1969 911E Roller, Restore or Restomod?

[hessian_tommy]

Hey all, Looking for opinions. First time post by the way! I'm looking into purchasing a 1969 911E rolling shell, no drivetrain whatsoever, rusty, metalwork, interior, the lot of it needed. What I'm looking for is a fun track-day type of car, likely an 72/73 RS clone, minus the actual RS engine (so maybe a 2.4, 2.7, 3.0, 3.2). But, I'm not sure what's the best way to go about it, with THIS particular car. So questions are: Should this car even be a candidate for such a thing? If so, what drivetrain should I buy for it? Should I go the RS clone/restomod route, or just restore her to original? I'm not looking to flip the car or anything. I just want to run it, enjoy it, and run her a little harder sometimes. Thoughts?

[MIAdragon]

Plenty of track ready cars out there done and relatively cheap. This sounds like a money pit that if you want a track toy I’d pass on it.

[lsf911]

Restoring her to original is a mute point since you don't have the original motor/trans. This opens up the fact that you can make it anything else you want without any remorse of modifying an original car.
If you are looking for a project then go for it and create an RS clone but as MIAdragon mentioned you can find track cars at a reasonable price if that's all you really want. Best of luck with whatever you choose to do.

[Evans, Marv]

^^^^^ What he said.

[Lukesportsman]

Tommy,

Have you owned an air cooled 911 before?
IF not, but still handy with a wrench, here are my thoughts to a virgin owner:
3.2 is modern EFI and operates like just about like ever other EFI car in the world. Unless a full rebuild, I avoid the 2.7 for spirited (not that fast) and durability (not so much if not rebuilt). My favorite sound of all my cars is my big bore 2.4 E camm'd MFI (pseudo 2.7 RS clone) but it's honetly not that fast compared to modern cars. I'd skip the 901 all together. The 915 can be sweet and rewarding once mastered....think VW beetle. the 950 had outside help and again shifts pretty much like every other car in the modern world. the 2.2 and 2.4 are simply great little vintage engines with vintage speed. The 3.0 is reliable and sworn by, but I never cared to learn CIS so I stay carb, mfi or efi.

Rust is just so subjective. My oldest who is into tuner cars thinks anything pre 90s is rusty if not fully restored. For me its more a question of integrity. Floor boards or a quarter can be repaired, but if the car is bending under its own weight......

Brakes are easy, suspension can go any where from "rebuild" and enjoy to near GT3 components.

What is your background and welcome to the best VINTAGE CAR FORUM in the world.

[1979-930]

You not ready for a Porsche project.

I'm kidding and mostly serious. You are looking at a car that a mild engine will cost yupi $25k. A good restored 930 brake system will be $8k.
You better have $60k+ to piss away to build a decent car. And that's after buying the car.

[rennch]

Same boat...that's why I did a Subaru flat six swap in my latest build. 400hp for 5k.

[hessian_tommy]

Hi all, thanks for the responses.

I haven't owned an air cooled 911 before, however, I've got a lot of experience restoring classic cars (both body and engine rebuilds), motorcycles (1965 Triumph Bonneville) and working on newer cars of all kinds. So, I'm not afraid of the work this one needs.

I was leaning towards a 2.4L or 3.0 with a 915 as well. This car is a bit rusty, will require a lot of welding; floorpan and might need front suspension pan replacement as well (which will complicate things). I'm sure the heater tube rockers will be toast too. It's not looking like a "V" thankfully.

As far as suspension, I'm budgeting for coilovers. Given the body work needed, I'll be stripping the chassis all the way down, so I was thinking about reinforcing and fabing the appropriate pieces to stiffen up the chassis to duplicate the RS. (Rear suspension torsion tube, shock mounts, etc.) May as well!

Originally Posted by Lukesportsman

Tommy,

Have you owned an air cooled 911 before?
IF not, but still handy with a wrench, here are my thoughts to a virgin owner:
3.2 is modern EFI and operates like just about like ever other EFI car in the world. Unless a full rebuild, I avoid the 2.7 for spirited (not that fast) and durability (not so much if not rebuilt). My favorite sound of all my cars is my big bore 2.4 E camm'd MFI (pseudo 2.7 RS clone) but it's honetly not that fast compared to modern cars. I'd skip the 901 all together. The 915 can be sweet and rewarding once mastered....think VW beetle. the 950 had outside help and again shifts pretty much like every other car in the modern world. the 2.2 and 2.4 are simply great little vintage engines with vintage speed. The 3.0 is reliable and sworn by, but I never cared to learn CIS so I stay carb, mfi or efi.

Rust is just so subjective. My oldest who is into tuner cars thinks anything pre 90s is rusty if not fully restored. For me its more a question of integrity. Floor boards or a quarter can be repaired, but if the car is bending under its own weight......

Brakes are easy, suspension can go any where from "rebuild" and enjoy to near GT3 components.

What is your background and welcome to the best VINTAGE CAR FORUM in the world.

[hessian_tommy]

Who is ready for a Porsche project though?!? Haha, I'm coming up with my spreadsheet of costs, and I'm trying to come up with excuses for my wife as I go.

Is $25K for engine rebuild and machining the going rate? Whew! Got to pay up to do it right though.

It'll be a multi-year project, so that should help absorb the cost, but I guess that's the cost of admission to have fun...

Originally Posted by 1979-930

You not ready for a Porsche project.

I'm kidding and mostly serious. You are looking at a car that a mild engine will cost yupi $25k. A good restored 930 brake system will be $8k.
You better have $60k+ to piss away to build a decent car. And that's after buying the car.

[hessian_tommy]

Hey Luke.

No never owned an air-cooled 911. However, I've got a lot of experience restoring old cars, motorcycles, rebuilding (and machining) engines, valve guide jobs, top and bottom ends, since I was a youngster. So I don't feel intimidated by the workload at all. Actually, it sounds fun! Also, I want to introduce my son's to the art, just like my pop did with me.

I was thinking about going with a 2.4 with a 915 for the same reason, they sound glorious with the right headers and exhaust! Aside from the fact that they are more reliable than the 2.7, and the 2.7's have run out of headroom on that particular case.

Body is pretty rusty, definitely needs floor-pans, possibly suspension pan and the heater tube side rocker is likely a candidate for replacement too. Thankfully, it's not a "v" though haha.

I'll be upgrading to coil-overs and eventually upgrade the brakes, Since I'm stripping it all the way down, I was also going to reinforce the chassis (as in the RS).

I know it'll be sorta slow, but I just want a fun experience with one of my favorite cars.

Originally Posted by Lukesportsman

Tommy,

Have you owned an air cooled 911 before?
IF not, but still handy with a wrench, here are my thoughts to a virgin owner:
3.2 is modern EFI and operates like just about like ever other EFI car in the world. Unless a full rebuild, I avoid the 2.7 for spirited (not that fast) and durability (not so much if not rebuilt). My favorite sound of all my cars is my big bore 2.4 E camm'd MFI (pseudo 2.7 RS clone) but it's honetly not that fast compared to modern cars. I'd skip the 901 all together. The 915 can be sweet and rewarding once mastered....think VW beetle. the 950 had outside help and again shifts pretty much like every other car in the modern world. the 2.2 and 2.4 are simply great little vintage engines with vintage speed. The 3.0 is reliable and sworn by, but I never cared to learn CIS so I stay carb, mfi or efi.

Rust is just so subjective. My oldest who is into tuner cars thinks anything pre 90s is rusty if not fully restored. For me its more a question of integrity. Floor boards or a quarter can be repaired, but if the car is bending under its own weight......

Brakes are easy, suspension can go any where from "rebuild" and enjoy to near GT3 components.

What is your background and welcome to the best VINTAGE CAR FORUM in the world.

[hessian_tommy]

That sounds frighteningly fun! EJ25 Series engine?

Originally Posted by emptyo

Same boat...that's why I did a Subaru flat six swap in my latest build. 400hp for 5k.

[MIAdragon]

What’s the ask for the 69? There’s a 72 roller here in FL with the metal and body done and the owner is asking 20ish.

[rennch]

Originally Posted by hessian_tommy

That sounds frighteningly fun! EJ25 Series engine?

EZ30R. Doing the whole thing on YouTube.


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[Coastr]

Do you want a track car or a street car to use on the track sometimes?

You should really start from the end and work backward. Do you have a particular track and lap time in mind? What’s your hp/weight goals?

[Lukesportsman]

Coastr is on to something there too. Is this a street car for DE's? 4-6 DE a year or a weekend track beast of 20 events /yr. Do you just want to have fun or be competitive? Open rule fun or PCA class fun? IF SCCA or PCA start with rule book and build backwards as he said. I have several cars that I don't consider "wild" but would not fit into any good class at all due to brakes or other specific rules that could cost you time or money.