As we all know, Porsche’s 924 was originally planned to be an Audi and in the beginning used that marque’s engine. Today’s N 924 S is at the other end of the model’s lifespan and uses a proper Porsche mill. Let’s see what that might properly be worth.

I don’t know about you, but I have never actually attempted to put lipstick on a pig. Not living on a farm, and the fear that I might actually find the end result attractive, have proved to be limiting factors.

The convertible conversion on yesterday’s was the factory’s lipstick on a car that some consider to be a bit of a pig. As many of you pointed out, the HT-4100 V8 was never the best bee in the Eldo’s bonnet. Other issues with our particular car’s presentation further sullied the chances of its $13,500 asking price, and when all was said and done that resulted in a 75 percent No Dice loss.

Slightly newer than yesterday’s Cadillac, and just a tad more pricey, is today’s . Interestingly enough, this German sports car and yesterday’s Caddy have two things in common — a four-place cabin and a transaxle. Other than that, they couldn’t be more different. Let’s dive in so we can decide if this Porsche’s fate is different as well.

Upon its introduction, Porsche’s 924 used a VW/Audi engine, shared with the Audi 100 but with its own unique cylinder head. Porsche nursed that mill along over the years, adding a turbocharged variant and bumping up the power of the naturally aspirated edition along the way. In the mid-’80s, however, Volkswagen decided to end the production of the Audi engine. This meant that Porsche had to scramble to find a replacement or abandon their profitable entry-level model entirely.

As luck would have it, a suitable donor was to be found right in the immediate family. That was the 944, the 924’s younger and more accomplished brother. The result was the 924 S, which married the older 924 body and interior with a lower-output edition of the 944’s 2.5-litre four along with some upgraded suspension bits to help handle the newfound power. In this car’s case, that half-a-928-engine is paired via a torque tube with a five-speed transaxle in the back.

The 924 S would enter production in 1986 and would continue for two more years before the 924 was sunsetted entirely at the end of the ’88 model run.

This car comes from that last year of production and enjoys a slight bump in power to 156 horses over the two previous model years. The car comes in Guards Red over a black interior; a removable roof panel can be stored under the bubble back in its own factory-provided pouch.

The ad notes a modest 74,000 miles on the clock and a lot of original bits and pieces that have survived along the way. That makes this a real-time capsule and perfect contender for a Radwood debut once those start happening again. The car looks the part too, rolling on a tidy-looking set of “phone dial” wheels and with appreciably shiny paint. The seller notes one blemish in the body: “Baseball-size paint touch up on passenger-side roof line where PO tried to touch up paint chip and did a crappy job. Would need to be blended professionally to bring to show level.”

That seems to be pretty much it. Well, if you were going to quibble, you might also call out the faded and cracked 924 S decal on the back that could stand to be replaced. But again, that’s just picking nits.

The interior looks to have held up well too, save for the dashboard which has cracked as they all seem to. The seller has fitted a carpet toupee to the dash’s top, and that fits about as well as one could expect it to; cool PORSCHE pattern upholstery adorns the front buckets as well as the two-scoop back bench. All seating surfaces look to be in great shape, as do the carpets and the plastic bits. An age-appropriate Blaupunkt AM/FM cassette sits at the base of the center stack, completing the immersive ’80s effect.

Mechanically, the car is claimed to be sound. The timing belt has been done, along with what the ad claims are thousands of dollars spent in service to update the suspension and make the a/c as chill as Cardi B. The car comes with a clean title, an extra set of factory wheels and the rubber baby bumper sections for the rear bumper. All that comes at the asking price of $13,750.

Okay, it’s now time to decide this Porsche’s fate, and I won’t ever chastise you for calling it a “Porsh” while you do so.

What do you think, is this last-of-the-line 924 S worth that $13,750 as it’s presented? Or, does that price put this “poor man’s Porsche” out of reach of all but the rich?

You decide!

Tampa, FL , or go if the ad disappears.

H/T to ecweigand for the hookup!

Help me out with NPOND. Hit me up at and send me a fixed-price tip. Remember to include your Kinja handle.