914/6s at 1970 factory tour Options

[Hawk]

purloined from Early911sregistry

[SKL1]

In a couple of pix those look like fake Fuchs hubcaps, not real wheels. And yes the ride height seems all wrong on several of the cars. I've seen that cover on the gas tank etc before- looks nice, should have made production IMHO.

Nice to see one with the pepita seats. I was lucky to get those on my 9/70 build and I put towels on the seat bottoms to help preserve them. Still look decent after nearly 54 years!! Not sure I've ever seen another set of original pepita inserts on a 914...

[wonkipop]

In a couple of pix those look like fake Fuchs hubcaps, not real wheels. And yes the ride height seems all wrong on several of the cars. I've seen that cover on the gas tank etc before- looks nice, should have made production IMHO.

Nice to see one with the pepita seats. I was lucky to get those on my 9/70 build and I put towels on the seat bottoms to help preserve them. Still look decent after nearly 54 years!! Not sure I've ever seen another set of original pepita inserts on a 914...

guess carpet in front trunk a nice idea until you spill gasoline all over it and it soaks in.
might have been why they deleted it in full production cars. as well as saving money.

if you look close at launch photos you can see the cars do not have karmann plates in door jambs. also it would appear that the 4 cylinder cars do not have central air/heater air vent in centre of dash. its hard to tell for sure, but it looks like its not there.

front cowl to fender has no seam either.

"fake" fuchs hubcabs were a standard option on the 4s. guess not many people ticked the box. but i have seen the odd car for sale with them. here in australia you could get those for your VW type 3 fastback. i can remember them from my childhood.

nose up, arse down was pretty standard stuff for regular VWs once they went to the IRS rear suspension and macpherson strut with coils front suspension. ie superbeetles and 411s/412s. VW engineers preference for dialed in understeer? some of the cars on the stand might have been set up as press drivers with very conservative settings? the sixes do not seem quite as severe. don't forget this is right around the time ralph nadar was sticking it into VW beetles as the unsafest car. he did over corvairs first and then went after VW. in many ways the IRS and mac struts were their answer to his attacks.
these 914s would have been caught uo in that critique and the VW engineers would have been very nervous about any suggestion the cars were unstable or tricky at the limit.
porsche less so. nader had not named them. i would guess all the fuel tanks had to be completely drained for all cars in the exhibition hall which would have slightly exaggerated nose up attitude.