Itinerant Air-Cooled

So the nice 1968 912 that I was looking at before sold before I had a chance to get down to San Luis Obispo and it appeared to be less pristine than it looked in the pictures. Now I have my eye on a 912E (1976) here in Berkeley:


This one has a bus/914 engine (original, a one-year only thing), which would be cool if the engine were unmolested, but they removed the FI:


So the question is whether that is a big problem or whether I can use the FI stuff I once got for the bus to bring this back to spec. Or would you need to find Porsche 912 FI stuff? That would be hard because I think there were only 5000 made of these.

I am still more in love with the older 911/912s, but having one with a bus engine would be very practical and the later years are less rust prone too.

Some of the Ljet stuff will work, some of it is 912 specific but parts are around. It was a 914 2.0L engine with Ljet on it so they do run nice when set up, about 95hp. Cheaper and easier to upgrade this motor than a 912 (356) motor.

Bleyseng wrote:Some of the Ljet stuff will work, some of it is 912 specific but parts are around. It was a 914 2.0L engine with Ljet on it so they do run nice when set up, about 95hp. Cheaper and easier to upgrade this motor than a 912 (356) motor.

Thank you! Do you know which parts are 912-specific? I assume the brain and the AFM, but anything else?

I think it would be really fun to have a bus and a Porsche with exactly the same engine. My bus feels pretty strong with the 2 liter engine so I can imagine that would be fun to get you around in a Porsche.

for what its worth, my Bus (2.0) came with 914 L-jet AFM and ECU and functions fine...im sure there is enough leeway with interchangeability for decent fuel delivery


aesthetically, i much prefer the early 912 models

dingo wrote:aesthetically, i much prefer the early 912 models

I agree, but decent ones are hard to find and very expensive. Also, the later Porsches are supposed to be much safer.
(I love the picture of Pepper!)

Covelo, have you driven the car? looked it over? had someone else look/listen and drive?

Looks great!

midatlanticys wrote:Covelo, have you driven the car? looked it over? had someone else look/listen and drive?

Looks great!

I'm going over for a test drive tomorrow. Looking forward to it.

covelo wrote:

midatlanticys wrote:Covelo, have you driven the car? looked it over? had someone else look/listen and drive?

Looks great!

I'm going over for a test drive tomorrow. Looking forward to it.

Well, we just came back and were a little disappointed in the whole experience. First, there must have been something wrong with the exhaust because it sounded like the engine was sitting in the back seat. Nice bus rumble but it drove us crazy after 10 minutes. It made our 1972 Westfalia sound like a Lexus inside.

More importantly perhaps, I could never get comfortable behind the wheel. I test drove some 911s 10-15 years ago and I can't imagine growing since then, but with the seat all the way back my right leg was jammed between the steering wheel and the stick shift and my head touched the ceiling (this one did have a sunroof). I knew these cars weren't big, but at 6'4 I expected to at least fit comfortably in a German car like this. I didn't remember that cramped experience from before.

Aside from those issues the car drove fine but felt trashy otherwise. Cracks in the interior, a bad blistering paint job, saggy seats, and stains on the ceiling. Those red-brownish Porsche interiors really must be pristine to work. I feel like it is going to take a while to find this fun midlife crisis car.

covelo wrote:. . . . I feel like it is going to take a while to find this fun midlife crisis car.

. . . . and so it might! finding a dream takes time and lotsa patience. I'm pretty sure the *right* automobile will speak to you and your sub-conscious. If you wake up one mornin' with teeth marks and a big sore black-n-blue in your neck you'll know you've been bitten by the right choice . . . . if not, move on, keep looking for the one that does!! . . . . the one that really gets a hold of ya!

Covelo, Keep looking. There are some really nice ones out there. I like the early ones better too. If you get a chance this summer, head north to the Portland area and we can go to the Campout at Gary Emory's in McMinnville. It's a Porsche/VW 3 day event.

I have many pics in our gallery on the other site.. See some cars from that campout and also see my Porsches.

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/album_ ... waydesigns

I've had my 69 912 for 18 years and the 74 914 for 8 years. Both are a blast to drive. Many smiles per mile too!!

Oh and one more thing, if you are looking at 912s, the 68s were a one year thing with an odd interior and it is a short body. The 69 was the pinnacle of the 912s.....

R and C
Fly Away Designs

flyawaydesigns wrote:the 68s were a one year thing with an odd interior and it is a short body. The 69 was the pinnacle of the 912s.....

Short wheel base . . . same body. Short wheelbase had the most . . . interesting . . . handling.

Covelo, these cars suffer from every Tom Dick and Harry Sportscar Driver Wannabee Racer shmuck beating the hell out out of those poor wonderful gearboxes.
Keep looking.
Colin

Amskeptic wrote:

flyawaydesigns wrote:the 68s were a one year thing with an odd interior and it is a short body. The 69 was the pinnacle of the 912s.....

Short wheel base . . . same body. Short wheelbase had the most . . . interesting . . . handling.

Covelo, these cars suffer from every Tom Dick and Harry Sportscar Driver Wannabee Racer shmuck beating the hell out out of those poor wonderful gearboxes.
Keep looking.
Colin

yes and the price for a rebuild is starting at $2000 as parts are scarce and expensive for 901 series trannys.

Yes, the 901 transmissions are expensive to repair. My 69 recently was in the shop for transmission issues. The syncro rings alone were priced like they were made from "unobtanium" and the total bill was $5400 (that did include some seal replacement and some other minor maintenance. But at near 200K miles on the car's original transmission, it was time to freshen the gearbox.....the car drives as new now though.....and it's a joy to drive.

Last synchro's cost me $54 each, not too bad but the first gear slider new was $500. I found a nice used one outta of my stash of 901 tranny parts.

5k for a transmission...I can't imagine paying that much. But I am s-l-o-w anyway.