ismoto - first project - backdated custom 911

[ismoto]

i was reading a lot here on pelican so i thought it would be about time to contribute some stuff..

well, as many of you, i started dreaming of a 911 when i was little, wondering if i would ever drive one or own one. my first one was a (1:43) 1975 911 turbo in green metallic, my dream car and i was 7 years old.

a couple of years later - still in love with 911s - it was time to buy one. but which model? honestly, i test-drove them all - aircooled ones to be 100% correct. started with a '95 993, a '91 964 then, a '88 WTL Carrera 3.2, then a '68 911L, a '71 911T, a '84 Carrera 3.2 and last but also least a '83 911SC. my gut feeling told me that my search has an end. this was how an 911 should feel like. but i was more in love with the looks of the early cars. then i learned about the interchangeability of parts and learned about backdating. well, quite a project. before that i have changed oil and exchanged brake pads. but a full restauration and backdating project? okay ..

this is what i bought, a '83 911SC with a little over 300.000 miles, bad respray in burgundy with burgundy interior. spent most of her life in san diego, moved to florida with the po and this is the moment when it arrived at my place.

[ismoto]

when i started with the project, i had no idea about porsches, no idea about electricity, gears, engines, leather upholstery, glue in a headliner or even painting. i knew it would be a great adventure and i couldnt wait to see how it would turn out in the end.

i started to get rid of all the parts inside the car since i was sure it wouldnt want my interior to be burgundy red. removed the carpet, backseats, door covers and pulls, rear quarterts, basicly everything burgundy. and i changed the steering wheel.




surprisingly, little to no rust, only a little spot under the drivers side backseat. after the interior has gone, i started to get rid of other unnecessary things like the cruise control, airconditioning and the extra heating blower. wasn't all that easy but i had help from a friend who bought a porsche two years ago.







by the way, thats me in the last picture. tried to hide but these smartphone junkies all around me, you know what I mean..

[ismoto]

then the process of dismantling started. took as many photos as i could even though i was sure i would miss out something and require help later on.

this was the day i started my project.






and by the end of day 1 it looked like this

[ismoto]

next thing was to pull out the engine and trans for an overhaul and a few upgrades

[ismoto]

removed the sunroof but needed something fun so i drilled my doorhandles, beadblasted them and have them re-chromed for later..



removed all the gauges then and took tons of pictured of the cable attached

[kagangen]

good start.

[ismoto]

i decided to go fiberglass due to two facts. one, it's cheaper and two, it's lighter.

so i started fitting the rs rear bumper ..


.. but i didn't like the look of the all-plastic bumper and i wanted the chrome bumper overriders so i bought a new panel, new chrome overriders and used my little dremel to cut the fiberglas bumper in pieces ..




like it much better and even better with the chrome overriders attached. oh but there was something missing - the plate ..



way better ..

[ismoto]

at some point in the middle of my project i needed to encourage myself to go on and so i had to do something else.

i wanted a center filler gas tank so i removed all the rubber from the gas tank



i also wanted a nice and shiny gear lever so i polished it

[ismoto]

the front was very easy, pretty much a bolt on job.

[ismoto]

next step - paint .. uh, there are so many cool colors out there ..

but i started with grinding and the prepaint

[ismoto]

oh yeah - forgot to mention: had to cut a hole for the center filler gas tank and weld some metal to the gas tank .. easy job ..

[ismoto]

but i knew it would come one day. i tried to ignore the question until the day came ..

WHAT COLOR DO I WANT???

well .. it all started with a toy and that was green metallic. green metallic maybe? but this was a early turbo color. how about tangerine? most porsche rallye successes were won in this color. or? or? how about .. i don't know which color to choose. a porsche color? or any other? or the original color?

pelicans, what color? suggestions are very welcome and much appreciated!

[Mick_D]

I need to choose a color soon myself. My three current faves are Emerald Green Metallic, Cobalt Blue Metallic, and Anthracite Metallic. The interior colors would have to change depending on what I finally choose. Currently leaning toward Cobalt Blue with medium gray inside. That'll change in about ten minutes.
Oh then there's that awesome Ruby Red metallic, or Ivory Pearl, or...

OK truthfully I have overthought this for a long time. There are two basic 'camps' when picking a color: Conservative or attention-getting. I'm kind of tired of being conservative, I think.

[ixxify]

if I would do such a project, I would go for either LIGHT IVORY, TANGERINE or AUBERGINE

whats your pick, ismoto?

[ismoto]

@Mick_D - i know exactly what you mean .. those few colors i mentioned are just the tip of the iceberg, there are other colors in my mind .. like jade green, light yellow or black ..

@ixxify - tangerine is one of my picks too but i guess i will keep this car forever so i might wanna choose something i will still like in 15 yrs. but what?

WHAT ARE YOUR FAVOURITE COLORS?! PLS POST COLORS AND PICTURES

[jimtweet]

which brand fiberglas fenders and hood are you using

[ismoto]

@jimtweet - interesting question.. bought them at a booth at techno classica trade fair in essen, germany last year and had them shipped to me.. if i remember right it was carpoint.de but i could be mistaken since i bought parts from so may suppliers..

[Mick_D]

Here's my current favorite, Cobalt Blue :


Then this one, Anthracite Metallic:


The more I look at this car the more I really like it, Zinc Metallic:


Problem is that the last three cars I've owned or driven were a shade of silver. I have almost talked myself out of a shade of silver or gray because of that.


I am pretty sure I'm going to end up with the frosted RSR finish on the rims.

I can't find the shade of green I want on a Porsche. Emerald Green, metallic.


I also like Ruby Red.
The original color on my car was 406, gold metallic. I could go that way. OR Casablanca Beige metallic, a brighter deeper gold.

Oh here, before I forget here's a web page listing a lot of official factory colors for Porsche:

elferclassic • Fahrzeugfarben

It loads a little slow but I think it's a nice resource.

This choice is hard to make for me.

[ismoto]

@Mick_D: what model is your 911? reason i am asking is that I think the colors look different on the different models, e.g. those early models look great in orange, gulf blue, yellow or jade green, the younger ones not. not only b/c of the trim ..

which i forgot to mention - i will go for the chrome trim on my car, early mirrors and a chrome/aluminium rollbar..

coming back to your colors: i do like the zinc, the '84 i test-drove was zinc and i loved it!

how about gulf-blue or jade-green?

[Mick_D]

It's a '75 S with the widebody fenders bumpers rockers and tail. It looks like an early 930. Or it will
I will probably do blackout trim.
I am pretty sure I want a metallic finish.