Many times it just takes a certain color combination for a car to seem even more special than it already is. In the case of this 1976 Porsche 912, the combination of a white exterior over a “Lobster Red” interior makes an otherwise ordinary air-cooled more desirable given how many enthusiasts tend to lust after this color scheme. The 912 is a matching numbers car that is said to run but in need of mechanical restoration (and, I suppose, cosmetic as well if you’re seeking perfection). The 912 comes with a new old stock replacement seat cover to repair the damage to the driver’s bucket and looks sharp on color-matched Fuchs alloy wheels. Find it here on eBay with bids to $18,500 and no reserve.

There was a time when a tired 912 wouldn’t get much attention; those days are long gone. And really, even if this example needs the usual assortment of deferred maintenance, it still looks like a great foundation for a mechanical refresh and otherwise just preserving the decent (if not perfect) cosmetics. The interior really is a treat, with matching red carpets and door panels, and German cars, in particular, seem to pull off the lipstick or oxblood interiors better than most. Aside from the wear to the driver’s seat bottom, the cabin is in good shape and certainly nice enough to use as-is. Replace the upholstery and otherwise just drive it is what I’d do.

The engine is numbers matching, which is harder to find than you might expect in air-cooled Porsches of this vintage. Especially a 912, which was more of a throwaway sports car when it became too needy to justify preserving in the middle 80s. Nowadays, you wouldn’t dream of yanking a matching engine from an air-cooled of any generation unless the car itself was a total rustbucket and only good for parts. The seller reports a “ticking” sound coming from the engine, which indicates to me it needs a valve adjustment. This is a pretty standard issue on Porsches of this vintage, and mildly worrisome the seller doesn’t seem to know about this fairly easy fix.

There is evidence of rust underneath the 912, but it’s hard to say for certain just how extensive it is. The photos aren’t great, and the seller isn’t exactly generous with the details surrounding the undercarriage. It looks like there may also be a rust blister in the edge of the passenger-side door based on this photo as well, but I’m not 100 percent certain that’s what we’re looking at. The 912 could be needier than I initially thought based on the dimly-lit rust photo in the eBay gallery, but if it’s limited to that one spot, it’s far from the worst air-cooled Porsche project we’ve seen. The color combo has sold me; is anyone else smitten by a particular paint combo?