parts lost/falling off while driving your 914??, damn, what was that noise??? Options

[Mueller]

So I get a phone call a few days ago from Mike Rose, the fella that graciously lent me his 914 for the WCC a month ago..."hey Mike, I was under my car and noticed a dent on the heatexchangers that looked odd, then I noticed the pass. side flapper box was gone"

ummm, I knew I didn't take the car off road or run anything over that I knew of and then I remembered that while driving down on hwy 101 to the breakfast that Friday of the WCC, my wife and I had been cruising at about 70 or so (indicated 80+ mph, but he has smaller than norm tires on the car) when I heard a bunch of noise like under the car and then saw something in my mirror bouncing/sliding on the freeway behind us until the object was no longer in my view due to the cars behind us........Well, now I'm 99% sure what the racket was (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wacko.gif)

I still have no idea if we did run something over and it popped up and took off the valve or just vibration did it in......

What else have people "lost" while driving their 914?? I know a few people have "donated" their targa tops to the convicts cleaning up the side of the road, anything else??

[SirAndy]

- sway bar drop link ...
- one of the nuts holding the tranny to the engine ...
- sand, lots of sand ...



that's it (i hope) ...
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/unsure.gif) Andy

[bondo]

I lost a piece of engine tin once. (the piece at the front left corner of the engine) Didn't hear a thing, one day it was there, the next it wasn't. I even drove along my commute route to try and spot it. Cost me $20 at an actual Porsche/Mercedes wrecking yard because I didn't want to be without and risk overheating.


I believe TonyAKAVW has a humorous parts loss story to tell (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[bondo]

Speaking of funny noises, I once got hit by a palm frond right on the targa top during a rainstorm.. didn't figure out what the heck that noise was until the next day when I saw palm fronds all over the street.. one of the hazards of California I guess (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[mightyohm]

I lost my dignity when a driveshaft fell off and took out my clutch fork, and then through a strange series of events I ended up ramming my door into a lamp post...

[nebreitling]

J-tube came right off while driving after i'd put headers on but hadn't gotten to ripping the rest of the heater junk out.

it was kinda embarassing...

n

[Unclerichy]

Yup, lost my heater flapper box as well.
It made a lot a racket since it was still attached to the steel cable.

[Mueller]

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/smilie_pokal.gif)

I lost my dignity

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/smilie_pokal.gif)

if there was an award for best response, you'd get it Jeff (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[Joe Bob]

Hmmmm, lost the whole freaking motor once....downshifted too hard and the mounts on the bulkhead mount decided to say...BITEME and gave it up....only thing holding the motor in was the shift linkage....

Various heater thingys....never used them much anyways.....heat is fer girley men....

Lost my virginity in a 356 once....like I can ever do THAT or FIND it again.....

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/mueba.gif)

[double-a]

didn't lose anything, but the other day i came into a corner a little hot, and heard a "clunk" sound behind me. turns out the battery support structure finally gave up the ghost. i tore it out and the battery is bungied in there down by the hell hole for now. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wacko.gif)

~a

[dmenche914]

Lost my chrome windshield trim on the freeway, one side gone, and the other flapping in the wind, since top was off, I reached up and grabbed it.

dave

[TonyAKAVW]

Ahh yes, I have lost a couple items on the road. I was driving from Santa Barbara to Thousand Oaks for a funeral and I heard a strange noise. It sounded like an exhaust leak and I figured "okay its an exhaust leak, maybe it will go away" and a few moments later BANG, and the exhaust leak got noticeably louder, as though a harley had pulled up next to me, WOT. And out my rear view mirror I noticed a Bursch muffler that looked EXACTLY like mine, rattling towards the center divider. The same rust patterns and all! So I stopped for a moment and decided southbound 405 was not the place to be walking around so I got in the car and drove to the nearest exit. I looked around for a muffler shop, but in the end I parked the car, had a relative drive me the rest of the way and drove back home later that day without a muffler.

I've also lost numerous quarts of oil to the road, but haven't we all...

[airsix]

First 914: lost the driver's side lower winshield trim corner piece. I was driving down a 35mph street (busy), saw it come loose and hanging by one side. Looked in my mirror to change lanes so I could stop, looked back and corner piece was gone. Tried to find it - no luck.

Second 914: Had taken exhaust off to fix a stud. Put it back together but didn't hook up heater. Left flapper boxes wired up with mechanics wire to be re-assembled another day. A few days later was on freeway doing 70mph or so. Road was under construction but it was the weekend and workers/equipment gone & no signs. Flew off a huge shelf where new cement ended. Heard a racket below and looked in the mirror to see my flapper box catch about 12 feet of air as it headed for the ditch.

-Ben

ps - I've also lost my disposable income while driving both 914's, but I excluded that because I didn't consider it "original equipment".

[rick 918-S]

Before my car was abducted by aliens and had wierd experiments done to it, I lost all 4 nuts off the transaxle mounts. The tranny dropped. The CV joints would kinda lock and lift the rear back up and slap the Ansa exhaust back down to the ground with every rotation with kind of a crashing slapping action. It was horrible!

Last week I was out late testing a few things. My friend was driving on a pitch black back road. We hear a metalic sound and something hitting and exiting the underside of the car. We turned around and searched the road and found the voltage regulator fell off the relay board. Car was still charging so I guess that's spare parts!

Oh incase your wondering how my car still charges without the regulator on the relay board I have a Bosch alternator with built in regulator.

[URY914]

Left rear wheel at Sebring. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/ohmy.gif)






Crew member forgot to tighten lugs. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/mad.gif)




(me (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sad.gif) )




Paul

[jim912928]

Ok..this isn't a teener story, but a long long long time ago I had just finished restoring a 1966 Porsche 912. I had been driving it for about 2 mos and really didn't check all the bolts. I was driving down the highway and there was the Mercedes just hot dogging me the entire time...pass me, get behind me, pass me, get behind me. Well, I decided it was time to just blow his doors off (had a great cam in this thing, webers etc...so it was a pretty hot setup for a 912). I downshifted and blew by him like a bat-out-of-hell. Not long after that I heard a bang and looked in my rear view mirror to see the passenger side of the rear bumper sliding down the road. Needless to say he tooted as he drove by me as I slowed to go pick up my discarded body parts! Oh the embarassment!

[scotty]

Both Monza exhaust tips on freeway -- "Why are all those cars dodging back and forth back there?" (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

[Marlow]

Also not a teener story but I had a full size Blazer that the PO left the CB and magnetic antenna in. Driving down 395 at 65mph and suddenly hear something beating the bottom of the floorboard on the passenger side. Cars around me suddenly backed off. I pulled over fearing I had dropped the front driveshaft or something. Turned out the magnet had separated from the CB antenna base and was hanging from the cable under the truck.

Also lost about 4 feet of exhaust pipe and the muffer on my full size Jimmy. Never heard it go. Must have had the stereo up too loud.

Knock on wood - nothing's fallen off the 914 yet.

[Dave Bell]

Amateurs...

Driving east on the 210 freeway in LA doing about 75 in the fast lane, I had black 700 series BMW pushing behind me. I picked it up to about 80 and then... one moment the targe top was there and the next moment it was gone!

I looked in the rear view mirror in time to see the top frisbeeing at the BMW and just lift over the top of his car and disappear out of sight, fortunately looking like it was heading for the median. That will teach him. He's lucky I didn't push the Jame Bond oil slick button. From the way the top flew at the guy and barely made it over his car I am sure he had to change his shorts when he got to work.

Took the next off ramp and circled back to see if I had created any carnage that was going to cost me insurance or jail time and to look for my top. No sign of carnage, no sign of the top. I spent the next 30 minutes climbing hills along the freeway and even coming up in the middle of the freeway at an underpass searching for that top. It was gone.

Options:
- It disintegrated upon impact
- Some one stopped and picked it up.
- God was trying to take me and only got my Targa top.

- Dave

[jim912928]

we have a winner in Dave!!!....bet both of you had to change your shorts!