Suby-engined rustoration, 21-Sep-2024 update: more racing-related carnage! Options

[strawman]

Hi All --

This is my second post, but I've been lurking on this fine website for a while now. I've wanted a 914 since I was in high school, but always seemed to stumble upon other projects... until recently.

My neighbor gave me this 1973 Porsche 914 about a month ago. He told me he blew a head gasket and parked it in his parents' driveway in 1992. When his parents finally told him to move it or they were calling a local junkyard, he offered it to me since he knows I'm a gearhead. In for a penny, in for a pound...

I hauled it home, knowing that it has some rust issues in the battery area and rear trunk. But it appears to have never been in a wreck and it is complete. It turns out that an exhaust stud pulled, so he coulda fixed it for a couple hundred and probably kept another 914 from languishing but I guess all things happen for a reason (namely, so I would undertake this project!).

I sold the engine to a local Craigslister for use in his Meyers Manx dune buggy, and bought a wrecked but running 1993 Subaru Legacy turbo wagon. This is the closed-deck 2.2 liter engine, and 250 hp is easy with boost control and an open exhaust. I've already done a Subaru into a VW Vanagon and my daily driver is a 1992 Suby Legacy, so this won't be too much of a stretch for me. I plan to use the Suby 5-speed transmission (out of a 1998 Suby Forester) with the Aussie-sourced RWD elimination coupler and custom-mated 914/Suby axles.

I've got a suburban home with a crowded two-car garage (my 125 shifter kart and my daughter's FJA kart will likely get lonely!), a MIG welder, and a wide assortment of air/power/hand tools -- so the adventure begins! This project will likely take a year to finish, so please be patient.

I've attached some pics of the car as found in the driveway, some rust areas and the rear trunk repairs I've started. I'll chronicle the build as I go, so feel free to chime in!

Geoff

[strawman]

Now for a pic of the rotisserie parts. I bought a couple of engine stands off Craigslist (one was purchased from a guy that lives only four doors down from my house!) -- I got one for $25 and the other for $30. I also bought another $100 of 2" x 2" x 1/8" square tubing, and got some scrap 1.5" for free that I'll use to connect the two stands (see the rusty piece on the ground?). I had some scrap steel sitting in my garage that I used to extend the height of the two stands, and used some leftover steel to triangulate the base/vertical portion. I hope to have a small beer/pizza party this weekend to lift the chassis onto the stands.



I'm planning on using the engine stand steel wheels to save cash on buying new casters. Anyone want to chime in to say this is a bad idea???

Yes, I'm an SF Giants fan, so I had to paint the rotisserie orange. I'll eventually paint the car orange, too.

You can also see the turnbuckle system I'm using. I bought two 3-point tractor connectors (one for each side) for $20/each at Tractor Supply Company. I then cut 'em in half and welded in some Schedule 40 pipe to extend them the proper length. I'm following Jeff Hail's lead by welding in the lower support to the kick panel so that I can install the doors to check gaps as I weld in the hellhole repair panels. I used the lefty-tighty heim joint for the upper mount, and used a 3/4" bolt welded onto angle steel for the lower mount. Here's a closeup of the upper mount:



I've committed to the GT Flare / rocker group buy, so those will be welded in after the rust issues have been tackled. I also bought the Desert Hybrid chassis stiffening kit and trailing arm stiffening kit that'll be installed while the car is up in the air. Stay tuned!