When you have the perspective of knowing a project car without an engine or transmission at one time, sold for peanuts, it can be hard to rationalize how expensive the same car now costs. Inflation, and all that. This 1982 Porsche 911 Targa has no engine or transmission and is listed for $10,500 – which seems slightly bananas but is all that surprising in today’s market? It has a few things going for it, which include seemingly rust-free condition and what may be a fairly rare color scheme. Mileage is listed as 52K miles and the seller notes that he has misplaced the title.

Thanks to Barn Finds reader Chuck F. for the find. The body, while it may be rust-free (seller’s words, not mine) has suffered some other panel damage over the years and part of the rear bumper is missing. The photos show a dent in the rear passenger side quarter panel and the front fender on the same side. The driver’s side actually looks pretty straight, and the glass is in good shape as well. The big rear Targa window is a hard item to replace when it’s damaged, so it’s good to see that the glass, targa hoop, and removable roof panel are all in seemingly decent shape. However, there’s some chatter on Facebook about this car that indicates it has frame damage – are those indentations in the body signs of more issues underneath?

So, first of all, you can see here the engine has been removed, and it’s hard to tell if the extraction was done cleanly. The seller doesn’t explain what became of the original engine but this is going to be a costly replacement. Even with the asking price seemingly being “cheap” amongst the price of an entry level air-cooled runner that now clocks in at $60K or better, a used air-cooled engine will likely cost north of $15,000, and a rebuilt 3.0L motor will set you back $30,000. Those details aside, I like seeing the matching paint inside the engine compartment,  wheel arches, and front trunk, and it looks to be “Light Bronze Metallic,” a color you don’t see everyday.

The chocolate brown upholstery pairs nicely with the bronze paint, and the matching carpet suggests that this is an original interior we’re looking at. The posts on Facebook lay into the seller about the cost to restore this 911, which I certainly understand, especially given any air-cooled shop is going to charge you to the moon and back to get this Targa into running order. As someone who is nearing the finish line on restoring a car that typically costs a fair amount to buy in very good to excellent condition, I am a big believer in bringing a car back to life in phases to keep costs in control. However, most air-cooled collectors these days want a runner, not a restoration project, so it will be interesting to see if someone steps up to saving this battered bronze 911. Find it here on craigslist in Central New Jersey.