914 Blues

At my age I do know better than to peruse car ads, especially the air-cooled Volkswagen ones, but it’s been a lifelong addiction (cars, that is), and sometimes one just can’t help oneself. 

There it was; a grey 1974 Porsche 914 posted for sale online.

The 914 has always mildly appealed to me. I don’t exactly know why. After all it is the weak ugly duckling of the Porsche clan; some even refer to it as the VW 914, because it kind of is; it’s powered by a VW 1.7 litre Type 4 engine, the same one they used in the van and the 411 Variant. I mean, what kind of warped think-tank would come up with such an unworthy Porsche/VW hybrid? And I don’t mean “hybrid” in the cool modern sense.

Winding back my memory gears waaaayyyyyy back to high school, I think I recall why there is a soft spot in my heart for the 914. And it’s not just because it’s always been the most affordable “Porsche”. It seems I can’t quite make myself call the 4-banger version a real Porsche either. The 914-6 is of course. But nowadays you’d have to be a billionaire to afford one. And of course my all-time favourite car of any manufacturer remains the iconic 911. But there again; billionaire, blah, blah, blah…

In high school I was enrolled in auto shop for my senior couple of years; actually about 2-1/2 years as the general shop class in grade 10 was an intro to all the trades: woodwork, metalwork, mechanics and even drafting (it’s almost embarrassing to admit that it was manual drafting, with pencils, T-squares and straight edges. The school got its first AutoCad computer when I was in grade 12, but it was a test model that only the teacher was permitted to use at that point). Mr. Rutledge was the teacher of the metalwork class, and I remember him telling us that they’d just bought a used 914 for his son. I was so jealous. But then again, that’s probably not too uncommon a feeling for a 16 year old itching to get his driver’s license.

That brings me to yesterday's find. But here’s the cool part; it’s a project car including all the mechanical trimmings to upgrade it to a 914-6, which means it would be powered by the iconic horizontally opposed air-cooled 6 cylinder engine, the same one that all the 911s have (the early air-cooled ones anyway). From the photos it looks pretty solid and non-rusty, even the battery tray!  And the interior upholstery components have been removed. But in my humble opinion, it’s the coolest type of project; a big engine in a small car. Although it must be remembered that this one would only be considered a "tribute" car once completed, not a true 914-6 that rolled off the assembly line, and thus valued accordingly.

A few years ago I came across another really cool 914, but not quite as cool as this ‘74. It was an engine swap recipient too, but one I can’t quite get behind. This car had a Chevy small block V8 installed. From the photos it looked like an impressively clean installation, but again it’s just one of those feelings, but it just didn’t feel right. It’s strange that I feel this way about a Porsche/Chevy hybrid because I’ve always admired the streetrod craze of installing small or big block North American engines in NA cars from the 30s and 40s. But it's still a NA engine powering a NA car. I think that's the crux of it. Engine replacement is fine; the 914's engine just needs to stay European..

Anyway, back to the present. I would love to take on this 914, but it would take a lot of money for one thing (although not nearly as much as buying an original 914-6); the purchase price seems not unreasonable at first glance, but it’s in US funds (there’s the exchange rate to consider). Plus the car’s in California in non-running condition, which presumes a long three state trailer ride to the border (probably employing a car delivery service) whereupon duties and taxes (the full scope of which has not yet been fully investigated) would be applied. I bet it would be 30 grand in Cdn funds just to get this thing home.

One plus is that I do have a single car garage in which to put the car, but I know my dear wife does not want her Prius relegated to street parking status. I think I still have most of the tools I’d need to complete the car, but the real catch is the time required. In all honesty I have zero time to spend on such a project. And I know I’d be impatient enough to want to drive this car before I retire. Silly I know, but that’s just me.

So, mostly in deference to maintenance of marital harmony, I’m going to have to let this one pass and be satisfied with simply having the opportunity to write and daydream about it.

Come to think of it, you can’t squeeze a dog kennel into a 914 anyway, so who am I kidding? I don’t want this car if it can’t comfortably accommodate two adults and our dog, LOL.

This Porsche 914 seems to presently reside with some highbrow company:
looks like an elevated 356 body in front flanked by the unmistakable rear
window profile of a 911. 

Like I said, really clean and non-rusty. The front truck is quite often the
equivalent of Swiss cheese, especially at 44 years old.

The rear cargo area is definitely not designed for a dog's travel kennel.

Hopefully the triple barrel Webers are included with this project.

I trust all the upholstery bits are included.