Doug&Julie

RE: seats....you can just buy a pair of these for about $1200 plus brackets, etc. I'm still waiting for mine, but I hear they're terrifically comfortable!

Peter Zimmermann

Good looking seats! Similar in design to the '58 Speedster that I drove for four years back in the late '60s and early '70s! I loved that car and loved those seats, even a trip from SoCal to Lake Havasu was a painless blast!
Pete

Doug&Julie

Yeah, I think they're pretty cool. They're reproductions, designed to look like originals. There are two or three vendors for these, but I'm getting mine from Motomotions. http://www.motomotions.com/seats/index.htm

Notice how many cool styles they have for the hard(er) core enthusiast! Very period correct. Very

Matt C

Many thanks again for all your replies. These seats really look terrific.

But what about maintenance and routine work? Would the 1970 T require a lot more attention to keep it going?

I'll keep you guys posted (I will visit the dealer next Monday).

Doug&Julie

Not a lot more than the SC. But more than the Boxster and Cayenne. But any old(er) 911 will require regular maintenance. Still, overall, they're pretty reliable cars. And since you won't be driving them everyday, I'd say maintenance is of little concern.

JCP911S

Two factors... First the 70 is 10 years older than the SC... on most cars things get repaired when they break... so unless the 70 has been completely redone top to bottom...(unlikely) there are more parts that are 10 years more likely to give it up... alot of this is nuscience stuff... weather seals leaking, electrical parts failing, little pieces of things in the window winders and doorlocks breaking from repeated use... but trips to the shop/Saturdays spent/downtime none the less.

Second, cars just tend to be better engineered as they get newer... Porsche had 10 more years to make the basic car more reliable... SCs have a well earned reputation for reliability relative to cars of comparable performance from that era.

The 70 was a good solid car when new, so its not like a 70 Maseratti or something... but lets face it.... a 35 year old athelete is going to spend more time in the training room than a 25-year old athelete...

JCP911S

BTW...some perspective... I drove my 1970 "S" to the track, did a weekend of DE and drove it home for about 12 years and got towed home exactly once... so its not like these cars are garage queens...

r911

not if the 25 year old athlete is seriously overweight!

Jay Laifman

I have had my 73.5 T (CIS, Viper Green) for 17 years now (Pete even worked on it for a number of years before I moved away from Santa Monica). It has been a rock solid great great car. Never once stranding me. I've got 138,000 on it now, still original paint, engine just rebuilt.

I also now have a 2000 Boxster S. Prior to buying the Boxster S, I tried lots and lots of newer 911s, from 78 to 2000. In the end, I found that I just liked my '73 better than ALL of them. As someone else alluded to, it's lighter, sportier, sounds better, has more feeling and is just plain more fun to experience mile by mile than the newer ones. Sure it is slower, handles worse and has less safety featurs. But (to life a phrase from a pathetic little car) it does have more smiles per gallon.

On the flip side, I found the Boxster S more fun than the new 911s on the same grounds: the experience driving mile by mile. Again, slower, but "funner."

Jay

Peter Zimmermann

Jay! Greetings - I knew I remembered that name! That's great that you still have the green machine. You got great life out of your engine, typical for a CIS T was about 110K (valve guides, case savers, intermediate shaft issues). I hope that you're satisfied with the rebuild and your mechanic did right by you.
Best Regards, Pete

Jay Laifman

Yep. It was the valve guides and smoke on deceleration that finally did it in. I was even lucky enough to find some new Mahle P&C's and airbox for the 73.5 T which are close to impossible to find, with the machine work by Competition Engineering. I only have two issues, smoke on start up that I never had before, but seems to have gotten much better lately, and a extra vibration that I feel through the steering wheel and butt from 2,300 rpm to 3,000 rpm (any gear, neutral too). The mechanic is going to look at it as soon as I can get there. Already tried it without the fan belt, and still felt it. I actually don't feel it if I put my hand on the engine and bring the rpm up. Otherwise, it is very happy. Maybe I'll hit you up for suggestions if he can't find anything.

Jay

JCP911S

JL....love that Viper Green

Matt C

Guys,

I was at the dealer today. The two cars I described where not really in the shape I was hoping. However, when we enter the dealer, we saw this beautiful 911 Speedster with only 40k km on the speedo. It's the turbolook version with the cat. My girlfriend immediately fell for it. It appears to be in very good shape and the former owners seem to have taken very good care and drove it only in good weather. What do you think? Anything special that we need to look out for?

TIA for your help.

Doug&Julie

Wow. Cool. Very unique. Do you want another two seat convertible? ..even if it's a 911?

Matt C

Hi Doug,

Well - I'm kind of thinking to give the Boxster for it.