WTB 928 LS Swapped, Auto Trans. Also advice needed

Editing my post, as some very kind advice has set me on a better path
Looking for a running, LS swapped 944 928 with an automatic, mid to late 80's-90's.  No preference on which specific transmission, as long as the back seat wasn't cut up to fit it in.  The appeal to me is for the unique configuration, which I'm sure will give me lots of interesting puzzles to solve in the garage going forward

I realize such cars are few and far between, so if there are other places I should be looking, let me know.

I'm also very interested to hear opinions on:

1. If I would be better off buying a manual swapped car and converting it to auto
2. If I would be better off buying a stock auto 944 Turbo and paying TPC to do the LS swap
3. If I should just suck it up and drive stick (haven't for 20 years, but life is settling down and I'm looking to get back into a hobby I once enjoyed)

1) no
2)to my knowledge there never was a 944 turbo with an automatic. automatics were only for the base n/a cars
3)yes, suck it up and drive a stick.

i responded in detail to a thread last week about ls swapping an auto 944. the problem is the automatic in the 944 was originally designed for vw cars and vans, none of which were over 100hp. over the years it got updates for different applications, and i believe the highest horsepower put to one from the factory was in an audi turbo, somewhere around 180hp. you cant expect a small transmission like this to hold up to, say 350 hp and torque, its just not going to last. and its not like there are many upgrades for this transmission to build it to reliably take the power.

in my eyes there is only 2 automatics that make sense for these cars with a v8, and they are both the same amount of work, either the corvette c5/c6 4l60e, or the c6 6l80. either would require cutting the floor in the back seat out, cutting the torsion tube and going to coil overs, and a whole lot of other stuff. it may be possible to adapt something like a zf5 or zf6 from an audi or a boxster, they are layed out in a way that would not require cutting the car up, and various versions will take a lot more torque input. the problem here is everything is custom, and the transmissions are fully electronic, and you will have to make a gm pcm communicate with a vw/audi/porsche/bmw/etc computer, which may be possible, but wouldnt be easy. id rather cut the car up and put in a known drivetrain that works together than build a car to find out what worked on paper electronically doesnt in real life.

alternatively, if your looking for a nice easy car to cruise around in, maybe a 928 is what your after. little bigger, more of a grand touring style car, more comfortable to drive, and already v8 powered. if you choose to ls swap it the factory automatic will hold the power, or if you like, the corvette drivetrain nearly bolts into them.

Sharkey, thank you so much for the detailed reply and advice. I'm shocked I overlooked the 928 - you're correct, this is exactly what I'm looking for. I'm encouraged by what I've read in the forums here today about members that have done the 928 swap. One of my most cherished cars was a vortech s/c Lincoln Mark VIII, my only complaint on that was the heavy, flexing chassis of the luxury barge. 928 seems like it would be perfect and present enough unique challenges in the garage to keep my interest.

If no one on here has a 928 automatic swap for sale, I'll start stalking c-list and BaT for deals on cars with issues that drive the price down and plan a swap in the future.

here's one on LS1Tech

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SAINTANKY,

I have a 1979 928 for sale. The conversion kit is from Renegage. The engine is a 350 cu. in. chevy, out of a '81 Z28 camaro, making about 400 h.p. Complete brake, and front suspension upgrage. The car currently has 5 speed manual transmission. But, I will be removing that transmission, and the car will come with an "UNINSTALLED" automatic transmission, that you can install, or that my guy can install for a additional cost. THU.11/07/2019, 12:41 AM BY BILL PRICE