Okay, this is my first post so please be gentle. As of 5 days ago I am the proud owner of a white 73 2.0 914. I bought it from a family friend. It was love at first sight for me and the car, since I was a kid I wanted one and now that I am 42 that feeling never went away. The car has not been driven in over 8 years. It is original. So where do I start or should I say my mechanic start? I live in the Twin Cities area so my plan is for this to be my summertime daily driver.

Thanks for the advice.

Stephen

hey, theres some peeps around, including one right there by you.

welcome to the insanity!

now let's get some pics up here...

I will try and have the pictures up tomorrow. Any advice on where to start on a car that has not moved in that long?

Stephen

Welcome!

change oil, prime engine by cranking w/o fuel or spark

check fuel lines, probably replace since they've been sitting, and if the tank has fuel in it drain it and get some fresh stuff in there

new brake fluid and inspect the brake system

never hurts to go ahead and put in a new air filter and plugs, wires, inspect the cap and rotor

basically a good tuneup with a really thorough inspection

Thanks. Is there a 914 club in Minnesota?

First

Second. Check tires quality 8 years i would recommend putting new tires on it

I found with my 72 that sat for 3 years the rotors were ok just oxidized and i went ahead and cleaned up the surface with some abrasives to cut away the oxidation.

dont forget the grease points and the shift rail etc..

Chris

Thanks, my to do list is getting longer. Keep them coming.

Stephen

Your list will never stop

How mech. inclined are you?

You will save a ton of $ by doing it yourself. The more you do the more you will know how to fix things that may go wrong. Your better off learning the in's and out's of the car.

Not to be a pessimist but, she WILL leave you stranded one day. Knowing how the car works is valuble.

There is alway's a ton of help offered here, ask Q's and dive in, it's fun

Adding details to Eric's brake thought.

Check for stuck pistons. Check hand brake operation. Set vent clearances in the rear. Inspect soft brake lines all round.

Inspect your fuel lines - especially any cloth covered ones. Particular attention to lines that run from the output of the fuel pump as far as the pressure regulator. Include the elbows that go down to the fuel injector.

All very good advice and welcome aboard!

Now, pull off the rocker covers (drill out rivets, unbolt as necessary) and get the Teener up on a set of jackstands, where it belongs! :>)) Okay, sort of a joke, but being it was a MN car, there has got to be some serious rust. start at the passenger rear wheel, large Ice Pick, and work your way around underneath, stabbing everything... when the pick goes thru, mark with a paint marker, and come back later for deep investigation, i.e. chisels to scrape away undercoating, and cutting wheels to see how bad the damage really is! Oh, don't forget the rear part of the rear trunk...rusts quicker than a whore's promise vanishes!...

You didn't mention if the car is still a D Jet, or converted to Carbs??? Appearance Group or Plain Jane??? Photos please!

Hadn't started mine in 6 years. So I took out each spark plug and gave a quick spray of penetrating oil in each cylinder. Then I poured half a shot glass of marvel mystery oil into each cylinder before cranking it over. Cranked it over a little and let it sit for another day or two in the fresh oil. Any oil should be better then nothing- doesn't have to be marvel mystery oil. Now I'm driving my car daily after one year of restoration and the engine seems solid.

Other things I did:

replaced filters
replaced all fuel lines (used Racer Chris's stainless line through the tunnel)
bought rebuilt brake calipers for the front
replaced rotors with new
rebuilt front suspension (the rubber A arm bushings go bad and need to be replaced)
replaced ball joints in the front
new wheel bearings in front
new tires (well... good used ones)
new boge shocks in front
replaced rear calipers with 'good running' calipers off parts car
bled brake lines by using a long 'return' tube (3/8"?) to hook the caliper back up to the resvoir tank while I pumped and monitored bubbles going through the long tube



other things that I did that you may be able to put off until later depending on your cars condition are:


treat rust
treat rust
treat rust
treat rust
treat rust
treat rust
treat rust
treat rust
treat rust

oh and,
treat rust.