possible purchase, advice wanted

[DangerIsland]

I am thinking about buying this car: 1975 914 1.8 w/ Carbs

Ignore the price, it would be at least $1k less than that. I have heard nothing but bad things about carbs on 914s, and I was a little nervous about the car for that reason. I drove it today and it's one of the nicer 914s I've driven, as far as the chassis goes, and the engine felt/sounded really great. Everything about it seems right except for the carbs.

I was wondering what you all thought about the car, and what kind of carbs those are. Someone said they were webers, and looked like decent ones, but I'm ignorant about the differences and details of what to look for in a carb setup.

Thanks in advance!

-joe

[red-beard]

#1. Inspect the car in the "usual" locations for rust.
#2. Carbs - find out what Cam is being run.

James

[Kevin Powers]

i don't know if that's rust or adhesive that shows where the sound deadener is peeling off of the firewall. if it's rust the deadener could be concealing big time problems. look closely.use your ice pick and probe around.

kevin
"the dope in the jetta"

[JWest]

Well, if it was an original 2.0 you would definitely get a lot of response to the negative on the carbs.

The 1.8 used L-jet fuel injection which 914 people are not as fond of. The L-jet was actually used on many, many more applications than D-jet of the other 914s, so it is not a bad or weird system, but it does use a fairly expensive airflow meter.

One of the main things for you to consider is your ability and your use for the car. If I was going to use a 914 for my only daily driver then I would go for orginal fuel injection. For a weekend toy, fair-weather second car, etc. carbs can be fun. They are noisier and give a more visceral feel. This is one of the draws of the early 911s with carbs. They will require more tuning/cleaning/adjustment than fuel injection, but whether they are harder or easier to work than FI depends mostly on your preference, not the complexity of the system as 914 FI is quite simple.

The cam was mentioned as a carbed motor with a stock cam will not perform much better than a FI engine. You will gain at least a little on the 1.8 by getting rid of the airflow meter restriction. If the motor has a higher performance cam in it, then it will have to be changed back to stock should you want to go back to FI - something to keep in mind for the future.

Brad Anders has a nice website that explores this in detail - we will probably post to this thread.

As to that specific car, the carbs look good. The dual two barrel carbs work very well - the single progressive (one carb in the center) setups are a real nightmare. It is often said that an owner was not willing to pay to keep the car up if he put carbs on - this is true in the case of the single carb. I think that the dual carbs are too big of an investment to have been a quick and cheap fix - it was usually an owner going for the mistique and supposed performance gain of the Webers or Dellortos if they bought a nice dual setup.

It is said that carbs reduce the value, but I think the price of 914s are controlled much more by condition than by certain (bot-on) modifications. The price is too low for these cars for it to move very much based on anything but overall condition.

One more concern - do you have to pass emissions? Carbs may fail visual and tailpipe tests on that car - I don't know what laws you have to deal with.

I think the car is nice looking by the way.

James

[Bleyseng]

From the picture, I see the usual rusty glue under the sagging sound deadening pad, sooo with regular battery dripping acid all over check for rust deep down in the engine shelf. How rusty the car is determines the price as it's expensive to fix!!
If it's not rusty under the battery and the rockers are clean $3700 isn't too bad a price. If it is rusty forget it as it is a project car or parts car.

The carbs on a 1.8l don't bother me since it's not a 2.0l. You might want to put on a better linkage setup for smoother operation.
Geoff

[JWest]

Geoff - I don't think there is anything wrong with the linkage (CB Performance type) but the cable mount could use some help - is that what you were referring to?

Joe - I assume you have read the buyers guide on this website and checked the rust issues. I just reread your post - those are either Webers or Dellortos - it has been quite a few years since I had a set of Dells so I can't compare and I can't tell by looking (somebody else probably can). Dells are typically preferred but either are good carbs.

James

[JRust]

Hi Joe, I know of a '75 in much nicer shape with the FI still on it. Jim Chambers decided to sell his. It is an extremely nice stock '75. He'll have to chime in here & fill you in on the rest. Definately worth a look. He is down in Lake Oswego OR. He does post here often so I'm sure you can hook up quickly

[DangerIsland]

I've read lots of the buyers' guides, etc. so I'm pretty informed about looking for rust, usual trouble spots, etc.

One other thing I wasn't sure about was what looks like some welding done around the rear suspension and trunk. If you look at picture #4 you can see the roughness around the edges of the suspension mounts, and around the seams. Does this mean that they replaced a lot of the metal back there? Does it look like sloppy work, or is that typical? It's very rough and bumpy around there, but it looks 100% rust free all throughout the back. Assuming they replaced a lot of the rear, does this usually mean it's: 1) crappy car, with more problems down the road -or- 2) perfect car since it's been fixed already? Here's the picture:



Thanks again,
-joe

JRust: Thanks for the note, I got an email from Jim this morning, I'll get ahold of him and check it out.

[JWest]

That roughness is correct - it is actually a caulk type seal sealer used over the joints. It is applied with a very bumpy pattern. If you poke at it with something you will find that it is rubbery and white under the paint.

Rust in the rear trunk will be typically be under the aft portion of the mat where moisture collects and the mat keeps it there.

[Bleyseng]

I was refering to the carb linkage as I really like the set up Dave E is selling at Triad. Kevin P. posted a picture the other day of it.
Boy if Jim C. is selling his 75 I would jump on that deal. I have seen it and it is a sweet car with NO rust and orginal condition. There are a couple of pics from the NW meet last month so look for a white car in the pics. It does not have the engine bay look of the blue car at all.
I do not like carbs on any stockish 914 as it just robs power, drivability and orginality. The orginal set up is best UNLESS the motor is built to run on carbs (ie cams).
I put the FI back on my car.......the Dells are still sitting on the shelf.
Geoff

[boxstr]

Nice looking blue 914. I would go for the stock 914 that JC has for sale. I know the car and Jim and it is definetley worth the $$.
I think that your first 914 should as nice as you can afford and you are in the range of Jims. You should go down to Portland and drive the car. Come down when we are having a Pacific NW 914 gathering and you can get lots of advise and a BBQ rib or two.
Craig C. Laughlin CAMP 914