I am not a Porsche person but consider myself a philus 914i or lover of the 914. I belive it is THE Porsche and none will proceeded it in its ability to overload the sences with driving excitement.

I say it is perfection on wheels! Okay, after a few mods but that goes without saying.

I didn't buy it because it was a porsche
it's more than that
besides, these modern porsches are too refined for my taste
they just don't have the character
to me, it's not a porsche, it's a 914

the 911 is the Porsche of the company...

the 914 is a Porsche from the company


that being said, I am selling my 911 and keeping my 914 since I do enjoy the 914 that much more....

i'll be honest that i like the 911 probably as much as the 914, but for completely different reasons. price is one, i feel like a decent 911 can be had for 12-15k...but what kind of 914 can you get for that money!!

i've had both..but came back to the 914 if that means anything:)

I dont "do" "poles". However I particpate in polls like this one occasionally.

Wow!!!!! 911s are falling by the wayside. I think the truth is so cool and sobering.

Nonpoler voting? I am speechless

Its a car that gets me from point A to point B. It runs, so who cares what it is. Any car would do the same, thank you.

914's have it all.

mid engine handling
light weight
easy mods for fantastic handling swapping with 911 parts
enough room in the engine compartment for lots of engine swap options
farfergnugen... or something like that.

and it's old enough to need work on it every year to keep it running right. fulfills my tinkering habit.

There isn't a part on that car I don't know well, after 25 yrs I'd better. Everytime

I slip into the drivers seat and take the wheel in my hands its like the first time.

I've had 30+ cars so far and nothing, I repeat Nothing has given me so much

pleasure. Now I need a smoke.

I'm stuck on the 914 (as well as EARLY 911's) because of the simplicity. I know my 914 in & out, and for that reason wouldn't hesitate to get another.

You almost never see one on the road & can care for it yourself. I wouldn't dream of touching the techno daily drivers we have, but would never let anyone touch my 914 (except for tranny work - that's black magic!).

I live in an area where the roads are congested with Cayennes & contempo 911's. My bet is that these people have never OWNED a car & can barely figure out how to put gas in it. Not for me. I like the basics, like window cranks & wierd heat!

I also like not paying $300 for a simple oil change (well, it really isn't simple with those other Porsches).

And YES, I consider the 914 a Porsche - as much as a 356.

Flames away!!!!!

Is the 914 THE Porsche? No, and neither is the much vaunted 911... If I had to pick a car that trully was "Porsche", it would either be the 356 or the 550...

As for why I got one? It is, IMHO, the best of the small mid-engined sports cars (see thread in the sandbox), and provides a true sports car feel that modern, more "refined" cars just don't...

-Josh2

None of the options really applied to me.

For me it was making a dream come true and provng to myself that I could restore a car.

Zach

Sold this SC......To get this 914.

Pound for pound it's a ton more fun.

The SC as old as 1982 was still too refined and just does not give that raw sports car feel. The 914 still allows the driver to drive, Its raw, basic and fun to drive.

AWSOME!!!!

Michael N...Like that white car! Alot!!

For me, the 914 offers:

small
nimble
mid engined
2 seat sports car
German engineered
light weight
targa top open air experience
race history (winner of the 24 hours of Lemans...914/6 GT)
simple
good trunk space for small car
slightly rare though modest entry price
It makes people smile
A great platform for crazy modifications & shares the front pan with the 911 (many 911 parts will interchange)

Those are my thoughts on all 914's not just my own.

Bill

I've owned 5 and 2 were brand new. I keep coming back...there's something about the handling and that you don't see one coming at you every 5 minutes....but I am getting tired of chasing the gremlins....I'll be better later I'm sure...

I voted that I'm not a Porsche person but like the 914.

It use to be that I always classified the 911 as the fast car for girls.

The 914 to me is the perfect example of how a person with limited funds can kick the ass of a rich biotch with tons of money....

911 owners hate 914 owners when they get their ass kicked at an A/X....

How come the option "It's a go-kart with suspension and room for a passenger!" isn't available?

I've had 914s for the past 20 years, and for 99% of that time, I've also had a 911 in the garage next to it.

Even now, I currently have a 914 and a 911.

The 911 is a great car, no doubt. But when it comes time to choose which one to drive, I almost always pick the 914!

It's just more fun to drive. It's just hard to beat the low slung, light weight of the 914. It's the closest thing to a street legal gokart you can get. Sitting a few inches off the ground, no power anything, wind up windows, doesn't have much more than is absolutely necessary.

A 911 (SC or Carrera) is a GT car by comparison. Too close to my daily driver sports sedan. A 911 is a "grown up car," your mom could drive one. A 914 is a total quirky toy! Nothing grown up about it! Just fun!

I also like the fact that the 914 is the underdog. Everyone loves the 911, it doesn't need me.

Guys & Gals
I bought a 1971 914-4,in 1975,I was in high school at that time,Worked and saved to pay cash for the teener.I was the only guy driving A porsche to high school,Well I still have that car 31 years later,Its clean as could be. I always wanted a six bought one off these boards a few mo. ago. I've been looking for this six for 15+ years. There "Both" Canary Yellow" To me, 914's are making dreams come true !!
914

My 75 1.8, is a symbol of the many hours spent in the garage with my father and my brother. the scars, the swear words, and the smiles are all represented in the joy that i get when i drive some of my favorite roads in the Santa Cruz mountains.

It is the one thing that we can always have a converstaion about and will make us happy.

-Peter
and ofcourse being able to say to the ladies that "Yeah, i drive a porsche"

Photo is the final product of about 2 years, and countless hours.

I'm not a Porsche person just a 914er because its the best choice in the pole I could choose that comes closest to the truth.
I drove a friends '70 914 up & back to Big Bear from O.C. in '76.
He the nite before & I didn't - I wanted to ski in the morning so -
no drink-ski-hospital-bad newz. (Don't ask) - anyway; I lived.
With him cringing every time I shifted from 1st to second & 4th to 3rd... when I needed 5th. Freeway! He especially hated it when I left it in 2nd and slipped the clutch from stop signs. I thought I was being considerate. One less gear to grind.
I did much better on the way home. I had 2nd to 3rd down. Not real gud - but less grinding
I'd never had so much fun on the drive to ski in my life! The drive home was even better! 3rd rockz. I'd had fast cars, but I never felt anything like the sweet handling I felt in this stock street car.
It could'a been any kind'a car. I knew needed one or two. But first I checked to see if it was really street legal

All this, and still at (close to) legal speeds...

and it tastes GREAT too.

...poles...heh heh....





























You have chosen to ignore all posts from: JPB.

My sentiments Exactly

I didn't vote for one of the possibilities, because it really means nothing to me that the 914 is a Porsche (well, of cource it means higher spare parts prices )
I love the 914 for beeing what it is - that's nothing to do with the Porsche thing

it's simply my hobby that I love most

Gustl

I chose a 914 because it was a small light car with a mid engine design and handled great. I wanted to build a small car with a big engine and the 914 fit the criteria.

It's NARP status was just icing on the cake to me. I don't mind controversy. If someone called it a VW it suited me just fine as my roots are in Volkswagens anyway.

Mike T

What's a Bardash...?

Sorry, but I can't honestly say that if money were no object, I'd own a 914. Dont get me wrong, they're a great car and I love mine, and it suits my current needs very well, but I'm very seriously considering selling mine, along with my one of my Pontiacs, to finance a Boxster. But, maybe I'll sell the bike instead of the tenner.

I bought this one because I needed something more fuel efficient than my truck to commute in, and I needed it to be cheap, fun, sporty, roomy, and open air capable. But, after driving a few modern sports cars, I now know I want to own one of those.

I needed something to compliment my hair loss.

Click to view attachmentClick to view attachment

I agree.........what other car provides this much character on the road

This is always a really fun part of lapping days for me, when I have the inevitable conversation with someone who isn't familiar with 914s. They are always shocked at how quick it is through the twisty parts of our local track

I saw my first 914 in El Cajon CA after work one night in 1983. I fell in love with the car on sight. I didn't know it was a Porsche and could have cared less. The flares, the sound of the motor, the handling. The little 914 on the back was all I could see. I followed that car through some twisties and decided that it was a "must own". It took me quite a few years before I could buy one. I have been very fortunate and have driven or had a ride along in a large number of sports cars. This one has it hands down.

[quote name='swood' date='Nov 3 2006, 12:06 AM' post='808299']
...poles...heh heh....

You have chosen to ignore all posts from: JPB.


What is this, a conspiracy?

Can you not see these people share the same common bond and passion for what is the apex of automotive engineering? Well spoken and shared brothers and as for you the conspirators, your plans will be thwarted and you will walk the plank!!! We have similar blood on this vessel.

I started my auto tech career working on the 914 (they wouldnt let me touch the REAL P-cars) I can still remember servicing them with solid battery trays.

I was smitten in 1971. I lived in Hermosa Beach on 1st Place and was a just out of HS surf bum. My apartment was literally around the corner from Vasek Polak Porsche. It was always a draw for me to see Vaseks race cars in the show room. When I first saw the 914-6 it was sitting next to a 908, it was clear from the get go that there was a straight line from the racers to the street car: low light, no frills simple, mid engine, wheels out on the corners. The teener has been a favorite for me since then and I have never looked back. My first teener was a 72 1.7 at about 1975 and that little car was simply amazing. Incredible driving experience, even on the funky 15/165 tires of that era, I used to routinely smoke Datsun 240Z's in the 1.7 way fun. I also clearly remember seeing the window sticker on the six at about $6250 and thinking, woah I will never be able to afford a car that expensive.

My first (and last) speeding ticket was in my `71 914-6;101 in a 50,sure wish I still had that car.Alway loved the way the 914 handled.I`ve since owned 6 914`s all 4 cylinders(only two runners).Last year I aquired a `72 with a 6(ford v6) HOPE I don`t get in to much trouble when I get it on the road.

Allow me to wax poetic:
IT'S A SHITBOX!!

Here is a man who speaks his mind!!Way ta go partner. I'd say always have some TP available close by.

For all you sensitive byhitches out there, here is a hint of where you can get on>>>>>>
(remember this pictorial depictation aaahh for future reference)

I've always liked Porsches since I first started to notice cars as a kid, but that's not why I have a 914.

I've had VWs all my driving life and love to tinker with them. My wife had a 914 as her first car in HS (it was well used by 1992) and always talked about wanting another. I needed a new project and knew that the 4 cyl version was a VW type IV engine and that I could most likely work on most of it myself, so the search began.

I've only had my 914 for a few years but I towed the thing north to Alaska with me and couldn't be happier.

I live 20 miles out of town and the last six are very twisty, in all my other cars this is just a long drive to town and back, in the 914 I look forward to it every time.

It's such a blast to drive, I love it!

Sweet mountain views, steelhead and salmon streams, Alaska rocks

Leo, I will miss your old avatar It was the best bro! I'm loosing my hair also and I believe it is over rated.

[quote name='J P Stein' date='Nov 5 2006, 09:47 AM' post='809719']
Allow me to wax poetic:
IT'S A SHITBOX!!
[/quot

Such eloquence.......

It's a combo of reasons.

Handling like nothing else. I remember this Ravenna Green 73 2.0 at Louisville Ky SCCA auto-X's in the late 70's. It was running centerlines and slicks w/ stock (rolled) fenders. Turned FTD's every freakin' time and looked like it was on rails going around the course!

I do like being a PCA member with a car that costs less than a set of tires on some newer P-cars!

I really love the simplicity. I can work on it myself. No power anything. Same reason I miss my Rabbit diesel pickup.

It's now a VINTAGE Porsche!

Teener dudes and dudettes ROCK!

The poll would be a little more realistic if there were a few more options.
That and the Kool-aid tastes funny here.

none of the options describe it for me either. I would say I am a Porsche guy. I've have a 914 or a 911 since 1976. I like the older 911's, but the handling is scary. And then there is the unique factor. When leaving a recent PCA event, I got on the six. Later, one of the attendees told me there was a discussion on how great the car sounded. New Porsche owners rarely admit it, but a 914 is closer to what a Porsche is supposed to be, in my opinion. Always turns heads. People don't know what they are. Everytime we arrive home, I say to my wife, "what a great car!" That just doesn't happen with too many cars these days. Not ones I can afford anyway.

If there was a nail here, jfort just hit it on the cranium.

The 914 is what a Porsche is supposed to be. Light, quick, and unique. Other people just won't get it.

That is the primary reason it is the go-to choice for us electric converters. Light and unique. When you're done you actually have something you WANT to drive.

Believe it or not, I was always a VW guy. Got the 914 eight years ago just to have something different, and am not going back to old VW's. This thing is great, and has gotten em to try autox, DE, etc. Would not have tried those in a '67 beetle, at least not the last one I had.

The more I read the more I agree with what others are saying. Your right, it is such a huge combination of things. Being a classic car dosen't hurt either