The story of the once-restored car that now needs to be re-restored is not an uncommon tale around here. This 1971 Porsche 911 Targa is sold with lot of assumptions, namely that the first restoration attempt was to a high caliber and that the drivetrain is mechanically sound. The seller claims this is a project that won’t get any love in the near-term, so he’s moving it along. Find this accident damaged 911T here on eBay with one bid to $12K and no reserve.
Following its first restoration, the 911T was a likely victim of lift-over oversteer, with the back end smashing a guardrail and ending its short time on the road as a rebuilt example. The seller is the third owner and has been storing the car awaiting its latest rebuild. Although he says rust is minimal, he notes that the “….build will require extensive body/metal work.” Suspension damage is also a likelihood with an accident like this, and the eBay gallery reveals the extent of the car’s needs.
The interior is largely complete, if not in need of some cosmetic love. While the accident damage may make this look like a parts car, these earlier long-hood 911s are seemingly always in demand provided they’re not rusted to bits. The slimmer chrome bumpers are another selling point, and since this one still has its Targa hoop and pricey rear glass, it’s not surprising to the strong bidding early. No word on whether the Targa roof panel is included.
The seller notes that the “….motor and tranny were rebuilt by reputable names prior to the accident.” This isn’t super helpful, as we have no sense of how long ago this was. Regardless, count on another rebuild despite the seller referring to it as “mechanically sound.” No word on whether it’s numbers-matching, either. Cars like this are question marks to me, especially a Targa model that has seemingly had its entire structure compromised. Will the legend of the long-hood live on?
This is the type of situation that makes my brain ache. I worked in a Porsche Audi dealership in 1973 and these are the models I came to love. While it’s distressing to see it in this condition it’s in much better shape than a lot of the skeletons we see on this site. I am not a metalworker or mechanic by any stretch of the imagination, but I’d love to see this car brought back to what it should be.
All it’s going to take is love. And buckets of money.
Longnose cars are often bought and sold high, but this one might already be bid to the reasonable limit with 4 days still to go. The unibody looks pretty twisted to me, but you would need to get it on a frame machine to know for sure how good or bad it is, and I haven’t done that, so that’s just a ball park guess.
The seller makes some big claims but offers no documentation, and I always think of that as getting me a very nice designer coffee providing I add $5 into the mix. But he only has 8 feedbacks, so perhaps hasn’t learned the drill for getting the best money for his metal on Ebay.
The SCM Guide has these selling at auction in excellent condition at a median price of $76K, second cheapest for the year behind the T coupes.
You can probably get there from here if the bid doesn’t go much higher, and if you can do a lot of the work yourself, and if the engine really was rebuilt all those years ago, and if it runs OK now and doesn’t need another rebuild, and if you don’t mind owning a car that was seriously bent, and if you believe that this car has a clear title, and probably some other things that I’ve forgotten since I started writing this list of ifs…..