Another rustoration project…1972 914-6 Conversion Options

[9146C]

I’ve owned this car for over 17 years now. Bought her in Sept 2002 in Canton, Ohio. First projects were to replace the brakes and shifter…brakes were almost non-existent and trying to find a gear with the original shifter was like a game of chance! I’ve tried to block out the memory of the hideous plastic whale tail on the rear lid and the ridiculous front air dam that were added prior to my purchase…both were removed the day I got the car home! Added a “cheap” five lug conversion on all four corners and the after-market Fuchs and drove it on sunny Sundays for about 5 years with the original fuel injected 1.7L. During that time, I also moved from Ohio down to Northeast Louisiana (November 2003 I drove her 800 miles down from Cincinnati to Monroe, LA.).
I’d always wanted a 914-6 so I started collecting all the parts I needed for my conversion. In 2004, I bought a “bagged”, but running 2.7L on eBay for $1500 (the best part was that it had a new set of Weber carbs).
Between 2007 and 2009 I was working/living in Europe. In 2009 I set back on getting the car running…then a job transfer to South Carolina…car up on a trailer and moved to a new garage!
In 2010 I transferred jobs again back to South Louisiana. In 2012, I decided to start working on my project car again. Started building a 2.7L from scratch (LN Engineering Niko cylinders, forged 9-1/2:1 pistons, Pauter rods, dual plug heads, custom grind cams from Dougherty Racing Cams).
With the new six, and living in the “deep south”, I also added the external oil cooler conversion with thermostat.
Went over the transmission, replaced synchros and reverse and first gears and added a side shift conversion at that time as well.
While the motor was out, completed the SS fuel line conversion/replacement as well.
Also completed a proper 5 lug front and rear conversion with Porsche 911 parts and added 140# springs in the rear for the heavier six.
The front hood had some rust on the underside supports and the rear lid had cancer from where a previous owner had mounted the whale tail (and subsequent mounting holes). I added the QRS fiberglass replacement deck lids in 2013 as well.
The car was finally back on the road again in 2013…and what a blast to drive!!!
One thing that was always missing for me was the “GT Look”…I’d always admired the wide body 914!
Well, this is the Winter that I start that project!
I wasn’t sure what I would find in terms of rust as I started to tear my car down…guessing by the glue on the back pad and carpeting, I’m guessing the car has never been disassembled!
I was pleasantly surprised as I started my teardown…especially considering the car started its life in Ohio!
When I installed the external oil cooler along the passenger side 6 years ago, I knew that a previous owner had installed what looks like a Brad Mayeur stiffening kit on the passenger side (but, not on the driver’s side???).
I didn’t take any really good pictures when I did the engine swap 6 years ago, but, couldn’t recall any major issues when I installed it.
I am expecting the inner long on the passenger side to be in bad shape. There is a little bit of rust around the passenger seat belt mount area (in fact, I couldn’t remove the seat belt mounting bolt as it was just turning in the frame…had to pry it out). At least part of the inside (passenger compartment) long will have to be replaced.
The outer firewall and floor pan are in great shape (with the exception of the surface rust on the bottom side of the pan).
The right rear jacking post/plate has some rust and will need to be replaced. The inner firewall has some corrosion near the center tunnel on the passenger side. I’ve ordered both lower inner panel replacements.
The passenger side motor mount and suspension console looks to be in great shape. The right side engine tray has never been replaced…I still need to clean up the “hell hole” area to see what lurks beneath, but, it really doesn’t look that bad. When I installed the oil cooler transfer lines 6 years ago, I recall drilling through metal, not fiberglass.
The driver’s side inner rocker has a very small crack just ahead of the jacking post…I’ll replace this inner long part as well.
The rear trunk has surface rust, but, no holes. Lots of bondo from a previous owner on the lower rear cross panel…I’m assuming the car had minor rear end collision damage in a past life…nothing really ugly from underneath. The underside of the rear trunk is actually in really good shape considering these cars were never undercoated.
The original bumpers were painted black…I installed the chrome bumpers while I was still living in Ohio.
The front half of the car is in great shape…no issues in the trunk area (I installed the oil cooler here 6 years ago), no issues inside the fenders, nor the headlight buckets.
The front cowl/windshield support is also in great shape.
Yeah, some of the pictures look funny…the car’s original paint code is L 97 H (Gold Metalic)…a previous owner went with white…I’ll likely keep it white.
I’ve built my rotisserie, but, for now, I’m not planning to use it for the replacement of the structural longs (and the rear cross panel)…it’ll help when I do some media blasting after the structural work is done.
Overall, I’m pretty pleased with what I’ve found (or haven’t found!) so far.
Replacement panels have been ordered from Restoration Design as well as the inner long stiffening kit and GT rear suspension stiffening kit from Maddog Motor Sports. I’ve been sitting on the reproduction GT Flares from AA for about 3 months now as well as the 16” (7” & 8”) polished reproduction Fuchs from Maxilite Wheels.
Overall, I’m pleased with the starting point of my latest project!