:screwy: Please help. I am considering a 914 for my week end car...Just sold a very nice Miata M...a little too civilized and normal for me. I am in my fifties amd have owned Triumphs and Healys and air cooled and water cooled vw's...Is there one year or years that are more desirable...where are the rust issues? Is there as garage or shop near Philadelphia PA that specialized or at least in interested in 914's?
Thanks.
Charles Myers

'73 and '74 2.0L cars are (arguably) the most desirable.

However, I would consider any car as long as it was rust free.

RUST is the biggest (and most expensive) issue. Do a search on "hell hole" and you will find out about rust issues.

Go west to find a car without rust. The $1000 cross-country shipping cost will be much less than getting rust repair done on a car found east of the Mississippi.

Damn straight....ask me how I know!

Go west to find a car "WITHOUT" rust.

You meah go west to find a car with LESS rust.

You might also want to consider a conversion car in the want ads . I converted my 2.0 four to a 3.2 six with stock injection. The injection is more modern and a blast to drive. I would not suggest converting one. It's much cheaper to buy someone else's money pit.

1973 2.0 unless you are in the 914-6 market.

Chrome bumpers (can be changed if have the later large black ones)
Two adjustable seats
No DEQ

Appearance group:
Console with gauges
Fog lights
Sway bars
Fuch wheels

Get one as nice and complete as you can find. Parts like bumpers and door handles will add up fast.

You will get way more attention then in your Miata. Being able to store the top in the trunk is great and the targa bar is real nice for keeping the wind down. You can upgrade the suspension to make it as uncivilized as you want. People and car guys will chat you up everywhere you go. Kids will wave and give you the thumbs up. Storage front and rear is very useful. The biggest downside is probably engine accesibility. Some parts are no longer availible, but there is a lot of after market resources like 914rubber, Tangerine racing, PMBperformance, GPRparts and Elephant Racing. I had no idea owning one would be so much fun.

The name is Fuchs ... The 's' at the end is not optional ...

Yes Sir Andy! .... won't make that mistake again.

I'd be looking at this if I were starting over again...

73 for sale on 914world

Rust free is really the only consideration. And don't go west, go to the Southwest. Find a desert car that's never left the desert. There's where your rust-free 914 is likely hiding.

2.0L is the most desirable, unless you're talking about a real 914/6. But there's nothing particularly wrong with the 1.7 and 1.8, either. It doesn't take a whole lot of "giddy-up" to get an acceptable level of performance out of a car that weighs less than 2,000 pounds. As as people have said, you can always put in a bigger engine.

It's always fun to pull in at a gas station, pop the hood and start fueling. Ten people will walk up and ask questions about the car.

Amen to the gas station remark. Love when that happens

I would never, ever mod my hood for an external fuel cap for that reason. "You have to pop the hood to pump gas??? What kind of car is that, anyway? Is that a Ferrari/Maserati/Lotus/Pantera/Lamborghini?"

Since I bought my 914, exactly one person (a bum hanging out in front of the DMV) knew what it was. "Nice '74," he said. I guess he was a mechanic at some point. Or just knew a lot about Porsche bumpers.


EDIT -- Charles, you don't need to find a Porsche shop. The local air-cooled VW guy likely knows more about the 914 than anyone nearby. My 1.8 engine is sitting in pieces all over a Las Vegas garage right now. I expect it will cost around $3,000 in parts and labor and I will have an essentially new engine again.

Finally, if you get one, get the fuel lines replaced immediately. That's job #1, no matter what you end up with.

We have three Miatas, all NAs (first generation). My sons have theirs prepped for the track but haven't made it yet, my wife's is stock. They are fun cars, but I'll take my sons' over the stock - better handling, braking, and a less refined.

But the 914 is on the other end of the spectrum - my sons love it and feel so much more connected to the car/road compared the their miatas, but it is noisy, rough, no power-assisted anything, it's hot in the summer and cold in winter, but a lot of fun to drive!

Mine is a '73, recently installed a 2056 cc engine with dual Webers which was a nice enhancement in the right foot fun department. Anyway, I agree '73-'74 are the best years, but also agree that finding little or no rust is far more important.

As others have said, look out west for a cleaner car than here in the rust belt.

Someone on this board can look at a car that is not local.

As far as repair shops, the only one I've dealt with is Mr. B's in Kutztown.

Contact information is:
MR B's
9 Christman Rd
Kutztown, PA 19530
(610) 683-8666

He pressed the rear wheel bearing on my 930 for me. He had a really nice 914 sitting in the garage. I think he works on Audi's, BMW, VW, etc. I've been told that he built a couple of 911 race cars for some local doctor.

Have u found your 914 yet? Bob

Think we scared him off - he's probably looking to get his Miata back.

Any car you buy will cost a bundle in maintenance if you are not at least a little savvy with a wrench and you have the time to do it.

I think you are right. Once someone gets used to Miata's, S2000's etc. it's hard to move to a "primitive" car.

The 914 is a perfect weekend car. Wake up, inspect your jack stands, chip away rust, test for electrical gremlins, install a few interior refresh parts, and buy more parts to store for future weekends. It's awesome fun

Did you want to drive it too?


I swear by my old 1.7. I hammer on it and it keeps going! Parts are way less expensive than the 2.0, in fact you can get a complete, running engine for $400-700! I paid over $2k for rust repairs on a $3k 1972 with awesome paint and broken motor I replaced.

It's a great weekend cruiser now

I've owned a Miata. It's OK. Not great. Just OK. Shifting is cleaner. It's a little safer (air bags and such). And it's only a couple hundred pounds heavier than the 914.

But it's a front-engine roadster. And there's about 10 million of them on the roads.

You might have scared him off, but I'm right in there looking for a 914. I've liked them since they were introduced, and I still like them. Help me out here guys, I have cash and Im ready. I just need to find space in my garage with my BMW. The wife can't see the room, but I can.

Have we talked about my 914?? Bob

No Bob we haven't. Send some info to lucky_us@frontier.com. Thanks. I'm in southeast Indiana.