Why oh why would someone do this to a longhood?

[copper]

So I was browsing the local Auto Trader to see what was happening in the world of 911 resale when I came across an ad that caught my eye, particularly being a 69 owner myself.

69 Porsche 911
So I open it and read the description
"Very nice car, professionally restored to wide body!! New tires, new paint, new interior the list goes on. Included in price a 6 month LTD warranty (retail price $289.00). Call today trades welcome. All taxes and licensing are extra.

Pardon? Professionally restored to wide body????????

Here's the "69" as it looks now.



So, there's no VIN listed. Can't even check it to see if it's a 69, and if it WAS at some point, whether a good "S" has gone to the dogs through someone's bizarre idea of "improvement"

Nothing here, aside from one shot of the gauges even resembles an early, let alone a 69. Everything inside aside from the gauges is an aftermarket product of later style.

Why would someone do this? I'm wondering if it was a wreck and they simply threw this stuff on.

They're asking $20,000 for it. Seems mighty steep for a bastardized 69 to me.

Thoughts? Is this even possible? I'm no body guy, but wouldn't there be issues with fitting the body panels, bumpers etc

Curious...

[Gogar]

1. Most parts would go on pretty easy, except for the rear flares.

2. You never know the condition of what he started with,

3. If this is what he wanted, I don't see the problem.

In my opinion it's no more of a sin than backdating; it's just a less popular choice right now.

[copper]

This is a dealer selling it, not private, so who knows where it came from or when it was "converted".

And yes, you're right. I guess we must remember "to each his own".

But part of me still mourns for a longhood that is no more.

So again, out of curiousity, were this in fact a 69, say an "S" with matching numbers on the frame and engine, how difficult would it be to restore it? Would any irreversible mods have been done to the frame in this conversion? Assuming the proper replacement body panels could be found of course.

(Side note, I had an 87 CBR1000F, nothing quite like it. )

Jim

[Bob Kontak]

I like what Gogar says. It may be a timing issue. Could have been restored before long hoods were back in heavy favor.

[DW SD]

My car looked like that when I bought it. I called it a bas"turd"ized Turbo Look.

[Dantilla]

It wasn't that long ago I put Carrera flares on the '73. It was just a good deal on an old 911 I wanted to turn into an Autocross toy.

Nobody seemed to care about originanilty of long-hoods just a few short years ago.

Looking back, whoever "updated" this car is probably kicking themselves now.

[rattlsnak]

Funny, we just had this conversation at work today.. When the the short hoods first came out, over the next several years everybody was 'updating' the longhoods to look like the new and improved models.. Then, 15-20 years later, the rage is to make all the shorthoods look like the longhoods.. lol..

[Noah930]

Silver lining: If you own that car here in California your 90s-looking 911 can be smog exempt. Considering that we have sniffer and a visual examination (engine compartment must look stock), that's not a bad deal.

[tcar]

If it's a 69 T with the original engine, it's a DOG. Barely over 100 HP.

In the 70's and 80's, converting LH's to SH's was very popular.

Some have been converted back. Original LH's are worth a lot more.

[copper]

110 hp to be exact.

But the draw to the early cars is not horsepower or raw speed. They have torque in their own respect, but they weren't built to be the fastest. But we all know what happens when they get up to speed and stick in the corners... Often how races were won.

The draw is the very nature of the early. What it was then, and the influence it has had. If I wanted horsepower I wouldn't own a 69.

There are many different breeds of dog and their owners love them all...

[combatic]

They did it to impress the girls

If I had to wager, it would be b/c at the time that person could not 'afford' a newer model but could update it with parts.

Now people can't afford older the older models....ha ha.

[dtw]

Ran into a guy with a 930 Turbo cab, he didn't even know how many cylinders were in it. He was matter of fact about not caring much for cars - just as tools to fit his image and score women. It is what it is. Not everyone has a hard-on for these cars for the engineering and styling.

[56 nomad]

alright i confess ..i don't know the lingo...its a dumb question....i know what a c-1 c-2 c-3 and so on are but what is a long hood. and what is a short hood....is my 71T a long hood ?
regards, ben

[kodioneill]

Long hood's are production cars made before 1974 when impact bumpers were mandated. So your 71 is a long hood. Long hoods are considerably more expensive than the 74 and up short hood. Don't be afraid to ask questions here it took me three years to find out what ROW and NOS were.

[Mia911]

Looks ok to me.... Maybe he wanted a newer look...

[brads911sc]

I had a local german shop ask me why I "hotrodded" my "cherry" sc. All i had done at that time was put SSI's, Dansk Sport Muffler, and PMO's on it. The average guy would think it was a 100% stock SC. We all make our cars what we want them to be... Nothing wrong with that...

[fastfredracing]

As stated above , in not the too distant past, longhoods were not really loved all that much. I remember when I was shopping for my SC, 13-14 years ago, they,(longhoods) were priced at about half what similar SC"s and Carrera's were going for. Heck , I did not even like them back then, and was hard set on an impact bumper car. I wish I would have know then what I know now, As time grew on, I grew to love the older cars, and really wished I would have jumped on one.
That is a sweet looking car though, too bad they cut up an oldie .

[petevb]

Originally Posted by copper

Thoughts? Is this even possible? I'm no body guy, but wouldn't there be issues with fitting the body panels, bumpers etc

Might be a nice place to start for an early hot-rod. It's a shame to molest any early car, but they are smog exempt and hence desirable in California, also light, so as this one is already done you might as well make it into something useful. If the fenders are well done it would be easy to to convert it back to a long hood, or even leave it if that's your cup of tea. Throw a VRam in the back, lighten it up some...

I suspect it was first converted/ molested as far back as the 80s when long hoods were just getting "old" instead of classic.

I bought my '69 912 about six years ago now with the intention of making a track toy. 911s were already getting too expensive to modify, while a clean, solid California 912 was 5k. That same car would go for 20 now. Hindsight...

[drcoastline]

Originally Posted by tcar

If it's a 69 T with the original engine, it's a DOG. Barely over 100 HP.

In the 70's and 80's, convertine LH's to SH's was very popular.

Some have been converted back.

Yep Except I was going to say late 70's into the 90's. Very popular conversions including keeping the long hood but adding fiberglass front/rear impact looking bumpers.

[70SWT]

That's a great example of how one man's radical move is another's insignificant modification.

I have a 72T that would have surely ended up in the crusher if I hadn't rescued it - forget intact bolt-on panels like fenders, much of the unibody was rusted out or missing. I'm putting it back together as a "tribute" to an RSR prototype. It will be "numbers matching" as I have the original VIN points, tranny and engine, but am using an SC mill to get it down the road.

Bastardization? Some would say so, and some would say "good job" for keeping one more on the road and out of the crusher. Maybe some dilettante can restore it to original perfection in 2048, but I don't have the dough or inclination in the here and now.

YMMV, Al

Originally Posted by brads911sc

I had a local german shop ask me why I "hotrodded" my "cherry" sc. All i had done at that time was put SSI's, Dansk Sport Muffler, and PMO's on it. The average guy would think it was a 100% stock SC. We all make our cars what we want them to be... Nothing wrong with that...