1990 Porsche 944 S2 Cabriolet – Manual

Details

Oldtimer Australia is delighted to offer for sale a 1990 Australian delivered, factory right hand drive, Porsche 944 S2 Cabriolet. This car is fitted with the desirable manual gearbox.

There is a Porsche Classic Technical Certificate with the car that was issued on the 10th May 2022. This confirms the Date of Production as the 2nd February 1990 and that the car was delivered in ‘alpine white’ with a black soft top and a black, partially leather, interior. The car was delivered with the following options: 288 headlamp washers, 418 protective side mouldings, 438 electric front seat right, 490 high fidelity package (8 speakers with amplifier), 513 lumbar support (driver’s seat), 573 air conditioning, 946 partial leather front seats. The Australian compliance plate is date stamped 04/90.

This car has its full book set and the service book confirms this particular example was delivered new through Scuderia Veloce Motors in Willoughby, NSW to Mr Wills from Turramurra on 30th August 1991. The service book confirms that the car has always been serviced on a regular basis and it also confirms the current odometer reading of 200,049 km as genuine.
In addition to the service book, there are receipts on file for other work completed in more recent times. In 2010 a new soft top was installed by Sports & Specialist Trimming Pty Ltd in Richmond, Victoria. In 2015, with an odometer reading of 190,783 km the cam belt was changed. In that same year, new crank & main shaft seals, a clutch kit, a new thrust fork, a new pivot shaft & new bearings, as well as new CV joints and a new clutch slave cylinder were installed by Mark Poole Motorsport in Adelaide, SA.

The current owner acquired the car in 2021 to compliment his Porsche collection. During his ownership an extensive amount of work has been undertaken with a view to bringing the car back to original specification with respect to both the interior and mechanics of the car.

With respect to the interior of the car, any worn electrical buttons and switches were sourced and replaced. In addition, the original Eurovox CD radio has been restored and reinstalled at a cost in excess of $3,000. A Bluetooth module has been fitted to the original Eurovox Radio allowing for handsfree telephone connection.

Mechanically, the new owner handed the car to Porsche Centre Melbourne with instructions to bring the car back to Porsche Classic status, which is evidenced by the certificate issued with respect to the car as detailed below.

An extensive mechanical restoration was completed by classic team at Porsche Centre Melbourne including:

• New SAAP shock absorbers were installed in the front and rear of the car.
• The rear suspension was adjusted to bring the ride height of the car back to factory standard, returning the car to its original stance and handling.
• The left side half shaft was overhauled & and new CV boots were installed.
• Both engine mounts were replaced, the cam belt was replaced, the front under tray was missing so that was replaced, a new steering shaft was installed and the front sway bar bushes were replaced.
• A new AC compressor was installed, a new water pump was installed and a new distributor cap and rotor were fitted.

The invoice for this work was c$14,000.

Today this Porsche 944 S2 Cabriolet presents and drives well. The car is incredibly original and unmolested. It’s overall condition and presentation is more consistent with a car that has travelled 100,000 km!

The ‘alpine white’ paint work is in very good condition all around. There is the odd blemish and defect here and there, most noticeable are a few small stone chips on the nose. All of the external trim, including the bumpers, lights/lenses, badges and decals are also in very good condition. The wheels, which are shod with Ohtsu FP1000 tyres, are a real feature on this era of Porsche. On this car the wheels and the centre caps present beautifully and are in very good condition. As noted above, the soft top was replaced in 2010 and today it presents ‘as new’.

The interior of this Porsche 944 is in excellent condition, again belying the car’s age and mileage. The upholstery is in exceptional condition for a 30+ year old car and there are no rips or tears to the seats. Even the piping and seat bolsters, which often split and / or show wear are beautifully preserved. All of the ‘hard plastic’ surfaces, including the dash are in excellent condition with no damage or cracking evident. The instruments and controls are crisp and clean and the steering wheel is almost ‘like new’. The car retains its original Porsche stereo, which further reinforces the originality of this car.

The engine bay presents incredibly well and appears to be totally original. Importantly, this car retains all of its original ID plates and tags.

The car runs and drives beautifully and out on the open road it performs exactly as one would expect.

Front engine Porsches are now being recognised as ‘real Porsches’ and attracting the attention from enthusiast and collectors. Porsche 924 Carrera GT’s and the first series 928’s are now highly sought after. With just over 5,600 examples built from 1989 – 1991, the Porsche 944 S2 Cabriolet is quite a rare car, offers a huge amount of car for the money and is surely a future collectible.

Highlights:

• Desirable 944 S2 Cabriolet with a manual gearbox.
• Australian delivered car, sold through Scuderia Veloce Motors in Sydney.
• Well optioned.
• Books and full service history.
• Matching numbers.
• Porsche Classic Technical Certificate recently issued.
• Recently work by Porsche and $14,000+ spent on the car.
• Stunning car in every regard.

Price $54,950.

 

Background

The Porsche story is a fascinating one and its roots go back to the 1930’s when Professor Ferdinand Porsche was instrumental in the design of the first Volkswagen and also Auto Union race cars. By 1939 he had built three Porsche cars to compete in the 800-mile race from Berlin to Rome. Unfortunately, the race was cancelled due to the war and Porsche was forced to focus on supporting the German war effort, however, he had always wanted to build his own cars. In 1944 Porsche was forced to leave Stuttgart and he set up a small operation in Gmünd, Austria. Soon after the Porsche family and many of their engineers were captured and sent to jail. Ferdinand Porsche’s son, Ferdinand junior or ‘Ferry’ as he was known, was released six months later and he returned to Gmünd to rebuild the family company. Things moved quickly and Porsche was involved with cars again and in mid-1948 the first Porsche 356 was built. It is understood Porsche built some 50 aluminium bodied cars by hand in their small factory at Gmünd before relocating back to Stuttgart, Germany. The rest they say is history as the 356 evolved into one of the most successful sports cars ever built. A hard act to follow indeed . . . but its replacement, the Porsche 911 went on to become a legend!

The evolution of the Porsche 911 is probably the greatest sports car story of all time. First introduced in 1963 at the Frankfurt Motor Show, and then designated as a 901, the successor to the 356 took the world by storm. To avoid conflict with Peugeot, who claimed exclusive rights to car names with three digits having a ‘zero’ in the middle, the car was renamed as 911. The first production 911 was built in 1964 and it was powered by an air cooled 1991cc 6 cylinder engine. The car evolved with increases in engine capacity to 2.2 litres, 2.4 litres, 2.7 litres, 3.0 litres and 3.3 litres. There were styling changes also, but one always recognised the car as a 911. Some 59 years later Porsche is still building the iconic 911 which is quite incredible!

In 1965 Porsche introduced the 912, considered by many to be an entry level variant of the 911. It was powered by a 1.6 litre flat four engine as used in the last of the 356’s. The Porsche 912 was offered as both a coupe and a targa. It was an instant success and initially the 912 outsold the 911!

By the late 1960’s Porsche was looking for a replacement for the 912. They wanted another entry level car, but at the same time something different from the 911/912. In conjunction with Volkswagen, the Porsche 914 was developed. The car was another success story for Porsche, particularly in the lucrative north American market.

In November 1975 the Porsche 924 made its public debut. The 914’s successor was a huge gamble for Porsche. The 924 was the first production road going Porsche to use water cooling and a front engine, rear-wheel drive layout. The purist would again argue the 924 wasn’t a real Porsche. It was produced in the former NSU, now Audi, factory in Neckarsulm, Germany and the engine was an Audi engine with a Porsche designed cylinder head. The car was also criticised for its performance. Despite all of those perceived shortcomings, the 924 became one of Porsche’s best selling cars. The performance issue was solved when Porsche introduced the 924 Turbo in 1978, followed by the Porsche 924 Carrara GT in 1979. In 1981 Porsche raced the 924 GTP at Le Mans. This car was based on the 924 Carrera GT Le Mans but instead of the Audi based engine it was fitted with a new 2.5 litre engine built by Porsche. A year later Porsche introduced the 944, which was a road going version of this car. The 944 used the technology carried over from the 924 GTP but its engine was detuned for road use. The 944 was another Porsche success story and it was built as both a coupe and convertible. In 1989 the 944 received an upgrade and with a more powerful 3.0 litre engine the 944 S2 was now a seriously fast car!

The 944 remained in production until 1991 when it was superseded by the 968. In total 163,192 Porsche 944’s were produced, making it one of the most successful Porsches ever built.

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