Restoring an old conversion, Finally back to work Options

[914e]

When the kids turned 14 my son and daughter for some reason decided they needed to build a car. I still suspect somehow my brothers stuck this idea in their heads. After months of failing to get them to drop the idea. I was able to convince them the $500 muscle cars that I grew up with are long gone. So I convinced them a bug was a perfect first car. Cheap and easy to get parts for. They found a 74 super with a blown engine for about $700. The owner claimed it was daily driver till the engine blew. The body looked pretty solid.


My plan was to have them rebuild the engine, do the body work, and get it back on the road. We dissembled it and started on the body work. After a few months we had a machine shop examine the engine parts, it was in worse shape then I expected but workable. Meanwhile my daughter started suggesting we should make it electric. Looking at the motor and controller cost it seemed to be in the range of the engine rebuild, then I looked up the batteries.... No way batteries are 20K. They sanded and soda blasted for months. Found some rust areas, being in Arizona a quarter size rust area is a disaster. After looking at what everyone in the world considers rust, I got over it and bought a welder.

My daughter kept on me about making it electric, after I figured out the smart way was to use batteries from a wreaked car for pennies on the dollar, I agreed. Of course teenagers can't finish the body work in April when it is below 90F. They wait August weeks before school to try to finish when it is still110F. Anyway after many days of painting at 4 am we finish.





Back in the 90's and 2000's the local utility sponsored electric car races. Often a 914 was converted to electric and raced. As we built the bug I ran across a few of the old 914 conversions.
After the bug was on the road, I enjoyed driving it so much I started looking for making something of my own. I started looking a Ghia's, Buses, 911's and then one day a 914 pops up on Craigslist.



Old DC motor, converted by a high school or college 20 years ago. Even had a battery module. The body looked good, the price cheap.

[Tbrown4x4]

Go on.




BTW, The bug looks great!

[Porschef]

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/beer3.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/popcorn[1].gif)

[Root_Werks]

Got a ride in an EV Bug once. It was an early 70's and well done. Other than the limited range, it was impressively quick.

[914e]

Got a ride in an EV Bug once. It was an early 70's and well done. Other than the limited range, it was impressively quick.

The bug is quick, even with the power turned down. Since the kids drive it often, there is no reason to allow them full power. With modern batteries it is only about 150 to 200 pounds heavier than stock. It has 80 miles of range which is plenty for driving around town.

[914e]

Since a rare rain in Phoenix is keeping me from working on the car. I can get some more posts in. I have not been able the track down the full history. I believe it was a high school team that did the conversion.
I think it was done around 98. I have a some drawings of the original battery layout and cabling, along with a few changes over the years. The original conversion had 20 six volt deep cycle lead acid batteries. I estimate that added around 1500 pounds to a car. With lithium batteries I expect it to be about the the weight of a 914/6.

After having it towed back to Phoenix we starting at what we had.


One ugly green interior and a few boxes of parts. Since the paint was flaking off in a few areas and looked to be only one layer. I thought it was original paint.





A few minutes with the sander and we find the rear deck lid is not the original. After doing the bug the kids make short work of removing the paint off the 914


Being in Arizona I knew I didn't want to repaint it black, and when driving something small I like it to be bright, so if someone hits you that can't claim they didn't see it.

After printing out pictures of 914s in most of the factory colors and looking at them for weeks. I decided on orange, though yellow looks great we already have one yellow car. The next problem was which orange.



Signal or Nepal?

[Tbrown4x4]

Nepal is a little more unusual. One of our local guys has a Nepal Orange car and I always hear people comment on how nice it looks.

[911GT2]

Cool build! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/shades.gif)

Both of them! Good luck!

[mbseto]

This will be cool to watch. Always thought the 914 would make a smart EV.

[JOEPROPER]

I sold a Nepal Orange car and bought a Signal Orange car fairly recently and like the Nepal color much better.

[914e]

I sold a Nepal Orange car and bought a Signal Orange car fairly recently and like the Nepal color much better.

After painting the two samples. I had vivid memories of both colors. I remember 914s in both the colors.

[914e]

Both front corners had bumped into something. So I spent a few days hammering, tapping, pushing and pulling to get them into shape.



Roughly back into shape well enough for the turn signal housing to fit again. As you can see the weatherstrip channel had rusted through in a few areas.




I spent a few weekend welding the rusted areas. All pretty minor compared to some of the heroic efforts I see many put in here.

Other than the front corners, the only bodywork I could fine the was the passenger front. It looked like it had been hit right in the middle of the wheel well. It looked like a body shop repair, though a little heavy on the filler. It had been pulled back out with a body hammer, no idea why it is all accessible.



Finally after months more than I planned, it was ready to be be sealed and painted.


First basecoat



And the clearcoat. As you see I went with Signal Orange. I went back forth for about a month. Signal Orange just pops in the blinding Arizona sun.

[914e]

Starting to look like car again with the bumpers, tire and wheels.

[914e]

Double post

[914e]

Progress has slowed to a crawl with the pandemic. My wife is has been a work by 6am sometimes going back after dinner to meet with crews til 10-11 at night. The kids are stuck with me all day while I was putting in 12-18 hour days so I didn't have time to see if the car was still there.

About a months ago my daughter had burst of ambition and volunteered to rebuild the CV joints. After watching Van Svenson's You Tube videos she jumped right in.
Unfortunately I didn't think to order new C clips when I ordered the boots and gaskets so we had to wait a few days for them.

Then she decided to recover the seats which the cats decided would be a worthy throne.



I have mostly being pulling what little hair I have out trying to fix butchered wiring harness.
It is bad enough they painted the wire and turn signal, they could have at least masked the connector.

[914e]

double post

[rjames]

Love that your kids are into it.
You made quick work getting it ready to paint and then getting color on.
I envy those that have the ability to prep and paint their own cars.

Nice job! It's looking great!

[Root_Werks]

Wow, you got that painted and looking like a million bucks fast! Nice work!

[nditiz1]

I was thinking of converting the silver beetle in my profile pic to electric. The cost was going to be around 17k for the full setup from EV. What did it end up costing you for the 74 super? I also have a 74 super and 72 super awaiting resto for when the kids are grown (3 under 5 now)

[914e]

I was thinking of converting the silver beetle in my profile pic to electric. The cost was going to be around 17k for the full setup from EV. What did it end up costing you for the 74 super? I also have a 74 super and 72 super awaiting resto for when the kids are grown (3 under 5 now)

Some of the electronics have gone up about 30- 40 percent from the tariffs. My motor and controller was under 4k at the time, 1 k for the adapter, DC to DC for 12 volts about $100, $700 for the charger, $700 for the BMS, $150 for the cooling plate, maybe 1k is cable and small parts.

The Chevy Volt batteries cost about $2500.

I would say about 10K now.