73 914 - Rusty and Intimidating, Looking for guidance and encouragement... Options

[Jeans]

Hello 914 World,

I'm brand new here. I'm looking for feedback, thoughts, guidance for moving forward with my project.
I recently bought a 73 914 from a backyard North of Seattle, WA. It had been sitting there for 19 years since he last drove it. The body is straight and he thought the longs were solid, but turns out the passenger side long is rotted quite badly. Interestingly, the floor pan is solid and complete. The rear firewall has rusted through in a few spots, but not very bad. I'm still assessing the battery area. From what I can see it doesn't look terrible. I'm also still assessing the suspension console. The 2.0l engine hasn't turned over in 19 years and is quite dirty. There are several hoses that don't seem to end where they should. Something ate the wiring harness up front. The evap canister was loose and not connected. Interior is dirty, but in pretty good shape, a few cracks in the seats, the dash seems whole, instrument cluster is rusted, headlight switch isn't moving, I got the seats to slide (big win)!

My intention for this car is to do a V8 conversion, 5 lug wheels, roll cage, generic race car wiring harness, etc. and have fun driving, auto-crossing, etc. I thought a car that seems pretty far gone would be a good starting place. I plan to sell the engine and other parts to help fund the project.

The more I get into this project, the more intimidated I get. I keep thinking that even though this car is in rough shape, it's whole and original and someone could do a much better job than I will bringing it back to original shape. I'm also thinking that if I plan to find a different starting project, now's the time to make that decision.

I like mechanical work but the sheet metal based frame repair is quite intimidating. I have basic welding skills (and gas shielded MIG). I don't have a huge budget, but I'll be able to make this car strong and functional, even if it's a bit ugly. I bought a new inner long and rear lift donut from pelican/resto. I bought the long stiffening kit from Brad Mayeur. I need to figure out what's necessary to make the suspension console reliable. I'm about to build a dolly.

So this post is part introduction of my project to this forum, part request for guidance for things I haven't thought of yet, and the thought that someone might say "hey, I'd like to start a project with that car" (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) Otherwise, the hacking, cutting, and welding starts soon.

Thoughts?

I'll be posting pics, progress here:https://sites.google.com/view/idk-blue-73-914/home

Much more to come!
Chris