[anthony]

The cool thing about 914s is that they are much cheaper to buy, upgrade, and rebuild than a 911.

Type IV engine development has come a long way in the last 5 years. For under $8K one could build a reliable 200hp engine that would give a 914 a better power to weight ratio than an SC or mid-year Carrera. Coupled with the superior mid-engined handling, a 914 like that makes for a very fun canyon carver / autoX weapon.

The other thing to mention is that you don't need 200hp in a 914 to have fun. I got a ride in a friends 914. He rebuilt the engine to 2056cc specs (2mm oversized pistons) and used an aftermarket cam. Just these two mods yield a 50% bump in low end torque. His car could scratch his sticky Falkens in 1st and 2nd gear. Acceleration in his car felt about the same as my stock SC.