BUILD-OFF CHALLENGE: Boxsterfan's 1974 2270, Time to get going over the next 3 months... Options

[boxsterfan]

So today, I got started tearing down my 1974 2.0L. Started at the rear and got through almost all the interior except dash and center console area. Overall, the car looks good from a rust perspective, but I KNOW that there is rust in the hell hole and the area under the hell hole (where the original fuel pump mount location was) is pretty much gone as I can stick my hand in there. I'll get pics of that after I drop the motor some upcoming weekend.

So what's my build gonna be? I'm fairly well locked in on what I want to do. I have considered /6's (and even come close to acquiring a 3.0L), but I think in the end I am going to go with a built up 2270 motor. One of the main reasons I am going that route is that I want to be able to use 1st gear. Sound strange? Sure, even though 1st is not much of anything even on a stock 2.0L, I just love the dogleg shifting from 1st to 2nd. From reading others posts here, if I go a /6 I pretty much end up with starting in 2nd all the time.

So here's the build (with some decision points still):
Note: This is a very high level list

Staying with Narrow Body, removing the warts and antenna hole
2270 /4 with some form of FI provided by megasquirt, external oil cooler, maybe ITB's.
901 side-shift with anything that can be done to improve gearing and longevity
5-lug upgrade (suspension components and the whole bits) with Fuchs.
Interior will be mostly stock, but looking to go the Getty Dash route.
Sticking with original Alaska Blue Metallic (L96B)

Here's my progress today:

Rear bumper off:

[boxsterfan]

Pedal cluster close-up and shot inside the tunnel at the rear:

Note: Inside the center tunnel looks just dirty as I took my finger and swiped away some dirt in the middle of the pic.