Heading to Hershey: Another 931 Rescue
01-25-2010, 11:22 AM
#1
Former Vendor
Thread Starter
Heading to Hershey: Another 931 Rescue
Leaving Friday afternoon to go fetch this forlorn foreigner currently sitting in a small town near Hershey PA. Will be a tight schedule to get there and back on a single overnight...but, anybody along the route between Detroit and Hershey? We might be able to visit briefly on our return trip on Saturday...
01-28-2010, 02:03 PM
#7
Former Vendor
Thread Starter
Alex, if this car pans out, I may end up with an extra 931 hood AND vented badge panel...I had one of each stashed away last year for my post-UWB project, but if this car turns out to be a keeper, I probably won't need the extras...
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01-28-2010, 02:16 PM
#8
Rennlist Member
Don't need the badge panel, but would definitely love the hood!
01-28-2010, 07:31 PM
#10
Former Vendor
Thread Starter
My spare badge panel has a small ding in it on the corner up by the RHS headlight area. Nothing that's not repairable, but it's not perfect. I'll decide after the weekend what I'm doing and post back regarding the hood and badge panel. The spare badge panel is black and includes all the plastic inserts. I'll provide pix, of course, if I decide to sell it.
01-28-2010, 07:59 PM
#11
Burning Brakes
Let me know, I am very interested. I was hoping that if you were selling it now, I could meet you at hershey, PA or something nd bring cash. Its ONLY 2.5 hours away........ Lol.
01-31-2010, 04:21 PM
#13
Former Vendor
Thread Starter
The trip went FLAWLESSLY. Everything went exactly according to plan, smooth as glass, no troubles, no tickets, no surprises
Still a little undecided on exactly what direction I want to go. I don't plan to sell it, nor to part it out. I'm currently thinking about a pseudo-restore, and might go in the direction of a "club sport" type of setup. So delete the terrible rear seat, remove both power mirrors, and install a LHS-only manual mirror (which I have in my stash). The car is dolomite grey, so when it comes time to respray (which it will need), I'll probably keep it that color. I'm also toying around with just leaving it in satin black, but we'll see how serious I get about the "restore". I don't think I'll do any major engine mods, but rather, keep it in it's stock 177BHP Euro-spec form. I *might* consider a boost controller, but that's about the extent of engine mods.
I was hoping for an LSD on that G31, but no such luck, ah well. Haven't driven it yet, other than pulling onto the trailer, and won't be attempting anything more than that until the timing belt & tension roller are changed. So, I don't yet know the condition of the gearbox. I have plenty of G31s lying about, so regardless, it'll keep a G31 of some sort.
The hood is not original, and has been sprayed black primer. I suspect some trauma to the hood because of some suspicious scarring in a few areas, but I have a spare 931 hood to swap on if that turns out to be the case.
The worst issue is the rear LHS quarter panel, as it will definitely require some bump work and repaint. All in all, however, the damage is not too terrible, so I'm confident I'll be able to retain the chassis. The Euro bumpers don't mount up straight, and haven't had a chance to investigate why. I suspect bent brackets. The car was definitely federalized by a private party. The front fenders have Mercedes side markers added on just ahead of the wheels, and the rear round side markers are also add ons, as they're surface mounted, rather than flush mounted like a US car. So as part of the restore, I will remove both of those, fill in the holes, and retain the Euro side markers aft of the front wheels.
The interior is interesting for sure. A/C delete, so it has an OEM volt meter and an aftermarket boost gauge, which I will definitely be changing out for a VDO unit. It has manual window regulators with the rare PORSCHE script door cards, but some idiot damaged them where the door pulls attach. The damage is pretty severe, but I might be able to have Bob at Classic 9 do something to repair them. TBD. Would be a shame to not be able to keep them.
Both front seats are in UNBELIEVABLE condition. They have the same grey tweed that's in my 81 NA, and they are nearly pristine, just a little dirty, but no tears, no obvious wear, and the piping is in excellent shape. The rear seats, on the contrary, are in AWFUL condition. The carpet isn't too terribly bad, but the rear quarter liners are in bad shape, as is the headliner, and the carpet near the quarter liners is completely missing.
The car runs, started right up. No apparent oil leaks, although there is residue on the head and around the turbo, fairly common, but no major drips. No smoking at all on startup. Have not had a chance to see if the turbo spools, and again, won't be testing that out until the timing belt is changed. The upper charge tube somehow managed to get a giant hole in it, which the PO "fixed" by wrapping it in duct tape. Good thing I have a spare S2 upper charge tube on the shelf. It also has an aftermarket strut brace of a make I've never before seen, which is pretty cool, will take photos of that later. It's missing the correct S2 ignition distributor, but runs with a plain jane NA dizzy, so I'll replace that with one of the two DITC dizzies I have on the shelf.
It has five lug suspension, and has front and rear sways, haven't had a chance to see if it's the M471 package. The spiderwebs appear to have been rattle canned in satin black, but they actually look pretty darn good.
Overall, I'm very pleased with the car, especially for what I paid. It will definitely be a fun project to bring back to life.
Still a little undecided on exactly what direction I want to go. I don't plan to sell it, nor to part it out. I'm currently thinking about a pseudo-restore, and might go in the direction of a "club sport" type of setup. So delete the terrible rear seat, remove both power mirrors, and install a LHS-only manual mirror (which I have in my stash). The car is dolomite grey, so when it comes time to respray (which it will need), I'll probably keep it that color. I'm also toying around with just leaving it in satin black, but we'll see how serious I get about the "restore". I don't think I'll do any major engine mods, but rather, keep it in it's stock 177BHP Euro-spec form. I *might* consider a boost controller, but that's about the extent of engine mods.
I was hoping for an LSD on that G31, but no such luck, ah well. Haven't driven it yet, other than pulling onto the trailer, and won't be attempting anything more than that until the timing belt & tension roller are changed. So, I don't yet know the condition of the gearbox. I have plenty of G31s lying about, so regardless, it'll keep a G31 of some sort.
The hood is not original, and has been sprayed black primer. I suspect some trauma to the hood because of some suspicious scarring in a few areas, but I have a spare 931 hood to swap on if that turns out to be the case.
The worst issue is the rear LHS quarter panel, as it will definitely require some bump work and repaint. All in all, however, the damage is not too terrible, so I'm confident I'll be able to retain the chassis. The Euro bumpers don't mount up straight, and haven't had a chance to investigate why. I suspect bent brackets. The car was definitely federalized by a private party. The front fenders have Mercedes side markers added on just ahead of the wheels, and the rear round side markers are also add ons, as they're surface mounted, rather than flush mounted like a US car. So as part of the restore, I will remove both of those, fill in the holes, and retain the Euro side markers aft of the front wheels.
The interior is interesting for sure. A/C delete, so it has an OEM volt meter and an aftermarket boost gauge, which I will definitely be changing out for a VDO unit. It has manual window regulators with the rare PORSCHE script door cards, but some idiot damaged them where the door pulls attach. The damage is pretty severe, but I might be able to have Bob at Classic 9 do something to repair them. TBD. Would be a shame to not be able to keep them.
Both front seats are in UNBELIEVABLE condition. They have the same grey tweed that's in my 81 NA, and they are nearly pristine, just a little dirty, but no tears, no obvious wear, and the piping is in excellent shape. The rear seats, on the contrary, are in AWFUL condition. The carpet isn't too terribly bad, but the rear quarter liners are in bad shape, as is the headliner, and the carpet near the quarter liners is completely missing.
The car runs, started right up. No apparent oil leaks, although there is residue on the head and around the turbo, fairly common, but no major drips. No smoking at all on startup. Have not had a chance to see if the turbo spools, and again, won't be testing that out until the timing belt is changed. The upper charge tube somehow managed to get a giant hole in it, which the PO "fixed" by wrapping it in duct tape. Good thing I have a spare S2 upper charge tube on the shelf. It also has an aftermarket strut brace of a make I've never before seen, which is pretty cool, will take photos of that later. It's missing the correct S2 ignition distributor, but runs with a plain jane NA dizzy, so I'll replace that with one of the two DITC dizzies I have on the shelf.
It has five lug suspension, and has front and rear sways, haven't had a chance to see if it's the M471 package. The spiderwebs appear to have been rattle canned in satin black, but they actually look pretty darn good.
Overall, I'm very pleased with the car, especially for what I paid. It will definitely be a fun project to bring back to life.
