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As to "documentation," you might want to check out Stuttgart Studios for a virtually perfect recreation of the car's original window sticker. Over time I've purchased four of these and have been delighted every time. While the owner will not pout anything on the sticker that hasn't been officially confirmed, the end product can only be identified as a reproduction by the tiny "Stuttgart Studios" imprint at the bottom. He even offers options for varying degrees of "photo aging," and the results are pretty amazing. Takes a bit of time and he's not cheap, but in my view, you more than get what you paid for. (I have no financial interest in the company.)
Below its a photo of their work on a BMW my son owns. The "aging" shown-- including the "glue remnants," paper color, and wrinkles-- was chosen by me.
Last edited by no.radar; 06-15-2021 at 09:36 AM.
Reason: added details
Does this mean that the early pasha 5 speed had the rubber spoiler added later on by an owner? If so, why? If so, was this a common modification? If so, is it wise to keep the modification or remove it and how does this affect value?
Why? To make the car look newer.
Page through car magazines from 1964+ and you'll see ads for body kits to remove the "split" from a split window 1963 Corvette to make it look more modern. Later in the 70's are ads for plastic bumpers to "update" the look of 1968 - 1973 Corvette's eliminating the chrome bumpers. Two modifications that would be blasphemous to do now, it made sense back then.
Same goes for the "S" spoilers, the non-spoiler cars looked dated to some folks once the "S" look hit the scene. Same reason why companies made S4 look bumpers for the early cars.
Should you remove them? That really depends on your long term plans for the car. If you're planning on catching up on maintenance & enjoy the car then probably not. Removing those spoilers will requires some body work to fill the holes, new 1/4 window trim / seals etc... All in could expect it to cost several thousand dollars (the window seals alone are $350 each).
First off, welcome. This place can be a bit intimdating, but as long as you are asking questions and actually paying attention to the answers, you will get a lot of help here (you already have).
People on here will call out 'stupidity', and point out issues with the car*. Or with stupid people giving you bad or ignorant advice, especially if they are so-called 'mechanics' and you are paying for that bad info.
If you take those sorts of posts with an understanding that they are trying to be helpful, and a bit of 'thick skin', you'll be fine. Keep in mind that the folks on here care about the car. They will call out stuff that will damage or hurt the car, even if it's not 'super nice'.
I saw your FB posts, and tried to answer a few of the questions you were asking.
This place is better.
As was pointed out in the pic above, the strut towers are the place where the front coilovers bolt into the top of the fender. It's a place that isn't usually painted unless it's a 'bare shell' restoration/paint job.
Another is in the back, under the rear quarter interior panels, as Greg noted.
Another tell: What color is the "928" in the bottom of the door opening. That 928 is just a clear section of the plastic. Whatever color is showing is the color of the body shell underneath. It looks like it's lighter than the red in the picture, but it's hard to tell for sure.
Lots of early cars had the spoilers added on. While not 'correct', it's largely a matter of taste.
The problem with removing them is that there are a bunch of holes that will have been drilled into the body to mount them. It's not a trivial task to revert back to original.
* - 2 issues that I can see right off the bat:
Your air filter is upside down. Not a huge issue, and do NOT just flip it back. When you put a new one in, make sure the 'hump' is up. Ignore any arrows on it.
You are missing both the jump post cap and 14 pin cover. Passenger side fender, just behind the radiator. The stud sticking out is 12 hot. If anything grounds it out, it will get rather... Interesting. The large connector plug just behind it is the 14 pin connector. That is the plug that connects the engine harness to the body. There's a boxy cover for that, and a cap that goes over the jump post. Both are readily available, not expensive and often missing. Not essential to the operation of the car, but a good idea to have.
Welcome - we were all 928 noobs at one point. Heck, i have 2 of them now and still kind of am, but the folks here are super helpful.
If the front and rear spoilers are in nice shape and you decide to remove them for originality, the spoilers on my 81 Euro S 5-speed could use a fresher set and I'd be interested in purchasing a good set from you or someone else - shipping from Canada to SC might be a little more complicated than necessary though.
Copy that- no spoilers...ever....were an option for the 1979. That means they will need to be removed, hoping this isn't a problem.
In terms of paint question- When I looked into the trunk area (under the carpet, in the battery area etc.), I discovered that someone had painted the areas black so no clues there. The interior of the car is black btw.
In terms of the engine bay- take a look at this pic, should be fairly hi def enough to zoom in- your thoughts? Engine bay...in need of a good cleaning
How about some minor sanding to get through that black paint, in the rear trunk area, and see what is under it?
First off, welcome. This place can be a bit intimdating, but as long as you are asking questions and actually paying attention to the answers, you will get a lot of help here (you already have).
People on here will call out 'stupidity', and point out issues with the car*. Or with stupid people giving you bad or ignorant advice, especially if they are so-called 'mechanics' and you are paying for that bad info.
If you take those sorts of posts with an understanding that they are trying to be helpful, and a bit of 'thick skin', you'll be fine. Keep in mind that the folks on here care about the car. They will call out stuff that will damage or hurt the car, even if it's not 'super nice'.
I saw your FB posts, and tried to answer a few of the questions you were asking.
This place is better.
As was pointed out in the pic above, the strut towers are the place where the front coilovers bolt into the top of the fender. It's a place that isn't usually painted unless it's a 'bare shell' restoration/paint job.
Another is in the back, under the rear quarter interior panels, as Greg noted.
Another tell: What color is the "928" in the bottom of the door opening. That 928 is just a clear section of the plastic. Whatever color is showing is the color of the body shell underneath. It looks like it's lighter than the red in the picture, but it's hard to tell for sure.
Lots of early cars had the spoilers added on. While not 'correct', it's largely a matter of taste.
The problem with removing them is that there are a bunch of holes that will have been drilled into the body to mount them. It's not a trivial task to revert back to original.
* - 2 issues that I can see right off the bat:
Your air filter is upside down. Not a huge issue, and do NOT just flip it back. When you put a new one in, make sure the 'hump' is up. Ignore any arrows on it.
You are missing both the jump post cap and 14 pin cover. Passenger side fender, just behind the radiator. The stud sticking out is 12 hot. If anything grounds it out, it will get rather... Interesting. The large connector plug just behind it is the 14 pin connector. That is the plug that connects the engine harness to the body. There's a boxy cover for that, and a cap that goes over the jump post. Both are readily available, not expensive and often missing. Not essential to the operation of the car, but a good idea to have.
I wonder if the '78/'79 cars actually had a 14 pin cover?
Certainly, the early jump post cover (which simply pushes on) wasn't up to the task of keeping a cover on.
Originally, there was a strip of beading that ran down most of the length of the inner fender edge.
That beading made little sense, unless it was designed to keep water from running off the inside edge and dripping into the engine area.
I wonder if the '78/'79 cars actually had a 14 pin cover?
Certainly, the early jump post cover (which simply pushes on) wasn't up to the task of keeping a cover on.
Originally, there was a strip of beading that ran down most of the length of the inner fender edge.
That beading made little sense, unless it was designed to keep water from running off the inside edge and dripping into the engine area.
Good point.
I could certainly be wrong on the cover.
My understanding is that the early 78s didn't have it.
I thought that later 78s and on all had it.
The push on cap went well into the 80s.
It only did part of the job holding the cover on. The 'clip on' part that holds it to the fender does a fair amount of the work.
I've been hooking a battery tender to the jump post, and I've managed to leave the cap off a couple times. The cover usually (not always) stays.
This car deserves a best fate...that means reverting alterations and damage... so the spoilers must be removed. Certainly anxious about further costs (350$ usd EACH!)....is there no way to salvage ones on via careful removal and reuse? PS love that Top Gear quote and agree certainly one of the best looking cars EVER. PPS I think they are more captivating without the added rubber spoilers.
Can you believe I actually jump started this car to get it to the mechanics the other day? Weeks of careful daily starting and idling thwarted by a faulty passenger power seat switch led to a flat battery!
Thanks for pointing out those faults- will make necessary changes...we don't want to create any unnecessary 'sparks'.
How about some minor sanding to get through that black paint, in the rear trunk area, and see what is under it?
That I will do once the car returns from the mechanics...if true- my mechanic used to work on the 928 racers in the 80s here in the Peterborough Area (Indy track nearby?) so he certainly seems confident about making necessary Step 1 repairs. My plan was/is(?) to get the car 'tuned', safetied and running well enough to drive to a classic Porsche specialist shop where they can do a thorough inspection and treatment plan (Step 2).
Here's the "rear interior quarter panels" that Greg mentioned you might also want to look under. It is a bit challenging to get the whole thing out (a good thread on how to do it), and then there may be an additional layer of insulation to peek under, but if you are redoing any of the rear interior, it is a great learning experience.
Your cowl cover saw it's last good days many days ago. Jerry Feather offers a very high quality replacement unit complete with the seal that sits on the firewall (no affiliation but I just did mine and it just makes a huge difference). It makes a big diff. in appearance when the hood is up...more than you'd think. It's also very easy peasy to install (comes with well documented instructions) and provides needed protection.
And put a jump post cover on....no kidding....its dangerous to run around with it uncovered...make this a priority. They are not expensive. Congratulations on the car; it looks great. They are a lot of fun.
Shipping is always possible and I have not only Canada Post but also Fed Ex and Purolator in the neighbouring town.
Connect with me on email- send me a private msg here on the forum and we can pick things up. Not saying I am for sure removing the spoilers but I think thats the plan and the direction.
06-15-2021, 09:33 AM
and agree certainly one of the best looking cars EVER. PPS I think they are more captivating without the added rubber spoilers.
