Just wanted to air my concerns.

I took a look at this section and it looks like fixing our car through this sit could start to get expensive?

Pro - I like the value of my 914 going up

Con - Greed

I tend to share my parts and have been helped by other nonmembers in the same way. I sell parts occasionally to help fund my addiction and know that many others do the same.

Does anyone else share my concern?

As I view this circumstance of the 914 trending upward, the downside, naturally, will be a higher cost for the parts needed to both maintain and/or restore these unique cars. The other side, hopefully, will be an incentive for the "cottage industry" and major suppliers alike to provide us with the ordinary, the hard-to-find, and the impossible bits and pieces that we all need to fully enjoy the use of our 914s in the years to come. Additionally, as we put more of ourselves and our dollars (and euros) into their upkeep, the sometimes gaping chasm that exists between their real worth and what we have invested in them will diminish.

The "P" word has always made the parts more expensive. You need to look for

alternate sorces for parts. They can be found cheeper. Also some of the parts can

be swapped for VW parts it just depends on what you need.

SoCal,
I'm sinking primarily of rubber parts. Hood and trunk seals, rollbar seals, door seals and the like are unique to the 914. Similarly, hardware for the interior, steel bumpers, some sheet metal items not in reproduction as yet, could possibly be remanufactured if the market was there, i.e. the car's intrinsic value climbed to the point that the demand for these parts warranted their re-issue.

Swapable parts make such a small percentage of 914 parts, that this isn't really true.

There are no cheaper alternative sources or swapable parts for

windshield seals and nearly every other seal
Chrome trim
sunvisors
bumper tops
rear calipers
foglight grills
2.0L MAPS
etc.


Again, keep in mind we're talking about restoring and getting parts new (Concours)

Sure one can go to a junkyard or swap meet... but parts are getting scarcer and pricier.

The parts we're talking about are marginally more expensive than they've been in the past. I'd say they are probably just tracking inflation. Everything around us more expensive these days. Parts may be a bit pricier but are much easier to obtain.

I can remember pre internet days - part searching was like a scavenger hunt. Hell, now if you post a WTB ad you'll get a half a dozen responses within a day!

I'll take the current state of affairs over the dark ages anyday...

Good point about availability.

I was just a little shocked to see guys talking about $500 for a windshield.

I guess it's like anything else. When it comes to pricing, you have to know your customer.

I was quoted a ton of diff prices for a windshield 2 summers ago. Ended up finding a used one (near perfect - muy old one was cracked and would not pass NY State inspection) via the Pelican bbs (pre 914club I believe). I had wild quotes from the normal autoglass routes - I think around $400... But this experience proves my point - this forum (and others like it) make this whole "restoration" venture alot easier.

If someone is trying to piece together a 30+yr old car w/perfect NOS parts good f'in luck. You would have a pain in the a$$ time doing that w/a Honda Accord! Have you tried to buy modern car trim & rubber parts from a dealer? It'll be like your first night in prison when "Bubba" makes you his.... You get the idea...

Rant over, return to your normally scheduled program.

-pt

The VW parts appropriate for our cars cost the same as the ones from Porsche. Porsche sells them under VW part numbers. Aftermarket sellers go by part number, too, so the prices will always be the same. Facts of life .............. The Cap'n