Where's Matt Holcomb? The Euro 74 with most of the goodies from the 73 RS, but none of the legendary allure, for some reason.

Mikkel - I still have to make the payments and I am having way too much fun spending the $$ on the early S. She just wants space in the garage!

I have to agree with the '74-77 cars being the most underappreciated. I owned a '75 Silv. Anniv. Targa for over ten years and might still have it if I could have found replacement fabric for the interior!
Even as a bumper car, it was still light with no power windows or brakes. And yeah, I pulled head studs. Nothing that a 3.0 SC transplant didn't solve, though. Neat cars.

I'd say the '90-'94 Carrera (964) ranks up there. Porsche enthusiasts seem to gloss over it because of it's looks. I think part of the problem is that the Design 90 wheels are crappy and the USA ride height is so high that it gives a very bad impression of this series. If you've ever seen one lowered with proper Cup wheels it looks alot better.


http://home.swipnet.se/wheelbase/images/knutst3.jpg

If you're talking 911 enthusiasts, I'd agree with the 964 being the most under-appreciated 911 - everyone wants the engines, but few want the entire car. The mid-70s cars has people that remember it, either for it's flaws or it's good points; people simply don't seem to remember that there was a car between the 80s Carrera and the 993, and those that do remember it mention only the problems with the early models.

But overall, outside the family, I'd have to concede that the most under-appreciated Porsches overall are the water-cooled cars. I was very close to buying a black 944 in 1986 when I was younger. I remember mentioning it to my brother and sister during a call home, and in unison they said "Oh, one of <i>those</i>." I was young and their attitude totally soured me on the car. This was long before I learned lots more about the car, <i>and</i> before those two car experts bought their <b>Yugos</b>. :)

Emanuel (they weren't big on me getting the 911, either!)

Well, Jack, your car epitomises the aesthetic advantages of long-hood 911s compared to short nose -- or impact-bumper -- 911s, and that's one reason why you can have three Euro-spec '74-75 Carrera 2.7s for the price of one Touring-spec '73 RS!

The allure of the '73 RS, which is another reason, must be credited to the much rarer M471, or 'Sports' version, which is also some 100kg lighter than the 'Touring' version. A lot of people are unaware that there are two (well, three, if you count the RSR) versions of the RS, and many sellers and dealers have taken advantage of this ignorance. As a result of this shrewdness and nescience, a Euro-spec '74-75 Carrera 2.7, which is nearly as scarce as a Touring-spec RS, is such a comparative bargain.

Of course, this may not last long: Anthony Saffery reports that '74-75 Carrera 2.7 prices in Britain are slowly rising, and I wouldn't be surprised if prices are also rising in other parts of Europe, and in Australia-NZ, too.


Matt Holcomb
1974 911 Carrera 2.7 Euro<a href="http://www.holscope.com/74Carrera2.7" TARGET="_blank"></a>
1975 Mercedes-Benz 280SE
<a href="http://www.holscope.com/74Carrera2.7" TARGET="_blank">Dedicated Homepage</a>
<a href="http://www.holscope.com/74Carrera2.7/rebuild" TARGET="_blank">Engine Rebuild Homepage</a>
<a href="http://www.cheaterswayside.com/911/gallery.asp?sort=0&userid=127" TARGET="_blank">Porsche Owners Gallery Profile</a>
<a href="http://www.pelicanparts.com/cgi-bin/pmpre/pm.cgi?action=display&login=Matt_Holcomb" TARGET="_blank">Pelican Gallery Profile</a>

The '74 - '77s have my vote as well.

They weigh several hundred pounds less than the SCs, came in a far more interesting assortment of colors, and the silver anodized Fuchs and trim are a nicer look than the black trim on the SCs/Carreras.

Black wheels are for snow tires.

:eek:

Beware the 2.7WDP!

OK, just wanted to make one more point about the 912E. You can beef up that 90 HP engine pretty quickly with some new technology that has hit the market: http://www.LNengineering.com/nickies.asp

I'll go back to lurking now.:p

My vote goes to any of the early 'E's. Yes, a better street car than an 'S' as previously described. Also a giant-killer in PCA club racing. Their low classification gives them the "unfair advantage" (reference Mark Donohue). Lower peak hp, but better midrange equals more area under the useable power curve than an S, which typically requires a cheater short gear box to do its thing really well on most tracks, thus putting it out of stock class.

The 996!!!!!

A truly beautiful and high performing vehicle which is dumped on by purists cause it doesnt have an aircooled engine :rolleyes:

If they didnt change the shape and the engine...no one would pay that price tag

Like the Porsche enthusiast said at the dealership,

"if you drove it, you would know why they made all those decisions"

To those who thinks the 964 is the worst looking of 911s.
http://www.pelicanparts.com/ultimate...ads/ft38vr.jpg http://www.pelicanparts.com/ultimate...ads/gr_v_r.jpg http://www.pelicanparts.com/ultimate...s/jt_rs_hr.jpg http://www.pelicanparts.com/ultimate...ads/jt_v_r.jpg

You guessed it - I love the 964 :)

A bit of a tangent, but just curious - is an early E's midrange THAT much better than an S? Was digging around and found Mike Piera's site with some graphs:

http://www.analogman.com/911/911eng.htm

doesn't look like much difference between the two except past 5K, hey anybody have real dynojet curves we can look at? :)

Brad