Hi Everybody,

I am new here and still reading through the wealth of information in my spare time.

I found this one about five miles from where I live and decided to check it out. While I'm doing my research, I'd like to reach out to everyone here and gather their thoughts on this.

Owner claims that he never got around to restoring it and it's been sitting for a year at his friend's paint and body shop. He is asking $1800 for it. I would strongly consider it if I can get it for $1000 or less (maybe I'm being too hopeful).

The paint and body shop owner offered to bring it into his shop and have it on a lift so I can check it out more the next time I want to have a look at it.

Here are the videos from today:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sQ2mpItBA60



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GNAbXfQpgCU



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oNQaaoDl2V0


I understand that this is going to be A LOT of work, but I'm willing to spend years working on a 914 project in my spare time and learn things along the way. My only concern is starting out with something that is too far gone.

All input appreciated.

Cheers,

Ian

You need to look in the front and rear trunks for rust. Also behind the rockers and around and forward of the battery tray. Looks like the drivers die floor is weak. It is fixable but in my opinion $1800 is too much. I would not pay more than $500-$600 from what I see. No engine or trans?

I couldn't figure out how to unlatch the front trunk (I used the key and pulled the knob under the dash, but it still was stuck on some latch).

I got some photos of the rear trunk, I'll post them up soon.

The next time I check it out I'll take out everything from the cabin and trunks to get a better look.

The engine and transmission was sitting in the shop. I don't really intend on using them as I would like to do a Subaru swap (I know I'm getting ahead of myself here). The engine and transmission are included in the price though.

Thanks,

Ian

.... from another E30 original owner (`85 325e 2dr)

You might be better off in the long run time & cost wise to find a better starter or stalled project to work on, as the costs & work load will add up quickly.

Here & 914club.com both have Craigs List search functions to find private sale 914s too - with email notifications of new ads - as well as the classified ads here & 914club.

If mine wasn't my own 914 since 1975 (2nd owner) & I were looking, then I'd probably locate a much better example than my poor 73 2L!

Also, go to Jeff Bowlsby's (member on here) "Classic 914" website, in the Technical Docs. section IIRC - & download his 914 checklist to help guide you when looking at 914 prospects.

Also members on here who are local to any 914 you find can probably help you with a PPI.

PS - there is a safety catch on the front trunk lid just about center that you needed to squeeze up against the deck lid front lip to release - after the in cabin release "T" handle is pulled to pop the lid up an inch or so.

Good Luck!
Tom
///////

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OkebxEVP8cw

So it is a 73. Door gaps didn't look bad, dash didn't show any cracks in the video, has fuchs, didn't see a rear sway bar on the video.

It will need floor pan work for sure. Take the shop owner up on his offer and get it on a lift. You can get a better look at the rear suspension area. Check the bottom of the doors, get the front trunk open, you might need someone to pull up on it while you pull the handle from the inside.

For me not a $1800 car, but if the rust in the longs / suspension area is not bad then $1000 seems about right to me.

Oh and bring cash, I have closed many a deal on parts / project cars well the below asking price because I was a cash buyer WITH cash on me.

Thanks for the advice Tom! I'm currently working on my E30 right now. I guess the German car bug bit me pretty bad.

Thanks for the input Garold. I'll definitely shoot some photos and videos on the second look-around.

You can clearly see the ground in the picture of the battery tray which means the passenger side long is COMPLETELY rotted away.


I'm afraid this one is terminally ill ...

I concur. Cost to repair correctly likely exceeds finished value of the roller. IMHO.

But . . . What size is the engine? Looks like a nice parts car.

Not sure what the engine size is. I didn't spend much time looking over it. I'll check it out next time.

Looks like it's leaning towards a DNR order for this one. I guess there's a reason it's been sitting for a year with no one wanting to buy it.

You don't need to look for rust. It's already there. Its a good $1k parts car but will probably become a very frustrating and expensive restoration. However, a parts car is a great way to get a 914 education.

^
^
What he said.
Indeed the dashpad appears intact,tlc needed.The car appears to have been originally red judging from the overspray.
Record,pix,the id plate on the drivers door opening rear fringe,compare to stamped number on rh inner fender,note them.
The front fender tops are likely perforated and therefore the inner fenders too.
Remove the battery,poke the hellhole with a phillips screwdriver to punch through any thinned sheetmetal.
Before all that though,clean all the funky debris and dump it,you can't assess what you can't see.
A strong flashlight and a paint marker pen in red to circle and number every rust hole.
Carry a notepad to note each numbered hole.Inspect the glass for chips,clean them all inside and out.
Easy on the lid's topskins,fragile.Open the front lid and have a good look at the well under the fueltank.
Look hard under the fenders front and back,up and around,pix everthing.Determine if the car is equipped with a front antiroll bar.
The longitudinal stamped sheetmetal box section perimeter unibody fabrication is where the car gets it's strength.
At the rear it kicks up over the axles and swingarms and must be intact to be drivable,Perforations here is bad,at the front as well.
The drivers footwell panel must be replaced properly to carry the pedals,the water may have arrived there by perforations above.
The area at each lateral extremity of the cowl is a popular place for perforation,get an awl or screwdriver into the tiny gap and
try to push through the metal.Any holes there,the fenders must be separated from the inner fenders and cowl.
This car has to have it done regardless.Treat all rubber as irreplacable and handle gently,pix everything.
Remove the targa delicately and inspect the latch seats for cracks in the grp.The stippled finish on the top is usually uv baked and deteriorated.
Inspect the underside of the lids and doors for perforations,handle the rubbers with care.
A convenient area for water to collect and destroy is the lid's topskins foldovers.
Once you get it up on the hoist have a look at the bottom of everything.
Determine if the front swingarm isolastic bushings are buggered,they must be centralized in the outer tube.
Likely the rear bushings must be replaced as a matter of course.
Inspect the brakelines for damage and splitting on the flexlines.
This is a good point to tally the repair bill to determine the expenditure ahead.
Enumerate every part and sheetmetal hole by number.

#002-Front flexhoses=hrs 2+1+1
http://www.pelicanparts.com/catalog/SuperC..._pg3.htm#item12=40.00

#001-Footwell hole=hrs 4+2+1
http://www.restoration-design.com/mm5/merc...tegory_Code=914=50.00

#003-930TX=hrs 6+2+4+3
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Porsche-911-930-Tr...n-/281450387977=4500.00

3/101 things to correct.

Use a calculator to determine how much you will spend.A spreadsheet is useful.
You may have to periodically update the numbers to reflect mission creep when you spot that V8 at the wreckers.
Approach the restoration as a potential 50K 914-6,a concise record of repairs in a cognizant format may seal the deal.
A silk purse from a sow's ear.http://libraries.mit.edu/archives/exhibits/purse/
A 914 calender would be handy for inspiration and to map the repair schedule.
An adventure begins,a long journey of learning and practice of skills to be enhanced as the exertion of thought hones talent.
Take the trouble to make a full inspection of a cherry 914 to see what it should look like.
You have to be strong,this is no small undertaking and requires stamina and fortitude.
Good luck.

Thanks veekry9! Awesome advice.

Stay away.
I'm not sure I would buy it for parts.
I'm sure you can do better in TX.

If you want a subby conversion buy one that's finished.

You West cost guys are spoiled you see some rust and think they are all junk. Get it up on the lift and give it a real good look. No one said it would be a quick fix, but a lot of these cars have the rusted out battery tray and pass long jack point area, but the rest of the car is not bad. It's a project.

In parts the fuchs with center caps & lugs are worth $500 - $600, the dash if no cracks $500 - $700, side shift trans core $200 and the list goes on.

Is it a $1800 car, hell no. $500 - Under $1k Yep.

He's right,here on the North shore of Lake Ontario the salt bug devours iron and steel at a horrific rate.
That Texas car here is a viable restoration candidate.Holes?Sure,we got holes.That footwell hole is identical to the hole in my '66 Mustang in '73.A vehicle is at the mercy of the rocksalt covered roads here and the salt gives no quarter.Arrg.

Had some rocker rot on my Chevy Cavalier so I stuffed the holes with blue styrofoam as a backer and laid 3 plys of epoxy saturated glass cloth and carefully smoothed it out to a fair curve.A couple of applications of polyester filler and a good fairing with a paintmatch spraybomb from Canadian Tire it was virtually undetectable.A finishing touch was the clearcoat and a good rubbing.(The car had done 440K kms and still going strong today afaik tho I changed out the '91 Four for a '94,kept the '91 intake manifold.)

the drivers side Fuch is curbed. I can see that with an iPad. Odds are the rest are too. Perhaps bent a bit. No way is a set of Fuch wheels, with that sort of damage, worth $600 unless the rest are PERFECT! Even then I wouldn't pay 600. Last set I sold for $650 were true with 0 curbing and that included 16 correct lug bolts. $400 worth of wheels that each could need what ever resto shops charge and round trip shipping are no reason to consider buying a rusty 914. Buying the car to flip them is a worse plan. Unless he has a welder and knows how to use it that's part of the purchase price.

Click to view attachment

A puppy will start out small like a 914 project then grow quickly into a giant.
Whats great about the 914 is the support here and from the manufacturer as well.
You're on solid ground so no sweat,motor on.Without the drivetrain the selection of motive power is at your whim.
SBC?Sure,step this way.http://www.renegadehybrids.com/
PorscheV8?http://www.freisinger-motorsport.de/porsch...Spareparts.html
All around the world.

A puppy...

Thanks for the input and great advice guys. I'll take it all into consideration.

parts....

Just to give you some perspective I paid $2600 for my 914 last year. It was pretty much rust free, It had paint, and it had a running motor but NO interior. None. In hindsight I know I over paid.

This car you're looking at could be a good project but everything will need going through and replacing.
Yeah of course there's rust thats given, replacement panels are out there.
If you know what you're doing and have a garage/shop big enough then don't be afraid to tackle the rust repair yourself.
The interior is straight forward but parts are pricy, luckily for you the interior is mostly complete.
Suspension will need a run through and so will the brakes.
Locating an engine and transmission won't be difficult, in fact you'll be spoiled for choice.
The biggest factor is cost.

I'd say there is well over $6000 just in parts alone that it needs not to mention paint.

Look if you can get for $5-600 it could possibly be worth it. What matters is that you feel positive about it and understand the risk involved.

Just words from someone who overpaid for a 914 that needed more work than I bargained for.

Thanks for the continued advice guys, I really do appreciate it. The seller hasn't been very responsive, so I'm going to just put this one on the back burner (he's claiming he has to get it titled in Alabama). Just some red flags from this guy based off of the not-so-kind words his friend at the body shop mentioned when talking about how the car ended up at his shop.

There was a nice example of one in Houston that popped up for around $3K but was sold within 18 hours. After putting a WTB ad on craigslist, I received an email from the guy who is attempting to flip it. He's saying he is trying to sell it for $5K once he gets it running. I might take a look at it once he's done.

So not really much of an update, but I haven't been able to reach the body shop owner to take a second look at the car on a lift.

I hit the owner up with an offer of $300, as I'm trying to get one for a great deal (whether a restoration or parts car). The owner seems to want to get it moved, but I think I'll stick with my guns and try to get it for less than $400.

So the battery tray area looks pretty far gone. But I'm still holding out the slightest of hope for a steal and long restoration.

I can see grass through the passenger long. It's toast.

I don't know, but I think I would take the funds that you would be dumping into that scab eating, rust machine, and find one that is already established some what. Or find one that maybe needs paint, or has a ratty interior, or needs an engine, and would maybe be selling for less, as that would be easier to deal with/fix, than rust, I would think??

Thanks for the replies guys. So I've been seeing some that are running and patched up in various ways (one car had bed liner all over a lot of the surfaces) in the $5K range. A few non runners with issues in the $2-3K range as well.

My concern is spending $3-5K on one that's in better condition than one of these types and then during the process of stripping/restoring it, I find really big issues as well, versus fixing something the proper way (and knowing that I did it) from something that has a lower starting point.

two years ago i paid $200 for a car in similar condition. I would probably pay $500-600 for that car - max

I would buy it for the wheels and throw the rest of it away.

I must be getting accustomed to seeing these neglected cars and the work they need. I looked at that car and it did not look that bad to me. I think if you bought that for $500 you would be stealing it. Less than $750 and you got a great deal.

The nice thing about getting one like this, assuming you intend to disassemble and inspect every part and then put it back together, is you will know exactly what the car is made of and where the issues lie. Since you seem to be looking for a project that may span a few years, this is not a car to run from -so far.

Take the shop owner up on his offer and put it up on a lift and really poke at the bottom of the car so you can see how extensive the rust is. Then you will know if your top offer is <$500 or not.

Good luck and

Thanks for the input guys. I'll post up a video and pictures when I get a chance to get it up on the lift.

Looks like a REALLY BIG project!! How much do you want to take on?

I started my resto without any previous experience and have learned a ton along the way…but I count my blessings everyday that I bought a largely solid car despite not really checking it out all that carefully when I bought it - simply coz I didn't really know what to look for then!

At first glance, I reckon that yellow car would be beyond me but you might already have experience restoring cars, unlike I did…

I always think you guys in the US are really lucky to have such a good pool of 914s in various states of repair so I'm sure you'd be able to find a better car if you're patient. Sadly, you take what you can get here in the UK!

If you have the space and spare cash, I think that car would be a great buy as a $500 parts car. But imho from what I can see, I would personally keep looking…

Let's see what it looks like when you get it on a lift.

Good luck...