Steve: Instead of e-mailing you directly, I also hope to hear some fed back from some of the other members.

I have been looking at 74-77 911's and have recently looked at a 74 targa, 911 base model, one owner car, with either 60k or 160k on the odometer. The car was simply parked because the father pasted away. Six years later and the engine is seized and the interior is totally trashed as it was left outside the entire time.He is asking $ 5k. It appears to have never been wrecked and the car seems to be complete, but very very rough.Both front wings need replacing, rear lid needs replacing. I can not find any rust, not even in the battery box. The wood floor boards are still in good shape.

I am looking for a project car I can completely take apart and restore/rebuild for my retirement years.

I know all the problems with the 2.7 engine. I have thought about upgrading to a 3.2 with PMO carbs.

I think 5k is way to much, what would you think would be a realistic price ?

I know that I will have more in the car than the value, but this will be a car I will keep and enjoy.

Thanks for all your help.

Jonny A.

modified BMW 635 csi
looking for a 74-77 911.

 

location?

 

This could easily turn into the most expensive 74 Targa ever built. Even for 5 grand you should be able to do way better than that for a project car.

 

The car is in the Seattle area.

 

You might want do do a bit of reading before embarking on a 911 restoration. Here's a start:

The Gold-Plated Porsche: How I Sank a Small Fortune into a Used Car, and Other Misadventures by Stephan Wilkinson
The Used 911 Story by Peter Michael Zimmermann

 

Is there a reason you're drawn to the 74-77 cars? The project you're talking about would be the same as restoring a pre-74 car, and the long-hood would be worth a great deal more in the end (whether you sell it or not).

In any case, 5K for a rusty car with a seized motor is insane. I paid $3,500 for my 72 tub. It had no motor, but also no rust to repair.

If you're going to put in a later motor, why not at least start with a good rust-free tub?

 

Good plan, but I think you'd be a lot better off with an SC ('78-'83).

Good luck,

Paul.

 

Hello from the Seattle area.

Here is a website from a friend of mine, Darryl. It details his project porsche cars.

http://members.aol.com/darryld/garage/index.htm

I saw Darryl's 912 and it is fascinating. I am not sure how much of a project you are envisioning taking on. I have no welding skills (yet) so his restorations are beyond what I could do.

 

Hi Jonny:

Boy,..you've received a ton of great feedback here and ALL of it is valid. I wholeheartedly concurr.

I understand the desire for a restoration project, but IMHO this car is not the one, even if it were free. It has far too many issues and the chances of getting buried in to the tune of $ 20K is very real with zero chance of recovery,....

I would either get a '69-'73 longhood model, an SC or Carrera as all are FAR better candidates for a restoration and will provide long-term enjoyment with better chances of cost recovery at some point in the future. You'll spend a lot more $$$ up front, but the net result will cost less than trying to resurrect a ratty '74 Targa thats not worth $8K in nice running order.

IMHO,...You need to decide what you want to do with the car, what kind of performance you are looking for, and which model you like best The answers to that will best determine what to look for,....

Good planning always precedes great results.

 

Thank you everybody for your responses.

The car has NO RUST that I can see, not even the battery box.

I bought a brand new 76 911S and owned it for 3 plus years. That car has very fond memories.

If I were to buy an SC or Carrera, at some point I would be totally rebuilding the engine anyway.

My thinking is if I offered 1k for the car knowing I will either spend the money for a total engine rebuild of the 2.7 or buy a 3.2 knowing I will most likely spend the money for a total engine rebuild also.

Most of the work on the car would be done by me with the exception of bodywork, engine, trans rebuilds.

I know I would be into the car for way more than it is worth, but I plan to keep the car.

Most 74-77 cars in the Seattle area are in the 10k-15k price range for a nice car without a total engine rebuild.

I know everybody says buy a carrera or an SC, but something just touchs my soul with the 74-77 cars.

I have totally rebuilt my 87 BMW 635 csi and it is a stunning car now that it is done.

I have a fairly good idea of what I might be getting into, but again, I am asking for everbodies opinion before I go down this road.

Steve: what would be a realistic price to rebuild a 2.7 vs 3.2 with some performance upgrades in mind.

Thanks everbody.

Jonny A

 

Hey Jonny. Where are you located in Seattle? I am out here as well. I have a 77 911 Euro, and I absolutely love it. I got mine for $6500 and immediately put around 3k into it. The reason I am telling you about it is because our situation is very similar. My car had been sitting for 6 years as well. It was however garaged and cared for in regards to cosmetics while sitting. My car appears to be rust free (probably some somewhere I missed!), and is quite clean and original. I guess to make a long story short, there are some great deals out there. Even if you want to start out affordable and do all the work yourself, you should try to start out with the best car that you can get. The recommendation to read The Gold-Plated Porsche: How I Sank a Small Fortune into a Used Car, and Other Misadventures by Stephan Wilkinson is a great recommendation. He bought a 911, took it completely apart, cleaned or replaced every part and put it back together again. Even though he was planning on doing this, he still looked for a decent shape example to start with. For that money, you can do wayyy better in my opinion.

Also, the car was left outside for 6 years in the Seattle area and it has no rust anywhere? It must have been sitting behind God's shadow to not be touched by the rain!

One last thing. Given all that I just said...if this car is calling to you somehow and you have the skill, ability and passion to restore something as "rough" (your words not mine) as this car, then go for it. I would agree with you on lowering your offering price to 1k. You will be paying for a rebuilt engine, maybe tranny, definately fuel system as everything is most likely rotten, and everything else that comes with a car that has been sitting in this climate for 6 years.

James (SeattlePorsche) is doing an engine drop from his 911 this weekend in fact. You should PM him, maybe we can all meet you there and talk about your project. Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

A proper rebuild for a 3.0-3.2 is in the $ 12-13K range for all the parts, machine work and labor. Add $ 2K for the extra machine work needed for a reliable magnesium cased 2.7.

Some do it for less, but their parts list is a lot shorter and thats not a complete rebuild.

 

That's the nice thing about the older, MG cased motors -- they are even MORE expensive to rebuild than the Al cased ones...

You need to be very very careful about rust - Seattle gets salty air...

It is not enough to look for it - you need to probe every inch of the underbody with an ice pick. Pull the smile, the headlights, the tailights...
then tell us there is no rust. You still might be wrong as the rear package shelf could have completely rusted out...

 

i got mine last week for 4k and it runs. Not an original Carrera though. PO put the decals on, I'm gonna have the decals removed ASAP. And the tranny wont shift, so it's in a shop being taken apart. Still $4k aint bad, for a decently cared for 74 911S with carrera flares, and downgraded to a 901 tranny with 2.2L motor.

 

"I know I would be into the car for way more than it is worth, but I plan to keep the car."

Not a good justification. It's the same one I used on my first car when I restored it - and spent way too much money because of the emotions of my first car and that "I plan on keeping the car forever." One idiot who T-boned me proved the error of my ways. Never did that again.