Hey gang!

I'm back in the mix, and getting ready for another 914 restoration. Not sure this will play out as well as it did Last Time, but we'll give her a go and see what I can come up with!

After I find the right starting-point, here's what I've been dreaming of doing to it.

Subaru EJ20 Turbo 4 engine & Trans. (250-275hp target)
Steel flares
5-bolt hubs
Boxster brakes
Stiffen up the body. (MAYBE a roll-bar.)
Satin silver paint, blacked-out chrome, black satin rims...with colorful calipers.

I think I've found the right starting-point car (70-1.7 with carbs) so I'll drive it a bit while I'm stock-piling parts. That way I can start the project in earnest this winter while the snow falls.

I'm going to use the 901 side-shift trans I have in my basement to mount up to the EJ20 after I can locate a decent one. That way, I should be able to get everything right and then mount it up a lot easier after I drop the 1.7 out. (Best intentions...always lead to disappointment, but I'll try anyway.)

Things I learned the last time:

* Do the body work all the way up to the primer, then let a pro take it from there.
* It's much easier to work when you have a lot of light.
* Garage heaters are your friend.
* When in doubt...STOP and look for an answer. (Doubling your bad efforts never works.)
* Wearing those blue latex gloves alleviates embarrassing situations in meetings
* The search button is your friend. (Spelling is also...thanks Andy.)

Here we go!

UPDATE: I ended up with a 1975 with a V8 conversion as a starting point.

UPDATE 2: The engine I found had a good Trans on it, so I'm going to have a Subaru 5MT not a 901.

UPDATE 3: 350 is my new HP goal

UPDATE 4: I'm naming the project "Grey Matter" because the car is going to be a lot more than just a restoration. That...and project names are cool.

UPDATE 5: April 17th is the "due date" to have it complete. Not as fast as my last build, but there is a LOT more to this one.

Here's what I'm shooting for as a color combo...but on a Carrera GT.

Click to view attachment

talk to dbcooper - seems he would have gone suby 6 if he were to do it over - unless I recall a post incorrectly.

though how cool is it to be running a closed deck suby with boost : )

I'm digging through a LOT of threads this week. Looks like I need to decide pretty quickly if I want the 901 transmission, or if keeping it will be more work than it's worth. The idea of buying a complete engine/trans combo that could bolt on a lot easier is appealing. The cable-shift transmission conversion is what has me puzzled right now. I need to plot/plan and talk to a few people first.

I guess Ian is on/returning from his honeymoon, so I'll hold off a few weeks before I make that decision.

Just ordered my steel flares and the rear floorboard. I KNOW I'll need that for either of the cars I'm looking at right now, so it was a safe bet to get them in sooner rather than later. Wish I could remember who I got the door panels from last time. I need to dig into that old email account and see if I can find it. Going to get the chassis stiffening kit too. Sad about Engman...he was a 1-stop-shop for a lot of the things I need this time around.

For that much power you should do a 5MT Subie trans...much better fit for your application. Bolts right up with no problem, no adapter required. We're all muddling through the cable shifter thing but many people have done it successfully. I'll be attempting it in a few weeks myself.

So what engine/trans combo should I be hunting for? I was looking at EJ20G, EJ20H, and EJ208 engines on eBay. There seem to be a lot of variances in what people here are using.

I'm also confused as to if I should be buying with/without the ECU.

Nevermind...figured out that the 5MT is about the ONLY trans that came with the EJ20.

Any 5MT will bolt up but you should look for one that was mated to a "turbo" car. The newer the better is the rule. Mine is from a stock 2006 WRX that had a 2.5T in it. I bolted it to a 3.3L SVX engine. Haven't driven it yet but it LOOKS REALLY GOOD!

Someone else will chime in on the engine piece I'm sure. EDIT: Get the ECU and engine wiring harness for sure.

Here's a thread you might want to check out. ON A PRIVATE ROAD some guy was embarassing kids in their Mustangs and GTOs with his lowly 914 2.0T. I'm sure it wasn't DBCooper though...he was just taping it. Note how quickly the 914 pulls away...

Link

The idea of a bigger power plant is fun and all, but I've always been a fan of a 4-cyl turbo. I'm not going to be tracking the car at all, so the gain in HP for tooling around with one of my boys is what I'm aiming for. 3.3 would be a bit of overkill for...me anyway.

Just purchased the Boxster calipers and the adapters from Rich. Ordered the rear 1/2 of the floor pan, and Flares from AA. Looks like I'll be picking the car up Wed night to drive home. Should be fun!

Good to see you back!

Thanks Travis!

Picking up my car tomorrow...assuming it makes the 120mi trip home!

So I'm stocking up parts already. Trying to use 914World members wherever possible.

1975 914 w/V8 (xsJerry)


3.5" 911 Struts (sebring66)
Boxster Brake Conversion (a914guy)
986 Brake Calipers (eBay)
Pontiac Solstice Rear-View Mirrors (eBay)
17" Boxster Rims (Cleveland Craigslist)
Steel Flares (dr914)
Fiberglass Rockers (dr914)
10-Piece Chassis Stiffening Kit (dr914)

Still waiting on a set of rotors to materialize that will work.

My assistant's boyfriend wrecked his 03 WRX, so I'm going to grab that motor/tranny and some other assorted parts in a few weeks. I'm not going to tackle the engine swap until the snow flies. At that point, I'll sell off the Renegade V8/901 combo or perhaps just sell the engine locally. (I may be able to just trade it to her BF for the Subaru engine.)

Here we go!

Parts are showing up every day...the car is still stuck in California.

Picked up rear-view mirrors for a Pontiac Solstice.

$85 Shipped...brand-new.

I'll need to modify them a little bit, but this should be a great starting point for a modern looking mirror.

Make sure you get the "Manual" version and not the electronic. They're the same price (imagine that) but these move a lot easier. (Guy down the street has one, and I tried moving the mirrors manually and they "clicked" across the servos.)

Brakes arrived!

...and they're wrong.

I open box: Sweet!

I read the part numbers: Shit!

Here's what they sent me.

996.352.422 (RR)
996.352.422 (RR)
986.351.422 (RF)
996.352.421 (LR)

So I got 3 rears and a front. Doh!

Quick email to the seller, and they're going to send me the correct calipers, and take these back. Once I get them, I'll send the calipers and a few other pieces-parts off for powder coating.

Rims I picked up locally off of Craigslist.

$500 for all 4, but they have winter rubber right now, so that'll be fine for placement and the rest of this summer.

Front: 17x7.5 - 205/50-17
Rear: 17x9 - 255/40-17

Thinking about powder-coating them, but another member (jbyron) suggested I'd give PlasitDip a shot. They came out VERY cool...so I'm going to run them this year to see what it holds up like. Not bad for $5.

The wheels look great. I am curious to see how they hold up. Is it just the regular rubber coating or is there a different one?

Just the regular PlastiDip Spray you buy from Home Depoti have the Glossifier spray too, and I'll put a coat of that on tomorrow.

My caps came in today...so I sprayed one to see what it looks like.

Have you considered a vinyl wrap? Uniform colour and sheen. Plus some cool colours. That GT looks like vinyl.

Funny...I asked that very question a few days ago...and that led me to the dip!

http://www.914world.com/bbs2/index.php?showtopic=218045

I've got 5-6 different colors of Vinyl on the way. I should have them soon so I can start testing both.

Parts fairy showed up today...with a great delivery from the ATL.

Steel Flairs
Rear Chassis Stiffening Kit
GT Rockers

...still don't have the car.

Got the RIGHT calipers in today. They're quite dirty, so I'll get them soda-blasted and headed off to get powder-coated this weekend. I have a set of trailing-arms that I'm going to stiffen, and send off as well. Need to work out the e-brake from a 911 first though. That'll take some fabrication first. I'll wait to powder-coat those until after I have all of that done.

Car should be headed to Cleveland later today, and I'm TOLD I'll have it by the 13th. :woot:

Rear stiffening kit does not do a lot for you. I hate to say. Order a Log kit for 914ltd. It adds some weight to the car, but is makes it super stiff. runs the entire log. Then add a brace to the rear suspension arms. Thats about as good as it gets unless you also run up the inner log.

I still added a roll bar and a petty bar, but the car is super stiff with out the bars. I have the GT stiffening kit in also, so don't feel to bad about it.

BTW, thanks for the tip on the Solstice mirrors, I saw them on the Anklebitter and always thought cool. Never knew they where so cheap.

And where did you get the caps from? I have a set of 18' Cayman S wheels I need caps for.

I have the long kit coming as well. Ordered that from Pelican along with a host of other goodies. The GT kit is a "just in case" and didn't add all that much weight, so I figured I'd go for it. The suspension brace isn't a bad idea though. Maybe I'm making it TOO stiff for a road car...

The center caps were on eBay. I think $30 shipped. These fit perfectly, and the Porsche crest is surprisingly nice. (And removable, so if you ever think you need some chrome creasts, those are cheap!

Wait till you all see what I have planned for side-marker lights!

The 75 V-8 conversion is on its way.

Thanks Jerry!!!

I spent the morning with my son Oliver, cleaning the calipers to send off to Powder-Coat tomorrow. Not entirely sure about the seals and how I should handle them. I'm not all that adept at seal/piston removal, and don't think this is the time to learn. They bake at 400-deg, and the calipers should be able to handle WAY more than that, so as long as they're not getting coated, I should be ok. If they come back cracked, I'll replace them then.

working on the kitchen table ...you have an understanding wife.

Ha!

She was at the gym working out, and I had it all cleaned up before she got home.

Dropped the Calipers off today for Power-Coat. They took the remaining pieces, and pistons/seals out for me. Media blasted, and are Powder-Coating tomorrow morning.

...and then the spacers I ordered showed up.

2X2" and 2X1"...$100 for all 4 shipped!

Flush them when you get them back.
Then flush them again.
Then flush them again.

Media gets everywhere and likes to hang around in passages.

Flush like a stubborn turd...got it!

In better news...I just got a call from the driver doing my transport. Looks like I'll have a car tonight!

Sheeesh that's fast. Mine took a month but that was back in 2002.

Wow! that is fast.

When he called this morning, I was expecting the purpose to schedule a time for Thu or Fri to meet. I was floored when he said "tonight, around 9:00pm"

Now, I just need to find a ride out to the drop-off point about that time so I can drive it back!

I'm getting excited...been a while since I've been behind the wheel!

And...I'm back in the game!

Car arrived 2 days ahead of plan. That (for once) sucks, because I didn't have the garage cleaned out yet!

I'll dig in tomorrow and see what I'm dealing with. Overall, I'm pretty pleased. I know I'm getting a lot of flack for this, but the V8 isn't for me. I think the subie is where it's at. 20min of searching for gears and having the cabin heat up like a sweat-tent is enough reason for me.

Rotors came in today too. I hope I can have the breaks swapped out this weekend.

Woohoo!

Got the calipers back from powder-coating. They look SICK!

Going to see if I can get the suspension and breaks swapped out tomorrow night. I think I should have everything I need.

Glad to see the car made it there safely Looks like you are having fun driving it I thought it was a nice ride like the V8.

Got the calipers sorted last night. Started rebuilding them, and realized I was missing one seal. Doh! Called the PC place and they have it. :whew:

Also realized I put the wrong adapters on the wrong calipers too. So that'll get fixed tonight.

Stencils just came in too! Got a guy on eBay to sell me 8 for $6.00.

A bunch of perforated metal showed up today.

Getting closer to build time!

Dude those calipers look like candy. Wow.

They look MORE like candy in person. I've got some cleanup to do around the edges though.

I've got to give props to Jason at Cleveland Powder Coating. I called today about the missing seal. He told me that he had it, but that someone threw it away by accident. Offered to discount my next order by $40 to cover the cost of a new seal. That's pretty awesome.

Started working on the flares today. Marked everything out before I take it to a friend's to weld them up.

Took the rockers off and the car lost about 11lb. Holy crap.

Oh...and I added a horn. Discovered I didn't have one and about bit it earlier!

Flares are on...time for some banging and bondo this weekend!

Wow that looks great. Did you do those yourself?

Flares on 8 days after taking possession. You guys must be drinking water from the cuyahoga.

Great job....At this rate you should be able to make it to Okteenerfest next month.


Bob

If I hadn't JUST driven from ATL to Cleveland 2 weeks ago...I'd happily drive down for Okteenerfest. The car will certainly be on the road.

I was planning on doing the brakes this weekend, but I got screwed by someone that sold me a set of struts...that never arrived. (Nor has the refund.)

I'll be concentrating on bodywork for a bit. Just wanting to get it to primer. I'll have all winter to make the bodywork perfect.

That's how we roll here in the 216!

I tend to get into a build quickly, and push through a lot of the stuff until I find the right answer. Helps me clear my head. I like progress...and don't like leaving something half-done for very long.

Going over to the shop where we did the flares in a little bit so I can replace the U-Joint bushings in the shift linkage so I can drive it home. I replaced them last week with rubber grommits from a skateboard truck...just to get my by.