This 1971 Porsche 914 was purchased as a running project but hasn’t been touched since the seller brought it home 15 years ago. Prior to that, it had been stored for 17 years, making this yellow 914 a bit of a garage queen, albeit one that hasn’t had much pampering. If the paint is factory Canary Yellow – the only shade of yellow offered in 1971 – it’s a great look for one of these, and the exterior finish presents well despite its years of indoor storage. The seller notes it still turns over but he has not attempted to fire it up; the listing claims he is selling a spare 1.8L engine with stainless steel heater boxes from a previous project to go along with the car. Find the 914 here on eBay with bidding up to $3,550 and no reserve.
Pictures are pretty awful as the seller didn’t bother to pull the 914 out of the garage for its big reveal. Still, I’m cautiously optimistic about what I see as it relates to cosmetic condition, as the paint doesn’t appear to be in bad shape all things considered. The dust on the windshield tells you the car has been stored for a while, but it’s not the sort of build-up I’d associate with a vehicle that’s been parked for as long as the seller indicates. The listing mentions the 914 was kept in storage by the owner prior to the seller, so it seems none of its recent caretakers have been able to find the time to bring the car back to road-going condition.
The interior looks a bit tatty, with the driver’s seat spilling its guts out of the side bolster and a cover thrown over it to attempt to make the indignity of a ripped-up bucket seat. The door jambs reveal consistent color with the outside, which is always a good sign. The seller doesn’t tell us much about the interior but does note that the 914 suffers from a malady common to the model, which is a first gear that likes to pop out. Hopefully, given all of the years spent indoors, the dashboard is crack-free and other sun damage is minimal at best. The 914 is located in Ohio, which could mean the undersides are at risk of being rusty depending on how often it was driven in winter.
The listing is hazy on whether the spare engine will come with the car, or if the seller is only letting it go for an additional fee. Regardless, it makes sense to grab it while you’re there, even if the engine that’s currently installed is still turning over. Better yet would be to upgrade to a 2.0L mill if this one has to come out, but I’d try to save it if it turns out to be numbers matching. If the paint is original to the car, or at least the correct shade for the year, this 914 seems very worthy of saving – provided its rust belt location hasn’t led to rust blossoming in areas we can’t see in these photos. 914s are still cheap projects at the moment, but for how much longer?
If the seller throws in the 1.8 it makes a good engine to put go fast goodies in. Strong case and heads, plenty of room for porting and polishing, and the addition of a set of 40 IDA carbs or a 2.0 liter injection system plus street cam and bigger jugs and pistons you would have something that would get down the road. All that down time couldn’t have built up too much rust you could hope.
He says in the ebay ad
“I have a spare 1.8 l engine with stainless steel heater boxes from a previous project that I’m selling with this car. engine is complete with computer and starter.”
No 914 4cyl are “numbers matching.” They only have a date or type code.
Throw in a 2056 GA code with fuel injection and smile all drive long.
“There’s nothing more expensive than a cheap Porsche.”
I had a friend who had one and I drove it for a week. It was a bit getting used to, flew through the corners, I believe 1.7s were labelled Volkswagens in Europe. It needs a complete interior and once more, why isn’t it outside where we can see it?
Mechanical stuff is easy, rust is the concern. Had on of these as a project, the closed doors and targa roof were keeping it from folding. Got a donor chassis to discover that it had been reworked with rust repairs in the past and would need to be reworked again. Gave up and sold on the project at a loss – these can be subject to some pretty difficult for me rust repairs.