What shuold I look for? what are the most common problems I can have and are the repairs costly? What else should I be worried about?

yeah we need to know which one you are looking for.

Restoration project? Make sure you also shop for a Technician if you don't already have one lined up. That can make the ownership experience so much better.

A 1980 anything is not a good choice as a daily driver. Best to have a second vehicle at the ready and reliable. Back in the day you kept a Beetle for winter! I guess you get a minivan today?

A 911 would be my only choice for a 1980

ASE Cert Auto Tech, since 1978 Cut my teeth on those bad boys!

The car is reliable if it was taken care of. If you take it to the sceduled maintemance, then it should be fine.
Maintemance is costly and so are repairs because it is a High-end German car.
For their performance, the gas mileage is good.
The insurance will also be high because it is a German sportscar. There aren't any common problems in a Porsche.

What model?

If it's a 924 or 928, DON'T BUY IT.

If it's a 911, that was a good year.

Look for good service records, for a well-kept car. If the engine has more than 200K on it, it will be ready for a rebuild. This will cost $10,000 to $12,000 dollars, so you had better have ANY engine tested thoroughly prior to purchase (cylinder leakdown test).

Watch out for a "heavy" or hard to push clutch---that's a sure sign of clutch failure.

Also if you can avoid it, don't buy a targa model. Sunroof coupes are best.

Also the AC sucks on these cars, take it out. It just gets in the way of everything.

Good luck. The SCs are great cars if you find a good one.

If I were you I would find a local Porsche club and enlist their help. Any Porsche you buy from a used car dealer could have major issues just like buying from a private seller. Cars belonging to club members generally have a better chance of having had all their scheduled maintenance.

Parts will cost more for a Porsche than they will for a Chevy so keep in mind the fact that you should budget money each year for parts.

You might also consider getting your hands on a buyers guide book like these for the 911


http://www.911secrets.com/

look 4 good mileage,most common problem is maintenance never being able to pay it off before your insurance hits.Oh..dont worry you'll never be able to afford to drive it 1000 miles.