Yesterday I went down to West Palm Beach to pickup a 914 I saw on Samba. com (but that is a story in itself and worth a sperate thread). I stopped by Gunnar Racing on my way back to Tampa. I knew they only let people in on Sat if someone stops by, not on a weekday. Well I walk in and I'm greeted by Kevin Jeannette himself. I ask if I can look around and shoot some pictures and he says "Sure, but only on Sat." He tells the other guy to unlock the doors and let me look around. He takes me over to the "museum" to look around. Than through the engine shop. He would only let me take pictures in the museum, not in the shops. I guess some of these owners don't want thier cars all over the internet before they can see them. All the cars in the museum you can see on his website. I saw in the shop and the museum, a BFG 962, Holbert 962, Momo Moby Dick, another Moby Dick which was stripped to the tub, a Holbert 911 Carrera, a 908, two 904's, two 914's (more on them in a minute), a least eight 911s, a 962 street car, Martini 935 factory car, and a 906 and a 934. He said the Interscope 1980 Indy car just left last week. Also two 910 tube frame copies and a Brumos GT3. And the engine shop, my God, I've never seen so many P-car engines in my life. Must have been two dozen sitting around.
This is where it gets good. As we’re walking between the museum and the engine shop I see a 914 kinda in the corner on jackstands (of course). It’s facing towards me so I only notice the front and it has GT flares and is painted orange. I look at the right rear quarter panel and it seems a little different. Than it hits me, OH MY GOD, THAT’S ONE OF THE TWO 914 PICK-UP TRUCKS!!!! They were built by Troutman around 1979. One was built for Dennis Aase (a -4) and one was kept by Troutman, the -6. This one is the -6. Both cars were used for delivering parts
We get back over to the other building were Kevin is and I ask him about all it. Let me try to remember everything he told me. Back when Kevin still had his shop in Southern Cali, he told Troutman if he ever wanted to sell it, he’d buy it. One day he calls and will sell it for $12,500, this was in about 1981-2 and was a pretty good amount, but he bought, he said. He moves to Florida to crew for several IMSA teams and brings the car with him. He drives it daily. In 1986, he is driving it into the track at Daytona for registration and a guy in a Camaro hits him and rips the front bumper off and does a little damage to the hood. He continues to drive it around town without a bumper and it is beginning to need some work. He calls a friend at another shop up north about restoring it and sends it to him. Kevin says he just didn’t have the time to work on his own car. The car sits for A YEAR OUTSIDE at the guy’s shop and he doesn’t touch it. He has it sent back to Florida and Kevin strips it down and primes it orange. This is in 1996. He said it was an original orange car when Troutman build it, but he painted it sepia brown as in the pictures. He said it also has 908 front calipers and a few other odd pieces. It now has GT flares on the front.
He said he would never sell it. Maybe he will let his son have it one day. I told him I had a couple of magazine articles and pictures that I would email him. You could tell he really likes the car. He also said the -4 sold recently and he thought it was in Colorado. I couldn't take pictures of it but he said when he gets my articles he would post them on his website with some of his own pictures.
I told him about the 3000 or so wacked out 914 guys in the 914Club and he said he look us up and use us if he needed anything. I'll email him a link to this thread to see if he wants to add anything.
Needless to say it was a blast and Kevin's a great guy! We looked at the car I had just bought and he said he needed a right rear lense for one of his cars. Of course, I unscrewed it right then and give it to him. He traded me some shirts for it.
Paul
i gotta get down there one day!!
Andy
it needs a progress thread!
Andy
