My engine/tranny/shifter, etc. are out of the car right now. The engine is sitting with the lonely bar held on by two lonely bolts.

Should I have the rusty engine mounting bar refinished? Or leave it "au naturel a la rust?"

If refinished, what is the preferred method?

Thanks!

Paul

OK, OK. I can just see that "this thread is worthless without pictures" thing. So, here's a couple of pics.

Paul

One more...

And finally, hijacking my own topic, check out the Waxoyl cans (aerosol and regular) in the background. Brad found 'em lurking on a forgotten shelf and tells me he has just enough to treat those pesky future rust areas of my car!

Paul

I would clean it up. I don't believe they were ever coated by the factory, however it would be far more satisfying to have it as clean as the engine.

The bar is a big piece of German cast iron. Hit it with some sandpaper to get the loose stuff off and spray it w/ Rustolum and it will be good for another 30 years.

Hey biz - I have one that I stripped & finished in black about 20 years ago. Yours if you want it. No charge for a bud, though shiping could be a problem.
Lemmeeeknow.
Pat

bor-ring ....

how about some yellow?

Black's better 'cause it's going to be covered in oil soon anyways

With ALL due respect - RALPH!

Don't think it would pass for original, and this Forum is orignality based - right?
Pat

Well need to rear my ugly head on this one...
(sorry all have been bizy with my new purchase of a 71 and 75 2.0)..
Anyway back to the subject..
I had this same dilemma...
They were basically raw..aside from the 'Cosmoline'
waxy gold coating on them......Miles on the car and age wear it away.....
Soooooooo trying to attain COMPLETE factory on my 73 2.0..
I dumped it !!!
I actually sinned on this one and would take a hit from the judges if so!!!
Went with the 'Tin Color' black..
And had it powdercoated with color BK-05...
Also had it done on my friends 76..
LOOKS Awesome!!!!
Although I have seen them many different colors..
(the yellow is kooooool!!!)
Concour...if I had to give a hit...A point would be max..
Just for the fact that the bar.......
SHOULDAH BEEN PAINTED IN THE FIRST PLACE!!!!.
Geeeeesh..Itz not a brake rotor..Nuff Said...

"A point would be the max.." That's enough to lose by these days - not worth it! You are either concours or not.

I have a brand new one if you like!

I would either powder or paint it black, although on your car, I would be tempted to blast it and then just clear coat it??

Ferg

Thanks for all the replies. I think the yellow would clash with the orange! Spoke with Brad; he will pick a grey finish that looks kinda like metal. I'll eventually post a picture when it all gets done. I think I'm about two weeks away from getting the car. Front and rear sways going in, engine compartment needs to be resprayed, etc. etc. etc.

Paul

In that case....

MORE PICS!

Ferg.

This thread took an odd turn for being in the Originality and History section. If the stock bar was bare metal, wouldn't bead blasting it be the best 'restoration'? Then maybe a coat of WD-40 to keep it from flash-rusting.

Come on, let's talk originality. The garage is for "What would you do?" This room is for "What did the factory do?" Right?

What's original and how to keep it that way?

Well, it may not be too late, I don't know if the bar is actually painted yet. I guess it would be somewhat hard to keep it from oxidizing, given the type of metal it is. I just don't see WD40 keeping the relentless elements from causing surface oxidation away, maybe it just takes persistence on my part.

Maybe, just maybe, it's a butt ugly piece on the bottom of the car and it's meant to rust. Having seen so much rust on these cars, I want to stamp it out wherever it may be!

With 182 posts, I'm still feeling like a newbie even though I have two stars. So, please move the post if it's better off in the garage...

Paul

We don't move posts, unless they're really out of place. Just commenting on the line of thinking.

WD-40 is actually pretty persistent (doesn't disappear over time) is easy to apply, and it a decent rust preventer (basically by covering it in oil). But it might attract dirt/dust and turn the mount bar into a dirty mess. I wouldn't be surprised if spraying it with WD-40 and then wiping the excess off kept it nice and fresh looking.

Mark,

With all due respect, I don't think you appreciate what it takes to make/keep a 914 a "true" concours car. I also don't think that the average concours judge knows much about a 914, particularly the individual parts. Most look for cleanliness & preservation - preservation being the presentation of the parts of the car. 90% of 914 judges wouldn't know if this part was supposed to be painted or not - you take your chances & suck it up if they feel the finish isn't proper. In this case, it might cost you 0.1 to 0.2 points on a hard scale basis..if the judge even noticed. I'd rather take my chances (in the case of this part) with it being painted - I hate powder coating (usually an amateurish grainy finish).

Besides, though this is really rugged part, why weaken it with rust. WD40 will only protect it until the first rainstorm or washing. Do you realize how many parts we have to attend to after washing a concours car?

Nope, sorry, have to disagree. Paint the bastard!
Pat

I will be sure to post pics of what actually happened to the bar when it actually happens! Thanks for the input everybody.

Paul

To the readers of this forum - I recant my earlier post. Mark is absolutely correct, it should be bare metal! Not painted.

I sometimes lose the scope of this forum. it is, afterall, originality. Should you choose that for concours purposes, good for you.
I have my flaws, mostly to win a concours by any means. Just like a racer. But, I sometimes need to be slapped into the purpose of the forum - originality.

I've forgotten more than I ever learned about 35 years of 914 ownership. Somehow, Mark is one of those people who can keep us sane and forthright.

Though I didnt intend to diss his knowledge, I was blinded by the "winning thing".

I'll have my bar stripped of paint & left bare metal, because Mark is correct. And, a little WD40 goes a long way.

If you're looking for originality, do the same. Yeppir, little more upkeep, but you can click your cheeks at the ones who paint.

I was wrong, and I admit it.
Pat

I think the bar is one of the few pieces that never had a factory applied finish. It's just bare cast iron.

I can't believe we're still talking about this....

Welcome to the Orig&Hist forum. Better than debating sway bars vs. springs till we're blue in the face. Just kidding Paul.

Pat, thanks for the apology, we all have our days. No harm done.

Now, back to debating the mount bar. Cast iron has a 'look' when it is brand new. Kinda of a blackish/gray, IIRC. So since we can't exactly 're-cast' the bar, maybe a specific search for a correctly colored paint would be better. Bead blasted metal would be 'brighter' gray and incorrect. This Calyx Stuff looks pretty good and isn't a paint. The only problem is you have to heat the part up. Eastwood also carries the correct gray paint. Does anyone have some experience with paint getting too hot and flaking?

So now I'm the ass for doing an opinion 180.

Right now Brad has painted the bar gray. I am finally picking the car up on June 15 & promise to have plenty of pics in the future!

Paul

Oh man! I have so much empathy for you! BTDT

Now, the problem remains. My bar is a nice glossy black. And, since we've made this silly thing public, I have to do 2 things before Charlotte (among 2, 000 others).

1. Figure out how to make the finish original "appearing".

2. Figure out how to do it without lowering the motor, which is a PIA with all the other stuff that needs to be done.

BTW, got another spider today that was big enough to be named. Nested under the skid plate (whatever you call it) covereing the steering gear & fuel tank access. Even though I wearing gloves, the bastard still challenged me - he/she was BIG. Coupla squirts of brake cleaner & it dropped - looked like a lump of furry charcoal! Made my ass pucker!!!!

I think you should get it chrome plated. Bling-Bling!

So was it a factory spider? dealer installed or aftermarket?

BJH

Hey Pat, Andy and I checked it out today. The "engine carrier" is still available from the dealer. $270. What a steal! I bet it's rusty when you get it.

No, I've got two NOS ones and they aren't rusty. My digital camera has problems, or I'd take a pic.

I can't believe this questionanswer has such long legs & still going.

My 2-cents worth.

Yes, it's a cast factory bare metal piece. I would give it a light sand blast, wait till it oxidizes to a factory look than rattle can it with a clear coat satin finish to preserve the finish.

Tom
BTW: I agree this is a forum for factory restoration, but I powder coated mine gloss black & with a little road dust it looks good.

someone please pony up the money and buy a brand new one so we can settle this once and for all ...
Andy

Perry says he's got some, but he's teasing us with pictures...

Pretty sure it was aftermarket. Not quite hairy enough for factory original, though it did appear to have swastikas tatooed on the legs (8 of them). Said its website was up under the skidplate, right before the CRC got it.

What about light blasting & clear anodizing? Last a lot longer than clearcoat.

Or....are we a little bit out of control here?
Pat

Steel = no anodizing, but I think you meant powdercoating which could be good. I still think blasting will be too light gray, instead of the dark gray that the part would be when it comes out of the casting mold. I'll be doing the Calyx thing when I do mine (whenever that is). And I'd be happy to bake anyone elses in my oven if they pay for shipping and the Calyx.

How about sandblasting it and coating it with a light coat of body cavity wax? (for cars, you perverts.)
It's pretty close to the same color as cosmolene, and it holds up pretty well.

Mark,

As soon as I hit the "add this" button I slapped myself in the head, doing a pretty good Homer ("Doh!"), realizing you don't anodized heavy metals.

So, expound on this Calyx thing for us.

BTW, any reason I can't position a jack or 2 under the motor (in the right place) & remove the bar from both the body & motor to have it refinished? Of course, I wouldn't go under there until the bar was back on. While I'm at it - what about the motor mounts? Mine are 20 years old (15K miles). Have they deteriorated enought to warrant replacement?

I know....I just hijacked! Sorry......(tail between legs).
Pat

Yes, you can remove it without taking out the motor.

I don't know much about the Calyx, just what it says on the web page linked to above. But it seems like something that will match the look of freshly cast metal and will not scratch/chip off like paint. I think it's pretty cheap.