1992 Porsche 944 S2 Cabriolet

In the care of the vendor for the past couple of years, this wonderful white over blue 1992 Porsche 944 Cabriolet S2 has the benefit of the larger engine, enabling that wonderfully fluid chassis to shine as it was always capable of.

Beautifully fettled over the years since being built in late 1991, it’s only being offered for sale because the owner has lost his storage, a familiar tale and one that many of you will sympathise with. Finished in the classic colour combination of Alpine White coachwork with a deep blue hood and matching leather interior, it also comes with the cherished number plates ‘DLY 100’.

Even better, the seller has got sufficient faith in you lot to offer it with no reserve, so it’s going to sell from the very first bid. So, if you’ve ever fancied getting your hands on one of the very best Porsche models of the era, your time has come…

White is a classic, timeless colour and one that not only suits the 944’s lines to perfection but also disguises a car’s age like few others. While black highlights even the slightest flaw, white is very forgiving – not that this is an issue here because this one has braved the decades better than most.

With very good shutlines, good panel alignment, and an absence of the sort of dents, dinks, and scrapes that betray a series of careless owners, as you can see in the extensive photo gallery this is a very well-presented example indeed.

This condition extends to the electrically operated blue hood, which furls and unfurls as it should, tucking away neatly when it’s not needed and sitting weather-tight and taut when it is. The (rarely needed) manual handle is there too, which is unusual. There is some very minor wear to the roof, and this is best illustrated in slides #210 and #213.

The factory alloy wheels are in great shape too being straight and free of scuffs. Yes, there’s a little lacquer peel here and there but they’re decent enough for you to be able to live with them for another couple of years yet. They’re shod with good tyres too, matching Continentals in this case.

As we will never tire of explaining, our experience shows that matching high-quality tyres are an infallible sign of a caring and mechanically sympathetic owner who is prepared to spend the appropriate amount in maintaining their car properly. Their presence does not, of course, preclude the need for a thorough inspection - something the vendor would welcome, by the way – but it does perhaps give you a shortcut into their attitude towards maintenance.

The headlamps also rise and fall as they should, and the light lenses, glazing and badges are all good.

This means that the work that needs doing is practically non-existent. Sure, there are a few stonechips here and there, along with the odd minor mark but, there’s nothing there that would trouble us and certainly nothing so vulgar as rust or corrosion to contend with.

In fact, only the most finicky of owners would feel the need to sort out the small dent in the offside sill (photo #101).

The blue leather interior looks just as good as the coachwork and while it might not be your first choice of colour it is more subdued than many of its Germanic contemporaries and anyway, if you’re going to buy a period sports car then you might as well go all-in, hadn’t you?

And you won’t be making excuses for its condition because it is really rather lovely while also offering one of the best driving positions of any car ever made. It’s nicely patinated too, and while the cynical among you might think we’re damning with faint praise, nothing could be further from the truth; the light creasing to the electrically adjustable front sports seats and the slight colour loss from the gearknob hint only as its history, history gained over the past 30 years and so an important part of its character.

A Toad A1606 Category 1 alarm system has been professionally fitted, along with a more modern Alpine Bluetooth-enabled headunit, so you can make and receive calls on the go. However, if you’re more interested in originality than high-fidelity then you’ll be delighted to hear that the original Blaupunkt Symphony radio-cassette player comes with the car, even if it hasn’t been tested.

Everything else works as it should, including the electric windows even if one of the switches does need reseating (#160).

The boot, which is home to what looks to be an almost unused toolkit and the space-saver spare wheel, is solid and free of rust, rot and corrosion. It’s well carpeted too, just like the rest of the interior.

As you can see from the sticker in the boot, the 944 was optioned from new with headlamp washers (288) and adjustable headlights (605), electrically adjustable sports seats (383 and 387), and leather upholstery (946).

This means that other than a deep clean, there’s nothing in there to sort out other than to source a new knob for the heater fan control (#158), which means you can spend the summer driving rather than fretting - well, at least not about the state of your new toy…

There’s nothing to worry about here, either because the engine bay is nicely presented without being obsessive. This means that while almost all of us could live with it as it is, there is scope for you to detail it further if you’re looking for an excuse to escape the family for a few hours and days in lockdown number 5/6/7/8 (delete as applicable…).

The underside is pretty darned good too being well undersealed and free of the sort of surface corrosion and grot you’ll have become accustomed to if you’ve been searching for a 944 for a while.

Speaking of seeing, as you can see in the video, the 944 starts well, ticks over evenly, and revs very well. We’ve driven it too and can confirm that it drives as it should.

The Porsche’s MOT certificate, which is valid until February 2022, was gained without a single advisory point, something it’s no stranger to having racked up 12 advisory-free tickets since 2005, with only three minor points ruining its 100% record in that period.

It has a number of expired MOT certificates plus a sheaf of invoices and bills to confirm the work that has been done to it over the years – and that work has been comprehensive with the last decade alone recording:

• 27.09.2010 and 46,010 miles – service by Sidlesham Garage

• 06.10.2011 and 48,277 miles – service by Sidlesham Garage

• 16.10.2012 and 51,112 miles – service including new spark plugs by Sidlesham Garage

• 01.10.2013 and 52,960 miles – service by Sidlesham Garage

• 24.12.2013 and 52,960 miles – new front brake discs and pads by Sidlesham Garage

• 29.06.2015 and 54,825 miles – service plus fresh brake fluid by the Porsche Centre Cambridge

• 15.07.2016 and 54,927 miles – service plus cambelt and roller replacement by the Porsche Centre Cambridge

• 04.07.2017 and 55,005 miles – service by the Porsche Centre Cambridge

• 17.10.2018 and 55,037 miles – new radiator and coolant by PIE Performance

• 23.10.2018 and 55,037 miles – new head gasket, top-end rebuild, sump gasket and rear seal plus a new oil filter and fresh engine oil by PIE Performance

Prior to that, it has 14 additional stamps in the service history, making this one of the most carefully curated examples we’ve had through our hands for a few years. Please note that there is only photocopies of the service stamps, although there are invoices from 2006 onwards to corroborate.

Please visit the documents section of the gallery of this listing where you will find photos of this and other paperwork to support our claim that this car has been maintained to a very good standard.

Many argue that cars like the Porsche 944 are the sweet spot of the classic car world; old enough to be largely analogue in their response and repairability yet still new enough to benefit from the sort of reliability and safety features we’ve all come to take for granted.

Most are still fairly cheap too, adding to their already considerable appeal.

Ah, we hear you ask: but how cheap? Well, at a time when the very best Porsche 944s are going for in excess of £30,000, we think this one will sell for between £13,000 and £18,000.

In the car world that is known as having your cake and eating it; this is, remember, a strong and solid example of a much-loved classic convertible sportscar that drives well and only needs some very, very minor fettling to enable it to fulfil its potential to the full.

Plus, as a last-of-the-line S2, it’s got the power the chassis deserves plus a decade of experience in building them, so any production foibles would have been ironed out long before this one rolled off the line.

And, if that isn’t enough to get your juices flowing, can we remind you that it is being offered with no reserve? Yup, that’s right; it’s going to sell from the very first bid, so what are you waiting for?

Inspection is always encouraged (within Govt. guidelines of course), and this particular car is located with us at The Market HQ near Abingdon; 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’.