Compatability between coupe and targa?

[Nathans_Dad]

First a little background:

I bought my 1984 911 targa 3 years ago. It is my first Porsche, I bought it because it was a sweet deal and had very low miles. The car has been rock solid, only 65k miles on it. There haven't been any major mechanical issues in the three years that I have owned the car.

The problem is that the cars that make my little heart go pitter pat are all coupes. So my plan was to sell the targa and buy a coupe to do some modifications to, probably a backdate type project to an RS/RSR/IROC...not sure yet.

So I listed the car here and on Craigslist, but I just am not sure that I want to let a car that is so solid go right now.

So.....here's my idea:

Buy a rust free tub (either SC or Carerra model year), strip it down, primer it and basically transfer everything from the targa over into the coupe tub. Then sell the targa tub and whatever targa specific parts are left over.

How feasible is this idea? Are all the body parts compatible between a coupe and a targa, specifically I am wondering about doors, window glass, front windscreen glass.

What sort of problems should I be mindful of with a project like this? I'm just kicking around the idea right now, I would hate to tear into a perfectly working vehicle only to find things aren't compatable.

[Rich76_911s]

Only a couple of things are not compatible.

I sold a tub to a guy who did the conversion.

You will need the window frames for the doors, the doors are the same but the window frames are different. Driver and passenger windows might be different too.

Rear window and trim
quarter windows and trim

Make sure with a tub you get the sunroof and all associated parts. If you found a sunroof coupe that is. Including the headliner frame piece you will need that. And interior dome lights.

That is all I can think that he needed from me off the top of my head.

Rich

[Nathans_Dad]

Ok, that's good news so far, I was wondering about the door windows...

With regards to the money involved, do you think it would be cheaper to do it this way vs. selling the targa and buying a complete coupe and then stripping that down to modify? I am thinking that if I sold the targa to buy a complete coupe it would probably be about a wash or possibly I would come out on the short end of the deal if the coupe was in good shape.

[javadog]

Sell the targa, buy a coupe. Nothing else makes any sense at all. It's a huge amount of work to do what you are suggesting and you'll find a lot of things to fix when taking one apart that you would be happy to live with (lack of awareness of a problem is bliss...) otherwise.

In the end, there are still some nice coupes out there and the most expensive one you can buy would be cheaper in the long run than doing what you suggest.

To answer your other question, there are a few differences in a targa and coupe, mainly in the area of the side and rear windows. Some are hard parts, some are trim parts. They would be the least of your struggle.

JR

[Rot 911]

Agreed sell the targa and buy a coupe. That is what I did back in 2001. I had a '72E Targa that was fun to drive, but when I thought of 911's it was always the lines of the coupe that popped into my mind. It worked on me long enough that I finally sold the targa and bought the coupe. I've never regretted it once even with the price of long hoods going crazy. But then I never was caught up in the longhood craze.

[tcar]

Lot of interior trim and carpet is different also.

Sell targa and buy coupe.

[techweenie]

It is theoretically possible to attach a coupe top to a Targa tub. I'm sure someone has done it. The differences are not extensive.

There is -- though rare as hen's teeth -- a steel coupe top made by the Factory to attach to Cabriolets.

[scottb]

Originally Posted by Kurt V

Agreed sell the targa and buy a coupe.

+1.

Why cannibalize a nice, complete, low mileage car to rehab another car? If parts were rare, I would understand, but since parts are readily available, it just doesn't make sense to tear apart the Targa, IMHO.

Good luck.

[Nathans_Dad]

Well, you guys are party poopers, lol.

Ok, back to plan A I guess...

I originally had the same thought, sell the targa and buy a coupe. Then I started thinking that I was probably going to be doing some significant work to the coupe, with body work, paint, etc plus possible engine/tranny work depending on if that is needed or not with the new car.

Then I started thinking that I have a known commodity in the targa, I know the engine and tranny are solid so why not just keep the good parts of the targa and put them into a coupe body? Of course it is a BIG project...

I'll probly end up selling the targa and buying a solid coupe. Thanks for all the input!

[JP911]

Option A+ would be to find a coupe of the same era and swap the engine and transmission and any other parts you would like to retain. This is sort of what I did when I bought my coupe (as a roller with transmission). What was different in my case is that I had a second engine ready to go into the coupe. I swapped the transmission, torsion bars, steering wheel, and a few other odds and ends.

[Nathans_Dad]

Yeah, I thought about that idea too, if I could find a decent coupe of the same model it should be an easy swap, my concern though would be if I happened to find a good SC, then I come out ahead putting a 3.2 in place of a 3.0, but then wouldn't my resale on the targa take a big hit for having an undersized engine in there?

[JP911]

Originally Posted by Nathans_Dad

Yeah, I thought about that idea too, if I could find a decent coupe of the same model it should be an easy swap, my concern though would be if I happened to find a good SC, then I come out ahead putting a 3.2 in place of a 3.0, but then wouldn't my resale on the targa take a big hit for having an undersized engine in there?

Yeah, I would think that "downsizing" the powerplant would hurt value, but you should be able to find a nice 84-86 Carrera coupe.

[gtc]

Originally Posted by techweenie

It is theoretically possible to attach a coupe top to a Targa tub. I'm sure someone has done it. The differences are not extensive.

There is -- though rare as hen's teeth -- a steel coupe top made by the Factory to attach to Cabriolets.

I think Thom Fitzpatrick sells fiberglass reproductions.
http://rennlight.com/

I'd probably just sell the targa and buy a coupe. I agree with the others that there's no need to cut apart a perfectly good car. We aren't talking about Ferrari Daytonas here...

[DanielDudley]

Find a targa that you like the looks of, and emulate that treatment.

Yeah, if you have your heart set on it, you know what you need to do.