Your Personal 914 History, When did you get the bug and how bad? Options

[Qarl]

1. How were you first introduced to 914s? (Relative, first car, always wondered what it was, AX event, etc.)

2. How old were you when you first drove a 914?

3. How many 914s have you owned, including now? (Year, displacement, color)

4. How would you describe your 914 bug?

a. Ehhh... Anyone want to buy my 914?
b. Casual interest - I'm still learning
c. Interested/Enthused - these cars are the best
d. Severely infected - I'm contagious. Admit me to the E/R now
e. Lost Cause - I will probably give up the ghost while driving in my beloved teener!

[scotty]

(1) Introduced to 914’s by Car & Driver / Road & Track in high school. I was the weird kid that liked sports cars and F1 racing… although there was this really cool purple ‘cuda that a friend had. Knew I wanted something “inexpensive” (ah, hindsight!), small and light that wasn’t British (learned that by helping a friend with his Bugeye...constantlybroken) or Fiat. When it came time to buy a car for college, I tried to be sensible for my parents. I looked at Dodge Omnis/Plymouth Horizons (almost bought one that had an “Omni” stripe on one side and a “Horizon” stripe on the other… great production line quality control!), I looked at Toyotas and Datsuns. All looked and drove like cheap crappy cars. Then, at the VW dealer (hated the seating position in the Rabbit), there was this used 914 1.8. Parents seemed to think it was safe (“It’s only a 1.8…and look at that crush space up front! And it doesn’t have a back seat!”). And then came the test drive…

(2) I was 19. It was a test drive. Loved the car! Best $3500 I ever spent (after talking them down from $4200. The heat exchanger/exhaust system was a rusty piece of crap).

(3) I’ve owned 2. The first was an Ancona Blue 1975 1.8 with a white interior and every option except A/C. I kept that car for 22 years – until I decided to sell it due to terminal rust (due to a poor repair job after being rear-ended). Six months after parting/selling it, I convinced my wife that I needed another (“I’ve got all these parts for a six conversion!” It wasn’t hard: she liked the 914 too). My current car started out as an Olympic Blue 1974 1.8 with no options. It’s now a 2.7 six with lots of optional stuff.

(4) I’m definitely “e. Lost Cause”