964 donor to early 911

[Lukesportsman]

If I'm considering a engine swap and converting to coil-overs in the rear and cutting of subsequent torsion tubes is not a factor, would a donor car be a reasonable route.

Here is my rational. I have built street and race (tube chassis) cars before, but have limited knowledge of a 911. Having a donor car would at least get me closer to having or guiding me to the correct parts path. I could upgrade the interior some while I'm at it. Pick up some extra spare parts and get the drivetrain intact.

What parts could I gain from this donor idea?
3.6/G50 without exhaust
interior components
cooling?
brakes?
front spindles?
any rear supsension?
I'm pretty sure that coilovers are useless?
Rims for use with spacers or resale
resale old drivetrain

Reason for this is to get a early style/light weight chassis and the power and reliabilty of a later 964/993. Don't worry, I'm not 18 and have had the humiliation of putting a rear engine off course backwards already , so more DE courses planned.

Any and all input greatly appreciated

[Jack Olsen]

There's a lot of information available on this site about what you're talking about.

Are you planning to build a track-only car or a street/track car, or a street car?

Or, if I'm misunderstanding your post, are you planning on building a tube chassis for the 911?

[Lukesportsman]

Thanks Jack for your response. Your car is an inspiration for me and I can only hope mine turns out as well and professional.

I'm looking to build a street/track car with original tub/chassis, not a tube chassis car. I have a tube chassis car in the garage, so sorry to confuse. I was just trying to give a ball park idea of my experience....and lack of where 911's are.

I have looked and lurked on this site for sometime before actually joining. I love the idea of a 3.6 without the weight or insurance of a 993. I also love the idea of a light weight early chassis to look like an IROC or RSR. Authentic detail is not what I'm after, but a "look"(if it confuses a non-P driver, even better).

It looks like the going rate for a 3.6 is $6-7.5K. Then you have to adapt it to a 915 with aditional parts. I'm also intrigued by the dependability and reported shifting of a G50. G50's seem to go for a few K themselves. Why not just install a 3.6 behind a G50 in the early chassis together? If the C2 has better brakes too, then why not upgrade to them?

So, does it make sense from someone who has been there before to buy a donor/wrecked car to get everything intact? Is there much else that I would gain from the donor or just a bunch of parts that I would have to get rid of afterwards? I'm still in planning stage, but at a reported budget of $10k plus on a 3.6 conversion....that would seem a very important step.

Thank you for your time, and though you've heard it many times...VERY NICE CAR JACK!

Luke

[CamB]

So you are looking to merge a donor (as in partly wrecked) 964 with an early car because it will be cheaper and easier? I can't quite figure out if this os the plan, or....

Alternatively, how about starting with a 964 and adding early bits - backdating the body of a 3.6 with coils rather than upspeccing the old car. Not sure what you would do with the wheels if you wanted Fuchs.

Its been done before, and might (its not like I know!) be less work than converting an early tub to coils etc:

Creating a retro porsche- different route

[Jack Olsen]

Well, if you do a search on "Building a Better Black Beauty" in the subject line (or click on this link), you'll get a lot of the history of my conversion. I think there's some merit to the idea of backdating a 964 to the early look. In California, smog regulations make this a little trickier, since you have to retain more emissions parts for the later tub (and none for a pre-75 one).

The G50 conversion is expensive, and it moves the engine further back, which will adversely affect handling. I'm personally of the belief that it makes more sense to invest in some close-ratio gears for a 915, and build a higher-performing transmission. But then, I've always been very happy with the 915.

Coil-overs are nice, but you can build yourself a pretty great suspension with stiffer torsion bars, too. Brakes and oil cooling will be your biggest concerns if you put a later motor in an early car. But enough guys have done it now that there's pretty straightforward path to follow.