Porsche 944 Turbo

This car is an early Turbo and has covered less than 50,000 miles in its 37 years – an amazing average of just over 1300 miles for every year since it rolled out of Porsche’s Stuttgart factory. Allied to the very low mileage, the car is in excellent condition inside and out.

This car has the original spec 2.5-litre eight valve engine with a single KKK turbocharger, which produces 220bhp at 5800rpm, and also provides a big dollop of torque – 243lb-ft at just 3500 revs. That makes it a lazy performer that will nonetheless get you to 60mph in slightly less than six seconds, and take you all the way to 152mph, assuming you’re on an airfield, the autobahn or simply tired of having a licence.

Low mileage doesn’t always ensure a car will be in good order, but in this case the car looks like it’s 49,000 miles have been taken gently. The white paintwork gleams with a deep shine & only minimal 'orange peel' on the front end & the panel gaps are all very Porsche – straight, even and true.

We noticed a few small stonechips on the front end & two areas of flaked paint at the very bottom of the front bumper, likely caused by stonechips. Another small area to note, are a very very small dents in the bonnet, though they are hard to spot in natural lighting.

The matching white alloy wheels are an expensive upgrade – they’re RUF Speedlines, and they’re all clad with matching high quality tyres with plenty of tread left on them.

Importantly, the steel sunroof panel and its surrounding area all look to be in excellent order. Corrosion here, which is sometimes caused by blocked sunroof drain holes, can be difficult and costly to repair, but there seems to be no such problems with this 944.

There are some light marks to the black finish on the leading edge of the tailgate surround, where the paint has started to lift a bit. But it’s only really visible if you peer into the gap between the surround and the bodyshell, and it’s fairly easily rectified, too. Overall, the car looks absolutely superb.

A car enthusiast friend of ours once posited that one of the joys of buying an Eighties classic car was that you could often end up with an interior colour scheme you’d probably not have picked if you’d bought the car new at a dealer. He reckoned this meant you’d experience colours and styles you’d otherwise have missed.

The interior of this 944 Turbo is a case in point. Back in the day one might have blanched at burgundy velour with white stripes, but now? Well, it looks about as Eighties as it gets, and it’s all the better for it. Cars just aren’t made with this kind of style anymore. Today everything is bland and homogenised. This is neither.

On top of being an Eighties homage, the 944’s inside is in amazing condition too. We couldn’t even see any wear on the driver’s seat, which is incredible for a car of this vintage, but also testament to the build quality of 1980s Porsche's. Aside from the obvious excellent condition, the velour isn’t faded in the least, either, and still retains a vibrant look as though it has just been fitted.

The dash is simple, uncluttered and unbothered by cup holders or USB charging points. There’s a slim ovoid that starts towards the centre, which contains the air vents and then spreads wider to accommodate the instruments – four dials containing all the information you need, from speed to boost levels and oil pressure.

Despite the excellent interior condition, we did notice the stitching on the steering wheel is coming away in places & the outside leather section of the drivers seat bolster does have a very small amount of wear.

Porsche 944 Turbos, like all 944s, benefit from a galvanised shell, so they tend to survive well. Unsurprisingly then, looking underneath this car we could see no signs of any areas which are cause for concern. There’s some surface rust on the exhaust heatshield, but that’s really nothing to worry about and the structure itself looks great.

Under the bonnet sits the large capacity four-cylinder engine, which is effectively half of a 928’s V8. This earlier two valve per cylinder unit is a tougher and less fussy machine than the later 16 valve version, and some prefer its torquey nature to the rev happy 16 valver too. It’s also cheaper to maintain.

The engine bay itself isn’t quite as immaculate as the car’s bodywork and interior, but then it is an engine bay, so that’s to be expected. Turbocharged engines produce a lot of heat and this can damage rubber components if maintenance isn’t kept on top of, but everything in the engine bay looks to be in fine order, giving the impression of a car that’s been very well looked after.

Porsche always did know how to make an engine that would look good to petrolheads, and the 944 Turbo’s is no exception. The inlet manifold’s long alloy runners snake towards the cylinder head and join the plenum and throttle body at the front of the engine bay. It just looks right. And thankfully, Porsche engineers forgot to design a big plastic cover to hide it all.

With just 49,000 miles on the clock the engine sounds smooth and rattle free, so it’s not just a pretty face.

This 944 Turbo comes with its original handbooks, a selection of old MoT certificates and invoices for maintenance and servicing work. Highlights of recent work include:

2016. Major service including new cambelt – £900.

2017. Replace crankshaft position sensor and fit new three piece clutch – £2664.

2017. Fit new brake pads all round, replace rear brake discs – £1076.

2017. Major service – £688.

2017. Four new tyres – £552.

2017. Rectify oil leak: fit new seals to belt area at front of engine – £780.

The seller says: ‘This 944 is in Excellent condition for its year, with extremely low mileage. It has very expensive upgraded RUF Speedline alloy wheels, matching premium tyres all round, and bundles of paperwork/history, including manuals, previous MoTs and invoices.”

Thanks to that galvanised bodyshell 944s survive the ravages of rust rather well. But to find the rare Turbo variant, with less than 50,000 miles on the clock since new, is not something that happens often these days. This car is a superb example of a thoroughly underrated Porsche which, even at the upper end of our guide price, represents fantastic value.

Compared with an Audi Quattro, a contemporary with similar power and performance levels, it’s an absolute steal.

We estimate this vehicle to fetch between £20,000 - £30,000 in auction.

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Viewing is always encouraged, and this particular car is located with us at The Market HQ near Abingdon; we are open weekdays 9am-5pm, to arrange an appointment please use the Contact Seller button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.

Much more photography and description to follow, auction to start soon....