Former Formula 1 driver Mark Webber once famously said that if you’re going to race cars, you’re going to crash them. Sometimes the incidents are relatively minor, while others can signal the end of that car’s racing career. This 1970 Porsche 914/6 GT looks pretty good from the front, but looks can be deceptive. It is a shadow of its former self after a racing crash, but its rust-free status may make revival viable for the right person. I must say a big thank you to Barn Finder Curvette for spotting the Porsche listed here on eBay in Allentown, Pennsylvania. The seller set their price at $18,900 with the option to make an offer.
Porsche debuted the 914 in 1969 as its affordable model to increase sales. It remained on sale until 1976, with 118,978 vehicles rolling off the line during its production life. This 1970 example started life on the West Coast, which helped keep it rust-free. A former owner converted the Porsche for Historic Racing in the mid-1980s, before it headed east in 2003. Its new owner refurbished the vehicle in 2005, before embarking on a long racing career. This all came to a crunching halt in 2022 during a practice session at Watkins Glen. It appears the car left the track backwards, with the subsequent impact inflicting severe rear damage that ended the Porsche’s racing life. It has since been stripped of many parts, and its fate rests in the hands of its new owner. Most of the panels are intact, and opening the trunk reveals the racing fuel cell. Everything ahead of the engine bay looks promising, so it may only be a matter of welding on a new rear frame to return the car to a structurally sound state.
Porsche sourced the mid-mounted 2.0-liter flat-six that originally powered this 914/6 from the 911T, though with a raft of changes, it produced 125hp and 131 ft/lbs of torque. Both figures are lower than those enjoyed by 911 owners, but with a low curb weight, the 914/6 was a lively performer. The company maximized its potential by sending the power to the road via a five-speed manual transaxle. It is unclear what changes were made to this classic during its racing life, but that question is largely irrelevant. The seller stripped the Porsche of virtually every mechanical component upon its demise, and the car now rolls on dollies for easy loading. Therefore, returning this 914 to a running state will require a significant investment in new mechanical components.
Racing machines are rarely luxurious beasts. Builders focus on weight reduction because every additional pound will reduce a car’s overall performance. Therefore, this Porsche’s lack of interior trim and carpet is unsurprising. The dash structure is intact, and many of the bespoke racing components are present. These include the braced roll cage, gauge cluster, switches, and the Tilton pedal box and adjustable brake balance control. The buyer will probably sell these items if they plan a road-going restoration, and although they probably won’t yield a huge sum, the additional cash won’t go astray during the build.
As you can see, this 1970 Porsche 914/6 GT looked pretty slick in its prime, and would have provided a very enjoyable racing experience. The car requires a mountain of work to return to that form, and some readers will question whether it is financially viable. Much will depend on how far the body has been stressed and whether the damage extends to the floors. If that is the case, she’s probably headed for the crusher once the buyer removes any usable parts. However, the healthy listing statistics suggest this Porsche has generated plenty of interest, and it only takes one passionate enthusiast to give this classic a second shot at life. Do you think that will happen?
Over priced garage art.
But it’s half off!
Just not the money half.
Ed Zactly
First pic: cool
Second pic: ehrmagerd!
To quote Mac The Knife: ” Surely, you must be joking!?!”
One mans junk, another man’s treasure! I’m saying junk myself.
Tail heavy rear engine Porsches are known for over steer, (Or “loose” if you’re into NASCAR). Darrell Waltrip explained it once as “Over steer is when the back end comes around and hits the wall first.”
I don’t claim to know what happened to this one, but a lot of rear engine Porsches (known as widow makers) got wrecked by over steer that the driver either didn’t expect or couldn’t handle.
Teeners are mid-engine not rear..
This is not a rear engine car. It’s mid engine and one of the best handling cars ever built. Also, if you have never worked on a full roll cage car you really don’t want to try to put it on the street.
This is/was a 914 – a mid-engine car with excellent weight distribution.
The 914 was the first production MID-ENGINE car. It was very well balanced unlike the rear engined 911. I owned 3 over the years and competed with the last one from 2000 to 2015.
1st???
After
D e uchè Bonnet
Matra Djet
ATS
Muira
Dino
I think Renault Alpine too and probably others.
Are 550s production cars.
1st mid-engine PRODUCTION car for PORSCHE, Rallye.
This isn’t rear-engined and with the 911T 6-cyl it wasn’t particularly tail-heavy.
Not much left for that price.
Does not include engine trans or suspension he wants almost 19k for a smashed up pile of junk Even with everything it wouldn’t be worth that much
I know this car – raced by Patrick Motorsports 15 years ago in Arizona and California. Wondered where it ended up. I raced against it at Daytona a few times during the Continental Historics. Watkins Glen has unforgiving ‘blue bushes’ that do this to a car that veers off the tarmac.
914-6 are valuable six figure plus cars so someone will either repair it or their buying a serial number.
Hmm, something is missing.
No doors?? No way Jose!!
This is a modified production 914/6, not an original 914/6 GT (or 916), which would be extremely rare and far more valuable. I met Boston Porsche mechanic Ralph Meaney (misspelled in ad) in 1968 when he raced a 911 in the Trans-Am series, and he had an excellent reputation. He passed away a few years ago.
This is a tempting project, as you could replace the entire rear body/chassis. The rest of it isn’t so tempting; you’d need an engine (probably more than the original 2-liter displacement) , transmission, interior, wheels, etc., etc. Value is difficult to judge. Very nice original 914/6s can go for $100,000 or more, but restoring this to original won’t get you there, as a different rear section, engine, etc. would detract from perceived value. It could be a good deal for a Porsche mechanic or a vintage racer, especially at a lower price, but it’s probably best to restore it as a race car.
It’s not that difficult to put another rear clip on this car. Did the front half of this race car without taking the roll cage parts off.
Been waiting for Bob Hess to chime in since your knowledge of these is, to put it modestly, far above average.
What price would move the needle for you?
If it had the doors 4K. Without doors 2K. Doors are out here but probably expensive. Buying a rear clip with doors as a package is possible. Most of the cars we repaired had front end damage.
This ad reads like a joke!
Seller capitalizes more than Chump!
Well, let’s see, if I wrecked the front half of my 914 race car, and I have the back half plus all the running gear…
…. buy it and get to work!
Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha
Make an offer? Ok, $18