I made this post originally over in the Affordable Longhood thread under the Marketplace Discussion forum but I am too impatient to get opinions to wait for responses in that much less traveled thread! If I pull the trigger this will become the build thread.
I would love thoughts from Pelican on this “affordable longhand”. 1970 911E, steel wide-body flares, numbers matching motor/transmission (no details on condition), rust that looks like it could be manageable or could turn out to be a complete nightmare (floor seems manageable, lower passenger windshield corner is a big question mark, that whole section under the windshield looks bad, and driver rocker and front suspension pan not looking good).
I am second in line to take this baby home for $18k. She was listed at $24k- this excited me in viewing the first round of pics (this post), which made the car look mostly rust-free. The second round of pics (next post) showed all the issues mentioned which scared me off quite a bit. I negotiated down to $18k (which on one hand I think is a good deal for a longhand project, but on the other hand I don’t think is cheap enough to make a big difference given all this car needs). I know (think) for $18k I could make money on this but I don't want to be a flipper, I want a 911 project that doesn't drive me to drink.
Phase One of my plan would be to do rust repair myself, (hopefully with some assistance from local PCA friends with metal work experience), get the drivetrain going, and sort out major issues to get this thing roadworthy (I use that term loosely).
From there I would do some small projects here and there but mostly keep it a nasty rat rod and have fun.
Phase Two would be a major restoration down the road.
For context I had an ’86 911 with a 3.6 and G50. I did everything on that car except for opening up the motor/transmission and metalwork. Have done a head gasket on an 80’s Land Cruiser and other general work. I am not underestimating the size of this project, but I do have aspirations of learning to do metalwork. I believe with the help of the great people here at Pelican and some local friends I can make this happen.
Am I crazy? Would you pick this up for $18k? Am I missing anything glaring my less experienced eyes missed? (What is going on with that fuel tank??)
Thanks in advance.
