How did you first meet a 914 in person - any tips for someone who never has Options

[914lover17]

Hey Ya'll. Recently fell in love with this car, total obsession. I've never been a car guy, and have only learned manual for a summer job over 7 years ago. I'm very serious about getting one myself. I'm lucky because my dad has "enough knowledge to be dangerous" and is more than willing to help me on my journey. The "problem" I'm having is that I've never actually seen one in person, let alone ridden or driven one. I was prepared to re-learn manual after purchase, relying on a test ride along, or letting my dad test drive it. However, there's so little available (I think 3-4 in canada) and most of them are on the coasts. I've reached out to a few ads nearby and they prefer not to indulge much in terms of driving/seeing the car in action unless a deal is in place (Which is totally reasonable)...

As much as I can youtube and research this car online all day long, I guess I was just wondering how all of you fell for the 914, maybe the first time you met one in person, how you got to drive one, and if you had any tips for someone like me to experience one in a low commitment way that's fair for all parties? (I wouldn't even be looking to drive it myself) I would really like to experience the old school feeling of real driving car though!

I personally found the 914 when I was autotrader'ing for fun, searched porsches and thought it was a nicer 911 LOL!

[SirAndy]

I saw my first one in the early '70s growing up in Germany and didn't like them at all.

Fast forward to 2000, driving to my storage unit in San Rafael, CA i had to drive by a shop that works on Porsche's and also sells used cars and one day they had a guards red 914 with GT flares sitting on the lot with a big for sale sign on it.
Stopped on my way back, looked at it, came back the next day with cash in hand and drove it home.
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

[falcor75]

Dont do what I did and buy one unseen from old pictures from another country having never driven or sat in one before. Unless you have triple what the car cost to spend on making it what you want.

Turned out ok after five years or so tho. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[mgp4591]

I saw them around the D.C. area when they came out but I was much cooler, driving my 65 GTO. The front ends always sat too high and that made the boxy look even worse.
After I decided to build a sports car instead of another ill handling musclecar, I went through the criteria of what worked best...mid engine, 4whl disc brakes, a good suspension and found that most of what I wanted was out of my reasonable reach. Except for a 914 and I thought, yuck! Not one of those ugly things! I checked out Google to see if they'd got any better looking and after seeing them with flares and sitting MUCH better, I decided to pull the trigger. 2 wks later I had one. A year and a half later I had a place to work on it. The work still continues...

[VegasRacer]

The first 914 I ever saw was while walking home form school one day. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/prop.gif) An orange one. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wub.gif) It was love at first sight.

I also remember going to the dealer (Art Bunker Porsche/Audi) and being allowed to sit in one on the showroom floor.

Sorry to say, I have no clear recollection of my first ride or opportunity to drive one.

[wonkipop]

walked past one on the street in central melbourne aus.
think it was christmas 72/73. would have been 12 or 13.
with my mother on christmas shopping trip down from country.
my mother had to drag me away from it.
never had seen a picture of one, nor knew about them prior.
(later found out it was probably 1 of the 2 in aus at that time and a 6, not that i knew).

after that started to find out bits and pieces of info on them through high school.
realised it was a car that was never going to come to aus. lhd only.
no internet in those days. would just be some random article in a foreign car mag.

got through university, learned more about them along the way.
met a bloke who had one.
by then there were more here, maybe 10.
4 in my city.

a few years after that ended up living and studying in chicago.
bought one. still got it.

still remember my first few hours in the USA.
cab ride down the expressway from San Francisco airport to downtown.
late afternoon. cali fall going into winter.
what cruised past on the expressway and gave me a good long look at it on the move.
914. think it was green, hard to remember.
there were still lots of them on the roads in the USA back then, esp in cali,


make sure you look at one in the flesh.
maybe you will like it still, or maybe you won't.
there is no in between.
but at least you won't be a pariah if you like it - how it used to be. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)

[Shivers]

My Uncle bought a 70' new, I was 13 and the family would spend a few weeks in San Diego every summer at my G-mothers house. My Uncle and I would hang out and go fishing. So for two weeks in 1970 I cruised around SD in a 914. 12 years later I had one of my own, saturn yellow, the same color as my Uncle's.

[Pursang]

Saw the new 914 at the International Auto Show in San Francisco when I mustered out of the Army in 1969. Loved it but had a Sprite back then and very little money. Fast forward to 1987. Married. Two kids. Volvo and Toyota. Wanted a sports car again and found two that fit the bill; a '74 2L 914 and a TR-3A. The 914 was nice and had a lot of the maintenance records. The TR was a) British and b) more than ten years old. Easy choice. This was before the internet and I bought the car because I liked it not because of extensive research. Fortunately, I had found a gem and now, 34 years later, I still love it. I hope whomever got that Triumph had the same good fortune.

[Steve]

It's a different world now with econo boxes having powered everything including AC.
The first car i drove was the family's Datsun pickup. No AC, manual, gutless, manual windows, etc. The first car I owned was a VW Sirocco. It had more power than the Datsun, but same features. I totaled the VW and my neighbor had a 914. It sounded the same as my Dad's bug with Webers. In 1979, I bought my first 914 which was a 71 with a 1.7 motor in it. I loved the car and compared to the other cars I owned it was a blast to drive and cornered awesome. I quickly hopped the motor up to a 2.4 four with webers, before it got totaled and then bought another one and converted it to a six. I still love these cars, but hard to compare it to a modern car with all the creature comforts.

[infraredcalvin]

Watched my sister, brother and younger sister all get cars from from my parents, not me. 30 years later, still not sure why (never really cared). I think my mom was afraid if they got me a car I would’ve driven off, never to be seen again… back then they were probably right…

1st Xmas break back from college the gf ‘s dad got a 1.7, lowered, western wheels, resprayed burgundy red. Fell in love with that car. Found a 75 1.8 for sale cheap, it had a nice stereo system, and was beater enough on the outside that it would really piss off the folks… so I bought it!

BTW- I love my parents, always have! I also still have my 75…

[infraredcalvin]

I would think if you find the right car, offer a small deposit to show you’re serious (a couple hindered $ is plenty). Go see the car in person, give it a good once over, then make up your mind if you’re going to buy it. If so ask to be given a ride, if it still rings your bell after the ride, buy it, enjoy the ride. If after inspection it’s not the one, don’t waste anymore of the sellers time, be honest and prepared to walk away from the deposit. Move on till you find the right one!

[PatrickB]

Where exactly are you? there's a bunch of us in various parts of Ontario, Quebec, and probably west coast too. I'm sure someone would be happy to take you for a spin at least... Have a look at this thread. Don't know if anyone is selling but actually seeing/touching/riding in the cars would be a start.
http://www.914world.com/bbs2/index.php?showtopic=341094

[rgalla9146]

Can't remember the first drive.
Do remember that the first car I owned turned out to be very rusty.
Bought a second one as a parts car........it turned out to be a far better chassis overall
......moved everything over from the first car.
it's become a habit

[914Sixer]

First 914 sighting was in 1973 when I drove 200 miles to the Porsche dealer in Lubbock, Texas. I previously had a 1967 911S that I brought back from Germany when I was in the Army. The 914 looked like an ugly duckling and was looked down on by 911 owners, including me. Went home with a 1973 911T Targa in bright yellow. Fast forward to 1985, that's when I got into 914's. They were cheap and plentiful. Bought 3 914-6's for under $6 k in the 80's-90's. The rest is history.

[jaredmcginness]

For starters, I have never been to Canada, but I am certain there's more than 3 available. Just keep your ears to the ground. Post a running WTB thread, here, Pelican Parts, etc. It does take time. Consider importing from on of the northern States too.

Post in local groups, maybe facebook or something. Attend car/Porsche meets and don't be afraid to ask around.

I am sure there are guys that would love to show you around the car. This is a great group of people.

Dust off your socket set, these are definitely a labor of love.


Enjoy the journey, and find the car with the best chassis you can!

[dax1969]

The 914 only caught my eye 30 years ago. We were at the Nurburgring Germany with our motorbikes and I saw an Olympia blue coming off the track. Still don't know if it was a 4 or a 6 but never forgot that car

cheers
Dax

[Johny Blackstain]

It was Tuesday April 30th, 1974. I was 11 years old, 5th grade. Dad came home from work with a very strange attitude... he was fed up with the Capri, again, but wasn't angry. After dinner he asked me if I wanted to go look at Porsches and my ignorant ass asked him "what's that?" His reply was "Do you remember the green Hotwheels I always beat your purple Ferrari with?" The rest is history. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/cool_shades.gif)

[Beach914]

My Brother and I test drove an Bahia Red 71 914-6 on a rainy day in the early 70's. He was also looking at a 64 356C, which he bought. I liked the car but I liked the 356C better.

Fast forward a to 1978 and I had a classmate in a Junior College Drafting class that had a silver 72. I had a 68 MGB-GT at the time. We traded drives one time at lunch and I was hooked on the car and they way it handled.My MG felt bulky and heavy compared to the 914.

Still didn't own one until I bought a rust bucket 74 twelve years ago and got the disease. I needed something to de-stress after my heart attack.

[horizontally-opposed]

For starters, I have never been to Canada, but I am certain there's more than 3 available. Just keep your ears to the ground. Post a running WTB thread, here, Pelican Parts, etc. It does take time. Consider importing from on of the northern States too.

Post in local groups, maybe facebook or something. Attend car/Porsche meets and don't be afraid to ask around.

I am sure there are guys that would love to show you around the car. This is a great group of people.

Dust off your socket set, these are definitely a labor of love.


Enjoy the journey, and find the car with the best chassis you can!

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/welcome.png)

You've come to the right place!

Not sure when I first saw a 914, as they were everywhere in the East Bay growing up…just part of the landscape of cool old used sports cars. But I remember two rides distinctly, a beastly V8 conversion owned by my junior high PE teacher, @Cali914 , in the first legitimately fast car I ever rode in (accelerating down the University onramp was a thrill I'll never forget), and then my older brother's 914-4 with maybe 80hp, which would later be left behind in disrepair…but available to me if I was willing to earn the money to fix it and pay for my own insurance and gas. That was 32 years ago, and I have improved the car slowly over the years. Still doing that.

Best advice (among a lot of good advice) in the thread is bolded above, and I'd consider looking for 914s that lived out their lives in very dry places (AZ, TX, NM, etc) in good enough condition to be driven home, and then adding a "travel budget" for that journey. Nothing beats a good chassis to start with in a 914—you can do paint and parts installs as you have budget—and the drive home will be a forever memory.

[ClayPerrine]

When I was in High School, one of my classmates had a 914. I didn't know the owner, and I didn't pay it any attention because it wasn't a Muscle Car with a big V-8. I forgot about it as I got older. The only reason I know about it is from a yearbook picture.

In 1985, I bought a 924 and decided to go Autocrossing with SCCA. My second autocross was at Fair Park in Dallas on November 17 1985. My two friends who were supposed to go with me were too hung over to go, so I went alone.

Parked near me was a little orange car that I didn't know a thing about. So I went over and started talking to the owner. She was also new to autocrossing. I spent a lot of time asking questions about her car. She ended up beating me in the AX. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/betty914.jpg)

At the end of the event, I asked her out. While we were dating, I got to drive her 914. I immediately wanted one. Three years and two days after I went to that autocross, I married the owner of that 914. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wub.gif)

36 years later, we are still married and we have 3 914s, including the one that she had that fateful day in November of 1985.

Oh... And I sold the 924 about a year after we got married.