I've been looking to buy an 850 turbo or an R, and have found a very nice example--'96 855T with 95k, looks like it was cared for.

But now the problem: my "seat of the pants" test tells me that the turbo is boosting quite well, but the needle stays in the middle during all conditions. It does move barely into the white when I stomp on it, but edges back a hair into the black, even under deceleration. It simply does not drop off to the left, as one would expect. The total movement of the gauge is about 1 millimeter.

Does this sound like a sign of something obvious--or of repair work poorly done?

thanks,
tom in Charlottesville