74 Roller rebuild and Subaru conversion, 1974 rebuild and Subaru conversion project Options

[mgarrison]

Hello,

I new around here, but have been lurking for a bit trying to soak up all the 914 knowledge and information I could! I was looking into building a Factory Five 818 kit with the Subaru flat-4, but the cost of entry was a bit too high, and the time & space needed to build a car from scratch seemed overwhelming. But it got me thinking; that's basically a tube-framed 914 with an odd body. I wonder if anyone has put a Subaru flat-4 in a 914? A few Google searches later I learned that a lot of people had, and parts were out there to spend my money on!

Long story short, I found two rollers with no engines or transmissions in Tucson, AZ a couple of hours South of me. Soon I rented a car hauler for a couple of days and my "Craft Project" (my wife's label) was begun.

The rollers were a green 1971, and a red 1974. I wanted to restore the 71 because it just seemed to have more character. The 74 had been partially stripped for an electric conversion project, and seemed less "car like". Sadly, the 71 needed a bit more work than I was setup to handle. So, it had to be the 74 who I have simply labeled as "Red".

I will try to track my build process here as best I can. I tend to get working on things and forget to document things, but will try to keep track.

Here's Red when we got her home on the trailer and tucked away in the back yard for the moment.

Mike

[mgarrison]

It's been a long time since I updated this - been distracted like everyone else, and it was just too hot here during the summer to work on the 914 much at all. I also managed to bounce a running angle grinder off my face at the start of the pandemic lockdown! Safety glasses saved my right eye...My Sister-in-law's guidance was key to being able to treat it at home with very little scarring - saved my bacon!!

I ordered some Eastwood inside frame paint with the cool little spray tube. You can see it covered pretty well inside from the seeping out between the seams:


I've patched up a few small holes in the tub working on my welding skills before I try to weld in the front trunk pan AC fix panel:


We ended up donating the green '70 that was rusty to the automotive program at the local tech school where our Son attends. Getting "Greenie" out and on a trailer took some juggling...


I joked the 914 was "out for a drive".


It still seemed just too hot to weld, so I switched over to pulling the suspension apart, cleaning, and repainting the pieces.


The shocks and inserts were budget KYB items. I think I will replace with the Koni adjustable units. Can anyone verify those are Boge strut housings?


It's interesting, the brake pads, rotors, grease and bearings all seem almost brand new:


Getting those ball joints loose was quite the challenge. Thanks to the various members here who have posted what worked for them - the pipe wrench method won in the end!


While some components seemed almost new, others seemed totally shot:


I'll try to update more regularly now that its cool enough to work outside again...