OT: 1975 911S, need advice, went to look at one. Options

[michaelmoo]

I went to look at a 75 911s 2.7 coupe (no a/c) on Friday. Need some advice.

Here is the low down on the car: two owners (current has had it since 79), 100k miles, garages all it life minus 5 years it lived in Texas. Has all records going back to 1975, but has been sitting for over a year (will get to that in a moment).

Interior: seats need new covers with the drivers being worse; dash is faded but not cracked. The carpet, headliner, rear seats, etc are almost perfect. The steering wheel horn button/pad retaining clip is broken. early 90's am/fm/cd. Windows roll up and down with no issue.

Body: front driver fender is shot. It has some rust. Will have to replace it. Front hood has 34 years worth of rock chips, no wrecks, a few door dings, all panels line up almost perfect. Some rust (surface no rust thru) in battery box. The drivers and passenger door jambs have some strange rust holes. Looks like it could be ground and welded. No other rust. Floor pans are good with no rust. Rear reflector is cracked. No rust in head light buckets. Front needs to be repainted (hood and new fender). But entire body could use a repaint.

Brakes: it has none. Pedal goes almost to the floor before any (little) pressure. Need to be gone through.

Wheels/Tires: Tires are about 2 years old (but sitting for the last year) and the Fuchs need to be refinished (they are black and polished and the black is faded).

Shocks: I did the bounce test and they all seem normal.

Engine: Hasn’t run in a year. Last time the guy drove it was on his way back from his “new” mechanic. The “new” mechanic said that “the 2.7’s are terrible engines and need to be rebuilt every 50k miles and this one is long over due.” It freaked the guy out at the price of the rebuild and he hasn’t driven it since. He said that the engine felt fine but the guy said it needed it. He in the late 80’s updated to the Carrera chain tensioners. An 11 blade fan was installed before he got it (I believe that the 74-75 had the 7 blade fan) in 79. He didn’t want to crank it because he didn’t know about the oil sitting for a year and that his mechanic said his engine was “about to go”. I know the 2.7’s have there head stud issues but I think this mechanic was trying to pull a fast one. The engine is fairly clean with a little grime around the oil lines and the oil tubes. He says he hasn’t cleaned the engine since he parked. Which looking at the dust I believe.

So I know being a 2.7L engine the head studs will have to be replaced at some point. But what are yall’s general thoughts on this car?

[carr914]

You didn't mention a price and of course


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Sorry, just had to do it.

T.C.

[michaelmoo]

I have no pictures but might be able to get a few.

He is asking 5k obo. I'm not sure he would take much less, but he did say that he is negotiable on the price but if it were going to go to someone that would take care of it, he's open to talk.

[michaelmoo]

If you look at the bottom of the driver front fender you can see the rust hole. there is a little surface rust at the front of that fender.

[Cupomeat]

Here is my take on this type of purchase;
- Unless you have experience with rebuilding 911 engines, assume you will spend $10k on the engine
- That being said, you can get a good bodied 911SC for about the same combined price ($5k+$10k), which is a very similar looking car with many improvement, especially the engine.

SO, if you are looking for the bottom price admission to 911 land, you might have found it, but you won't be driving it much before it needs significant money.

I'd let it go and find a better shape car that currently runs and might be more reliable.

On the other hand, many of us know how much fun it is to take a semi-forgotten car and bring it back from the dead by our own hands.

to sum up - If you are looking for a big project car, go for it. If you want to drive it soon, avoid it.

I hope that helps.

[Ferg]

I think 5k is to much.

Rust issues are common on those area's in 74-76, much like 914's, dirt and mud pack in the longs and hold moisture there. Door jambs front, and back rust out from the inside out.

This car sounds like a huge headache. I pulled a 75 out of 12 year indoor storage. I got lucky and got mine running with minimal work, (minimal being entire fuel system, new tank, line's and cis Dist) Mine had all the same rust issues as yours, but it was a genuine Carrera (not the current one I own).

The way I see it, this is easily a 8-9k car just to get it on the road and decent. 8-9k can still buy a sorted mid year 911, so just do that instead. You will be much happier, trust me.

Ferg (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)

[michaelmoo]

Thanks Eric and Ferg. Thats actually what I thought also. I just wanted a reality check to make sure I'm still sane. But I'd also question my sanity of coming here to check it...

[pete-stevers]

i think you should hold out for a galvanized version, with a 3.0 in it
and pay a bit more than five, say 8 or 9000

[PRS914-6]

2.7 engines can be built fine. With an updated fan, inserts in the case AND a decent oil cooler, they will run forever. Heat is what kills the magnesium cases. They are soft and when they get hot the studs pull out of the case. Keep em cool and you won't have problems.

As a reference on cost, I got a 77 911 for free. By the time I get done restoring the car I suspect I'll have about 18k in it and it wasn't that bad to start with except the engine was trashed. If you can't do the work yourself I would probably run. If you can get it for a a couple of grand and you can build an engine yourself it's worth considering

[Joe Bob]

Nothing wrong with a 2.7 that the thermal reactors didn't screw up. They heated up the engine and then the studs pulled. If the engine came w/o them or they were pulled early and replaced with equal length/early heat exchangers you could e lucky.

5K for a ride in that condition is a crap shoot. Offer him 2500 and if the engine is toast you have a good parts car.

[GeorgeRud]

If you can get it cheap enough, you have an engine that may work, a transmission that would take an WEVO kit to be converted into a midengined use, the shift tower and some linkage for the conversion, a front suspension that you could use on a 5 lug conversion, etc.

I started with an old 75 911 to build up my conversion, and if you are up to doing all the work, it's not a bad source of parts.

If you're planning to use it as a car, I would also agree that you could get an SC for not much more, and the rust and engine issues go away!

[Derek Seymour]

to sum up - If you are looking for a big project car, go for it. If you want to drive it soon, avoid it.

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One thing though is that this car will go up in value prior to and higher than an SC just because it is an S even though they are very similar, with the engine being the major difference. Also 2.7's can be made to be just as beefy and reliable as 3.0 SC engines. Sounds like some of that has been taken care of, but if it does need a rebuild (and you buy it) then look into the studs and improving oil flow.