My 911 slept for 20 years- awake now after a year of work

[Fairview]

It was a year ago when I bought this 1984 Carrera, my seventh 911 since 1983. This one was part of an eclectic collection featured in a Barn Find Hunters episode which aired last November.

This was one of approximately 40 cars that had been in storage for decades. I thought long term storage in a decent building would be a good thing and make for an easy project to get up and running..., drain the fluids, new battery, change filters, flush brakes, and done. Boy was I wrong! From the sunroof to the wheel bearings, from the fog lights to the cylinder head studs, from the a/c to the auto heat to the alarm system, everything needed at least a little something.

Despite the amount of work involved, the project has been very satisfying and the 911 drives, smells, stops, and goes like new. It has turned out to be a sweetheart and is very original even the factory paint.

Thanks for all the help and advice you all have given me. It has been invaluable.

Jeff

p.s. here is a link to a complete file of photos. Hope you take a look and please ask questions if you have any.

https://milepost105.smugmug.com/1984-Porsche-Carrera-M491-Coupe/







Just to complete the story, here is a link to the Barn Find Hunter episode that shows this 911 as found last year. That part starts at 29 minutes 50 seconds.

https://youtu.be/X6t_dqQnR80

[Glenfield]

Looks incredible! Well done. Nice for it to get a second lease on life

[Cairo94507]

Beautiful car. Nicely returned to the living.

[Uwon]

Wow! What a find!
Congrats.
Johan

[Fairview]

Just to complete the story, here is a link to the Barn Find Hunter episode that shows this 911 as found last year. That part starts at 29 minutes 50 seconds.

https://youtu.be/X6t_dqQnR80

[sugarwood]

Great to see a neglected car rescued from a hoarder's depressing vault.
Do you know anything about how the rest of the cars were liquidated?
Are they all sold off or is the seller still at it?

Is this a factory M491 car?

Can you tell us more about the restoration process?
How long it took, the costs, and road blocks along the way, etc?

[Keithg]

WOW! Great story!

[Pedro '84 Coupe]

Nice work! Car is gorgeous

[Fairview]

Thanks guys.

Hey Sugarwood,

It is a factory M491.

I thought I was going to have to bring an exorcist in to get the demons out of it a few months ago.

It took quite a bit of work, far more than I ever expected. Nothing was easy with it. This 911 put up quite a fight.

Everything took work, from the fuel system, to cylinder head studs, to master cylinder, to brake booster, to new Sigla windshield, to the sunroof cables, to leather repair, to the auto heat, to the a/c, to finding the right Fuchs, to paintless dent removal, to tires, to new NOS Hirschmann antenna, to corner balancing, to new shocks and strut inserts, the list goes on and on.

Pelican will probably have to revise their earnings forecast now that I am done.

But wait a minute, maybe I'm not done. I turned on the radio the other day- that NOS Hirschmann antenna sprung into action and the mast went up just a few inches and stopped- the 36 year old, but unused, nylon mast extension inside the motor snapped like a pretzel stick! So more parts are on their way.

As I noted somewhere else, this is the 8th 911 I've owned, and it has turned out to be the sweetest one so far, goes, stops, sounds great, is comfortable, and just feels right. It has been worth the struggle.

[GH85Carrera]

Great find.

Next up, rebuild the suspension! The old rubber suspension bushings will need to be replaced to get the suspension back to top notch. It took me 20+ years of driving and tinkering to get my 911 "finished" and it was in great shape and never stored away.

Since it is not your first 911 you know about the many un-fused items that need a fuse.