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One Owner Garage Find: 1967 Porsche 912

1967 Porsche 912 Front In Original Owners Garage

UPDATE 1/27/11 – Sold for $16,201 with 36 bids.

Much like the 914, there has been much debate over whether the 912 is a true Porsche or not. Even though it was based on the 911, there are those who feel that it needs the flat six to be a thoroughbred. We disagree and the recent skyrocketing values demonstrates that many hold our sentiment. This 1967 Porsche 912 is a one owner car and has been parked in their garage since 1990. It has finally been pulled from the garage, dusted off, and is being offered for sale here on eBay with a current bid of $6,000. The car has spent its whole life in California and is currently located in Los Angeles.

1967 Porsche 912 Front Corner

Shortly after Porsche introduced the 911 in 1964 the company decided they needed a budget offering to widen their market and fill the spot that would soon be left by the departing 356. As production of the 356 came to an end in April of 1965, the company began production of the 912. It utilized the 911 shell, but was powered by the 356’s four cylinder to keep costs down. It was also not as well equipped as its big brother, further cutting costs.

1967 Porsche 912 Passengers Side

This car was obviously well driven. The original owner clocked over 110,000 miles in this car commuting to and from his job at NASA. The car has spent its entire life in the Lancaster and Edwards, California area and rarely saw moisture. Instead it was accustomed to high temperatures and lots of sun, which meant that A/C was a necessity. This car was one of the few 912s to come with A/C, but sadly the original A/C system failed and was removed from the car.

1967 Porsche 912 Interior

For the most part this car is super solid, but the one area that hasn’t fared so well is the interior. All the original pieces are still there, but some of the major components are damaged. It looks like a rodent decided to eat the dash cap and the handles. The car could still be driven without replacing these parts, but it would want to replace all the chewed up parts as soon as possible.

1967 Porsche 912 Engine

Even after sitting for 20 years this 912’s original boxer four still starts right up. It is definitely going to need a good cleaning and a complete service though. The 912’s four cylinder displaces 1.6 liters and only produces 90 horsepower, which is considerably less than the 911’s flat six. While the 912 isn’t as fast as the 911, it is lighter and extremely nimble.

1967 Porsche 912 Rear Corner

This 912 looks amazing and we love the way the Polo red paint has aged. It has a look that would be impossible to recreate and will make for an interesting conversation starter. After a good servicing and some interior repairs, this 912 should be a blast to take out for spirited drives or to show at local events. We just hope that whoever ends up with it keeps it as original as possible.

Comments

  1. Avatar Sonny Burnett

    A clearcoat would go nicely on top of that aged paint!

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  2. Avatar Karo

    Interesting car; I would love to see the rest of the A/C system in place, just for the novelty value. The patina of the red paint is kind of cool.I grew up in Santa Maria, CA, where I used to hang around Van Wyk Pontiac/Cadillac, look at cars and pester the salesmen. I did not know there was a Van Wyk VW/Porsche dealer in Bakersfield.

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  3. Avatar Robert J. Denton

    Sonny, I hope you are speaking metaphorically and seriously thinking a clear coat over oxidized red paint would look good. It truly would be awful.

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  4. Avatar Tony

    I don’t see the allure of these cars – the handling is atrocious and they are way underpowered. I don’t like the looks but I can understand how some do.

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  5. Avatar J. Pickett

    These early 912’s with the 356 engine were pure Porsche, no argument. The later ones used the same 2.0 VW engine as the later 914’s. It too was introduced to fill a price demand. The early one was produced from 1965 to 1970 when the 914 took over. It was re-introduced with the VW engine in 1976. Probably to satisfy traditional costumers who resisted the 924.

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  6. Avatar Sonny Burnett
  7. Avatar Dolphin Member

    Now that the prices being paid for early 911/912 P-cars have climbed significantly….surprise!….quite a few of these cars are being dragged out of garages/barns/basements/ponds or other resting places into the light of day, or more specifically, onto eBay or craigslist. It’s the same story with this one as with most of the rest of these neglected cars: The best buyer for this 912 would probably be a person with P-car mechanical/body/interior experience, with a good shop, preferably containing boxes full of vintage parts—especially interior parts in the case of this car. I’m not that person, so best of luck to the buyer. These cars deserve to be rescued from those dingy resting places and brought back to active life for people to see and admire. From the description, with luck the mechanical part may not be too involved, but if you want originality the interior will be difficult or very expensive, or both, I think.

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  8. Avatar John

    Almost bought one just like it in 1974 while stationed at Fort Ord. Thought about it overnight and someone else bought it. The next year bought a new 1976 BMW 2002. No regrets.

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  9. Avatar mikey

    Having owned many Porsche’s I always need to stick my beak into the fray.These are boring, they do O.K for a 4 banger but unless a five speed (option) is in the car……….listening too that engine and the clatter……just drives me crazier.Although the early 911 cars can go like stink the weight bias too the rear is so bad it makes one feel sorry for the poor tires. This is why you learn to do heavy cornering with the gas pedal. This also is why I went to pre ’75 Lotus.

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  10. Avatar BradL

    It looks like this one NEVER saw a garage until it was stored in 1990. Talk about sun baked.

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  11. Avatar BradL

    BTW, it’s NOT a one owner car if the original owner is not selling the car!!!A dealer who does not register the car is NOT considered the original owner!!!It’s just a pet peeve of mine.

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  12. Avatar BradL

    BTW, it’s NOT a one owner car if the original owner is not selling the car!!!A dealer who does not register the car is NOT considered the original owner!!!It’s just a pet peeve of mine.

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  13. Avatar Wilbur

    @ Tony: I’m confused; how could the handling of a 912, with a four cyl engine, be “attrocious” compared to the concurrent 911, with a heavier six cyl engine hanging off the back? I’ve always thought of the 912 more as a 356D than as any sort of competit

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  14. Avatar J. Pickett

    Wilbur you are right. The 912 has a reputation of being a good handler. As for the power, well the original 911 Normal was only rated at 130 hp. As stated in the histories, Porsche considered the car as an entry level and ALSO to wanted to please those loyal 356 customers who were satisfied with the acceleration but enjoyed the car’s overall performance.

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  15. Avatar Chris H.

    Sort the interior and mechanicals, drop the ride height, add some Panasports and enjoy.

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  16. Avatar Chris

    I drove and rode in an early 912 and found it a better car than the 356, especially an pre ’63 356. To me the 912 had the same power feel as the smal engine 356 and better handling. I also thought is was quieter, especially at expressway speed. I only rode in a 5 spd 912 once, but it was very much nicer and quieter with the 5 spd. Nice cars when sorted, much maligned, until now. I don’t see may of the early 911’s of any type back here in the east. The rust worms really ate them up.

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  17. Avatar Dolphin Member

    This car sold today for $16,201 with 36 bids. The listing for this car is probably the best listing for any Porsche I have ever seen on eBay, and is a tutorial on how to do it right. There’s probably not a square inch of the car, inside/outside/above/below/inside that’s not shown in one of the 170 photos. There’s even a photo of the original owner standing next to the car—today, not back in the ’60s. How to make it personal……like you’re getting a family treasure, which in a way you are. Not that many years back you could have bought a group of 3 or 4 good 912s for that amount, but if someone can deal with what is probably the most difficult part—the interior—the car will never be worth less than it’s worth now. Interesting that original P-car brochures are also climbing the value scale. A group of 16 mostly early 911 & 912 brochures also sold on eBay today and brought around $365, and I think that was a bargain. I wish my bid had won, but it didn’t. You could also buy many of those brochures for a few bucks not that long ago. Not now.

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  18. Avatar Wilbur

    @ Dolphin: I hope you’re right! I’m feeling underwater on a three-gauge 912 restoration, as we speak!

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