Just answered a question about color change and thought that I would share my thoughts.
"Why is it so bad to color change my 914?"

There are only two main problems with a color change:

1. (and this is the most important one: Porsche keeps records on the cars, and anyone can access them through the so called "certificate of authenticity". This lists the original color engine transmission and equipment and dealer to which the car was delivered. As we all know in collectors circles, that the more original a car is the more it is worth. Collectors always want original examples. Hence there will be a day when your great great grandson wants to sell this 914 that has been passed down through the generations, and the collector comes up to him likes the car, wants to buy it for a lot of money, but then does a bit of research (simply looks at the Karmann badge with the color code on it!!!!) and says: "Too bad your great great grandfather changed the color of this car, I would have paid 50,000 more for it!" Your great grandson suddenly hates you!

2. A color change is hard to effectuate! Every new car is painted as a stripped body shell and then assembled. The only way to color change is to duplicate this condition. That means stripping the body shell of every part including the wiring harness, and then media blasting the exterior and sand blasting the interior until every last bit of any paint residue is gone. THEN restart the paint process and reassembly process. This alone, without even purchasing any new parts is terrifically expensive and time consuming. THEN one reinstalls the Karmann paint and body number plate which loudly announces the color change!!!
If on the other hand you just color change the exterior, you will never be able to execute a proper good job and the trunks door jambs door edges engine compartment and interior will SCREAM color change! And then there is the problem of the paint chipping revealing the original color! We have seen some real color change butcher jobs where the body shop actually blacked out under the trunks and engine compartment overspraying all of the wiring and accessories (like the headlight motors) actually RUINING the car!
Bottom line: Why spend hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars to reduce the value of your collectible 914?

hey George, I've noticed you've been posting tech tips of the day...

just wanted to say 'thank you'.

To many orange cars were repainted other colors. bummer!

I bet he's getting us used to it, then these tips will appear on his website exclusively once it's up. That's what I would do to bring in traffic.

And then there were the Limited Editions that were partially color changed at the original selling dealer before they were delivered to the customer!!!!

Well I'll buy that one if you can do something about that terrible orange (or yellow) trim!!!!!!!!!!

I feel your pain... I see this in the Corvette world as well. When I was in a club, there were no less than 5 orange cars. Two of them remained orange (one is mine), and the others were painted boring mundane colors like white, black, and red.

I enjoy reading these... it is like my 914 daily proverb

George
You beat me to it -- I was just going to cut and paste this out of your PM into a post so others could benefit!!

Thanks buddy, you're an asset for sure

I never really understood color changing a car.

The last "Purple" 914 I had was originally silver. Man, from silver to purple???

What if your car is supposed to be raspberry (pink) and it has been color changed before you owned it? Thats my dilemma on the car I'm currently working on. I don't like color changes, and I don't like pink. Whats a guy to do?

Here is a visual reference for the color my car was from Porsche.

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keep it pink,
pink is the black of the 80's,
how mutch pink cars are on the streets today, AND your 'pink' is not THAT 'pink' (know what i mean...)
KEEP it.

TOM

Then again, if the car is so messed up from a repaired front & rear collision, you know there's at least 20 lbs of bondo on it, and the hell hole is helping to cool your engine...

I'm just saying...

Pink, err i mean Raspberry is one of the rarest factory 914 colors out there.

It would be so cool to bring that one back to life ...
Andy

Especially if you can get some bunnies to hop around the car again..

914s look great in pink!

On the other hand...

Just about three years ago, I purchased my teener. When looking for my car, I really cconcentrated on finding a car with minimal rust and good engine fundamentals. The paint was the very last thing that I cared about. That said, I got a rust-free 914 (or as near a rust free 914 as there is), which was originally yellow L13M. The PO had poorly maintained the car and sprayed the body and trunk areas black.

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After working on the engine, transmission, suspention and electrical systems, I decided to make sure there wasn't any significant rust under that black paint. So a little over a year ago, I removed the paint and bondo down to the bare metal. Although I found a couple small points of rust, for the most part it was in pretty good shape.

Click to view attachment
Click to view attachment

Now, what to paint my car... I wasn't excited about the original color, and I didn't have the resources for a total paint project, so I prepped her myself, and took her to one of the scratch and paint shops. It's now Viper blue, and although it definately a 5-10 foot paint job, I do get many complimants.

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The main thing with my teener is that it's a daily driver. Rain or shine, winter or summer, I drive that car to work, on weekends, and I rely on it as my primary transportation.

So for me, the change of color was a good fit.

Eric Read

just wondering how far his extends. what do you guys think? i have a 1.8 thats shot...should i restore it to stock or would upgrading it to a 2.4 lessen the value of the car? just wondering where we stand on this. Dave

Thanks for that blurb, I have an original orange 73 2.0 that I have been seriously considering changing to black, but the orange has been growing on me and my wife and daughter prefer the orange. I didn't buy the car as an investment so I was thinking I can do whatever I want, it is for me, not for anyone else but the more I learn the more I appreciate what it is and that I shouldn't turn it into something else. I am probably going to leave the original colour, not because it will affect the value but because it won't be a painted car that will make you wonder why did someone do that, what happened, what are they hiding kinda questions. First nice weather of the year this weekend and we have had lots of rain so all the salt is washed away,I'm going driving!!Yeah!!

Ian Stott
Moncton
Canada

Interesting discussion. It's funny I had no problem putting flares on my car or installing a 3.0 but I was determined to have her resprayed in the OEM color. When I was young I did a color change that came out crappy and I guess that scarred me for life . I say to each his own but I tend to agree leave them the original color. Mine is L11D Berber Yellow.

imho you cannot compare a 'Porsche' engine swap with a paintjob.
if you cange your mind (just in case ) 4 bolts an the original engine is in again.

Can I just mention an alternative way of interpreting that fact? The reason it's rare is because nobody liked that color. Ever. And still true today.

Can you imagine walking out to the parking lot and having your stomach turn every time you see your own car? Sooner or later something's gonna get done.

I would not buy a 914 that had the color changed.
The color is part of the car.
The color is also part of the seventies.

I second George. In the USA the 914 is not a rare car and it can be cheap, but I think this will change in the coming years.

In France, the car is rare and more and more appealing. I have witnessed the increasing prices payed for pristine 914 with original color. Today, you can't buy an original 2.0 under 15000 Euros (20000 $).

Owning a 914 is not an investment because you will spend more money in maintaining it than you will earn by selling it. But Carbs, bad colors, funky interiors... will kill the long term value of your car.

I agree totally, if at all feasible keep what you have. It's easier and cheaper anyway.

That said, I believe most of the Dr.'s advice is only valid if you have a concours car, complete, no rust, no rust repairs, no collision repair, no major modifications, etc, etc (VERY few of which exist). If that describes your car then the alternative is to just sell it for the (non-existent) premium you'll get for having that unloved and unwanted original color. Then buy another one in the color you like.

On the other hand if your car's like almost everyone else's here, if it's been knocked around the block a few times, has ever been resprayed, has non-german steel welded in for repairs anywhere, has god-forbid bondo, flares, a Chalon kit, 916 bumpers, front oil cooler, a Porsche six, V8 or Subaru motor, then you're not going to get any original color premium anyway. Nor are your grandkids. So do what you want. But if that means a color change then do it well, which is a lot of work and VERY expensive, or you and everyone around you will be embarrassed by the results.


Absolutely. Perfect summary. These cars are to have fun with. That's why they were built in the first place, to have fun. So cut all the serious crap and have some damned fun, dammit.

...

I kind of agree with DB on this. On the other hand, if you are going to do a color change you should do it right. I'm still on the fence for the pink. If the car had never been color changed, I would be more inclined to paint it the factory color.

We'll see, right now the color change I'm working on is rust to shiny steel. Before I need to make a decision, I will get a small sample and see what it looks like layed out.

But my original color is GOLD! I really dislike gold. The car has been black for the last 30 years - original owner changed the color because even he apparently did not like gold.

When it is painted, it is going to be a complete media blast/strip so no gold will remain. It is likely then going to be Light Ivory. I would throw up in my mouth every time I walked into the garage otherwise.

Gosh I have only one gold or pink 914 ever and thought they looked great!
Mine is staying Nepal Orange! I like the orange and its screams 70's.

There are too many black, silver and white 914's IMHO that were never that color...

I have a gold car also. It was a rare color..
Mine is red now...

My next paint job, most likely next winter, will be a full body deal....starting to think about gold...there is a house of colors gold that is a bit more blingy and bright...the OEM gold always looks dirty.

If I had one of the rasberry cars I would keep it that color and put a very LOUD engine inside to offset the color.
Rich

If I go raspberry, I would offset it with some black, to bring the pink down a bit. Like this photoshop I did...

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I have a friend at work who used to own a yellow 914. He told me he had it painted black. I can't help but think because we all know that the yellow cars are faster.

To hell with planning how much more the grand kids will get for the car. I'm living in the now and I saw do what is right for you. I hope the future generations see my car as something they can enjoy in the moment too.

I suspect some of these colors are "rare" because they were not very well received. I have to agree with PanelBilly, I am going to paint the car the color that I want. When I am dead and buried if someone wants to color change it back to gold, and to be honest I do not see that being any of my relatives, then so be it. I also agree that the stock color gold always looked dirty to me too.

It is funny (to me) that the car could have come from the factory any other color and I would have repainted it the factory color. When my car was initially listed a available on this board I called the owner who told me the car was originally yellow. I was happy with that because I always liked yellow on the 914. Then I get to his house and as I walk up to the rear of the car I can see the bling-bling gold glowing at me from inside the engine compartment (only area not color changed) and I just thought "Crap, now I have to deal with changing the factory color". The owner looks at me and says, "yeah, it was yellow before....see (as he is pointing to the gold). Nice enough guy but apparently his color vision is not what it may once have been. Anyway, I knew it was going to be a media blast restoration so it did not really ruin my day. But I would have preferred it not to have been gold. No offense to all of the gold lovers, it is just not for me.

My car is a colour change and I don't give a shit what you think.

I plan to drive the living shit out of my car for the next 20 years till it's dead, dead, dead.

By then I'll be almost 70 and again I won't give a shit what you think.

Just IMHO

Tell us how you really feel Mark....

Just keeping it real.

if you like your car the stock color, great. but color, just like everything should be what YOU want your car to be.

my car is currently red. it was originally orange. yes, I'd like to change it back to AN orange... but even if the car had originally been any color I would eventually paint it orange.... well, maybe not eggplant. that color is awesome, too

Mine's currently red. It seems the majority of 914s were red. The past 4 sports cars I've owned were red. This thing's going orange, I don't care what the stamps say. I'm tired of red.

Dudes! Cool! 914 owners got ATTITUDE!!!

hmm interesting...so that upgrade would not require machining the case? replaceing the heads, crank, any of that is reversible? ok

... i ment 'another' engine.
so i think it is easy reversible as to color your car again in the original color.
.. only my thoughts in this case,
my teener gets the original orange, but Dell's an a webcam 86a ...

Well now I'm confused. My car was originally Phoenix Red. The left front corner and front trunk lid came off a green car after crash damage. So should I leave those parts green and paint the rest of the car red to maintain value?

In looking over my stash of parts I found a stack of 6 engine lids, every one of them a colour change. It would be a heck of a lot better to trade the car for one of your colour choice than to change the colour. JMHO
OTOH, why the H*** did you buy the car if you hated the colour in the first place???

My car was a fairly rare optional color... Delphi Green Metallic. I am sure the original owner loved that color, but when I got the car, the paint had faded to OD Green. It was friggin UGLY!.

And personally I always wanted a Red Porsche. Not green, not yellow, not brown, but RED! So when I did the paint and body work (both times) I painted it red. The second time it was a full media blast and strip to bare metal repaint. I did keep the original glove box door with the factory color on it, but you can't see it, as it is behind the vinyl and painted black on the inside.

Betty want's her car the stock color.. so it is staying Phoenix Red (aka Signal Orange). She almost didn't buy her car because it was orange, but once she drove it, she loved it. It is HER car, so I do what SHE wants to it, not what I think is best. With her, I may make suggestions, but I don't impose anything on her. And yes, I have repeatedly suggested a six conversion, but for some reason she doesn't want one.....


Bottom line for me... it is MY car, and I will do with it what I want. I don't particularly like a V8 conversion, but if that is what YOU like and it is YOUR car, then by all means, go for it! If you want to cut it up and put a Lazer 917 body on it, I will laugh at it... but it is YOUR car, so I don't get a say in what YOU want.

The value of a 914 is fairly subjective, and you will never get the money out of one that you put into it for a restoration. So do what makes you happy, not what other people want you to do.

the only dividends come in the form of smiles drive it and enjoy it

Yep..... I'm keeping it a white, stock , total base model, L-jet, 1.8 with steelie wheels with 165/15's and no sways because someday it will be worth a fortune.







Fuch that

LOL my car was free! And, I had no clue it was originally pink until Rick posted that "assignment". I'm not going to worry too much about color yet. Like I posted earlier, I'm just trying to change the color rust to shiny steel.

My -6 conversion is/was Light Ivory 1976. Before I bought it the original motor was long gone. As George will attest (I bought the car from him) it's one of the worst repaints I have ever seen . . . . original colour or not.

As I prepare to strip the tub of it's 2.2T engine, late '80s Carrera front end and 914-6 rear, soda blast it, repair rust, weld on GT flares . . . . . and then re-do the interior in a cognac leather one courtesy of Auggie at Autos International (fantastic work BTW) . . . and then install a 3.2 engine . . .

yeah, I'm painting it Irish Green - great Grand-kids be damned!!

Why? Because unless it has a big black number 40 on it I've never been a fan of flared cars in white - loses the impact of the lines I find. On the other hand, if I was keeping it a narrow body car it would stay white because I think it looks great. And the first 914 I saw when I was a kid was when the guy across the street came home with his brand new Irish Green 914-6 in '71. Still my favorite.

On the other hand, on my bone stock original Phoenix Red '73 I would never consider changing the colour. I happen to like it but even if I didn't I would never destroy that level of originality on any car.

and Clay, if you park them side by side there is a huge difference between your wife's Phoenix Red and Signal Orange. The Phoenix is closer to Tangerine.