Newbie with a 1973 2.0 Options

[Rathguten]

Hello 914world! Newbie to the site and 914s. I recently purchased a 1973 2.0. The car was purchased twelve years ago by the previous owner and has been sitting for four years. The seller provided all sorts of new parts and a binder with receipts going back to the day it was purchased new. I have several air cooled VWs and was just about ready to start the resto of my 1950 type 1 when this little distraction came along. The more I read about these cars the more excited I get to get it road worthy again.

I was able to start the engine, but the fuel lines are brittle and the fuel tank has a lot of sludge. I have since pulled the tank and purchased a replacement and also removed the fuel pump and all the old lines. The car still has the plastic fuel lines and I'm planning on replacing them in the near future. However I just want to get the car running so I can get a better idea of what direction to go in.

Like I said earlier, I don't have any previous knowledge about these cars, so please feel free to chime in with advice or comments.

[Rathguten]

Well the weather didn't cooperate today and it rained all afternoon so I didn't get to do anything on the car. However, I did get curious about all the receipts and decided to add them up. The total maintenance and repairs on the car for first ten years was $5,571.33, which is close to the original cost of the car. From there I kept adding the receipts and the grand total up up to 2009, which is where the trail ends is $31,949.57! Granted it does include an engine rebuild in 1996, but I was surprised at how much was spent over the years. Then again, I'm pretty frugal and do everything myself, so maybe that's a bargain. I lost count of how many A/C related repairs there were. "AC topped off" was on the vast majority of the receipts. Also found a recall letter dated July 12, 1977 from VWoA related to possible damage as a result of water runoff from the battery.

I like the idea about buying a "kit" to replace the fuel lines. I know that feeling of needing one of everything and would like to get it all done in one shot. I was also reading about relocating the fuel pump to the front, so that is on my to do list as well. I just want to get it running before I get too deep into it financially as I need to stay focused on my 1950 VW. My idea/hope/desire is to have the '50 ready for HO next year and that is going to take lots of attention and money.

I must admit that I thought about selling the car when I first got it as I just have too many cars to keep up with. But as happens to me so often, the more I work on it, look at it and read about it, the more attached I get. So I decided to keep it. Just please don't tell my wife. I'm great at buying, but boy do I have a hard time selling.