One of 1,055: 1973 Porsche 911E Targa

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When you repaint a car in something other than its original color, you run the risk of alienating a wide swath of potential buyers. In the case of this rare 1973 Porsche 911E Targa, it may have actually been a good decision. As much as I am an original paint advocate, this long-hood 911 was originally Sepia Brown, a color that is very period-correct but not necessarily sought-after by enthusiasts. This 911E now wears Signal Orange paint, which is about as good as it gets for an air-cooled Porsche color. Find the 911 here on eBay where bidding has reached $51,100 with no reserve.

The seller makes the claim about the production numbers, and it wouldn’t surprise me; these long-hood 911s don’t pop up for sale all that often. The soft-window Targas are the rarest of all, but those are the proverbial hen’s teeth in terms of being easy to find. The bodywork on this car appears to be in excellent condition, and one would hope any lingering issues were addressed when the repsray was performed. The other question I have is how deep the repsray went, in terms of whether the new color scheme reaches into the door jambs and under the hood and engine cover lid.

However, when you look at some of the other details, it seems like a safe assumption that this owner or one before him was a detail-oriented caretaker (and you can see the paint did reach into the inside of the doors here). The OEM sport seats are very sought-after, and these buckets have been updated with what is presumably new vinyl and checkered cloth inserts running down the middle of the buckets. The rest of the interior appears to be in good shape, but I will say this color and carpeting makes more sense with the original exterior color; I’d likely retrim the seats in black vinyl and remove the carpets for black as well. The seller notes this Targa has been outfitted with the 915 5-speed manual gearbox.

The “targa bar” is one of the more striking features of this design, and it retains an attractive finish. The removable roof panel reveals no obvious issues in photos, and the seller confirms the trim is in “excellent” condition. The fact that this is a no-reserve auction could make for a reasonable sale price, but I suspect it will race higher in the coming days. What do you think about the paint job – should it have been left as the factory intended, or is the non-original finish a smart upgrade considering most enthusiasts don’t want to spend $50K on a brown sports car?

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Comments

  1. bobhess bobhessMember

    Nice car. The 915 transmission is a great upgrade for any pre ’74 911. As for the color, in all the 25 or so years with Porsche I never ran into anyone who liked the Sepia Brown color. We built a Sepia Brown ’74 autocross car for a customer who said he hated the color but the price was too good to ignore and the car was a stripped model with no accessories except a radio. Wind up windows and all. Without the extra weight it was fast and he usually won when he hit the track. His next car was a fully loaded, white with black 911 SC. This car looks great with the orange color as compared to what it used to look like.

    Like 8
    • The Other Chris

      I actually like brown on most cars, even Porsche Sepia Brown. That said, if all else was equal, I probably would not choose it over another color.

      Like 1
  2. Rob M.

    Looks like Sully’s car in Commando.

    Like 3
  3. ccrvtt

    I worked in Porsche dealership for a brief spell in 1973. The rumor was that the 911E was quicker than the 911S 0-60. As for the Targa tops, they could not be removed (even for dealer prep) before they were sold – guaranteed to leak.

    I recall a new 911S we got in painted in a chocolate brown. We tried to get the shipping wax off it several times. We were later told that the paint hadn’t dried completely when they waxed it so it had this sort of hazy look to it. “Chocolate Brown” was more like a “Fecal Dun”. I think I remember a more subdued metallic shade that was actually quite elegant on the targa.

    Like 1
  4. DRV

    Pale yellow is the only yellow for my taste.
    This looks horrid. Brown is very period and would be much better on it for me.

    Like 0
  5. Scott D

    Looks like Signal Yellow, not Signal Orange

    Like 3
  6. Lance

    This model cam with the 40 Ford headlights.

    Like 0
  7. ScottMember

    I had a 1964 356SC that the original owner change FROM red to Sepia brown. It did not make sense till I saw a period picture of him with him in brown pants in front of his brown truck next to the brown 356.

    Like 1
  8. CeeOne

    I had a 68 912 this color. Should have gotten either a sunroof or a Targa. But I always thought it looked good in that color.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QI2FnV9V5KE

    Like 1
  9. Bill Conway

    915 transaxle started in 1972, not an option standard 5 speed.

    Like 0
  10. PRA4SNW

    SOLD for $60,100.

    Weren’t the Targa models the ones that everyone frowned upon?

    Like 1
    • Bill Conway

      Well, a 1973 911 E coupe in similar condition would be over $100k these days, to be sure. Those of us that love targas do so for the open air enjoyment they provide, as well as the pretty much identical handling ability unless all out racing is your goal. Early coupes are not much fun in todays crowded cities and suburbs, while targas have a charm that is not present in a closed coupe.

      Like 1
      • PRA4SNW

        Bill, I wasn’t being negative towards Targas, just stating what I remember as a fan of early – mid 70s 911s. I also prefer open air motoring.

        I haven’t been following the prices on these models, so when I saw that this one was 60K, I figured that the Targa is now getting its due.

        Like 0
  11. Bill Conway

    Mr Snow,
    No worries, I have owned coupes and teargas for the last 40 or so years, and love them both. The targa always gets a bad rap of being a flexible chassis, to flex for racing, but some how that never affected the 356 cars as many speedsters were raced in that era, and even Mark Donahue did some laps in a early targa and said he preferred its handling over the coupe he also drove.
    Both are great cars, and coupes will always be worth more than Vargas, and cabs will be worth even less. That is upside down from their pricing when new, but that’s the way it is….

    Like 1

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