This page documents the history of the author's 1991 944S2 Coupe. The following list describes in detail the specification and history of the car.
The VIN number of this car was decoded using information supplied in Peter Morgan's book “Original Porsche 924/944/968” (ISBN 1-901-432-05-X) on pages 31-32 and page 99.
VIN = WP0AB294XMN410197
This VIN # is decoded as follows:
WP0 |
World manufacturer code |
Porsche |
AB2 |
US Vehicle Specification Code |
These 3 digits are rendered ZZZ in RoW
models. For my US specification car, it is decoded as
follows: |
94* |
Vehicle Type (part 1) |
This number is combined with a 3rd
number indicated by an * |
X |
Test Code or Filling Character |
N/A |
M |
Model Year |
K = 1989, L = 1990, M = 1991 |
N |
Manufacturing Location |
N = Neckarsulm |
4* |
Vehicle Type (part 2) |
Combined with the first 2 digits above* to
complete the vehicle type. |
1 |
Serial Number (part 1) |
0 = RoW Coupes |
0197 |
Serial Number (part 2) |
This car was the 197th of 510 US specification 944S2 coupes manufactured in 1991. The following summarizes 944S2 production numbers for the year 1991: 1991 944S2 Coupe |
Following are the option codes this specific 944 S2 was built with. The option codes were decoded using information supplied in Peter Morgan's book “Original Porsche 924/944/968” (ISBN 1-901-432-05-X) on pages 73-74 and the decoder page page on the Water Cooler site.
454 |
Cruise Control |
490 |
HiFi Sound System |
494 |
Amplifier System or 2x speakers on the back
shelf. |
573 |
Air conditioning |
650 |
Sun Roof |
946 |
Leather Seats |
Type = M44/41
Number = 42M01665
Type = 083.F/G83F
Code = AOS (no LSD, no external oil-cooler)
Number = I'll get this next time I'm under the car.
As of October 2006, the car's mileage since purchase (in May 2001) is almost 32K miles. The total costs to date have been:
Fixed Costs: |
Depreciation (est. current value $8,000): |
$4,000 |
|
|
Upgrades: |
$892 |
|
|
Miscellaneous (dyno, detail, smog, etc): |
$400 |
|
|
Insurance (est. $600/year): |
$3,150 |
|
|
CA Registration Taxes (est. $120/year): |
$630 |
|
|
Total Fixed Costs: |
$9,072 |
($0.29/mile) |
|
|
|
|
Variable Costs: |
Service: |
$6,550 |
|
|
Repairs: |
$1,999 |
|
|
Tires, Alignement, Wheel Balancing: |
$2,026 |
|
|
Gas (20 mpg, $2.99/gal): |
$4,742 |
|
|
Total Variable Costs: |
$15,316 |
($0.48/mile) |
|
|
|
|
|
$24,388 |
($0.77/mile) |
Date |
Mileage |
Type |
Cost |
Notes |
2006-08-08 |
130,978 |
Smog |
$50.00 |
Passed in Sunnyvale, CA. |
2006-06-05 |
129,920 |
Service |
$2,065.66 |
Major service done by Modderman Service (650-967-3213). While performing the service, they found a front engine oil leak. The rate of oil consumption before taking the car in for a service was 1x quart every 5K miles. So while the leak was not causing excessive oil consumption, it needed to be taken care of because oil was dripping onto the belts. The cost break down was as follows: Major Service ($669.43)
Resealed front enginer, installed new belts/tensioners/rollers ($1,396.23)
|
2005-09-22 |
125,082 |
Tires |
$601.59 |
Installed a new set of Avon Tech M500 tires (fronts: 205/50WR-17, rears: 255/40WR-17).
|
2005-08-25 |
124,737 |
Repair |
$793.69 |
Repainted the front bumper. It was scraped after riding up onto a kerb in a parking lot. It was repainted by Da-Les Auto Body in Sunnyvale, CA (408-734-3100). The costs were: Repaint Front Bumper ($793.69)
|
2005-07-17 |
124,323 |
Repairs |
$191.00 |
Repaired/replaced or upgraded the following items:
Fixed Cabin Heater Clip
Replaced Interior Mats
Replaced Front Fog Light
Installed Stongard Protective Film on the Foglights
|
2005-07-01 |
124,021 |
Service |
$135.89 |
Minor service done by Modderman Service (650-967-3213). They also fixed a broken exhaust hanger which was located just in front of the exhaust-resonator. Cost breakdown:
Minor Service ($135.89)
Repair Exhaust Hanger ($113.03)
|
2004-10-16 |
120,076 |
Service |
$2.00 |
Added engine-oil. Oil level was at 60%, added 1-pint of 20W50 Chevron Supreme to bring it to the 85-90% mark. That translates to an average oil-consumption rate of 1-qt every 5K to 6K miles. |
2004-10-09 |
119,997 |
CA Smog |
$60.00 |
Passed in Sunnyvale, CA. |
2004-06-09 |
118,562 |
Service |
$345.30 |
Modderman Service refilled the A/C:
A/C Refill ($345.30)
|
2004-02-23 |
~116,800 |
Repair |
$0 |
The car was rear-ended in a slow speed (~5 mph) incident. The rear bumper was repaired by Da-Les Auto Body in Sunnyvale, CA (408-734-3100). The cost was paid in full by the other person's insurance. Their costs were: Rear Bumper Repair ($678.11)
|
2004-01-28 |
116,302 |
Service |
$846.88 |
Work done by Modderman Service (650-967-3213). I recommed these folks as they know 944 cars well (there's always a few at the shop). Service: 7,500 mile service ($275.75)
Service: Replace Brake Pads ($369.81)
Service: Replace Engine Bay Fuel Lines ($201.32)
Tires Repair: Fix Power Steering Belt Adjuster ($56.59)
|
2003-07-04 |
113,578 |
Repair |
$10 |
Replaced an intermittent passenger-side window-switch (p/n 951-613-133-00) with a used one from Parts Heaven. |
2003-04-26 |
112,451 |
Repair |
$35 |
Repaired the glove-box door supports with a kit supplied by Paragon Products. |
2002-11-22 |
111,301 |
Service |
$100 |
At this time, the car had been driven ~2,300 miles since the belts were done and so they were re-checked for tension. This is a recommended procedure. The work was carried out by Modderman Service (650-967-3213). They found that the balance shaft belt needed adjustment. That is not unexpected. |
2002-10-06 |
110,533 |
Repair |
$0
|
Replaced one of the two fan resistors (p/n 944-616-522-00) and repaired an electrical crimp to one of the resistors. See here for a description of the problem which was corrected by this repair. Trevor was a great help on the day and even provided the replacement part free of charge. |
2002-09-07 |
~110,200 |
Dyno |
$100 |
Dynoed the car at DSR in San Jose. I was very pleased with the results which came out as follows: Actual SAE Corrected Rear-Wheel Figures
Estimated Fly-Wheel (assuming 15% drive-train loss)
Porsche's Specification for a 1991 944S2 Coupe
|
2002-08-17 |
110,041 |
Detail |
$150 |
The car was professionally detailed at my house by Guy Smith (800-862-0639). I highly recommend him. |
2002-08-12 |
110,031 |
CA Smog |
$40 |
Passed in Sunnyvale, CA. |
2002-08-09 |
~110,000 |
Repair |
$200 |
Removed a palm-sized dent from the passenger door using a “paint-less” repair process. Work was carried out by Troy Treece from DentPro (408-370-9500). Excellent work. |
2002-07-01 |
108,980 |
Service |
$2,653.85 |
Major service carried out by Carrera Motors (650-342-9955). There were two separate jobs as follows: Job #1 - General Service $2,056.29 ($985.18 parts, $81.11 CA Sales Tax $990 labor @ $95/hour) Belts
Rollers ($241.50 total)
Filters
Fluids
Seals
Miscellaneous
Job #2 - Timing Chain Pad Replacement $597.56 ($94.74 parts, $7.82 CA Sales Tax, $495 labor @ $95/hour)
|
2002-05-04 |
107,142 |
Alignment |
$148 |
Custom alignment done by Wheel Works of Sunnyvale (650-969-1700). The alignment was set to the following specification based on an article by Jim Pasha in Excellence. Front
Rear
|
2002-04-28 |
106,911 |
Wheel Balance |
$45 |
Wheels balanced at Wheel Works of San Mateo (650-347-6616) |
2002-03-04 |
~104,000 |
Upgrade |
$600 |
Purchased a used set of used 993 17” Cup Rims with Bridgestone S02 tires from a private party. Condition was good, not perfect. Wheel and tire sizes are: Front
Rear
|
2001-07-03 |
100,437 |
Service |
$400 |
The engine temperature had suddenly started to operate in the 100°C-105°C range. The car was not driven until this was repaired. After the repair, the engine temperature range was in the 80°C-90°C range. The car was serviced at the same time as the repair. Service ($400)
Repair ($600)
|
2001-06-19 |
~100,000 |
Upgrade |
$124 |
Purchased a Bra for the car from Carlsen Motor Cars (650-856-6300) |
2001-05-14 |
~99,400 |
Upgrade |
$150 |
Purchased a Car-Cover from Rector Motor Car Company (650-348-0111) |
2001-05-12 |
~99,300 |
Tires |
$931 |
Purchase a set of Bridgestone S-02 tires from Wheel Works of Sunnyvale (650-969-1700) Front
Rear
|
2001-05-08 |
99,260 |
Purchase |
$12K |
Purchased the car from California Motorsports At the time of purchase, the price-guides quoted the following for a '91 944S2 Coupe: Kelly Blue Book : Trade-In $7,350 Retail $11,470 Bruce Anderson in Excellence : Poor $8,750 Good $10,000 Excellent $13,500 |
The pre-purchase history was derived from receipts, dealer-stamps in the service manual and a CarFax report. However, the history is not entirely complete. For example, there are no receipts documenting the body repairs described in the PPI.
Date |
Mileage |
Type |
Cost |
Notes |
2001-04-26 |
99,259 |
CA Smog |
? |
Passed in Sunnyvale, CA. |
~99,250 |
PPI |
$100 |
Pre-Purchase Inspection (PPI) carried out by Tony Heyer of Heyer-Performance in Mountain View (650-962-0930) with the following results: Drive-train
Body
Suspension
Interior
|
|
1999-08-21 |
? |
CA DMV |
? |
CA DMV title issued to previous owner (name withheld from this website) |
1999-08-07 |
88,865 |
Service |
$162 |
Diagnose cruise control and check tune-up. |
1999-08-07 |
88,860 |
CA Smog |
? |
Passed in Palo Alto, CA. |
1998-09-15 |
82,994 |
Repair |
$730 |
Repair to fuel system by Tony Heyer of Heyer-Performance in Mountain View (650-962-0930). Parts replaced:
|
1998-05-01 |
79,641 |
Service |
$481 |
|
1998-01-12 |
? |
CA DMV |
? |
CA DMV transfer of ownership to previous owner (name withheld from this website) |
1997-10-30 |
75,573 |
CA Smog |
? |
Passed in Santa Clara, CA. |
1997-10-29 |
75,563 |
Inspection |
$68 |
Inspection (PPI maybe?) carried out by Ken's Sportech in Cambell (408-377-8055) with the following results: Compression
Problems Found
|
1996-10-16 |
70,063 |
Service |
$1,332 |
Carried out by Pacific Autoworks (408-280-7340)
|
1996-08-16 |
68,300 |
CA DMV |
? |
CA DMV title issued. First lien reported. |
1996-07-19 |
68,240 |
CA Smog |
? |
Passed in Los Altos, CA. |
1996-06-28 |
68,187 |
Sale |
? |
Sold at auction in the “Eastern Region” (per CarFax report) |
1996-04-08 |
68,085 |
Service |
? |
Oil change carried out by HBL Porsche, Vienna, VA. |
1995-09-26 |
60,255 |
Service |
? |
60K service carried out by HBL Porsche, Vienna, VA |
1995-05-15 |
55,325 |
Service |
? |
Camshaft belt checked by HBL Porsche, Vienna, VA |
1995-03-06 |
52,955 |
Service |
? |
2 years of operation service (seems to be 2 years late?) carried out by HBL Porsche, Vienna, VA
|
1994-07-18 |
45,651 |
Service |
? |
45K service carried out by HBL Porsche, Vienna, VA |
1993-09-28 |
31,259 |
Service |
? |
Oil change carried out by HBL Porsche, Vienna, VA |
1993-04-28 |
26,645 |
Service |
? |
30K service carried out by HBL Porsche, Vienna, VA |
1992-06-15 |
15,301 |
Service |
? |
15K service carried out by HBL Porsche, Vienna, VA |
1991-12-28 |
9,874 |
Service |
? |
Oil change carried out by HBL Porsche, Vienna, VA |
1991-07-22 |
2,238 |
Service |
? |
Oil change carried out by HBL Porsche, Vienna, VA |
1991-06-17 |
179 |
In-Service |
? |
Sold by Manhattan Porsche, Rockville, MD to UB Vehicle Leasing Inc. |