My New 914-4 Club Spec Racer

[Craig_D]

Hey guys,

New to the 914 realm, but I've been active in the 911 forums for some time. I just happened to come across the 914 of my dreams, for the right price, and added her to my stable.

The Blue Hornet is a '76 914-4 with a hot rod motor, close ratio LSD gearbox, braced chassis with cage, competition suspension dialed in, and lightweight body panels for hood, both trunks and both bumpers.

She's an absolute blast to drive, even though it was on old tires bringing home from western Colorado, where she was raced in club events during the mid-2000s.

I just had new tires installed, but haven't driven on them yet. Can't wait! Dunlop Direzza ZIII 205/50-15

I look forward to learning from you all and sharing my experiences doing some upgrades.

Here are some pics:

[RSBob]

Congrats!what a beauty with some great adds. 914s are a blast in the corners and a totally different and raw experience compared to 911s. Having one of each, I use the 914 for local sunny day drives and the 911 for long haul and rainy days, but your mileage may vary.

Took the 914 on a 350 mile on way drive last year and was more than happy when it was over. The 911 I can drive all day with no issues.

Enjoy your new ride since now you now have the best of both worlds.

[Dmitry at Pelican Parts]

Congrats, gorgeous looking car. Please let us know if you have any questions!

[Craig_D]

Originally Posted by RSBob

Congrats!what a beauty with some great adds. 914s are a blast in the corners and a totally different and raw experience compared to 911s. Having one of each, I use the 914 for local sunny day drives and the 911 for long haul and rainy days, but your mileage may vary.

Took the 914 on a 350 mile on way drive last year and was more than happy when it was over. The 911 I can drive all day with no issues.

Enjoy your new ride since now you now have the best of both worlds.

Thanks man! It's funny you mention this, I was just saying today how different these two are. I drove the 914 yesterday, and today I'm in the 911.

The 911 feels like a Panamera compared to the 914! I can easily appreciate the touring comfort and amazing capabilities of the 911, but the more raw race-car feel of the 914 is a total blast too. I'm really enjoying the 914, and learning to re-appreciate my 911 at the same time. Like you said; best of both worlds!

I'll be posting updates to "Blue" in the coming weeks, but for now, here are some pics from the last few weeks:

[Craig_D]

Originally Posted by Dmitry at Pelican Parts

Congrats, gorgeous looking car. Please let us know if you have any questions!

Thanks Dmitry! I'm sure I'll have questions...still trying to figure out where stuff used to be. This car is so lightened up, it doesn't have a horn, speedo cable, license plate light...LOL I'll be searching threads and tracing wires for sure.

[John Rogers]

I sure like the paint job and what has shown up so far on the car. I have some questions that hopefully will make the car a bit faster.
- Do you have the top? I would hope so as running without it causes the rear window to act like an air brake. If you do have it I would suggest putting spacers under the rear of the roof to raise it about 2 inches which will let air into the area just behind the rear window where a vacuum forms.

- Does it have a fuel cell? If not there is no possibility of racing wheel to wheel probably as even the vintage groups tend to require one.

- Do you have an on board fire suppression system? Again wheel to wheel groups require one. If just autocross events are planed then the last two items are not required.

- I would suggest a shift light and also a very large red oil pressure light to help make the car last longer. The red oil pressure light can be a round or oval "trailer" light from Pep Boys or similar place wired in parallel with the existing light. The shift light can be tapped off the connectors on the ear of the existing tach.

- What gear ratios does it have as you mentioned "close ratio"? If it is a M-S-X setup then it is very handy. A setup with K-Q-V is even better for small close tracks or such.
Good luck with it.

[Jack Stands]

If you’re driving it on the street, please put some rollbar padding on the cage anywhere where you could possibly reach it. You don’t want your head coming into contact with the metal roll cage in case of an accident.

[-Levi-]

Thanks for the ride last week, total gem you have!!!!
Don’t forget to share your track adventures as they unfold

[Craig_D]

Originally Posted by John Rogers

I sure like the paint job and what has shown up so far on the car. I have some questions that hopefully will make the car a bit faster.
- Do you have the top? I would hope so as running without it causes the rear window to act like an air brake. If you do have it I would suggest putting spacers under the rear of the roof to raise it about 2 inches which will let air into the area just behind the rear window where a vacuum forms.

Yes, I do. Interesting tip on the spacers! Thanks

- Does it have a fuel cell? If not there is no possibility of racing wheel to wheel probably as even the vintage groups tend to require one.

- Do you have an on board fire suppression system? Again wheel to wheel groups require one. If just autocross events are planed then the last two items are not required.

I was just looking at the classic production classes yesterday and saw this. I'll have to look into it. For this season, I'll be doing track days and hopefully a few autocrosses, then looking into spec'ing it for racing.

I'm getting a set of Sparco EVO seats in my size, to replace the larger UltraShields that are in the car now, so that will be my biggest mod/setup change for this season.

- I would suggest a shift light and also a very large red oil pressure light to help make the car last longer. The red oil pressure light can be a round or oval "trailer" light from Pep Boys or similar place wired in parallel with the existing light. The shift light can be tapped off the connectors on the ear of the existing tach.

Great ideas here!

- What gear ratios does it have as you mentioned "close ratio"? If it is a M-S-X setup then it is very handy. A setup with K-Q-V is even better for small close tracks or such.
Good luck with it.

I believe it is a M-S-X with a LSD but I'll have to check again with Al Johnsen to be sure. I'm waiting on a build sheet, so hopefully I'll get some additional info.

Thanks for the helpful feedback!

Blue with roof:

[Craig_D]

Originally Posted by Jack Stands

If you’re driving it on the street, please put some rollbar padding on the cage anywhere where you could possibly reach it. You don’t want your head coming into contact with the metal roll cage in case of an accident.

Yes, that is a very smart idea and will be done soon.

Originally Posted by -Levi-

Thanks for the ride last week, total gem you have!!!!
Don’t forget to share your track adventures as they unfold

Thanks Levi! Yeah that was a fun little drive! Will do!

[John Rogers]

There have been several methods to break up that vacuum that forms behind the rear window. For a time several folks in the San Diego area mounted an air deflector at the rear edge of the top which is okay for auto-x but if racing on a track where you might get to 130 to 140 MPH something else is needed. Quite a few years ago I helped the folks at Black Forest in San Diego to see what was happening to air flow back there. So we tapped several dozen strips of ribbon all over the back of the car and we were very surprised at how big the dead air space was back there, almost back to 50% of the trunk surface! So we stopped, undid the rear roof latches and slid in some 2 inch spacers and strapped the roof down. At full speed the air moved to the rear of the car starting at the engine cover on back! So I did it on my race car and have seen several others also.

This included a 914 with a big block Chevy engine and Nitrous, 930 transmission, tube frame to try and go over 200MPH with a stock bodied car. The first several runs failed when the NO2 was hit at 190MPH and the car spun around somewhat! Black Forest called the driver at Bonneville and told him what we did so he installed the spacers...……….208MPH! Pretty speedy for a 914 I'd say.


Picture:

[Craig_D]

Wow 208mph! That's haulin'!

Very interesting! Has anyone tried removing the rear window? I wonder how that would effect that air pocket back there.

[John Rogers]

I have seen cars with the rear window removed, replaced with plexiglass having several 6 inch holes drilled and of course the whole thing including the windshield removed. In years past the rules for stock/GT/modified class cars said that the rear window had to be in place. It was mainly in case of fire since the interior of the car is usually in a lower pressure than outside (not sure why) and it had to have some separation? I had blown several engines and the huge cloud of oil smoke would go right in and I couldn't see a thing?!

The Bonneville 914 had approximately 900 HP when the NOS was switched on and the owner told me the rear wheels would spin at 185 MPH! Afterward the engine was sold, trans was sold and the body was sold and all went to the mid west somewhere.

[Craig_D]

Here are some nice upgrades awaiting installation: restored PMB Performance calipers, DOT SS brake lines, and a set of new Turbo tie-rods from Elephant racing.

I have some QuickJack lifts on order, and will do the work once they arrive.

Here are some pics:

[Craig_D]

Some more upgrades are either being mounted or being shipped at the moment.

I picked up the Sparco REV seats (actually one is being installed now, and the other is still backordered and waiting to be shipped.

Here it is:




And, since I had to replace the worn rotors, I decided to do the 5-lug conversion, and bought a set of flat-sixes from a fellow Pelican (they're on the plane now!).

These should look nice with my 205/50-15 Dunlop Direzza ZIIIs:

[jtf914]

Very nice. Original Fuchs? I regret “upgrading” to 16’s on my car years ago.

[Craig_D]

Originally Posted by jtf914

Very nice. Original Fuchs? I regret “upgrading” to 16’s on my car years ago.

Yes, they're late '71/'72 15x6j. I just received them, and aside from a little rash to polish out, they look very good. Very light too!