Finally got my shop to the point where I can proceed with the restoration of my '73/74... The car is a '73 but the front clip is '74, therefore it will be registered as a '74. I purchased this car from one of the well known members here, Chris ( tygaboy) in nor cal. This car had apparently been sitting in a garage for over 25 years before Chris bought it.
I don't know what possessed me to buy a car that was not running and and had many of its parts in boxes. More than likely, it was meeting Chris, seeing his shop and the work he does, and the work he had already done on the car... It just felt right! Chris said the car was straight after he and a racing buddy took several measurements. Good enough for me!
As I start the tear down, I realize how fortunate I am to have this practically rust free car to restore. I plan on restoring the car to a good driver quality. It currently has 1.7 complete with the D-jet system. I want to build a big 4 for now, with plans in the future to swap in an air cooled 6.
I have nowhere near the skill set that Chris has, so you will not be seeing the magic that he performs on this thread. I plan on using your collective wealth of knowledge to help me navigate these unfamiliar waters that are the 914!
Please bare with me as I post pictures and navigate the process of building and adding to this thread.

Let the fun begin!
John
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The car was originally silver and the front clip Delphi green metalic.Click to view attachment
Interior in excellent original condition.Click to view attachment
Damage courtesy of the transport company.Click to view attachment
Chris already removed the vast amounts of seam sealer and other goop.Click to view attachment
Longs already reinforced courtesy of Sir Chris.Click to view attachment Front half of floors replaced as well.
Happy to see no rust after removing the vinyl!

Hi John - Great to see you're getting after it! Changed out the Mahle wheels for Fuchs, I see. And that really is the most rust-free car I've ever seen. So sorry to see the shipping damage on the rear panel.

Keep the pics coming and let us know if we can help.

(And to calm anyone who might be concerned, it was a full disclosure sale. The very first thing I told John when he called about the car was that it was part '73 and part '74.)

I really enjoy seeing the build/restoration threads and watching these cars go from often neglected to nice, well cared for examples. It really helps keep me committed to my project.

Looks great.. Mine is also part 73 and 74.. And whatever year the big floor pan chunk from Chris was??

Thanks Chris, and yes, your honesty was another reason I decided to make the purchase.

I took the vapor barrier off as carefully as I could not knowing if these are available. Are these available new as well as the little rubber guides/ holders that the door opening rod runs through? Also, are the plastic grommets that the door panel plugs into available, mine appear to be dry rotted?
Bummer to find the speaker cut outs, but at least the the door panels were replaced. Click to view attachment Click to view attachment

I understand the hell hole is intact, should be a pretty easy deal. Do the little body work needed and get some paint on it. You are so far ahead of most with restoration, you can't image some of the rust issues we've seen.
Since it's Halloween I'll share some scary pics

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Second that!

More progress on the teener, finally got the engine out.Click to view attachment
I am planning to build a big 4 so not sure if this 1.7 is good candidate or should I look for a 2.0. Any thoughts are appreciated.

Cleaning the engine bay is a lot easier when the motor is out. Click to view attachment
I spent a good part of the day removing glue and light rust from the fire wall. The hell hole is in fairly good shape, there is some light pitting but no holes. I have pretty much removed as much as I can with wire wheels and brushes. Should I treat this area with rust inhibitor then apoxy prime?Click to view attachment
The only hole I uncovered is a tiny pin hole on the lowere left side of the fire wall. Not even visible in this photo. I don't think it needs any welding.Click to view attachment

John - Great to see the progress!
And I'm happy to see/hear there have been no surprises as you're getting deeper into the disassembly.
Any idea what color you'll go with? (I vote Delphi Green!)
Keep the updates coming.
And let me know when you're back in the area. Lunch on me!
Chris

Jake Raby always said the early 1.7’s were the best cases to build a high hp engine. Better metal and less stressed throughout their lives - If remember correctly. All the cases fit the same.

Chris,
At first I was going to go with the Delphi green, but now I think I'm going with Ravena green. The Delphi has too much gold in for me. But not sure yet, you no how the metalic colors show differently depending on the light. It would help me to see a car that color in person.
What would you do with the little bit of rust left in the engine bay? Should I treat it with rust inhibitor then epoxy prime?
I will let you know when heading back out there. Can't wait to see the beast in person.

Cheers,
John

I vote for Ravenna over Delphi, but both are solid 914 colors if done right.

Thank you, good to know the old 1.7 will be a good base for a big 4.

If it were me, I'd clean as much of the rust and paint out of the hell hole as possible with wire wheels brushes, stripping discs, media blastig, or whatever you can get in there with. Hit the area with that pin hole hard and stab at it with a screw driver to make sure isn't bigger. Usually pinhole on the outside is a larger patch of rust on the inside. Once you have the area nice and clean, i would treat it with Ospho or equivlent to convert any remaining rust and then follow with epoxy primer. There are other rust treatments available like POR15 tht peopl e have had good luck with too. Your inclination is correct though, clean, treat, then primer.

If my hell hole looked like that when I started, I might be driving my car by now.

I have a fondness for Delphi because I once owned an originally Delphi 914 that had been painted red by the PO, but the trunks were still Delphi and I always wondered how the car would look in that color. It's an interesting color that kind of grows on you.

Thanks, I'll go at it a little harder to get as much of the rust as possible. I have a long flexible extension for the drill gun, but it's set up for 1/4" attachments, no way to attach a wire wheel to it. I just need to do a little research to see what's available to get into those tight areas.
Yeah, I'm still on the fence about the Delphi Green, I like it in some light but not others. But since it was the original color, I have not completely given up on it yet.

Glorious Delphi Green(L99A) for sex appeal!