buying advice please

[creaturecat]

Any advice regarding this car? I know very little about the 914 - own a 911. What should I be looking for - 914 specific - I have looked at the FAQ section. Car is 1973 and has 130000 miles - fr. Calif Any ideas w/r to value? Thanks

[Tidybuoy]

From the photo, it looks nice.

Some of the common 914 issues to look for:

Rust - specifically around the battery tray in the engine compartment. 914's are prone to rust in that area because when it rains, the rain comes in thru the engine grill and most 914's have lost their original battery covers. As a result, acidic water runs off the battery and causes rust. It's usually best to poke around with a screwdriver and see how bad the rusted area is - it can get really bad and rust out the entire suspension area (suspension console).

Look at the passenger side and be sure the rear wheel dosen't have more camber than the driver side - a sign of suspension rust.

Pros - that can add value:

Chrome Bumpers - it's got em
Fog Lights - it's got em
Center Console w/guages
2.0 Engine
Fuchs Wheels - it's got em
Sway bars

Without looking over the car personally, I suspect that this car is going to go for somewhere between $3k and $5k. The photo looks very nice but some interior & engine shots would be nice.

Vern

[creaturecat]

thks tidybuoy here are a few more pics:

[Alfred1]

The area that Vern mentioned is the most prone to rust. Also check these areas.

[Alfred1]

It's a nice looking car. If rust isn't a big problem, I'd say you found a nice one.

[Tidybuoy]

Looking at your other photos, the car looks very nice.

It looks like it has a stock "performance" muffler that they also put on the 6's. The doors and hoods look like they fit well and the interior is good too. The front section of the dash dosen't look so hot but that's the easiest part of the dash to fix. The main dash looks like it's in very good condition. The seats are covered which means their either really bad or really good - not a deal breaker.

It says 2.0 but just make sure. The 914 2.0 have 3 bolt intake studs. The car has a 1974 front bumper and a 1973 rear (74's had the bumper horns). Nothing wrong with that and I prefer the front to have the horns. On my 914, I installed bumper horns on the front from a 1976. These horns are about a 3rd the size of the 74's and they look good.

All 914's need work just do to their age. If the price is within reason (and you've checked out the rust issues mentioned), it looks to me like you've got a good candidate.

Look on E-Bay and you will see that 914's sell for quite a range of prices. This one looks like it would be on the higher end of the 4 cyl cars.

Vern

[Rouser]

'73's and '74's have the bumper tits in the front ...

How much does he/she want for it?

[creaturecat]

9500 cdn = 7600 US

[Tidybuoy]

$7,600 seems on the high side.

I would do a thorough inspection and make sure the car is perfect.

I would try and get the price down if I were you. It seems to me that for that price the car should be close to mint & probably have a recent rebuild.

If you have lot of money and your really want the car, it's probably only a little over priced. But, keep in mind, most people have to put a fair amount of money into their 914's. Fuel lines, vaccum lines, fuel pumps, shocks, suspension bushings, brakes, etc... usually all of these things need replacing as some point. For the asking price of $7,600 these things should already be done.

Vern

[Alfred1]

$7600 does seem high but it really depends on the condition of the car. If there are no major rust issues and the motor has been rebuilt and the tranny is good etc., then it may be worth that much.

Just found the ad in the local classifieds:

1973 PORSCHE 914, 2.0, gorgeous unmolested Souther Calif car imported last summer, 130,000 miles, 5000 miles on pro-reblt mtr, just completed $2000 in service at Targa in North Vancouver, fully safety & mech inspected & ready to go, $9500 obo.

[creaturecat]

apparently the seats need recovering badly and there is rust perforation in one rocker panel.
thanks to everyone for their replies

[tat2dphreak]

rust on the rocker means rust UNDER the rocker and that CAN be "not too bad" to "very,very bad"

do the chassis flex test!