HI ALL,
As you can tell by the topic of this post i am new to these auto's and was looking to find out if any particular years were better than others
mechanical?
cosmetics?
i will be looking for my first to buy soon and any info would be apreciated

thank you.
patrick

It depends on if you want a 6 or a 4cly. and how much you are looking to spend.

Steve

It also depends on how much you are going to pay. You can get a very nice stock 2.0l or buy a conversion 6 for close to the same amount.

What do you want to spend, what to do with the car (Track, autocross, or daily driver), and what are you use to driving?

The less rust, the better. Check the "hell hole" area under the battery, the floor pans - especially the rear, the rear trunk right in front of the taillights, the front trunk floor, the cowl where the fenders meet, the jack posts - especially the passenger side, the bottom edge of the sail panels...

Everything else is "nice to have".


'73 2.0 is typically regarded as the most desirable 4 cylinder.

In the northeast I think you have much less to choose from than for
example southern CA.

Not necessarily. I know of a very nice one than hasn't been in the wet since 1978.

Could be that it's "available".

Welcome to our crazy world.

You have three choices now:
Watch from the side lines and laugh at us.
Buy some other kind of car and just "drive" it.
Buy a 914 and join the fun

beware the rust in the hell hole area!!
have your goals figured before you buy
if you are looking to convert to a six, or if you just want a stocker
do you want flares....glass or steel
do you have a place to wrench and the patience to learn
take your time sorting these things out first
practicly any question you have can be answered by one of the guys

thanks for the responces guys!
i will be looking for a daily driver, not a basket case , a 4 cyl
i can wrench and enjoy doing it, down the road maybe a subaru conversion , have done some looking at this mod and i like the aplication of a current engine with modern systems like f.i. and turbo all in a light weight package- so a daily driver that needs some work will be a good candidate for my intentions

Do you like the early look with the slim bumpers or the later cars with the bumperettes...or the 75/76 cars with the bigger rubber bumper covers?

73 is a good year for a 4. Later than that gets the huge rubber bumpers, and earlier years have the 1.7 with the sloppier transmission. But at this rate, they are all good. And for a future swap, any year will do if its been well maintained and runs well.

Main area of concern though, will be rust.

Pat, were you referring to your car? Available?

Patrick, welcome. I would recommend purchasing the current issue (Nov 2008) of excellence magazine. It has the market update for the 914. It will explain the differences between the years. Once you've read the article, check if there's someone in your area that will give you a ride. Before you purchase, have someone from the board go with you to check it out. If no one is available, take many pictures and post here....

Here's a link to my website that you might want to check out.

-- Rob

Just look for rust and good luck keep us posted when you buy one