Same Car New Look Options

[Stef914]

Hi guys,

Some of you might remember I posted a little film on YouTube featuring my 914 back in June. Here’s the link again in case you missed it:

https://youtu.be/dbIY3MbfMCU?si=-CH552MjbGYJZJmF

Well, not long after that, while driving on my favorite road—Angeles Crest Highway 2, pretty much the only road I drive on—I had a collision with a deer. Or maybe the deer decided to hit me. Either way, it was an act of God, as insurance would say.

The good news is the deer died on impact, so no suffering there. I was uninjured, and overall, the car wasn’t damaged too badly. Mostly, the front fog light grill, front bumper, front spoiler, and passenger-side rocker panel needed to be fixed or replaced. The body only had a small dent near the right side marker and another small dent on the hood. Luckily, the deer didn’t go through the windshield, and the car kept driving perfectly, just like it always does. After the initial shock, I was actually relieved at how well the car handled the situation—nothing mechanical or electronic was affected, and I could keep driving without any issues. Of course, I was a bit bummed that the car needed some bodywork, but nothing like this had ever happened to me before.

AA Classic Insurance handled everything pretty well, and all was covered. After some research, I found McCurdy Bodywork in Pasadena, and they did an awesome job replacing the parts, straightening the body, and matching the paint. Now, the car basically looks brand new!

Every cloud has a silver lining, so while the car was in the shop, I decided to remove the much-hated American market side markers, as well as the dealer-installed emblem on the hood. Looking back, if the accident hadn’t happened, I probably wouldn’t have done this. But since the car was already in the shop and the repairs were paid for, I went ahead with it.

I also decided to continue with the new look by installing black wheels and much-loved American classic hot rod-style BF Goodrich Radial T/A tires with raised white letters.

I soon realized that everything handmade from the '70s (and earlier) might fit one car but not another. So the wheel journey took a bit longer than expected. After buying a set of 15” 4x130 black steelies from Cip1, I found out the front needed spacers to clear the bigger BMW calipers. Plus, the rear offset with 195s was way too close to the fenders. Rolling the fender lips wasn’t something I really wanted to do since it felt too intrusive. So as the search went on, I found the same steel wheels from Maxilite, but with the ET34 offset, that I needed to clear the rear.

Anyway, to make a long story short, I just wanted to share some photos of the new look and explain why I made these changes—not that I have to, but I thought some of you might be curious.

I guess the moral of the story is that sometimes a little disruption can work in your favor.

And maybe another moral: don’t drive on mountain roads full of deer—but that’s probably a lesson I’ve still yet to learn, hahaha!

[VaccaRabite]

I really like the black wheels on your car! Very sharp and vintage racer!

Zach