Resurrecting a Bumblebee and me, A slackers attempt at keeping Pandora in the box Options

[KELTY360]

So it's time to get off my ass and deal with this rare gem that has wandered into my garage. Much to the skepticism of some, it's an original 21,000 mile LE that was parked by the original owner in 1988 and didn't move til his heir's sold the car and the new owner moved it from Honolulu to Pt. Townsend, WA in late summer 2022. My somewhat accidental purchase is documented in a previous thread: Low mileage LE?

For those who don't know me, I'm a longtime 914 believer since purchasing a Sunflower Yellow 1.7 brand new in 1973. I've since owned a variety of these little cars, currently holding a '74 2.0 and the LE. I've also encountered a couple of major oral surgeries over the last year that have put me in a state of slow recovery that leads to my personal resurrection. I didn't really intend to buy the LE but that ship has sailed and I'm trying to bring it back to life for my own resurgence, with the help of some friends of course.

The car is very solid and straight with minimal corrosion, as verified by @Root_Werks and @Greenie . My plan at present is to get it sorted out mechanically and some cosmetics, without performing a complete restoration. I do not plan on keeping the car when the plan is done. So, anyone who's interested in a very original, documented and compete LE is welcome to contact me. In this thread I'll be posting a list of parts needed and pictures and descriptions of work planned or completed.

I'll end this long post with an obligatory pic so I don't get the dreaded TTIWWP emogi. Many more pics to follow as I progress.

[JeffBowlsby]

Maybe George will chime in on on this? If anyone knows orginal 914s its George.

What are the factory original rocker panel rivets? Plastic (clear or black) or aluminum (mill finish)? The same or differnet over the model years?

@dr914 @autoatlanta.com

[wonkipop]

Maybe George will chime in on on this? If anyone knows orginal 914s its George.

What are the factory original rocker panel rivets? Plastic (clear or black) or aluminum (mill finish)? The same or differnet over the model years?

@dr914 @autoatlanta.com

i think you are on to something mr. b

its maybe an extensive change in mid 73 when they change the inner threshold plate from alum to plastic?
i've done a bit of searching back through the L jet files i have which are all 74 and 75 1.8s.

i know this from my own car (and PET data).
when the thin inner most threshold piece was changed to black plastic the screws changed too. the screws received additional cupped raised washers to help with distributing the load and keeping the plastic straighter. very few cars seem to have the correct screws surviving. i have the original screws on mine for those very inner most thresholds and a few of the ones i have on file have them as well. that helps with knowing you might be looking at something trustworthy throughout sill area. the earlier cars pre mid 73 just have a screw into the aluminium earlier inner most threshold.

they changed the outer sill threshold piece to plastic at the same time and the rivets in that changed to black. all the examples on file match mine.
they had been white in the pre mid 73 cars to fasten the alum threshold.

i looked up my first addition restorers guide to authenticity.
its getting a bit old now (out of date?). i don't have the more recent edition.
down the back on page 78 is a photo and description of the earlier alum threshold. also shows rocker panel. the rocker panel is held on by the same white plastic rivet. so i believe @914werke is right about that. when it comes to earlier cars.

however there is no detail or description on the post mid 73 in my edition of R G.

but---everything i have on file from L jet research which are in some cases drawn from BAT archives has silver alum rivets fixing the outer sill rockers. i think i have got at least two original examples i would trust to a reasonable degree on that. they could have been black rivets that the paint has worn off. but they are silver now which indicates alum not plastic.

it could be interesting. they might have changed the rivets in the outer rockers from mid 73 on. your example you have posted where the owner assured rockers had not been off and the rivets are silver alum seems to agree with everything i have collected on file.

i can't say for certain what i did back in the early 90s when i took the covers off was a like for like replacement. but i used to be fairly careful with detail like that and i feel sure i would have replaced what was there to match. but who knows.

i guess the doc will have the full answer.

but there appears to be something in the differences being brought up and contested.
@914werke is definitely correct about the early cars pre mid 73.
@JeffBowlsby may well be correct about the later cars post mid 73. something different appears to be going on there.


a 74.
not mine but identical to mine.
from L jet archive. a pretty original car in all respects.
not a restoration
correct inner threshold screws and seems to have alum rocker rivets. look silver.
matches @KELTY360 's rockers and your example of a 40,000 mile car.