New to me 74 914 2.0 - need help with a plan

[justjoel]

Ok. I have always loved 914s but I've never driven one or owned one. I was looking for a project and figured a 914 would be great. Plan is an "inexpensive" weekend cruiser - think cars & coffee, weekend drives, back and forth to work etc. I found a project on marketplace and picked it up over the weekend.

1974 914 with a 2.0 motor. It is mostly complete but looks like someone removed the gas tank and a few other items. Slathered some bondo on it in a few areas and gave up. The hell hole is rotten pretty bad. The suspension console is rotten and the passenger side wheel has a camber from it sagging.

My problem, I guess, is that a previous owner along the way booger welded in a 1" X 1" x style frame under the floor boards from each jacking point. I would assume to stiffen up the frame. It's not helping the suspension console though. Has anyone seen something like this before? Additionally looks like a previous owner tried to drive over a parking curb or something and bent the motor mount attachment points.

From my research it looks like I can get most of the passenger side sheet metal, just not the suspension mounting point. Can anyone offer some advice on how to proceed. I get that this thing is pretty messed up but I'm not looking for perfect. Just safe on the road. No stranger to cutting, grinding and welding so I'm not scared. Just need a plan of attack. Any information or insight would be appreciated. Thanks.

[Dave at Pelican Parts]

That is a whole lot of work to take on. Depending on where you live, you may come out ahead just buying a 914 with less rot.

At a minimum, you will want to make some jigs to locate all of the parts in the correct location. Which is likely, in at least some cases, to not be where those parts currently are.

You've got a lot of old sub-par work to undo, or cut out and remove, before you can start actually welding in new metal. I mean, really a lot!

Measure everything. Compare to measurements found in the factory manuals. (I don't think they are copied in the Haynes manual, unfortunately, but you can find PDFs of the factory manuals if you search.) On the 914world website, the "914 info" section has a couple of diagrams with measurements listed, which should help at least some.

Best of luck if you do decide to try saving it.

--DD

[Magyar Kiwi]

Hi
Looks to be beyond economic repair.
Suggest you open both doors, take the Targa roof off and jump up and down on the seats, then see if the doors still close correctly?
If not. it is definitely a parts car.
Cheers

[Cairo94507]

I agree 100% with Dave and Magyar. My first thought when I saw the pictures was find a donor chassis and swap parts over- assuming the rest of the car you have is worth swapping over. Sadly, when rust is that severe and pervasive, it makes no economic sense to restore that chassis.

Now, if you are just looking for a project to occupy your time and build your skills, learn to weld, etc., then by all means, you have the right candidate. Sorry for the blunt opinion, but I believe it is best to address the pain straight on. Cheers, Michael