1970 914-6 all stock, maybe a short shift kit?

All, I have been quietly looking for a 9146 in original condition, this one came up within this forum and the owner and I came together, bought it in the summer, it has 90k miles, 4 owners (I am the forth). Interestingly the original owner lived in a condo on Grant Ave in Redondo Beach, at the time I lived in a house 3 blocks away on Belmont......weird. it now lives with me in Boston.

The car is great, once it is warmed up it drives well, however, the warmup sequence does not work as designed, I have found a porsche carb guy who will be rebuilding the carbs this spring. Here is the complete list of things I will be attacking this winter.

1. Shift and Grind - the throw from 1st to second grinds. I can keep this from happening by going from 1st to neutral and the move the shifter a bit towards 3rd and then into second. Doing this there is no grinding. from first to second, no matter how gentle, there is that sound we all know and hate........I rebuilt our 74 2L trans (Thank you Dr. Evil) and it is a wonderful shifter. With this one it may be the short shift kit or perhaps bushings (they all look great)........the shift linkage is the original config from 1970. Since this transmission is different than the 4cyl, 2L any guidance is appreciated.

2. Oil leaks, seeping is normal, I will be replacing all of the most leaky gaskets - any pointers as to what to look for?

4. Engine Drop and Tin paint - will drop the engine for the oil leaks as well as clean the engine bay. going to have the engine tin repainted, perhaps the car color? Or all original boring black.

4. Anything Else? - I will be going through the typical check list cables, brakes, adjustments, etc. Anything I should focus on particular to the 9146?

Click to view attachment

I would think it is time to pull out Dr. Evil's video again and go through it.

Probably need to replace second gear brake band, dog teeth, and slider. You will probably want to do the same with first gear and third while in there.

Good WE project!

Congrats on the car, it looks very nice, both do!

Congratulations!!! I would just work through all of the maintenance stuff; oil/filter, soft brake lines, brake fluid flush, check pads/rotors, when you drop the motor do a valve adjustment and replace the alternator belt, fuel lines/filter and gas tank inspection/sock. If it has not already had a SS fuel line swap done, please do that. Clean all of the grounds, check all of the bulbs, fuses, etc. Oh, and check the date code on the tires and if older than 6 years, replace them. Then clean, clean, clean.

Is that Rufus's car?

If I had a stock one of those, I'd be super careful to keep it stock.

So, no changes at all in the engine compartment.
Even the "hue" of the black paint is important.
This forum has the greatest number of -6 experts on the planet.

I'm not one of them...

I'm all ate up with modern!

But I can see the value of a stock 914-6 and anything that deviates from stock HURTS that value.

If you do ANY mods at all make sure to NOT make anything permanent.

Save ALL of the old parts.

No new holes in the body, no splicing into wire harness (there ARE ways to add bolt in mods without truly modifying the base car at all).

A modified shift lever or Rennshift IS bolt in only!

They are most valuable now stock.
Many modded cars are reverting to stock now-a-days.

20 years from now...

Nice looking car!

Agree - Stock and in patina, just like the '74

Other than the linkage and where it enters the box, the 914 trans all work the same way. The six had some slightly different ratios but that doesn’t affect shifting. I would suggest using a normal shifter without the short shift kit, replacing all the linkage bushings and then if you still have issues, open up the trans. Basically, start with the easy stuff first. A short shift kit will tend to exacerbate a problem so that’s why I suggest going stock, at least at first.

Congrats on the car, it looks very nice, both do!
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Cool cars!

Have you inspected the R/1st detent plate and the shift lever for excessive wear at the contact point? Do you have to struggle and use a lot of pressure to engage R/1?

Hey Cary
Nice that it has a new roomate.
Was one third of my 'Creamsicle'
Enjoy it.
Rory

Just put this on my list, thank you!

That cream is a real puff Rory, amazing car


Having a great time with the 6

Thank you

Check the nylon bushings at the tail bracket, firewall, and in the tunnel. Also shift rod wear at the tail bushing. When setup right, the -6 tail shifter works quite well.

Since I don't know the history on the car or what might have been done, the original 'flat' lower valve covers were prone to warping and leaking. Upgrading to turbo covers is pretty standard, but if you do it while the engine is out of the car, but sure to look at the cover modification threads on here first. Without milling some of the fins, the engine will go back in but you won't be able to remove the covers without dropping the engine (*insert engine in or out for valve adjustment debate here..).

Either way, gaskets with a silicone ring/bead are suggested.

Gotta love the color.....

Check the clutch free play
Maybe the cable is stretched. Too much free play.

Will come up this spring/summer and show it off to you....