Hi folks. Been a while since I've been a Porsche owner. I've had a '62 356, a few 914s, a '74 911 and even worked for a while at an independent Porsche shop here in the SF Bay Area. Anyway, I just purchased a '74 914 that's been sitting since 1987. Good news is it was in a covered garage. Got it home and started poking around only to find...
...it's in remarkably good shape. It's got a couple small dings on the body and a crap respray that's literally falling off but other really, no sign of any rust.
I've begun collecting parts for the chassis stiffening and 5 lug conversion but have yet to decide on narrow body or flares. Also have to determine V8, 6 conversion, Subaru. (Is it true a Cayenne won't fit?)
Anyway, I wanted to introduce myself and thank you all for creating and maintaining such a great community.
And thanks in advance for answering all the questions that are sure to come.
Wish me luck, I'm goin' in!
Chris

WOW that is a REALLY clean rocker panel area! Being inside for 28 years SAVED the car.

Couple more pics. Dash has no cracks, all electrical works. Removed the tar and no rust on the floor. No surprises under the tank, either. Though the tank had about 25 lbs of varnish goo in it. Replacement tank and Tangerine SS fuel lines are here already. And the brakes even stopped it as I rolled it off the trailer. Not that I'd drive it as it sits but hey, way better than I'd expected!

I don't think my car's rust-free parts are as rust-free as those longs.

Wow, nice find! She's a sweet one. Not even a crack in the dash. Keep postin and

Chris - She looks like a keeper. As clean as that chassis is.....I would have a hard time cutting the body up to add flares.

But, if you elect to go with more HP, I would lean towards a nice six, then a massaged 4 with fuel injection and finally the Subaru engine. Personally I don't like V-8's in our cars.

Regardless, I am sure you will have a terrific car.

I'm with you on the body being too nice to mess with. In fact, I've already got a set of 6 and 7 x 16 Boxster wheels so I can get on the road with the 5 lug and buy some time to enjoy the car "as is" while I decide what to do.
I'm a big fan of mods that can be unbolted.
Here's a link to a previous custom motorcycle project I did. Made it all the way to a 4 page feature article in Cycle World. Every mod, including the carbon fiber gas tank I made, was, in the end, a bolt on and it turned out great, if I do say so.
SV/MV rebuild
Anyway, nothing permanent for a while.

wow, how did you find this gem?

Nice.

Dang...that is a nice chassis...great score, I'm jealous!

There are some steel GT flares in the classifieds at a good price, or at least a few days ago there had been some.

2 Mahle rims or does it have all 4?

Nice find for sure!

Is the FI still in the car????

Your new baby looks great!!!

I wonder if Randy W knew about this car...doesn't he live in Petallama?

Very nice base for a project.
I would keep the sleeper look and put 5 lugs Fuchs. Proven setup.
As for power train, if you stay in the family you will keep the value and the functionality of the front trunk.
Enjoy!

Build a 2270 4-cylinder and stay narrow body with 5-lug.

Nice car! Looks like it's in good hands.

To answer some of the questions:
It (I'm not yet sure if it's a boy or girl!) was found on Craigslist and has all 4 Mahle wheels, FI still in the car. I've started working on the engine and it cranks to oil pressure. Hopefully, I'll get the new fuel pump and lines in this weekend and see what's what.

And who is Randy W. in Petaluma? I'd love to meet up w/any local 914 fans.

Great find. I'd love to see photos of the engine.

Is it possible for you to video your first attempts at starting it? It'd be great to see that after 2 1/2 decades.

His user name on here is "RoadGlue".

http://www.914world.com/bbs2/index.php?showuser=108

--DD

Exceptional car,congrats,goes to show there are still great cars around.

OK, I've decided to go with a 6 conversion. Put the word out that I'm looking for a 3.2! Parts collection continues and my UPS driver is asking "what are you building this time?"

So maybe not as perfect as first assumed. Got the tar pads out only to find a PO floor repair that I've decided I want to correct. So an order goes in to our great friends at Restoration Designs. The order shows up way sooner than I expected!
So I open it up and think, "Should I be concerned they consume enough beer to use the packaging to pad up their shipments?"

And God love my wife. I showed her some pics of some finished cars and she says, "You're flaring it." It wasn't a suggestion.

"Hello, RD? I need some other stuff..."

Just like the Germans, we get three beer brakes a day!

Who wants a job?

I'm looking forward to watching your project tygaboy. Where does one look for a 3.2?

I have some buddies in the Porsche business so I'm letting then know, checking with the Porsche yards, leveraging this forum, etc. Wish me luck!

On a non-914 note, I see you're in the wine biz - my wife just retired from a private label beer/wine/spirits company. And you're right in Napa. We should meet up some time.

Awesome find! Looks great!

A Porsche motor in a Porsche automobile seems right to me.

Click to view attachment

Well,I can honestly say I'm thrilled you discovered a cherry 9.14 in ..California.

A perfect vessel for the 3.2 and the requisite tubs,the 928 brakes to go with those enhancements.
I suppose,from perusing the bike pix,that you will do the flares personally.
I did a closeup to show the flanging technique with the tig torch,stitch-welding the sheetmetal to circumvent a warp factor.
(A phrase all too familiar from the '60s StarTrek,originally used by Rodders chopping T's n A's).
With a O2C2H2 torch we used the same 'Trick' to make butt and lap joints with bronze fillrod.Small bronze Robertson screws did the job too.
Show-goers would approach a custom Rod and say "Cool,the purple 'T' is Tricked out,Warp Factor 5".
Some grinding and hammering was involved,usually to begin again when things got ugly.
Enjoy the process,it should be a lot of Fun.

Let us know if you need a hand....

What an excellent find. Take lots of pictures and share with those of us who are too far away to watch over your shoulder

Post a WTB over on Pelican in the 911 section. That was how I found my 3.2.

Working on the 911 e-brake set up. Got so excited about getting one done I spaced out on the fact that I have to modify the backing plate to fit the 914 trailing arm. Oh well, it's only paint and I wanted to powder coat them anyway!

And I have to get better at taking "before" pics. Here's the guard from under the steering rack. It was bashed in and sorta twisted in the rusty area. (Extra holes from PO 'who knows what' attachment.)
I'm very interested in developing strong metal working skills and some of these less visible parts are great for practice. A bit of hammer and dolly work, some "Hmm, why is the metal doing that???", some review of "The Key to Metal Bumping" by Frank Sargent and ta-da! I got myself a pretty decent repair!

Anyway, maybe not the most exciting picture without that "before" shot but I'm happy.

And those interested in upping their metal skills, I highly recommend the "metal bumping" book. Easy read and really helpful.

Happy Sunday!

The holes are probably from a relocated fuel pump. Not all that bad on an idea.

Not too exciting as everyone has seen any number of inner long stiffener kits installed but, hey, it's exciting for me! Kit ready for welding. I went w/Tangerine Racing's door brace kit. Sure, I coulda built my own but it's so nice to have a proven, bolt on solution show up and in 5 minutes, I'm back focused on the car. Thanks Chris Foley!

I sliced a relief cut at the corners and bonked down the edge to create a smoother transition. Is this a common practice? I figured it'd make the carpet fit a bit better...

More goodies from Restoration Design! Mmmmm... flares...
And if you're like me, you like your vendors to be consistent and predictable. These guys are: great parts and: BEER CASE packing materials. Just like last time!
Makes me chuckle. I have another RD item arriving tomorrow. We'll see if they can go three for three. For now, I say to our Canadian friends:

I would be concerned that this would take away some of the needed strength on those corners. I remember reading that the indent for the handbrake handle is one of the weaker spots of the long, and the corners say "stress riser" to me; I'd feel happier about having the second layer of material over them.

--DD

I'll be welding the relief cut so I think all I've done is closed the gap that would otherwise be there. I'll post pics when done and look to hear what you think. Thanks for the input - I'll take all I can get.

Impressive find...the kind folks dream of! Looking forward to seeing the progress. I'm sure you're aware of this but 3.2's are getting harder to find. All the best!

Tony

Yep and so I've expanded the search to include 3.6, as well. Pricey items, those. I'm not really in a hurry but if I can't find something 'reasonably priced' in a the next few months, I think I may just go with an LS3.
I believe you know a bit about those?
I may be in touch with some questions.

I have owned many quick cars - I gotta say this one absolutely ridiculous.

Good luck figuring out what you want to do...either way, I can't say enough about the 986 gear box. Food for thought..

More boring stuff for - Long stiffener kit is in!

I found it very therapeutic as I worked through the whole "remove a sheet metal screw, spot weld, cool with compressed air, move to the other side and do it again". Took my time, did the welding over 3 days and checked the door measurements 4-5 times as I went. I even pulled the braces and put the door back on when I was about 1/2 way through, just to be sure.

All the advice given on this forum is spot on and my doors fit just like they did before I started this improvement!

I didn't think it would be a problem if I didn't grind the welds all the way down on the rear section.

Now it's on to the front floor install.

Way to go!

Wow. Super clean install...keep the momentum going!

T

Well, Christmas is coming early! I'm working with Rich Johnson who's done a great job helping me w/a complete front and rear suspension package: raised spindles, Boxster calipers, Koni yellows, etc., etc.

Anyway, the first of the components have arrived! Very exciting...

Gotta say, having only been dealing with 40+ year old, dirty ol' parts, it's a real treat to handle some brand spankin' new goodies. And that Elephant Racing stuff is just gorgeous.

A safe and happy holiday season to you and yours.

Good for you...contact me if interested. I had a little teething issues blowing shocks
with raised spindle mounts. Sounds very similar to my set-up - it works! Happy to help.

Tony

Thanks for the offer, Tony. PM sent!

Some more goodies arrived! Fachs. I decided to go 17", 7 and 9. Pic make me want to see if these would look good on the Rambler. She's a 1962 American, just like my lovely wife!

And the drive train decision has been made, too:

LS3 and a Boxster 6 speed

The trans arrived today, too but it's still in the crate so pics later. I'm excited.

Got to working on fitting the front 1/2 floor panel. A buddy is bringing his track day 911 project over tomorrow and we're bending up his roll cage. I took my car off the stands in prep to move it and ended up having time to get the floor rough fit.
I was done before I really stopped to think I'd just done all this with the car on it's wheels and me working on the ground. What a dufus...
Oh well. It's fitting really nicely but I still have to do the final cuts on the front and rear of the original floor.
It'll be back on the stands for that!