Buying a 914, Tips for a newbie Options

[netwolf232]

I am looking into buying a 914 as a streetable track car( one that I could cruise around town in and drive to the track). My first major question would be should I go for the 6 or the 4. Both seem to have the same displacement so are there any major power or reliability differences? Are there any items that I should look for when buying the 914? Any years more desireable than others? Should I be weary of built engines? How much should I expect to pay for either a 6 or a 4 in nice mechanical and cosmetic condition? I started autox about a year ago and have been using a friends car but would really like to get one of my own and I love the 914's. Thanks for the help.
Sincerely,
Andrew

[Bleyseng]

Buy the best example you can afford with no rust!
A 73-74 2.0L four (the best years) will run 5-7K and a six starts at 12k.
A 73 2.0L will be a better ax car as it already comes with sway bars and all the other goodies. Sixes (stock) don't make a great ax car unless you change the motor to something with more hp.
Get a car with no rust!!!
I prefer cars with the stock FI as it makes the car a good daily driver and ax car plus lots of low torque.
On built engines it depends on who built it.
Geoff

[Jeffs9146]

'74 2.0-4 is desirable and smog exempt in Ca.

It all depends on how much money you want to spend!!

'70 & '71 2.0 or larger 6 is desirable but costly!!

Set your budget and fit the car to the $$!

Jeff

[anthony]

Read the board religiously for a couple months and you'll learn tons.

[Mockmaw]

If you're going to do track stuff, read the rulebook for local groups before buying a car that will put you in an undesirable class.

While the 73-74 2.0L cars are commonly thought of as the best of the bunch, that certainly doesn't mean that the other years and other engines aren't good. There are so many combinations, options, configurations, one-off previous owner modifications, etc that it's nearly impossible to summarize them into a concise post. Try to find out what you really want out of the car (what performance qualities are desired; amenities, options, features, things like that) and then try to find the car that closest fits this list of stuff that you're looking for.

The 4 vs 6 is a big can of worms, I'll stay away from that one. I don't think that built engines are a bad thing; just as buying any other car, find out what you're getting yourself into, who built the motor, when and how often was it serviced, etc.

There's also something to be said for buying the 'best' car that your current finances can afford.. buying a cheap car that needs work is NOT a deal in the long run. It may be fun and it may be 'your thing', just realize that it won't be less expensive in the long run.

In general though, I agree with these guys.. read the hell out of the board, use the search function to find older posts and information, and ASK QUESTIONS! We're all here to help (or screw around, I can't remember which) and there are very, very few questions that this group can't answer.

[netwolf232]

Thanks for the help. Jeffs74 you said that a 74 would be exempt in CA? Is that the entire model year? Right now I am looking at Spdracers 74 in the classifieds section. It seems to have almost everything I would want except it is not registerd for street use and I would need to be able to drive my car 4-5 miles to get to the track. How hard would it be to get a car like that registered? Would the fees be prohibitve? Thanks Again.
-Andrew

[Rusty]

I am looking into buying a 914 as a streetable track car( one that I could cruise around town in and drive to the track). My first major question would be should I go for the 6 or the 4. Both seem to have the same displacement so are there any major power or reliability differences? Are there any items that I should look for when buying the 914? Any years more desireable than others? Should I be weary of built engines? How much should I expect to pay for either a 6 or a 4 in nice mechanical and cosmetic condition? I started autox about a year ago and have been using a friends car but would really like to get one of my own and I love the 914's. Thanks for the help.

Hi Andrew,

Welcome to the BBS. The best advice that I've ever heard for folks getting into autocross, is to take an existing car, drive the tires off of it for a season or two. Learn how to drive it, and then start modifying your car.

Of course, buying a 914 is like buying a 911. Buy the best car you can afford, but for a 914, focus on rust/chassis integrity. Everything else is bolt-on. I made a mistake of passing on a car last year - the cosmetics were crappy, but it was totally solid and the drivetrain/suspension was in great shape. I couldn't get past the exterior, and 6 months later I really regretted it.

Some people believe that a stock /6 is underpowered, but once you start looking at a /6 conversion you can really get bumped up into the Fire Breathing Dragon Classes at autox. Check your local rule book.

-Rusty (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smoke.gif)

[Jeffs9146]

74 would be exempt in CA? Is that the entire model year?

Yep, as of today '74 is totaly exempt for smog!

Jeff

[netwolf232]

I found a 1974 2.0L within 20 minutes of my house. The desription goes as follws: 1974 PORSCHE 914 2.0 FI - CAL CAR, RUNS GREAT, NEW INT, BMW FTR BRAKES, QUICKSHIFT, 19MM MASTER, KONIS, AM FM CASSETTE, 4 SPEAKERS, SCCA ROLL BAR, ALARM W/P/LOCKS, 72 914 FOR PARTS, $3495 OBO. I called the guy and he said that the engine is in very good shape as he used it for a daily driver. He also has a spare car lying around for parts. Is this a good deal? What problems should I look for? Is it necessary to get a shop inspection of the car?
-Andrew

[TheCabinetmaker]

I found a 1974 2.0L within 20 minutes of my house. The desription goes as follws: 1974 PORSCHE 914 2.0 FI - CAL CAR, RUNS GREAT, NEW INT, BMW FTR BRAKES, QUICKSHIFT, 19MM MASTER, KONIS, AM FM CASSETTE, 4 SPEAKERS, SCCA ROLL BAR, ALARM W/P/LOCKS, 72 914 FOR PARTS, $3495 OBO. I called the guy and he said that the engine is in very good shape as he used it for a daily driver. He also has a spare car lying around for parts. Is this a good deal? What problems should I look for? Is it necessary to get a shop inspection of the car?
-Andrew

Is this a good deal?

Not if its a rust bucket. Go look at the car and take someone with you who knows what he's looking at.
Sometimes owner modified cars can be a total nightmare. Then again, it may be a sweet deal. Hard for us to tell without good pics. Why dosen't he use it for a daily driver any more?

[TheCabinetmaker]

Wow! I've tried several times to insert a quote in my reply with no results. This time I didn't even try and it quote's the entire post!!!!!! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/confused24.gif)

[Bleyseng]

Avoid a car that is rusty like this!

[ChrisReale]

What Geoff said. Yo can find a car with all the goodies, but if it a rusty piece of shit, it will do yo no good, unless you find a perfect tub to transfer everything to, but that is a whole 'nuther episode

[netwolf232]

I went and looked at the car today. As far as I could tell everthing looked solid and in good shape. I checked the battery tray area for rust and the guy had replaced a small area about 6 in up from the frame with a patch pannel. I could not find another rust spot on the entire rest of the car. The paint was not stellar but all the body work was straight. The interior was perfect and the trunk and lid showed no signs of rust either. I drove the car for about 20 minutes and beside a little loose shocks everything seemed good. The engine revved smoothly but the tranny was a little hard to get into first but I think that is typical on these cars? I am going to take it to a well known shop to get a professional opinon. The guy was very nice and knew a lot about 914's he even offered to drive the car and meet me half way at the shop. He used the car as a daily drive for the last couple of months to commute but he was now given a company car so he wants to make room in the garage. Here are some pictures:

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2003-9/3757...21/DSC01908.JPG

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2003-9/3757...21/DSC01907.JPG

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2003-9/3757...21/DSC01910.JPG

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2003-9/3757...21/DSC01911.JPG

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2003-9/3757...21/DSC01912.JPG

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2003-9/3757...21/DSC01917.JPG

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2003-9/3757...21/DSC01919.JPG

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2003-9/3757...21/DSC01923.JPG

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2003-9/3757...21/DSC01922.JPG

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2003-9/3757...21/DSC01919.JPG

[Bleyseng]

access denied, hmmm
Post the pics here so all can see, doood.

Geoff (IMG:style_emoticons/default/confused24.gif)
I got to see one pic this morning. He could resize them to 6x8's w/ a photo editor so they could be posted using the save for web feature.

[Rusty]

I can see the pics. I bet he exceeded his daily bandwidth limit.

-Rusty (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smoke.gif)

P.S. These pics are about 500k each. Leaving them as links is a good idea.

[netwolf232]

I will resize the pics and have them up tomorrow. Sorry about that. As far as the engines go on these cars are there any other tests I should do besides compression?
-Andrew

[Bleyseng]

Look closely at the engine, is it real dirty, grimey, fresh oil dripping? How about the heat exchangers? rusty, holes or stainless steel?
Look and the vacuum hoses, the fuel lines, are they hard and all cracked?
Look at the rubber seals around the targa top and check for hardness. All these things cost a fair amount of money to replace, so nice soft untorn seals, hoses are a good thing. A clean engine is nice too.

Geoff

[netwolf232]

I don't think there will be a need for me to repost any of those pictures. I took it to a friend of a friend today who owns a body shop and is a 914 fanatic and he said run away. He said the car had been in a front end colision, new doors had been put on, probable frame damage, etc. etc. So I will just continue to look until I find my perfect car. Thanks for the help and i'll continue to browse this great site.