1974 914 1.8, the mystery of the EC-A and EC-B Options

[wonkipop]

i'll be dropping the information we have gathered over Dec 2021 in with a set of posts.

the material was prompted by mr b ( @JeffBowlsby ) who observed that for the 74 MY there was an EC-A and an EC-B engine. mr b's thought was that the EC-A was a 49 states car and and EC-B was a californian car for emissions.

mr b's view was rational and reasoned. 73 EA engines are 49 states. 73 EB engines are california. 75 engines are documented in factory literature as EC-a (49 states) and EC-b (california). the logic should follow?

BUT

as per the mystery of the 914, the truth about 74 1.8s turns out stranger than fiction (or common sense?).

the material is not necessary to running a 1.8 or having fun with a 14. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

its for historical purposes and as information to 74 1.8 owners to assist with restoration if they want it.

[wonkipop]

@StarBear @JeffBowlsby @Van B

1.8 L jet research was kind of worth it.
did a 914world search - i see dr. 914 asked the question recently in 2020
(info for revised dr. b johnson book?)

he was close with his initial historical info -- but not quite.
had all 74 1.8s pegged as engine bay charcoal cans.
and plastic expansion tank change as late 1974 - meaning i think late MY 74?

http://www.914world.com/bbs2/index.php?showtopic=346667

now we know
1) at least 3 weeks of 1.8s with frunk charcoal cannister up to approx nov 20 1973.
2) plastic expansion tank change is between mon 13 may (metal) and mon 20 may (plastic). week 20 of 1974. last metal tank i found is a 1.8. first plastic tank i found is a 2.0.

subset of 1) is that evap emissions plumbing is revised from porsche design to VW design at inception of engine bay cannister - approx nov 20 1973,

what i have been really looking for with any cars that come up on BAT is that elusive
EC-B emissions sticker with only USEPA approval. i'm starting to think that the sticker might apply to EC-B engines after a certain date in late 74 model year. likely perhaps the CARB put their foot down and made porsche/VW declare the EC-B as not approved for california. difficult information to find as not many BAT photos home in on the sticker, it is always hidden in most photo sets. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sad.gif)

in dr. 914's thread Maltese Falcon entered a post noting his 02/74 had a frunk charcoal can from new. given the wild drift in Vin numbers and K#s that has come up in the L jet research that does not surprise me now. i reckon there is a good chance Maltese Falcon's car might have been started in Oct 73 in the first batch of 914 2.0s and not finished and given a VIN until Feb 74. i will try and look through the Vin data base here and see if he has entered a K#. that will tell a story if the info is there.