While it’s not impossible to discover a genuine barn find, finding a long-hidden car that remains in exceptional condition with low miles and great colors is a tall order. That’s pretty much what the seller of this 1974 Porsche 914 discovered, however, which had been parked since 1984 with 27,000 miles on the clock. I rarely see this color on a 914, and it’s wonderful. Find it here on eBay with bidding starting at $16K.
For the seller’s sake, I hope that bid is real – that’s a big number for a first strike. The 914 is in impressive condition, even for a time capsule, as long-term storage in a garage can often lead to unfortunate dings and dents. It’s straight and true going down the sides, and the recently repainted wheels look fantastic. The 1.8 may not be the first choice of engines, but in an example this nice, who cares?
The interior is in similar time-warp condition, with plastics still showing deep luster and the low-slung bucket seats appearing to be in excellent condition. It also looks as if the dash isn’t cracked, and the exterior photos show a targa roof panel in good condition. The seller notes all weather-stripping is still supple to the touch and that the 914 left the factory without a radio; a Radio Shack unit is included.
Some recent reconditioning work has been performed, including a gas tank clean-out, new fuel lines, fuel pump, and muffler. The 914 will need a new exhaust manifold on the right-hand side, and there’s one sticky brake caliper. Tires are new and rust is minimal, limited primarily to surface corrosion on the nose and in the “hell hole,” a common trouble spot. Do you think this nice914 will clear $20K?
The way things are going now I wouldn’t bet against getting over 20K bids. Don’t cut the 1.8 short… It was a serious smog motor but as I’ve said before, our last 914 had a 1.8 that we got 130hp out of with few mods and it was streetable… and fun. Used a modified 2.0 fuel injection on it so also got good gas mileage.
We have one of these in the shop right now and they are great fun. The main concern here is rust. It doesn’t look too bad in the photos, but it would be a good idea to unscrew those rockers and look up around the jacking point. They tend to collect debris and rot out there. I didn’t see any photos of the engine so I’d want to make sure it’s still fuel injected. These won’t run right with carbs unless the cam has been swapped out. 911 Turbo tie rod ends are a nice handling upgrade for these. It’s best to find a solid one of these rather than buying a rusty project because of all the sandwiched pieces of metal underneath.
Jesse… They work just fine with carbs as long as you don’t put ones on with garbage can size venturis. The Weber 40s on a stock engine with proper jetting work just fine but don’t get as good gas mileage as the fuel injection while providing a good power increase. Any fuel mods require a proper setup but will give good results. The reason we used a modified injected system was the lack of “dead” spots while we were autocrossing. Any carb used in competition will require a lot of “fiddling” to keep the fuel in the float bowl at a level to keep from running out of gas so to speak. Baffles, float adjustments, just whatever it takes to make it provide fuel under high G turns, which the 914s with a good suspension can do.
True. My Brother has one, carbureted, and it runs fantastic. All stock factory internals.
If this checks out rust free or very minimal. Then yeah I could see it go for more than twenty grand. As the former proud owner of a 73′ 2.0 litre 914, I must say this, of all the cars I have owned, the 914 is one car I would like to own again. The car could pull up a steep grade like the Cajon Pass with little to no effort. All the while, I’d be passing people like they were hardly moving. The car was just set up perfectly. With transmission gearing to engine torque and horsepower. Everything just meshed together well. Never can I ever remember owning any other car that could do what that little VW/Porsche could. And I do have some tickets I racked up years ago and some stories to tell. But that’s for another time.
I too owned a 73 2.0 with dual Webber carbs and it ran great. Short link shifter kit and 916 fender wells with fat tires. Of all the cars I’ve owned (and I’ve owned a lot) the little 914 was the most fun. Sold it to a 16 yr old kid who put it under the guard rails on I-75 in Tampa and killed himself.
Cool little car!! I had the chance to buy one of these in the 80’s but didn’t due to the rust the car had!! This is a good looking car and even with the rust the car I drove was a ton of fun!!
The rust factor is important on these cars. There is a a complete welded in boxed “frame” down each side of the unibody chassis that has no rustproofing, paint, etc. and no good areas of drainage. We replaced the front half of this race car with the only front clip we could find at the time. It took longer to take care of the rust issues on it than it did to fit and weld it into the car. This car has a 2.5 liter race motor in it. It’s fast and fun. Click on picture for full view.
If it is not rusty, it should make $20k. At least it would easily do it in EU.
The issue with carbs on a 914 is that you should change the cam. The stock cam is made to work with the FI, you need to change to a cam ground to work better with carbs. It’s not a big deal but most people don’t do it and the car will either idle correctly or be too lean up top.
That may be the recommended advice, and I absolutely respect that. My Brothers has no issues, and he is truly gifted with wrenches and foreign cars, so maybe he’s just lucky on this one. My collection is strictly American branded vehicles, so I don’t know the technical details of his example. Converting to carburetors and getting it right is possible tho. Best wishes!
Beautiful looking car. I’ve always loved the Porsche 914, both the 4 cyl powered and the 6 cyl car. I prefer this any day over the 911.
I bought a new one in 1973 for $5200.
I have the same year and engine. Without a PIP, who knows what this car is worth. But I do the love color, Olympic Blue.
No bids and relisted at the same $16K. I quick look at completed Ebay auctions shows this to be an ambitious ask for a rusty 1.8, even with that mileage. I had a 1.8, and currently have a 2.0, and there’s a world of difference in the torques, especially on hills. Anyway, I don’t see this going for more that $8-9K.