masterdave

My current daily driver is a minivan, and in short I have had enough of it. I do own an 88 924s and a 78 911SC but for various reasons those can not be my daily drivers. Today I found a very decent 72 914/4 for a reasonable price. The car would be my daily driver for the most part. I am in college and dont drive every day because I can walk to class and just about every where I need but some places require driving. I will be using it every day this summer to get to work.

So to the question,
Has any one used this car as there DD or know how reliable they are, I know they are P-cars and require a bit more than your average car and I am willing to do that, but if they are reasonable reliable then this could be a serious possibility.

Regards
Dave

RSbob

Sure people use them as dds, but the cars are usually in excellent condition and well maintained. If you are really good with tools and on the fly repairs, go for it.

Jay Gratton

A 914 would make a really bad DD! A 914 worth anything is at least $8K+ and driving it in rain (or allowing it to sit in the rain) will ruin the car quickly.

racer

Living in westchester, not sure I'd want to DD based on crappy roads and use of salt in winter.

That said, about 15 years ago I daily drove my 914. No ac.. smwlly heat... vinyl black to seats to stick to.. all made it a challenge. That said, mine was very reliable (10K miles in 2 years); drove it in winter too with 4 snows mounted up.

Did I mention the roofs often leak?

If you lived in a mild year round climate (say, southern cali) id say yes, absolutely.

Oh,.. and you will need to do valve adjustments, timing adjustments, points etc. I forget the factory intervals, but I'd imagine they were in the 3-5-7K mile range to maintain optimal performance.

Driving around next to 4-5,000lb cars and truck can feel a bit intimidating these days and driving a car with only 70-100hp poses its own challenges.

Peter Zimmermann

Dave, here's a link for what you might face after buying an unknown, 35+ year old car!

https://rennlist.com/forums/914-914-...-74-1-8-a.html

Clay Perrine

Not true. My wife has a 914 that has been her daily driver for 26 years. Very reliable and always fun. Sometimes she even lets me drive it.

Jay Gratton

Your wife drives a 914 everyday in Texas heat, in the rain and possible snow? Also, the fact that you live in Texas and not up state NY is a big difference. A 914 makes a bad DD and I stand by my statement.

However, I admire your wife if she does drive it everyday.

NaroEscape

Our car, Papa Smurf, was my father in laws DD until we bought it and turned it into...well...Papa Smurf....
He lives in Colorado, drove it every day back and forth to work for 15 years until we bought it in 1993. Rain, snow, sun, heat....

One of our buddies here in Charlotte used his as a DD for years until he got a company car with his new job. As does John Forbes that owns Black Forest Racing...

I see no reason at all why a nice, well maintained 914 can't be used as a daily driver. Dave said he doesn't need it every day for work. As long as you accept some of the little quirks and inconveniences (like a leaky targa top) and you keep it maintained, you should be fine....

And Yes...Clay's wife does drive her 914 every day....

skl

Mine was my DD for three years when it was new. Killed me to drive it in the snow and I washed off the undercarriage a couple times a week in the winter. Was SO glad to get an old '66 Beetle for my DD- of course, it swallowed a valve a month after I got it, so I learned how to rebuild VW engines!!
(Came in handy- have since rebuilt several 914 engines...)

Clay Perrine

The 74 1.8L L-Jet car has working AC and heat, gets 30MPG, and has been driven daily by her for much of the last 26 years. It is also an AX car. And she drove it to Huntsville and Eastern Tennessee for the MUSR events. Both times it ran perfectly, and the only problem was on the Huntsville trip, and that involved the loss of the instrument lights. And yes, Bob followed her down the Dragon.

I admit deep snow would be a problem for a car as low as a 914, but otherwise just drive it. That is what it was built for, not to sit in the garage.

Matt Romanowski

^^Coming from a guy in Texas, who has not seen what road salt and a winter will do to a car.

Jay Gratton

Spoken like a true New Englander!

Peter Zimmermann

CA; same as Texas. I drove a '70 914/6, as a DD, for over three years. Drove a '73 2.0 for more than two years. No snow. Not much rain, maybe 20-25"/year. Spun the six on an on-ramp in the rain, didn't hit anything. Almost got killed in the 6 in a heavy downpour going home through Malibu when some a-hole in a Carrera Targa thought he could drive through foot deep water (the right lane of PCH was flooded) at 70 mph. Last thing I saw before a layer of mud covered my car was a-hole going up PCH backwards, past the right side of my car. Somehow I found the double left turn lane and avoided getting hit head on until my wipers cleared the windshield and I could see again. A-hole ended up near the base of the cliff, I didn't stop to offer to help. 914s. Special little cars.

skl

When I still drove mine in the winter ( back in '72 I think) I was trying to drive up my parent's driveway, which was up a pretty good hill with 2 decent corners and nearly 1/2 mile long in deep snow. ALMOST made it to the crest of the hill but starting sliding backwards. Kept it under control until the bottom of the hill when I lost it and went backwards into a barbed wire fence. Luckily I was almost stopped and only ended up putting a little scratch in the rear quarter panel and a divot in the rubber bumper. Was about ready to kill myself… ah, the memories...

Clay Perrine

Ah... but I HAVE seen what road salt and winter weather can do to a car.


I was born in Texas, but I lived for 14 years in a suburb of Youngstown, Ohio. We had neighbors who had a "winter car" that usually had flapping fenders from all the rust, and you didn't put things in the trunk for fear of them falling through the floor.

I actually tried to fix the brakes on my sister's Impala, and the frame collapsed around the jack stand from all the rust.

My dad used to buy cars in Texas when we visited family in the summer, and resell them in Ohio. Made money doing it too.

Those winters are why we don't live in Ohio any more.