They say you can't have all three:

SPEED, CHEAP, RELIABILITY

You have to pick two...I chose the first two. hehe


It's a built race car,
1.7L flat 4 cylinder motor with a 5-Speed transmission
stock curb weight: 970 kg / 2139lb
with lots of work I could reach 1800lbs w/driver

my reasons forTHIS as a beater.
cheap
cheap insurance (like 500 for 6 months)
fast
handles
...it's a classic!!! fing02.gif

what I wish I was buying:



what I plan to buy:
imagine painted black (not sure what I'm gonna do with those seats just yet...they do look comfortable though).
































it's 35 years old, I'm assuming it has zero balls stock. But can be easily made fast. And, the point of this car is transportation while the tib is down. I'll only work on it if I'm bored.

opinions?

 

Pretty damn clean for 35 yrs old, being that light im sure it has potential. Id say it'd be a pretty pimpin daily driver.

 

Patreezy, I told you via IM, that this car looks very clean and shiney and this car is very unique.

Awesome find!

 

Cheap to buy doesn't always mean that it'll be cheap to run... How about sourcing parts if you need them? How much do parts cost? I'm guessing they're not cheap.

Other than that... Very cool mate fing02.gif

 

I know you wouldn't be driving this TOO much since it's just a beater for the Tib is down, but Porshe parts are VERY expensive. Not to mention, a simple oil change is VERY expensive. A guy I work with has a 944 and it's been sitting in his driveway since August. He keeps getting problem after problem with it. I remember he told me oil changes are so much more expensive because you can't just go to a regular place or do it yourself unless you bought the parts. There is a certain method and a certain type of oil to use for these cars as well. His porsche isn't from the 70's... I think it's an early 90's or late 80's... not too sure. I can check around. But still, the car is 35 years old, it's got expensive parts, and could only lead to you dishing out loads of money for parts since the car might break itself down a lot quicker than your Tib would. I'm not saying don't get it. I'm just saying: BE PREPARED!!!

Otherwise, it's a VERY nice find. It's real clean for something so old. And yeah, those seats look REALLLLLLL comfy... like I could fall asleep in them, lol. Good luck!

 

my car is hungry, it likes porsche's lol GT3 and 911

keep the tibby

 

I had a 74 914 1.8. Same colour as yours actually.

Things to look for... Check carefully under the battery for any signs of rust. As it is in the engine compartment, it gets overheated by the engine.. Consider a change to an optima at least. When the battery overheats, it spews acid all over it's mount.. and it's mount is welded to the passengerside control arm mount. If that rots, the rear suspension can collapse.

Porsche 914s were built by Karman, they used a much thinner metal than the 911 or even the Karman Ghia, as such, they tend to bow in the middle where all the weight is. Pull off the outerrocker panals and check for rust. Any rot there can seriously hamper the car's ability to handle or even get the door open.

Under the car, the floors tend to rust where they meet the engine. Make sure the plastic tab like airdam right infront of the engine are still there. They help with cooling. Airflow in the 914 goes from top to bottom. It comes IN the grill over the engine, goes through the fan and shrouding to cool the engine, and then out the bottom, the dams keep the underside of the car a low pressure area.

Your car used to have foglights in the front. I can tell by the green knob on the dash. They are availible, but a little on the pricy side. They fit into the "grills" in the front bumper.. which with the desirable chrome bumpers.. should also be chrome.

the 1.7 is a good engine. I am assuming your car to be a 72 or 73. The 70 and early 71 models did not have a movable passenger seat, it was part of the firwall's padding. Expect your car to have around 85 hp and weight in at a ton. Zero to 60 is about 13 seconds with a top speed of about 110 to 115. Just remember, the engine may be a Volkswagon Type 4 unit, but it is UNIQUE to the car with different and better flowing heads than the engine in the Bus and the ugly 411 and 412 vws.

Suspension in the front is classic 911 with struts and torsionbars.. it can be upgraded to the better performing porsche brakes with hand tools. The rear is unique. Trailing arms in classic porsche, but instead of torsion bars (the engine gets in the way) it has coil springs and rear discs. The transmission is a 901 unit as found in early 911s but turned around with a ring and pinion flop. Expect the shifting to be vague with first towards you and down instead of towards you and forwards. This is a "Racing style" transmission.

Have fun with it! With proper mods you are driving a car that can hand most cars their arse on a windy road or in an autocross... if you take care of it. Personally, if I owned one, the tib would be the beater...

 

I wouldn't buy a Porsche that was that old,even though it looked like it's in good condition. Like others have mentioned, the parts can be outrageously expensive but, having said that, different strokes for different folks. If you got the time, money and patience to put into it, then go for it.

 

thanks Mad! fing02.gif I knew you'd approve, lol.

I've thought apart the parts thing, I know germans like to build their car's with "Art" not simplicity and when something breaks it's a PITA.

That's why I wanted to buy this and hand it over to my friends shop, he loves these little cars and says it's very easy to fit a chevy engine in one and have it haul balls.

That way at least engine parts are easy and cheap....

We'll see how things go, I wnt to conentrate on the tib, not be involved in an engine swap...

thanks for all the info voice of autumn!

patrick

 

All you need to know was said by Mad-Machine (as we knew it would be wink1.gif).

I would say don't put too much time+effort or money into this car if you truly plan for it to be a car to drive only when the tib is down. Make sure everything's in good running condition before you buy it, and definitely don't do an engine swap.