I thought that it was about time to stop lurking. I have spent that last 2 months leaching from the vast knowledge base on this wonderful forum. The first month consisted mostly looking for purchasing information which ended in the acquisition of this '73 2.0 from the club’s classifieds on June 2nd:
It is solid and straight. Mods that came with the car include:
KYB shocks and struts, weltmeister 22mm adjustable front sway bar, 21 mm torsion bars, braided stainless brake lines, 165# progressive rate springs, 19mm master cylinder, bursch exhaust, short shifter, rebuilt pedal cluster with bronze bushings, urethane suspension bushings all around, tans freshened with new synchro rings and a new 1st/reverse slider, dual Weber 40 idf carbs, an extra set of steel wheels with short lugs with Hankook ventus R compound 205/50/15 tires.
Since purchasing it I put on a set of 320i front calipers and Hawk HP+ pads.
A bit about me:
I live in the suburbs of Detroit and am a systems engineer for Bosch in the modulation group (ABS, Traction and Stability Control development). I have a few years of racing under my belt. My first racecar was an SCCA ITS Datsun 240z. My current racecar is an SCCA F500, currently sitting unhappily inactive in my garage. My last hobby road cars were BMW 2002s, of which I still own one, mostly in parts. My last daily driver was a '05 Subaru STi, more about that later.
Being unable to resist the pressure of my friends, I took the 914 to a track day at Grattan on Tuesday. Once I made a few adjustments to turn the existing A/X setup into something more suitable to a racetrack, the car was a real treat to drive at the limit, especially with the R rubber on the car. The downside of having owned and raced cars with much more generous power/weight ratios is that the power of the 914 left me very much wanting. For that I have a plan...
The path that brought me to the ownership of the 914 went directly trough a nasty accident in my '05 Subaru STi. I was ok but the car did not fare so well. Luckily the damage was mostly limited to the crush structures and other parts in front of the engine and I was able to purchase it from the insurance company for a great price. The proceeds from parting it out will more than cover the buyback cost. The rest will cover the cost of installing the turbo 2.5L engine into the belly of the 914. Working in the auto industry, I have friends who are not only auto enthusiasts but also very talented designers and fabricators and they are very much looking forward to assisting me with the swap. I will drive the car until the threat of snow comes and then out comes the stock driveline and in goes the Suby and a stronger transaxle, the type is still undetermined. I am currently trying to find (quite unsuccessfully) info about the suitability of 993/6 6-speeds. If anybody has any thoughts I would really like to hear them.
I will be participating in the Midwest Classic next month and am looking forward to meeting some of you in person then.
Later,
Scott
Welcome, Scott. If you've been lurking for the past couple of months, you've obviously seen some of the best of what this group has to offer. From the content of your bio, we'll be looking forward to you sharing your reflections and experiences on a regular basis.
something about MPS...
