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Hey everyone, longtime lurker here. I need your collective wisdom to help me out on a project. I am building a restomod 914 and am wanting to swap in the engine and transmission from a 987.2 or 981. I had considered buying the necessary parts piece by piece but am now considering buying an entire wrecked car and swapping all required parts over to the 914. So, the big question is, what will I need to save from the donor car and what can be eliminated? I've scoured the internet for any information on this subject but it seems that swapping a modern Porsche engine into anything else is not a common situation. I know the electronics are going to be a battle and I've considered going to a standalone system but, on these modern DI and Variocam engines, that sounds like a nightmare on its own. I figured if I could swap enough of the sensors and harnesses from the donor car, I might be able to trick the engine into thinking its still in the original chassis. Can anyone provide any insight or suggestions here before I dive headfirst and buy a donor. Thanks!
Not my car but similar to what mine will look like when done.
Last edited by Beschleunigt; 05-21-2020 at 10:15 PM.
Alright, don't everyone jump in at once. Haha. I figured I would have at least gotten people to tell me I was crazy and that it won't work. I know there are some very knowledgeable tuners and builders on this site. Hoping that some of you have a bit a insight to help me take the first couple of steps here.
Hey. As a 914/6 builder myself, you might be better off on a build site, such as The H.A.M.B. or DDK-Online, as most us here are stock, and a license plate frame or new head unit is considered radical.
Joke!
Though, there is a V8 Cayman thread here, and a Cayenne-engined 914 too somewhere.
I think someone even put a 3.6L in a SWB 911 too!
But, you get the idea...
Hey. As a 914/6 builder myself, you might be better off on a build site, such as The H.A.M.B. or DDK-Online, as most us here are stock, and a license plate frame or new head unit is considered radical.
Joke!
Hey Kuro Neko, Nice to hear that there are some other 914 builders/owners on here. I agree that this might not be the right place for a discussion like this but I don't really intend this to be an all out build thread. I'm mainly hoping that some of you might have some experiences that could help me get started here. I imagine that the guys who have built race cars from 987s and 981s have had to deal with some level of disabling systems and removing complexity in their cars. That kind of detail could really help me out on my build.
Originally Posted by Boiler Inspector
I personally think an electric motor conversion into a 914 would be more interesting than a 9A1 engine.
Hi Boiler Inspector. Don't think it hasn't crossed my mind from time to time. My day job is actually working on electric cars but, as much as I think they are cool, I still think they lack the character that a combustion engined car can have. I get a smile on my face every time I fire up my Cayman. I guess I'm just an old school car guy (even though I'm technically a Millennial) who loves loud engines and the smell of exhaust. Sure, I can't argue against the performance of an electric motor, but it's not what I want in my classic 914.
Maybe I should start with a couple specific questions.
Do I have to run the stock instrument cluster from the donor car. I've heard the immobolizer on these things can be pretty tricky to work around and the instrument cluster is usually part of that system. Ideally I'd like to eliminate the instrument cluster, run the stock 914 gauges, and add a new gauge somewhere to allow me to check the oil level of the engine.
Can I get away with not running the wheel speed sensors? I know that some of the systems in the car (ABS, TC, PSM) use data from the wheel speed sensors. If I'm not planning to use those systems, can I eliminate the sensors without causing the ECU to freak out?
Maybe I should start with a couple specific questions.
Do I have to run the stock instrument cluster from the donor car. I've heard the immobolizer on these things can be pretty tricky to work around and the instrument cluster is usually part of that system. Ideally I'd like to eliminate the instrument cluster, run the stock 914 gauges, and add a new gauge somewhere to allow me to check the oil level of the engine.
Can I get away with not running the wheel speed sensors? I know that some of the systems in the car (ABS, TC, PSM) use data from the wheel speed sensors. If I'm not planning to use those systems, can I eliminate the sensors without causing the ECU to freak out?
You are going to need dash, wiring harness, sensors from the 9A1 donor. Visionmotorsports swapped a 9A1 from a 987.2 into a 987.1 chassis -- this required the full factory harness, dash, sensors. IMO, your suggested swap makes no sense. Do a 993 aircooled without Varioram. The most recent version on Panorama has a great article of just such a build. Why add all the complexity of computers, sensors, and water cooling to what could be a simple, reliable, and fast car?
You are going to need dash, wiring harness, sensors from the 9A1 donor. Visionmotorsports swapped a 9A1 from a 987.2 into a 987.1 chassis -- this required the full factory harness, dash, sensors. IMO, your suggested swap makes no sense. Do a 993 aircooled without Varioram. The most recent version on Panorama has a great article of just such a build. Why add all the complexity of computers, sensors, and water cooling to what could be a simple, reliable, and fast car?
DJM
Yeah, I can't argue the simplicity of a 993 3.6 aircooled swap. That would certainly be the easiest way to get close to this level of performance. The issue I have with the 3.6l conversions is the crazy cost associated with them. I could pretty easily pick up an entire 987.2 or 981 donor car for the price of just the 3.6l engine from a 993. That doesn't include any costs to freshen it up or rebuild it. That doesn't include the 914-6 Oil tank, a 915 or G50 transmission conversion (because the 901 isn't going to be happy behind a 3.6l for long), or any of the other conversion parts required for that swap. While the 3.6l conversion isn't complicated, I think its many times more expensive than what I'm looking at for the 9A1 conversion. I realize that there are probably lots of things that I've not considered for the 9A1 swap (hence why I'm here posting) but I think it has a real possibility to provide an awesome, modern powertrain with power levels at or above that of the best NA aircooleds out there AND at a price much lower than one of the big aircooled conversions. Yes, I could also stuff an LS V8 in the back but that goes against my inner purist who tells me that I need to keep this thing Porsche powered.
When you take any modern engine and try to swap it back to an old skool car, it is very tricky. I think MOPAR and GM, maybe Ford too, have engine replacements that take that into consideration. Otherwise the original ignition switch harness probably wont work.
I think the idea of using an appropriate Porsche engine is right, didn't some of the 914s come with a 6cyl engine?
I've been driving the same 914 for nearly 50 years and also have a 981 spyder I also absolutely love. I couldn't imagine trying to do that- the expense and time involved would maybe have it running by the time you're my age...
Do a nice 6 upgrade (AC'ed) if you really want more power... just IMHO
Why not just take a 987.2 and ugly it up to look like a 914?
Lol, that would take some work. The 987s are beautiful cars. Certainly makes the 914 look that much uglier when they are sitting next to each other in the garage. That being said, I still love the ugly duckling 914. Beautiful in its own way and still a blast to drive.
Originally Posted by Barry100
When you take any modern engine and try to swap it back to an old skool car, it is very tricky. I think MOPAR and GM, maybe Ford too, have engine replacements that take that into consideration. Otherwise the original ignition switch harness probably wont work.
I think the idea of using an appropriate Porsche engine is right, didn't some of the 914s come with a 6cyl engine?
Yeah, I wish Porsche would get in on the crate engine and engine swap action that the big 3 are part of. Certainly would make it easier if I could just buy an "engine swap kit" or something directly from Porsche. And yes, they did make 914s with 6 cylinder engines. Thats why aircooled 6 cylinder conversions are so common and relatively simple.
I've been driving the same 914 for nearly 50 years and also have a 981 spyder I also absolutely love. I couldn't imagine trying to do that- the expense and time involved would maybe have it running by the time you're my age...
Do a nice 6 upgrade (AC'ed) if you really want more power... just IMHO
That's awesome that you have had your 914 for almost 50 years! You must have taken great care of it. Mine looked pretty nice from the outside but, like many of it siblings, it's got its share of rust that needs to be repaired. That's step one of this project. The other steps are kind of up in the air at this point.
05-21-2020, 12:33 PM
9A1 Swap Into 914!
