What have I gotten myself into, New old 914 Options

[Rick H.]

Evening everyone,

I'm new to Porsche but have always liked the look of the 914. Drove one a few times just enough to realize the shift pattern was not what I was used to. I've been looking around for a project car and found several MG and Triumph models but they were all either rust buckets, a project someone started but dropped or stupid expensive. Besides, who wants to deal with British electrical systems from the 60's? Not me. Fortunately I have decent mechanical skills and once built a 350 4 bolt Chevy in my kitchen. I was single and what else was I going to do with a kitchen? Worked out well. Last week on Facebook for sale I found a 914, looked at the photos, lost my mind and bought it. It's a mess. Stored inside or at least under a roof for 20 something years. The guy that bought the property found it and a lot of other stuff in one of the barns and finally decided to get rid of it. He pulled it out and it rained immediately. The paint is dead and the interior is awful but I found no signs of rust, just some surface corrosion. It's a '74, not sure which engine but not a 6 cylinder. Looks like most of that is there, all the dash instruments are there. No sign of rodent infestation damage. Tires are toast of course but I should be able to get it on a trailer to get it home. All four wheels turn, no lock ups. Headlights and bumpers are missing but I suspect they are in a storage building with a lot of other stuff. I'll need a flashlight and a shotgun to root around in there but the rattle snakes haven't started moving yet. The seller thinks everything is here, just not all in the same place. I'll post a few photos of my latest nightmare, I mean project, when I get it home. Should be next week. I've found quite a few videos on YouTube that have been worth watching and there's a place in Atlanta that does a lot of work with the 914. I also found this place thank goodness. I'll need to learn who the parts sources are for these cars and a whole lot more. For now I'll settle for learning what to look for and what questions to ask. First question: is there a decent shop manual for the 914? Back in the pre internet days someone produced a series of very basic shop manuals for nearly any kind of car but I don't know what's out there now. I've done resto work on a 68 Mustang and a 79 Z-28 and what I learned from those is how to figure things out and how many things the previous owner did wrong. Anyway it's nice to be here and I hope to get underway on this car soon.

Rick H

[fiacra]

What have you gotten yourself into? From the description it sounds like you've gotten yourself into debt (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) .

A few thoughts:

Just about everyone underestimates the amount of rust they have found on their car. If you haven't already, watch Ian Karr's video about this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4N_i7l0vhr4

Don't do anything on your car until you have really looked hard and deep for rust. If you love to weld, and have the time, place, and skills to address it, then it may not be a big deal to you, but for a lot of people it is a project killer. Until I hear that you have taken the rocker panels to inspect the longs, and have really inspected the hell hole, I'm going to be skeptical about any claim that there is only surface rust.

Read a bunch of the restoration threads on this site. You'll learn a lot! There is a lot of knowledge here. This is a good one to start with:

http://www.914world.com/bbs2/index.php?sho...c=76791&hl=

Here's the answer to your question about parts suppliers. Also links to manuals and the PET (parts catalog with diagrams).

http://www.914world.com/bbs2/index.php?showtopic=361087

Be sure to check out Jeff Bowlsby's website. There is a wealth of important information there. The "tech notebook" section is invaluable.

https://bowlsby.net/914/Classic/

And, of course, welcome! You'll find what you need here.