Hug your 914 today Options

[JeffBowlsby]

What is it about 914s in particular that incites their owners to want to ‘improve them’, ‘build what the factory should have built’, etc., or just make them something they are not because it is convenient? Talking in part about body mods, but also ‘performance’ mods.

The best quality builds – esthetically or technically - are cool to see/experience and we all appreciate them, but it’s the human element that sometimes gets us shaking our heads. Maybe it’s the fantasy/vision some have, that they either have not thought through their ‘solution’ completely or perhaps they do not have the skills/time/money to fulfill once they begin that path downhill.

Body mods – have we seen all possibilities by now? If you want a Por-Tessa or a cab-91X wide body or a front engine 914 – just buy a real one. Wait, none of those mutants are factory-produced cars.

Performance mods – You want power? A stock 2.0L is not that much different than a 1.8L powerwise, so if you want real power just find a significantly bigger lump. Making a 2.0L from a 1.7L, and doing it correctly involves lots of changes, decreases originality and will still not allow you to lay rubber down in your ‘hood.

Swaps – You have a flywheel from a Pantera on the shelf and remarkably it fits perfectly…should you use it? How about putting on the injection from a VW GTI, you only need to fab a few custom bits to mount it, and you need to find someone to reflash the ECU and use custom built injectors. Can you make a 2.0L banana muffler fit a 1.8L? You are Ok that no reputable shop will ever want to touch your 914 again with those mods (they don’t now anyway) because you plan to keep it forever. Because you can and because you want to. But we all know you won’t keep it forever – someday someone else will own it or it will be found as a failed dream rotting in a field somewhere. We are just temporary caretakers in this world.

So this post is not a complaint about poor decision making, but is intended an as encouragement to fully think through mods, and carefully consider the realities of available time/money/effort needed to fulfill a vision.

Make wise decisions and help save the 914, they are becoming an endangered species.

[914_teener]

Jeff.....

Are you channeling Pat Garvey or perhaps the late John Larson?


Not that I don't disagree.

[76-914]

Looks like a new hood would make that look stock again. Not my cup of tea but folks are spending large amounts to restore them so I'm sure we'll see some that are brought back into the fold in the near future. I believe many of the conversions were done because the 914 wasn't costly nor in demand at the time. That being said, I converted mine to a Subaru drivetrain in order to own a reliable car that is driven near and far without reservation. Should it need repair I can replace an entire engine for less that folks spend on head work for a Type 4. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)

[SirAndy]

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/icon8.gif)

[framos914]

This thread hits close to home. I've been thinking about this lately.
I bought my black 75 2.0 in 1981, the PO had already made the body modifications.
The car has 70s style 911 flares and rocker panels, suspension and wheels. I have been considering returning it to original fenders and rocker panels. Would it be worth it at this point?

[worn]

Not sure what to say. Cars i can buy have useless power. The car i want to drive has more sense than the smart cars of today. I really like the 3.2, but it wasn’t a hotrod quest.

[oakdalecurtis]

I have kept or returned my 76 2.0 to close to stock as possible, no fender flares, wings or engine mods for me. That said, here’s the modification list that I post at car shows of all the little changes that I have made over 20 years that help me to enjoy driving it more. Things like the armrest center console, or moving the brake pedal over slightly to allow more room for my size 13 feet. The smaller Momo steering wheel is on an eccentric hub that raises it an inch so I have more legroom. The Blazecut fire protection system adds a little extra fire safety, and the third strobe brake light also adds some safety. Here’s the list:
1976 Porsche 914 Modifications
Engine, Original 2.0 Liter, Fuel Injected
- K&N air filter
- Monza exhaust system
- Crane electronic ignition system
- Nology HotWires sparkplug wires

Exterior
- Empi rims
- Hella dual horns
- Porsche door stripes
- Cloth lined front trunk
- Engine lid restraint cable
- Black Widow security alarm
- LED front signal and running lights
- Front fender parking lights removed
- Optima battery external charger port
- Targa bar mounted strobe LED third brake light
- Porsche front bumper plate with LED illumination
- BlazeCut automatic engine fire suppression system
- Porsche rear reflector lens with LED running and brake illumination

Interior
- HD Mirror Camera
- Porsche dash light
- Rennline short shift kit
- LED dash gauge lighting
- “Heater On” dash indicator light
- Solenoid activated rear trunk release
- Momo steering wheel with eccentric lift spacer
- Tartan cloth seats with driver’s side cushion thigh lift
- Fog lights rewired for use as Daytime Running Lights
- Blaupunkt six speaker stereo system with electric antenna
- Brake pedal repositioned leftward to increase gas pedal foot room
- Raised center console armrest with cupholder and fire extinguisher

[FlacaProductions]

I used to look at changes/modifications that I didn't "approve" of with a bit of a turned up nose and gentle shake of the head. Doesn't matter if it was a 914 or what.

Now...I still have a bit of a raised eyebrow but I remember that somebody is INTO this car. They're a car person. And that's cool. It may not be my style or my taste but they LIKE their car...and I like that.

[Front yard mechanic]

Dick it up if you'd like you only live once (IMG:style_emoticons/default/flag.gif)

[falcor75]

I for one am guilty of modification, most of them can be reversed, some cant and some were that way when I bought the car. If I wanted a mostly stock car I would have kept my 911.

I bought a 30 foot 914 back in 2013, it had rust in the firewall and trunk and minor spots all over. The engine was questionable (bent exhaust valve on #4 it would turn out) as was the Djet and all the seals were perished and the interior pretty bad too and had two bad resprays. It was to far gone in my opinion to ever be 100% original or a survivor car. So I've restored it to what most would think is a stock 914 and only us nerds would spot the tiny differences.

It looks great, goes great and doesnt leak (as much, thank you Mikey (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) ) Its a car that will be driven and proudly displayed for many years ahead. So where am I going with alls this? If you own or come across a real surivior, do think twice before you cut it up but if it's already been repaired and suffered from previous owners "inventinveness" do what you like and enjoy the ride regardless if that is slowly putting it back to stock or building a engine-swapped hotrod.

(oh but please....dont turbo a 914 (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) )

[EdwardBlume]

My likes in 914s has gone through phases over the past 40 years. Loved the car stock as a kid. Grew up with it and wanted to make it "better".... Got bit by the AX bug 25 years ago, and loved the tight and performance touches. Got a /6 racer, and now a street /6. Pushing 50, I miss the stock 1971 and 165 tires. Nothing overly excited, like me.

What Jeff is trying to say is that its like getting fake boobs for your wife... everybody likes it for a little while and then you realize the silicon is potentially bad for her. Nothing wrong with as the maker intended.

[Andyrew]

I personally find slow cars boring to drive... Nothing in my garage has under 300hp...

I find my 914 more like a platform for my creative juices to flow into and from ... Be it sweet or sour juices... I also like solving problems...


(IMG:style_emoticons/default/confused24.gif)


Would I like a stock one to putt around in? Maybe if it had AC and tall person mods..... And sticky tires... And some suspension work... And...


Wait.. I'm doing it again ..

[sb914]

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/agree.gif)

[Jamie]

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/agree.gif)

I was fortunate, and very fortunate as I now know, to pay my original owner Dad $1 in 2002 for his all original and rust free 73 1.7L. Although it hadn't been driven much in the previous 10 yrs. it had only 41K on the odometer, and I took it on as a project and legacy. But I intended to use it as fun driver, so some mods beyond usual maintenance were made to keep it reliable. Pertronix, moved the fuel pump to the front, new exterior paint in original Delphi Green, most everything else is original, except the 58K now on the odometer. She draws attention from real Porsche lovers at regional PCA drive events, and I'm OK with the original level of performance as I row through the gears during club drives. After all, I'm now 75 and a bit slower myself, but do try to keep up some normal amount of performance on demand. If I feel the need for speed, I climb into my Cayman! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/driving.gif) If the 914 line had been continued and evolved, I believe it would have become the Boxter/Cayman series of today.

[Larmo63]

I always wanted a 914-6. After owning multiple 914-4s, and driving with "the big boys," in their big sixes, my fragile male ego wouldn't let me shake the idea of doing a /6 conversion some day. I just couldn't keep up with these guys. I knew I had tasted greatness, and I wanted more.

So, I found the best car I could find with very minimal rust, straight and solid tub-wise. I then set about to modify it as Porsche engineers probably would have had the 914 survived a few more years. (916)

I used a healthy six cylinder PORSCHE power plant, updated PORSCHE brakes, performance PORSCHE suspension all around, better looking and wider genuine PORSCHE Fuchs wheels, an oil cooler, and much better Scheel seats. I strove to use the best parts I could source as I tried to not cut corners.

I do have other small tweaks here and there, but I'm always trying to stay true the marque.

I understand what Jeff is saying, and I've seen some real rolling abortions. Maybe some wouldn't have a taste for my build, and I get that.

The great cars in the future will probably be the survivors; the exact restorations, the low mile collector cars, and the pampered garage queens. I get that too.

In the mean time, I'll be ripping around in my 914-6 hot rod, that I drive daily just for the fun of it not really caring what anybody thinks.

I also actually 'hug' my car, Trudy calls it my "other girlfriend."

[914 Ranch]

I play with my cars, it is therapeutic and helped me walk away from my wheelchair. I do things to Carerror that on one has ever attempted. Then I have NICE 914.







The more cars we screw up the others more value the others will receive. How many cars do you think T H O M A S and I cut up looking for a clean tub?
Carerror is a badly repaired, rusty and bent tub. When I'm working on Carerror I have no plan. I just throw the parts at the car and let them guide me to the solutions. It seems to work for me but I don't think that anyone else should take that approach.

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/agree.gif) With Jeff. Think things through. Have an end goal, a really good idea of what you what from the car.
There is a Hug for my Teeners today.

[DickSteinkamp]

Folks have been modifying and customizing cars....well, since there were cars.

There is not just one way to enjoy the car hobby. Do it in the way that makes you the happiest.

If that means bone stock down to the correct fasteners clocked the correct way...do it. If that means full on race car modifications to every part of the car...do it.

It's a hobby...not a religion. Have fun with it and allow others to have fun in ways that may be different than what you do.

[Fatboy007]

What is it about 914s in particular that incites their owners to want to ‘improve them’, ‘build what the factory should have built’, etc., or just make them something they are not because it is convenient? Talking in part about body mods, but also ‘performance’ mods.

The best quality builds – esthetically or technically - are cool to see/experience and we all appreciate them, but it’s the human element that sometimes gets us shaking our heads. Maybe it’s the fantasy/vision some have, that they either have not thought through their ‘solution’ completely or perhaps they do not have the skills/time/money to fulfill once they begin that path downhill.

Body mods – have we seen all possibilities by now? If you want a Por-Tessa or a cab-91X wide body or a front engine 914 – just buy a real one. Wait, none of those mutants are factory-produced cars.

Performance mods – You want power? A stock 2.0L is not that much different than a 1.8L powerwise, so if you want real power just find a significantly bigger lump. Making a 2.0L from a 1.7L, and doing it correctly involves lots of changes, decreases originality and will still not allow you to lay rubber down in your ‘hood.

Swaps – You have a flywheel from a Pantera on the shelf and remarkably it fits perfectly…should you use it? How about putting on the injection from a VW GTI, you only need to fab a few custom bits to mount it, and you need to find someone to reflash the ECU and use custom built injectors. Can you make a 2.0L banana muffler fit a 1.8L? You are Ok that no reputable shop will ever want to touch your 914 again with those mods (they don’t now anyway) because you plan to keep it forever. Because you can and because you want to. But we all know you won’t keep it forever – someday someone else will own it or it will be found as a failed dream rotting in a field somewhere. We are just temporary caretakers in this world.

So this post is not a complaint about poor decision making, but is intended an as encouragement to fully think through mods, and carefully consider the realities of available time/money/effort needed to fulfill a vision.

Make wise decisions and help save the 914, they are becoming an endangered species.

Pimpin'

[jmitro]

But we all know you won’t keep it forever – someday someone else will own it or it will be found as a failed dream rotting in a field somewhere. We are just temporary caretakers in this world.

I've come to realize this over the years and agree with the statement. However....

The great cars in the future will probably be the survivors; the exact restorations, the low mile collector cars, and the pampered garage queens. I get that too.

In the mean time, I'll be ripping around in my 914-6 hot rod, that I drive daily just for the fun of it not really caring what anybody thinks.

I agree with this also. If you own the car, do what you want to and enjoy it.

[JawjaPorsche]

I bought my 914 new in 73. I guess because of that I “try” to keep it original as possible. I am guilty of putting put on a badge.

The only modification I did make was moving the fuel pump because I got tired of vapor lock.

Everyone on this forum shares one thing: We love our teeners.