I did not have access to all lift so I apologize for the less than fantastic pictures.

Passenger-side rear lift donut.Click to view attachment

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I imagine the whole car is pretty rusty, right?

those three areas are all very minor

The rest of it's actually not that bad, there is some bubbling on the drivers side rear door jam, but it's not bad.

There is a scab in the rear trunk but it's not in urgent need of being replaced.

The driver side floor near the rear bulkhead has scab but it's not close to through.

Driver side headlight bucket got tapped, panel if it is OK though in all of the electrics work, so I don't think it was that bad I have a head. Most likely parking lot speed. Fixing this is non-trivial however I would expect.



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Even without the car jacked up, you can usually see the rear suspension console with a good light. Use a long screwdriver to poke around.

It might be fine but the passenger side top suspension mount looks a bit funky, the strut quite a bit off from where the driver side is located.
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That looks somewhat scary, but Halloween was yesterday.

Ha, hoping no more monsters jump out at me.

Run.......10 year project if that unless it.s your day job.

First of all - thanks for all of the responses. I very much appreciate people here taking their time to look and respond.

I kind of expected there to be a diversity of opinion on this one, but interesting to see the thoughts ranging from not that bad to run-Forrest-run!

Depends who is doing the work and how much you can afford. You are in the land of nice cars.

I'd be doing the work, know that having a professional do this would make it cost ineffective.

I'm personally OK with scruffy cars that are safe, solid and drive well. Goal would be to pick at it and just drive the darn thing for a couple years (while admiring some of the fantastic work that many of you do here).

The goal is also not to have it come apart at speed.

Check the hell hole, check the longs, and post back here. I'm concerned there is something that we're not seeing yet.

Just lookin' out for ya.

Konrad

Was this car Ice Green Metallic, originally? If so, it might be worth restoring...if you take a look at what another Ice Green Metallic car went for recently...at $60,000+ all in.

http://www.914world.com/bbs2/index.php?sho...32053&st=20

I saw that Ice Green car discussed here, man was that attractive and nicely done.

This car is L96M Marathon Blue.


Konrad - I agree that the car splitting in two would be a BAD thing. Don't think it is at that point but need to pull the long covers off to make sure.

Looks like you have enough issues to make it a case where you will want to raise up the car to work on it and pull doors or suspension or motor or more just so you can get a good angle on the work. I hav3 to assume that every paint bubble hides a welding job and or replacement of a sheet metal part. This is where people like restoration designs are so helpful, but also make replacement of a whole pressing really attractive. The end result is a lot of time off the wheels followed by a really nice result. I am thinking a big project rather than a little one. You are not alone. I do hope to see more.

because of your location.

This is a project that will most likely take a couple years. You could get a loan and after a few years the project would have cost the same money (with interest) as the sorted car. With the added bonus of driving it that whole time.
Someone from the rust belt will be happy to buy your project.

Big project. A couple of the areas you show are straightforward. Some are signs that there is Bad Stuff going on underneath the paint, and that you will likely turn up a whole lot more rot once you start digging.

--DD

Run away.

Find a nicer, less rusty 914.

Great discussion gentlemen.

Couldn't I drive this one and pick off one area at a time?

I mean, do they all have to be beautiful?

I do see your point Mark (and everyone else with more of a brain than I am demonstrating).

east coast not that bad,,,west coast pretty bad..

All kidding aside, I'd pass on this car and look for something more solid.

There is most likely more cancer there, but that remains to be seen.

(Under the rocker covers......?)

So this raises two questions ;

1) when is a car too far gone to be driven as a rolling restoration?

2) at what point does a driving assembled car become worth less than its separate parts?

I want to acknowledge that the device I'm being offered here is excellent, and I'm not turning a blind eye to it.

My 3.2 car is sort of ugly but solid. I shipped it from CA. The problem with rust in a unibody, especially on cars like a 914 with such thin sheet metal is you don’t even know if it’s safe to drive. My recent acquisition ‘70 (lifetime east coast car) looks really nice but I was able to pull the seatbelt mounting point out of the longs by hand, still bolted on to the seatbelt. So if I had it running, the seatbelts were worthless.

It’s cheaper to look for a good one than fix a rusty one.

Funny thing is, if it was an early 911 or 356, it would be a score.

Yikes! Pulling a seatbelt melting point out with my bare hands would scare the heck out of me.

2) at what point does a driving assembled car become worth less than its separate parts?
When you get a better 914.

Ha!

Seriously now...

Practically speaking I don't know how you do a rolling restoration unless you have done such a feat before and there is some trick you know to do it. Cutting and welding requires removing "stuff" to do it so as not damage it or burn it. How much trouble are you willing to go to? To weld a floor you have to remove some interior = not a "driven as a restoration" immediately. So, you fix the one floor area, involving cut, weld, grind, prime, sand and paint. Oh and watch out for that fuel line running from the front to back. Unfortunately, once you get into it you will likely find more rust, then what? Keep driving it? Or fix the next area next month after you have put the interior back in? Hate to sound like a debbie downer but have to agree with others. Find a better car if you can unless you want a long term permanent project for years to come. Best of luck with what ever you choose to do and please post your progress/ decision. My 2 cents

Hi there-thanks for the note.

I think it depends on what's required, right? The passenger side rear jacking point doughnut I don't think really requires much disassembly, that seems like you could knock it out in a day. Floors and especially longs for both kids stuff gets very involved very quickly I'm sure ( I have not had to do any of that yet) but how much disassembly is really needed for those problem areas I pointed out?

If you got the car priced right take six months and part it out and double or triple your money and then buy a good driving car

Id buy a roller and start building before something like this

These scare me. If this is rust related or metal fatigue, run away. Find another car. The amount of time and labor are not worth the repair. Plus you are in SoCal and that's where most of the 914's are located. Should be easy to find a replacement.

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Hi Mike. That caught my eye too. Metal looks to have torn there.

Is that likely accident or body fatigue?

Based on how far the adjustment is forward, I'd say it got hit and fatigued.

Pull the good parts and find a rolling shell. Not worth the heartache.

The amount of rust on the bottom makes it look like a flood car from Katrina.

110%. I'm having a blast restoring a car that a sane person would have parted out, but I have my doubts about being able to pick away at this car while driving it. It just looks like repairing things right are likely to sideline that car for months or more. Don't get me wrong, if the price was right and you want the challenge of doing rust repair, this might be a fun project. I just don't think it's the best candidate for a rolling restoration. The deal killer, as you and others pointed out, is that strut tower. I agree there is a good chance it was hit and/or the metal is fatigued. If that is the case, even I wouldn't touch it.

Sound advice above.

Marathon? In SoCal? Not worth fixing—yet.

I'd look for a better car and head for the hills and some

pete

Forest ???? we need some running

Question 3) to you: Are you interested in doing a deep frame restoration or driving the 914?

What do you want out of the car? I've found that I like driving my 914. Doing some wrenching is also fun and rewarding but the most fun is jumping in it and driving around. I wouldn't want to tackle the resto-job this car needs.

Question 4) to you: Do you like to weld, have welding equipment, know a welder friend? This car will require a lot of welding.



Not sure I understand your comment. If I change "device" to "price" then it makes more sense. A very low price would be enticing.

Although like the old Fram oil filter commercial stated: You can pay me now or you can pay me later. A low initial price may lead to a lot of purchases of resto metal and welding later.

Here on the right coast that car would be average. If I were on the left coast I'd be looking for a better car. You could buy this one, part it and make some money and buy a better car.

Sorry, Siri was trolling me. That should of read "advice".

Thanks for the thoughts and coaching.