1 Bought the car from a life long friend from Camarillio Ca. who has sinced moved
Jan 1981... Well I traded the first car I ever owned a 1968 Chevy Impala SS with a 427 4 speed with less than 45 000 miles .. It seemed like a fair trade at the time
2 Rebuilt the engine 5 months later. The engine had a stroker crank 100 mm pistons and a high duration cam. Dual 40 webers. It was a screamer to 55 mph. Not like the 427 was but few cars could match that!! But the Chevy got a whopping 14 mpg on a good day only if you were drafting semi's.
3. In 1982 moved to Iowa got married and started having kids all within a few months if you know what I mean?
4. In 1983 I spun a bearing in the motor and being a " family man " now I needed something a bit more reliable so I had the local Porsche Mechanic Tom Bruch ( who IMO is a mechanical genius which I will get into later). We opted for a Big bore 1.7 and the motor was very reliable and powerful enough that when I started SCCA autocrossing that I did fairly well.
5. In 1984 I traded my Suzuki GS 1100 ( which was ungodly fast at the time and I lived to tell about it
) to my brother in law for converting the 914 into a 914 GT . We added fiberglass flares and rockers fiber glass front bumper and a 916 rear bumper. At that time, little did I know the pieces I took off would be worth anything and I believe they were scapped out with a local junk man. 2 pristine rocker panels and a front and rear long valence and flawless painted front and rear bumpers... 
6 Tom Bruch who owned BruchMotorwerks drilled the rotors out for a 5 lug conversion and I bolted up a set of 15 x 7 and 15 x8 Fuch alloys with 205/50 and 225/50 Comp T/A R which at this time was a fairly sticky tire.
7. Over the next 4 years I enjoyed AutoX and became the regional Champion in SP but as much as I got to be a better driver I longed for more power.
8 Life began getting hectic late 1987 with 2 young daughters and starting a Commercial Construction company. At this time I will refer to the dormant years and any long time 914 owner has surely went through with his or her cars. I drove mine very little at this time but when I did I always had a smile on my face! My daughters always fought over who would get the car when they turned 16. ( which NEVER happened)
9. In 1997 Tom Bruch by now is a very good friend of mine. As I got to know him we found out I was living in the very small town in Iowa which he grew up in. In some odd way it kind of bonded us. But Tom being the eccentric and thrifty guy he is ( anyone who knows him knows what I am saying ) decides to tackle the Bonneville Speed record in a 1 liter Porsche 914. Yes we all know that Porsche never made a Engine this small. But Tom being the genius he is felt he had just the ticket. He took a 2.0 6 cylinder and removed 3 cylinders complete with rods and heads counterweighted the crankshaft blocked off the bores in the case. Then set it up with the correct gears in the transaxle and matched them so it would consistently stay within the small power range that the Porsche 3 cylinder had. I wish I had photos and I will have to make a few calls to some friends who might have them. It was a sight to see all the Salt Racers come up and look within the engine bay to see half of the engine gone! As for the car and it's runs were short lived. Tom along with 4 others ( me included.. I was the only one who had anything to haul it
) ran the car 6 times and could only muster a best 102 mph avg I think the record at the time was 106 or 08. The salt was in poor shape meaning it was very wet and speed was hard to come by. Tom quickly lost faith in the car and turned his attention to another car which by the way was a VW rabbit pickup and set several speed records there and I think a old AFB base Maxon? From what I do remember about this truck was that he took a diesel engine shaved the head down and converted it back to gasoline and had a compression ratio that was around 17 or 18. I remember a few failures before he got it right. But the look in his eye when he would tell his stories of kicking ass in a S**tbox VW pickup was priceless. He has since sold his buisness and retired and we fell out of touch. I ran into him 3 years ago in a restaraunt and I havent seen him since and I hope he is doing well.10. by 1999 too many years went by. I taught my girls how to drive a 5 speed in my 914. My oldest picked it up instantly but my youngest had her issues not only with a clutch but with driving in general! I wont elaborate because I am sure she would kill me if I outed her within this forum
But I can say now that dad isnt buying her wheels these days she takes better care and has become a MUCH better driver! 
Oh I almost forgot, before the milineum I became single again. While many guys would pour themselves into their first love my 914 was more neglected during this time than at any other and when I took it out for the first time in months I heard a huge noise in the motor and sad to say it was terminal. The case stayed intact but the noise sounded more like a early tractor with no muffler and you could hear it from a long distance. 2 years later and 2 moves to two different places and finalizing of the divorce I moved back into the house I had built with my ex after I bought her out. I had the garage many desire 1100 sq ft 13 foot ceilings with a thought of putting a lift in someday. At one time I had 4 cars a Harley and a Lawn tractor along with the 914 in it. I was in heaven!11. In 2002 I decided I was going to get another cheap 914 motor with Tom being out of buisness and I looked to ebay to fulfill my need for a low mileage T4 that I could pop into the car and start putting some miles back on the car. I finally found one from some dude from NJ. he told me it had 68 000 miles and in good shape. When I received the motor it looked like 268 000 there was enough grease and grime on it that I am sure that I got robbed. Lesson learned! It didnt deter me from my baby. I decided I was going to get it running regardless. So I jacked it up pulled all the wheels off and dropped the old assembly and started into it. Once under it I noticed that the rear window seal which I knew leaked since I owned it finally ate a few holes near the firewall. I started poking around and noticed the under the battery tray was looking a little suspect. I had already replaced the tray years ago but it was a bit more nasty. It is amazing what you can find once the engine is removed and you are able to get in there and see. At this time I thought I can rebuild it and restore it better than new!!!
12. I started to acquire parts. I bought a new floor pan from AA and thought this should be easy! Ummm wrong! I am a capable welder but not quite a artist that I have seen on some of the threads. I got it installed and it looks great from the underside of the car. I knew I was not going for a show car but something I could enjoy like I did when I was 19! Plus with carpet over the interior who would ever see it right? During this time I thought well if your going to go this far you should do a 6 conversion. Knowing that the rest of the car needed a little updating I set off to do so. I started by selling off the drilled 5 lug rotors and front suspension. I found the original 6 stub rear axles from Mittlemotor and bought them. Shortly there after I bought a complete 911 front suspension. The shopping frenzy continued with trailing arm box kit from patrick motorsports. I bought the chassis stiffener at the same time. I am thinking I could have a capable DE car or maybe a race car when I am done?
13. Then came 2003 I fell in love!
She was a looker, built for speed and about all I could handle! I know your probably thinking 911 right?? Looking back at it I wish I would have!!! I could have bought my real dream a 993 and been money ahead!!! The next 3 years of running all over the US spending money like it was growing on trees and having a hell of a great time too!! The 914 took a back seat again!! During this time I did find a bargain of a racing 901 transmission by a guy in LA area . His last name is Craig. First name I do not recall. To this day I am not sure of its condition but I do know he had many Porsches in his garage that he was working on. He also was Full oF Stories and enjoyable to talk to. 14. By the time I fell out of love it was 2006. I was 45 single again ( no I didnt marry her )
and starting to acquire parts again. by this time I sold the Fuchs because I decided to upgrade the brakes to 993. I figured out all the parts I needed and started on the quest again. Yeah by now I know I am a ebayaholic! I was having fun to see how cheap I could buy things and I know I have bought things from many of you here! I bought a pair of Fibreglass hoods from a guy near Atlanta. he wouldnt ship them so I knew it would limit the buyers interest on them. I ended up paying a 1/4 of their worth and decided to fly down rent a truck build a box for them and fly them back home. I checked with the airlines and the guaranteed me they would fit within their guidelines. So off I flew into hartsfield and enjoyed the weekend in ATL with a new g/f. So after swapping Porsche stories with the guy he gave me a box that they were shipped in. My luck! I didnt have to build anything to ship them. After seeing a few sights it was time to go back home. We decided to go early to the airport because I had a feeling that I was going to have problems with the size of this box! When I got there the lines were huge and moving slow! I have been to many airports all over the world but never any as bad as Atlanta. By the time I got to the check in counter they all pulled a attitude second to none! regardless that I could prove to them that the box fit within their posted guidelines they would not allow me to check the parts at all. they gave me no help other than air freight. Since 9/11 no one can come up and get something shipped without a account with any airlines. The woman at the counter suggested US Mail. So off to find the Post Office! It did not meet their requirements either. the Dude directed me to the Bus station. Mind you the clock is ticking and its getting closer to my time of departure. Jumping back into the Rental and trying to find the Bus station with the time clicking off precious seconds I find the Bus Depot. I telling you that is one bad ass part of town especially living in Iowa all these years! I get the parts shipped back to Iowa without any issues at all and cheaply! We then set out to the airport one more time. We get to the airport 35 minutes before departure. We get moved up to the checking and they say it is too close to departure to get our bags checked. SO we decided to carry on. By this time we are running through the airport reminescent of O.J. Simpson commercials to get thru security. As we place the bags on the scanner I get a look from the TSA dude and he asks to go through my bag. Of course I answer. Little did I realize that many of the tools I had brought with me to build the shipping box in one carry on were forbidden on a airplane. I checked it on the first flight! SO as he was going through the bad ever so slowly I just said dump the bag and let me go.We rushed through the terminal only to find the door to the jet way closed but the plane had not pulled away . I read a sign next to the door that said push bar wait 30 seconds then open. As soon as I did a siren went off and a announcement over the intercom said "Security has been alerted!!" At this point in time I figure I am going to jail. We walk down to the end of the jet bridge to see a nice young man who signals the pilot that we are here who motions that we need on this flight. The pilot agrees to let us on just as Security comes running down the Jet bridge. The nice young man says all is cool and we get on the plane. by this time we are both exhausted. We both drink the plane out of Rum by the time we landed in QCI and laugh about our ordeal. I realized the next day that all the battery operated tools I gave up in Atlanta were worth about than the savings on the parts.
But we were home safely and it made for a hell of a adventure!!
15.Over the next few years I would add a few parts and sell a few more as I upgraded the teener. By now all my friends and family have their doubts I will ever get it running again.
16. Then in 2010 I met my soulmate and two years later we got married.
She encourages me to get the car done so she can ride in what she thinks is a "Cool Car"!She knows that when I work on it and balance it with married life that I am happiest. She is a car guys dream! It took me over 10 years and countless ex girlfriends to find the right woman. And I am inspired to finish the car. Although we have down scaled this past summer and the dream garage is no longer I am going to get it done. This past month I have learned more about working on restoring and upgrading than I have in the past 30 years due to 914World.com. This project may have been going on 10 years but I know it wont go another 3
.I am hoping to take my 2 year old grandson to his first day of school in what I think is a pretty cool ride myself.
here are a few pics for everyone who has read the short little story
