Anyone owned an early 911?
Discussion
Well, what do you mean by early?
Mine is 20 years old, owned it for 5 months now, servicing, new exhaust and fixing a few things will have cost me £3k in that time.
The exhaust is a full stainless steel sports exhaust, so I could have spent less than that if I had wanted.
Your biggest enemy is rust, and ensuring the engine does not need a top end rebuild.
Need to quantify the age of car your looking at for more detailed responses.
Mine is 20 years old, owned it for 5 months now, servicing, new exhaust and fixing a few things will have cost me £3k in that time.
The exhaust is a full stainless steel sports exhaust, so I could have spent less than that if I had wanted.
Your biggest enemy is rust, and ensuring the engine does not need a top end rebuild.
Need to quantify the age of car your looking at for more detailed responses.
Suckmychrsitmas said:
What are they like to live with? (Unreliable, prone to rust etc.)
Mine was unreliable and prone to rust.
They cost an absolute fortune to restore - so if you buy and old nail with the view of returning it to concours condition you'd better have deep pockets. There is a reason why restored 356s fetch indecent money...
On the other hand if you are handy mechanically and willing to do the work yourself...
On returning to the Porsche fold years and years later I'm afraid I went for the easy ownership option and bought new.
http://ddk-online.com for early Porsche owners.
Pre 73 cars are the classic pre-impact bumper cars that are the most sought after. They are not galvansied bodies so rust is an issue. Can be used as daily runners but the value and winter wear and tear would take their toll. Post 1968 cars have a longer wheel base which makes them a little less prone to swap ends.
Early 911's are either T,E or S with the S being the most sought after. Good early 912's are also an option being cheaper but visually very similar and with the 4 cylinder engine.
Plenty of great independent specialists to look after them.
Pre 73 cars are the classic pre-impact bumper cars that are the most sought after. They are not galvansied bodies so rust is an issue. Can be used as daily runners but the value and winter wear and tear would take their toll. Post 1968 cars have a longer wheel base which makes them a little less prone to swap ends.
Early 911's are either T,E or S with the S being the most sought after. Good early 912's are also an option being cheaper but visually very similar and with the 4 cylinder engine.
Plenty of great independent specialists to look after them.
Yes I have.
912s are slower than a slow thing - they may look the part but when the chips are down they are just too damn slow.
Early cars rot, a lot have been badly bodged, the injection systems are not particularly sophisticated - they drink fuel and need constant fettling. The heating system is simple and its effectiveness is greatly influenced by the condition of its components, all of which are badly affected by corrosion.
Balancing all of that is sublime handling and the wonderful sound of that flat 6, unfettered by much namby pamby soundproofing...unless of course, you buy a 912, in which case it'll sound like a Beetle...
912s are slower than a slow thing - they may look the part but when the chips are down they are just too damn slow.
Early cars rot, a lot have been badly bodged, the injection systems are not particularly sophisticated - they drink fuel and need constant fettling. The heating system is simple and its effectiveness is greatly influenced by the condition of its components, all of which are badly affected by corrosion.
Balancing all of that is sublime handling and the wonderful sound of that flat 6, unfettered by much namby pamby soundproofing...unless of course, you buy a 912, in which case it'll sound like a Beetle...
Yep and they're great...
Mind you, i'll echo the comments about rust and car and attention. It really helps if you have access to a garage. I'm wondering what to do with mine when it comes back in a couple of months from its restoration. Will be hard to part, but I don't have a garage and I don't want to see it disintegrate again.
I ran mine as my only car for the last year. Did business miles up and down the motorway (which did leave me pretty knackered at the end of the day, but which was fine); went down to the alps for the summer - perfect journey for the car; even used it to run to and from the garden centre with a plant out the sunroof and bags of gravel for the garden. They're actually pretty practical.
Noisy on long journeys, ventilation fan gave up the ghost almost immediately, and I had leaks from the sunroof and perished window seals.
If you can buy fully restored, then do it, but make sure you get it checked professionally as a lot just have shiny coats of paint. If, like me, you buy a cheap poor condition one then as the others have said, you'll need deep pockets. Mine ate £4k last year on a new gearbox, heat exchangers, exhaust, distributor, battery, sunroof repairs, brake rebuilds etc. And now I'm looking at an £8k bill for a top end rebuild, electric problems being sorted, new carpets, steering wheel, body rot sorted out and a complete bar metal respray.
It'll be perfect when it comes back, and worth what I've spent, so I'm not bothered as it feels like you are doing the right thing, but you do need to have the cash for it!
Mind you, i'll echo the comments about rust and car and attention. It really helps if you have access to a garage. I'm wondering what to do with mine when it comes back in a couple of months from its restoration. Will be hard to part, but I don't have a garage and I don't want to see it disintegrate again.
I ran mine as my only car for the last year. Did business miles up and down the motorway (which did leave me pretty knackered at the end of the day, but which was fine); went down to the alps for the summer - perfect journey for the car; even used it to run to and from the garden centre with a plant out the sunroof and bags of gravel for the garden. They're actually pretty practical.
Noisy on long journeys, ventilation fan gave up the ghost almost immediately, and I had leaks from the sunroof and perished window seals.
If you can buy fully restored, then do it, but make sure you get it checked professionally as a lot just have shiny coats of paint. If, like me, you buy a cheap poor condition one then as the others have said, you'll need deep pockets. Mine ate £4k last year on a new gearbox, heat exchangers, exhaust, distributor, battery, sunroof repairs, brake rebuilds etc. And now I'm looking at an £8k bill for a top end rebuild, electric problems being sorted, new carpets, steering wheel, body rot sorted out and a complete bar metal respray.
It'll be perfect when it comes back, and worth what I've spent, so I'm not bothered as it feels like you are doing the right thing, but you do need to have the cash for it!
Yep and they're great...
Mind you, i'll echo the comments about rust and car and attention. It really helps if you have access to a garage. I'm wondering what to do with mine when it comes back in a couple of months from its restoration. Will be hard to part, but I don't have a garage and I don't want to see it disintegrate again.
I ran mine as my only car for the last year. Did business miles up and down the motorway (which did leave me pretty knackered at the end of the day, but which was fine); went down to the alps for the summer - perfect journey for the car; even used it to run to and from the garden centre with a plant out the sunroof and bags of gravel for the garden. They're actually pretty practical.
Noisy on long journeys, ventilation fan gave up the ghost almost immediately, and I had leaks from the sunroof and perished window seals.
If you can buy fully restored, then do it, but make sure you get it checked professionally as a lot just have shiny coats of paint. If, like me, you buy a cheap poor condition one then as the others have said, you'll need deep pockets. Mine ate £4k last year on a new gearbox, heat exchangers, exhaust, distributor, battery, sunroof repairs, brake rebuilds etc. And now I'm looking at an £8k bill for a top end rebuild, electric problems being sorted, new carpets, steering wheel, body rot sorted out and a complete bar metal respray.
It'll be perfect when it comes back, and worth what I've spent, so I'm not bothered as it feels like you are doing the right thing, but you do need to have the cash for it!
Mind you, i'll echo the comments about rust and car and attention. It really helps if you have access to a garage. I'm wondering what to do with mine when it comes back in a couple of months from its restoration. Will be hard to part, but I don't have a garage and I don't want to see it disintegrate again.
I ran mine as my only car for the last year. Did business miles up and down the motorway (which did leave me pretty knackered at the end of the day, but which was fine); went down to the alps for the summer - perfect journey for the car; even used it to run to and from the garden centre with a plant out the sunroof and bags of gravel for the garden. They're actually pretty practical.
Noisy on long journeys, ventilation fan gave up the ghost almost immediately, and I had leaks from the sunroof and perished window seals.
If you can buy fully restored, then do it, but make sure you get it checked professionally as a lot just have shiny coats of paint. If, like me, you buy a cheap poor condition one then as the others have said, you'll need deep pockets. Mine ate £4k last year on a new gearbox, heat exchangers, exhaust, distributor, battery, sunroof repairs, brake rebuilds etc. And now I'm looking at an £8k bill for a top end rebuild, electric problems being sorted, new carpets, steering wheel, body rot sorted out and a complete bar metal respray.
It'll be perfect when it comes back, and worth what I've spent, so I'm not bothered as it feels like you are doing the right thing, but you do need to have the cash for it!
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