Porsche 914s haven’t approached 911 levels of pricing hysteria, but they are gaining some steam over where they typically reside on the value chain. This collection of 914s includes five project vehicles, some of which that even run, for an all-in price of $8,500. The cars are available individually as well, but I’d certainly consider bringing two home for a parts car to pick away at. Find the collection of 914 projects here on craigslist near Los Angeles.
Thanks to Barn Finds reader Pat L. for the find. The seller describes the 914s as all being very straight cars with minimal rust. The green car at the far left of the top photo is the best of the bunch, with a sound engine. The orange 914 next to it is also a runner, while the other two that are a mixture of colors and body panels come sans engine – but plenty of good parts.
I’m assuming this is the interior of the green car, as that looks like a project that was started and just needs finishing. The carpets aren’t even that dirty and the seats and door panels look usable as-is. The rest of the interiors go somewhat downhill from here, but nothing is past the point of some new seats, door panels, and a cheap new or gently used carpet kit.
This is the fifth 914 not included in the above group shot. The body is described as the roughest of the bunch, but it does come with an engine and transmission – so this may actually be a car worth buying with one of the two above with better bodies but no drivetrain. If you’ve got the space, grabbing the whole lot and building two very decent 914s may make the most sense of all.
Ugly when new, uglier now. These were to be VW’s. Germany said, call them Porsches, and those stupid Americans will pay more.
Precisely Joe, Square Karmann Ghias!…….
I think Josh is ready to buff out a few more! Seems like a parts deal for sure. Transport will be costly though…….
Ugliest Porsche ever.
One needs a warehouse or car crusher to store these 😙. Hmmm I am thinking 🤔
Which one to utilize 😅
My friend and I were going to look at these. Too much work for what a 914 is worth. There is a 914 club up this way maybe they will see these. I know this is not a big deal but Monterey is a lot closer to San Francisco or San Jose than LA. A couple hundred miles difference.
My oldest son will be 45 years old next month, born September 11, 1974. I was in my 2nd year of working at the VW dealership and the one cool part of working there was getting a demo. One Sunday, he was about a month old and we took him for his first visit to Grandma and Grandpa, and I was driving a 6 month old 1974 914, red and black. This was before the days of car safety seats, especially in a two seater. We lived about 10 miles apart, had a nice visit and were on the way home. He had been a good baby all day. Mommy decided she wanted an ice cream cone, from the place that was about 2 blocks from our apartment. (The same place that’s still there today–just the name, not the owners) and she got the ice cream and baby Eric got the cone dumped in his face. Wish we’d had a cell phone camera. It wasn’t as upsetting to him as it was to mom (and funny as hell to dad). We told him that story many times and I think he got really tired of it.
In Porsche-ese “Minimal rust” means “It’s not an actual pile of iron oxide yet”
I have been driven very quickly in a good one. Don’t sell them short.
Off the top of my head, the Porsches I most revile are the Panamera and the Cayenne. The 914 is neither a design masterpiece nor unbearably hideous. But being a mid-engine, I don’t know how big a pain they are to work on. These might be a good purchase for someone in the local area, especially if they’re able to negotiate a bit lower price.
Totally agree on ugly cars with the basic 914 but the chassis is great for building race cars. We built one for ourselves and a whole bunch for customers. The 4 cylinder type 4 engine was all smog equipped but you could easily double the horse power, put a little more suspension under them and you had a car that would out handle most anything and run with most of them. A side benefit was the race cars were always better looking than the stock street machines.
Just for fun, send a link to your closest friends to let them know you have enrolled them in a new racing league and purchased this 914 fleet !
I like Mikestuff’s account of memories of these
I had a close aunt with a yellow 1975. A little crusty by 1987 when i started driving. I knew cars fairly well as a teen, but not this one. She referred to it as the ‘poor man’s Porsche’… Rarely see them anymore, miss them.
Well, I for one love the 914. Not expensive, amazing driving machine, not overly quick but responds well and gives good feedback. These are not 2.0L nor do they have the desired side shift trans, but they are still a lot of fun to drive. As parts cars they could be very good. The chrome bumpers if in really good shape could be upwards of 500$, if any of them have good stainless steel heat exchange upgrades that could be 700$. If those are real fuchs on the green and they are nice that is another 700-1000$ . Could be a really could deal for a person like Genes Auto Haven 914 Restorations. If you want to see some beautiful 914 GT’s check out his FB page. https://www.facebook.com/Genes-Auto-Haven-914-Restorations-338087299699936/
I have one that I restored a few years ago. They are great fun, handle like a go cart and with 911 suspension and brakes. They stop on a dime. Say what you want and call it a Porsche or VW it’s still a great little car.