|
|
|
|
1972 Porsche 914Introduction - Part 1 - Purchase of the car8/11/2005First, I have always love mid-engine cars. As there are very few of these that have been produced that are affordable, the potential list of cars that I could ever have is pretty small. Something like the Fiat X1/9 is just not large enough for me to fit into (not crazy about Fiat as well). I am also a huge Honda fan, but currently the Acura NSX just is too expensive. More exotic cars such as the various class or current Lotus or even some older Porsches are again on the expensive side. A first or second generation Toyota MR2 could fit the bill, but for whatever reason, the car doesn't evoke any kind of emotional response in me. This really leave me with two options. Either a 914 or a Boxster. In addition to being a Honda fan, I also have had a long love affair with Porsche. While I have not drive a Boxster, by all accounts, it is a wonderful car. And while the prices for an older Boxster is actually a great deal these days, something about the 914 keeps me interested and looking in that direction. I think it is that it is such a back to basic sports car. It has a simple interior, four wheel independent suspension, disk brakes at all four corners and go-kart handling. Basically what the first generation Miata was when it first came out (which is why it was such a huge success). I had two previous 914s years ago. I had a 1973 1.7 that I destroyed in a wreck (lucky to walk away unhurt). The second is a 1974 2.0 that I still own, but has a terminal rust problem and now is only suitable as a parts car. The 74 was the car I was driving in college and when I was first married. So I feel that a another 914 is the way to go. I just don't have the time or money to start a racing career this late in my life. I do however want to experience the thrill of driving on a real race track at speed. Ever since visiting Mid-Ohio in the mid 1980's and watching IMSA GTP racing at it's peak (Al Holbert and Derek Bell in a Porsche 962) I have always wanted to drive a race prepared mid-engined Porsche. In addition to this, I enjoy driving a performance car on open roads as well as Autocrossing. So I want it all. I want a fun street car, a car I can Autocross as well as a proper and safe HPDE car. If you know anything about 914s, you know that they have rust problems. The bodies where not made from galvanized steel. On top of that, they have a number of design issues that causes rust in certain areas. These areas are the "Longitudinals" (box areas in passenger area the basically hold the front and rear of car together), the front and rear trunk and the the usually worst area is right below the battery in what is known as the "Hell Hole". Because of this, all 914s have some rust. It is just a matter of how much. So my hunt was to find a car that had a pretty decent body at an affordable price. Very nice 914s can be found on eBay for $5000 and above. I needed to find something nice, but for less money. I also did not particularly want a 1975 or 1976 model as I am not crazy about the bumpers that were used on those models. The ideal cars are the 1973/74 2.0L. But with those being in demand, the prices are higher. Since i am going to be building a track car and most likely eventually doing a four to six cylinder engine swap, there was less motivation for me to find a "real" 2.0 car. As I also could swap the transmission as well as the engine, I could also consider an early 914 that doesn't have the sideshifter transmission. After looking at a few cars in person and watching eBay for quite awhile I ended up finding my car via a tip from a friend in THSCC who currently Autocrosses his 914 in DSP. The car was a 1972 1.7L that has some typical rust issues, but is generally solid. The good... The longitudinals are generally pretty solid. The floor is pretty solid and the rest of the body panels are pretty solid. The engine runs and is drivable. The previous owner (PO) also had a number of extra parts. The bad... While the "Hell Hole" is not that bad, it does have problems and will need work. Also, the front trunk bottom will most likely need to be replaced or patched. The rear trunk will need to be completely replaced. The PO also had a small accident just prior to my purchase. He had backed into the driver side front fender. The entire fender probably should be replaced. Overall, I plan to strip the entire car down to either the factory paint if that part of body is rust free, or to the bare metal. I am going to have to learn how to weld to fix the various places that need to be repaired and I am gong to repaint the entire car. I also expect I am going to use the 2.0L engine (rebuild it) and sideshift transmission from my old 1974 car and put it in the new car. I don't know yet, but I will most likely either use the Dellorto carberators from my 2.0L engine or go with an aftermarket EFI such as the opensource and popular "Megasquirt" system. Enough of that. Here are some photos of the car when I purchased it. It is still at the PO's home at this point . Note the driver side fender. Car has been repainted by the PO. Original color is green. Have not looked to see what the paint code is yet. No idea at this point what color to paint. I most likely will change my mind a dozen times. Right now it seems like it might be nice to go back to original color.
Trunk hinges need to be reworked.
Some evidence of bodywork right above door handle. This is a typical rust area on cars with the vinyl installed in this area.
This is the money shot! At the moment it looks the best from this angle.
Not crazy about the Interior color. But it does go well with the exterior!
Trying to get a shot of the odometer. PO says it doesn't work, so I don't know the mileage. I think it reads 45881. So, lets assume at least 145881 |
|
