shipard

ps i shoulld define doing it up as returning it to original s condition

Peter Zimmermann

By VIN it's certainly a '72 S coupe - congrats!

Mike Murphy

Oh, Peter - knock it off! Tell him it's no good and that we Rennlisters will have to make the sacrifice and take it off his hands.

Peter Zimmermann

LOL!

elpresidente

If you decide to pass, how about offering it up to a fellow Rennlister for possible purchase?

JCP911S

Hate to be Gloomy Gus here, but a decent, drivable 72S that has issues, but is complete and runs is at minimum, a $25-35K car... anything less than this is probably a parts car.

Unless you can do all the work yourself, plan on at least another $40-60K to bring such a car back to "driver" showroom specs, and $100K+ for a "concours" restoration.

A really, really clean no-excuses early S is a $60-80K car as is. Do the math... its cheaper to buy the right car.

Unfortunately, these have become rich-guy cars. If you have the jack, have fun, but my advice is don't jump into this particular ocean unless you have the resources to get to the other side. Go in with your eyes and wallet open...

If you just want a nice 911 to drive, a super clean SC can be had for under $20K, and a very nice no excuses small bumper T for $20-30K.

Nifty

I had a 72T for about 10 years back in the 80s as a daily driver. I put 140,000 miles on it and it was worth every penny. I slept in it at Daytona and Sebring and did all the PCA club stuff.

I didn't do anything in the way of mods, but parts were hard to find and expensive back then (no internet) so I can't imagine what they would cost now.

The positives were that it was easy to work on. It was still a Porsche and well.. you know how that goes.

The negatives were:

AC sucked. I had a york compressor in mine and just quit using the AC.
The dehumidifer sucked too.
Rust - there was not stopping it. Behind the headlights and battery wells (there are two) , and then behind the rear seat. I replaced the seals but that still didn't stop it.
Alternator: I replaced the alternator a few times.
Heat exchangers: I recall around $500 at the time.
The muffler was pricey too. I had a small hole in mine and ordered a new one and it was around $200 or so with UPS delivery.
I think I went through 2-3 clutches.
There were some other oddball things over the years I had to address but nothing that went into the 1,000s of dollars.


- then that was all back in the 80s.

The one thing I would recommend when looking at older cars is to have a garage to keep it in and then a second cheap daily driver.

shipard

Hi All,

Thanks for all the advice and tips so far, i wasn't aware of your book Peter "The Used 911 Story" looks like there is an up date to be added to the 911 library and little bit more reading to do. I do have a couple of other books "Porsche 911 Red Book" by Patrick Paternie and "Original Porsche 911" by Peter Morgan. I have also purchased the work manuals for the 1972 911's in preparation of purchasing and running a early 911. ( I believe in always purchasing the work shop manuals for every car i own and want to hold long term ) My brother was a porsche/ ferrari mechanic for 20 years and he also instilled a belief of this in me ( he is really a perfectionist when it comes to cars and his tools ) I am not sacred of the time or money to invest in this car as this is a long term car. I am also of the belief that cars should be maintained and driven regularly not shone and kept in a garage.

I'll keep you guys updated as to my progress inspection etc.....

Mike Murphy

Great attitude and great plan you have here. I wish you the best of luck in finding the car.

shipard

Hi All, i'm back,

The short update on the car, 1972 911S, matching numbers with MFI and all correct S items
Its has 3 possible extra options ( not sure if these are extras or standard, open to feedback on these )
1. sunroof
2. Large capacity plastic gas tank
3. Recaro factory seats

The fenders, hood and deck lid all have minor rust issues which are all fixable, so minor cosmetic restoration.
Correct S wheels, alloy brakes, oil tank.
Engine rebuilt 6000 miles ago, new 2.4 mahle pistons and cyclinders and valve guides done at same time. Started with first turn of the key and engine ran smoothly, initial drive seems it has a slightly issue with the left front caliper sticking. Possibly change fluid best case scenario or rebuild caliper worst case.....open to feedback about the caliper.Tyres will need replacing which is a very minor issue. Underneath is all dry and looking good.
All in all looks good, now to get proper inspection.
ps I have ordered "The Used 911 Story" thanks in advance Peter for the help it will give me.

elpresidente

This is turning into a fun story. Hurry up and buy the thing so we can see some pictures!

By the way, there is a great thread on a 1970 911s on the Pelican Forum. Search for a thread titled "Hester". Great story there too and about 3 pages of discussion on new tire selection for the car.

shipard

Thanks for the heads up on the pelican forum and its a read about the 1970 911S such an awesome story.

Also checking up on the tyre thread as well, looks like some good reading there too.

oh and another little bit of news............I am now the new owner of the 1972 911S....

To say the least I am very very excited looks like the start of the fun has just started.

I guess that also means I will be visiting this forum alot more in the future.

I will post some pictures soon as I can

shipard

Here's one of the first photos, if I have attached it right.

The front windscreen chrome surround comes with the car, its in good condition just not on the car........and now you see what I mean by the mirrors.......they need to be replaced with originals ASAP.

JackOlsen

Congratulations! You're now the proud owner of the only 'four-door' 911 (passenger door, driver door, and then the doors for the gas cap and the oil cap), and it's an 'S' to boot.

Just under 13,000 911s were made in 1972. They're easy to spot because of the oil tank and its external access door. The forward position offered a minor improvement in the car's weight distribution. The lore has it that the tank was moved back because filling station attendants were putting gas into the oil tank. More likely: federal side-impact standards for 1973 meant Porsche had to add a reinforcement bar to both doors and move the tank out of a position where it might baptize a back-seat passenger with gallons of hot oil in a crash. When you open the flap, always guide it with your hand as it swings out so that it doesn't reach the stop on its own -- the pot metal they use for the hinge is brittle, and the piece is NLA and very expensive.

In fact, be very careful with all of the oil cooling pieces -- if that's the original front cooler setup, the tank, thermostat and such are very rare. Heck, the orange-bar front hood badges alone go for hundreds of dollars now.

Putting the window trim in is a job that requires a lot of patience and isn't done with the glass still in the car. You shape it carefully and fit it into the gasket and then pop the whole assembly into place using thick twine to pull the seal edge through. So long as no one's used any kind of weird sealant on the glass, it's a pretty straightforward two-man job.

You should register your ownership of the car at the VTK site, which is devoted to the 1972 model.

You'll get the best concentration of early-car expertise at the Early S Registry. Guys there will be able to tell you if a passenger-side mirror offered as an option that year or if it was only ever on the driver's side. They'll also be able to identify the color (India Red?), and everything else.

AOW162435

Very cool! As silly as it sounds, I wish the oil filler door had stayed until Porsche finished with the 993s.


Andreas