I just thought I would drop by before bed and introduce my first entry into the 914 world. I've been a fan of the 914 for a long time now but I had no plans on purchasing one anytime soon until a coworker sent me a photo of a car he happened upon one day.
How I found it:


After I saw it I couldn't resist stopping by to check it out, after that there was no turning back. I knew it was a 914 but the Chalon kit had me a bit confused as to what I was looking at, the Chalon kit isn't completely my cup of tea, if I had a choice I would have been much happier with a stock body but I was more sold on all the new parts the car has. It had been sitting for a couple years but it had a nearly brand rebuilt 2000cc engine, new shocks and struts, new exhaust, dual weber carb setup, pertronix distributor and probably some more things once I dig through the paper work.
Aside from the Chalon kit the rest of the car is very solid with no major rust areas making themselves apparent as of yet. I've got some minor rust here and there but so far most of it is not rotted through yet, all seeming very tamable so far. There is definitely body work to do with the fiberglass.



It is a rarity to see a 914 in my area, especially one for sale that I could afford so I did what needed to be done and the end result was a roll back dropping it off at my house earlier this afternoon. Now the process of bringing it back to life begins. I'm still a bit afraid of what I've gotten myself into but I'm still optimistic.

Probably the first wash this car has had in several years, Its looking much better with all the crud washed off. I've already pulled the fuel tank and cleaned it out and changed the oil but it looks like I'm going to have to get a fuel pump before I can start it up. I'm having an issue with the accelerator pedal as well, the man I purchased it from said it needed a cable but it seems like the little ball joint thing on the back of the pedal has just popped off of the piece it snaps on to, I've tried popping it back on but it just doesn't seem to stay, nor does it have clearance to miss the metal piece of the body tunnel to the right of the pedal so I'll have to work that out as well before I can get it moved from its current position.

Congratulations!

Well you have started off in the right direction with the fuel tank. Make sure you drain the whole system and then check the sock filter in the tank as they tend to clog.

Next I would give the brakes a good going over to make sure the car will stop. PMB Performance is your one stop shop for all of your brake needs.

Check all of the suspension attachment points and look for rust in all of the usual spots.

Good luck as you get to know your new toy.

Full disclaimer: I am probably one of the world's worst folks at mechanical repairs. Take everything I say with a grain, hell, a whole bag of salt.

I don't know what year your 914 is but, as long as you are replacing the fuel pump, you might want to take a look at relocating it. The original location makes the car susceptible to vapor locks. Perhaps one of the more skilled mechanical contributors can chime in with details. Maybe that was done already as a part of the modifications the previous owner completed.

Congratulations on getting your 914. Hope you enjoy the experience. It can be addicting.

Your no longer on the edge of the cliff I've stepped off and the fall is in motion. Funny, how it feels like your flying at first
'

Welcome

good luck!

Nice to see another Chalon. I've had mine since February and it's up on jack stands getting treated to a 911 5-lug conversion. Can't see if yours is 5- lug or not, but if it is, I'd take a look at how the conversion was done. Mine had very unsafe cast spacers with threads for the lugs. Chalons usually have wider than stock rims, so it's important to have things right because of the additional cornering forces associated with the wider wheels and tires. The body kit should be very sturdy and you might even start liking it....with time. Enjoy your Chalon, you've come to the right place for help and advice.

Welcome to the madness! Get your checkbook ready!

hope your driving it soon.

Thanks for the warm welcome and suggestions! I'm really looking forward to getting to know this car and 914s in general. I've been browsing this site for the past couple weeks in anticipation of getting the car delivered to my house.



I spent a little more time cleaning out under the gas tank today in order to get the fuel tank back in place. Luckily the rust I have found so far is nothing more than surface rust. I'm glad that I could get to this car when I did, I have a feeling a large amount of rust happened while it was parked for the past 4 or 5 years. According to the paperwork it has only had about 6 miles put on it since 2005. Odometer currently reads 22535, in 2005 it had 22529. If the odometer actually works, that would put virtually zero miles on the engine since it was installed in 2007.

I had a sense of obligation to save this car from a slow death from decay while sitting buried up in a grassy corner of a garage parking lot. You can still see a good bit of the mud caked on the tire from where the wheels had sank up the the bead in mud.

Wow, that actually looks pretty good rust wise.

Good luck and Welcome!

Thank you, So far I'm very happy with the amount of rust I have found, that was my biggest concern when I first inspected the car, everything seems very solid so far. I just can't wait to get it back on the road, I've got a lot a work ahead of me but I feel it will be worth it.

I've found this site very helpful so far, I've primarily worked with BMW E30s for the past 6 or 7 years but I've always had a soft spot for the 914s. This is the first opportunity I have had to actually have one of my own. I can't wait to see how they hold the curves. I go back and forth on the Chalon kit, I love the look of a stock 914 but I also like the wide body look of the Chalon kit, there are a couple features I dislike about it but overall I don't mind it. As for the suspension, its still running the 4-lug setup with a set of wider panasport 15s. I may look into converting it to 5-lug in the future but for now I will just be happy to hear it start up.

She lives! Runs a bit rough but progress is progress. First startup!

They handle fantastically. I would suggest that you find a very large parking lot where you can "play" with it and discover it's envelope. I was very surprised at how quickly the rear end came around once it broke loose. IIRC, the pucker factor was around 11 on a scale of 1-10. Oh, .