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This is my wife's Targa which we got 6 years ago, and in June began a full restoration. I'm using shop labor for this one which is a luxury, but it's coming along fast and very nicely. Here's the progress from stripped to painted shell. Amazingly there was much less rust than anticipated (early 911s aren't galvanized) so only one patch to the pans. The front suspension pan needed replacement.
Painted the original Light Ivory, underside coated with Wurth schutz, and details of satin black for the engine compartment, trunk and cockpit transformed the bare tub. The suspension and engine tin was powder coated gloss black. Not correct but as this isn't meant for concours, the finish is much more durable.
Engine awaits control valves (for the sportomatic vacuum accumulator tank) but is otherwise ready. Over 200,000 miles with minimal wear, but needed new piston/ring set as the old rings were worn and no replacements are available; the piston design changed. Leakdown is less than 3%. The crank measured to spec after all those miles, not a mark on the journals! Gearbox was in similar condition so we just cleaned it up and re-sealed it. :)
Suspension now on, it's rolling with temporary wheels while exterior trim begins.
that last pic has left a sudden urge to clean my engine up and stick ITB's on it..
It's a beauty, nice work!
Starting to look new.
You stated you bought the car 6 years ago. I'm assuming it was in less than perfect condition, but just how bad/not bad was it?
Just a nice solid driver bought cheap. Older repaint by the elderly original owner sometime in the '80s, he kept it garaged, serviced, etc.
It's humid and rains alot here so when a couple of rust bubbles appeared and the odometer passed 200,000 it seemed a good time to freshen it up. Always dependable, and didn't owe us any money so it's getting what it deserves. Will post more shots tomorrow,
could be finished in a couple of weeks.
Had a busy morning. Oil and vacuum accumulator tanks plus engine compartment pad in, rear valance seal and bumpers on, beginning dash reassembly. One of the cool things about restoring a car that was never damaged or previously restored is keeping things like factory build marks intact. The last shot is the grease pencil VIN from the assembly floor.
Wow. It doesn't seem like it's been long, but certainly was more than a couple of weeks to finish this. Drove about 75 miles for shakedown today... so far, so good except a little vacuum leak after it's sat for an hour or so that affects the clutch engagement. It takes a minute or two at idle to fill the accumulator tank. Will spend tomorrow sorting that; since all the hoses, diaphram and connections are new it's just a matter of checking every spot vacuum could escape. The car is a delight, engine and suspension responsive and tight... and the custom AC system that came from the '70 911 a friend bought to track is ice cold. Check out the size of the condensor under the car! Cheap money spent to make this comfortable in the heat, and no noticable affect on performance of the 2.0 T motor which makes only about 120HP or so in it's slightly better than original tune. My wife's daily driver is comfortable and stylish, and she is thrilled with her brand-new 43 year old car. :D Now, I've got to finish her Mercedes... she wants to believe it'll be done in 2 weeks but realistically, 3 months. ;)
A few more pics from the past 60 days... replaced the back seats with locking storage, sport seats are repro Recaros, original radio rebuilt with MP3 adapter, very rare original aluminum & wood steering wheel. Many small details that make this car usable every day. The one thing I didn't do was turn the odometer back... it's done more than 200,000 miles, and now it's ready for the next 200,000. An honest car.
Looking great, and with only 120 BHP the engine might run to the moon (and back).
I spotted your upcoming project on the #5 picture of the first series. Isn't an F40 a little complicated for a first Ferrrari? ;)
It looks great csl! I hope your wife enjoys many miles driving it!
[quote=henk4;968193]Looking great, and with only 120 BHP the engine might run to the moon (and back).
I spotted your upcoming project on the #5 picture of the first series. Isn't an F40 a little complicated for a first Ferrrari? ;)[/quote]
Doesn't sound like much, does it? 120 won't get ya to the moon, but it only has to push around 2200lbs. That clapped out F40? :p The Targa's mechanical work was done at a shop that had some Italians laying about, as usual. :rolleyes: The Brumos GT I traded the 911 racer on is underway now; it has to be ready for Rennsport in October... but FINALLY the trimmer is done with my Notchback. Have to take him the 280SL next week and will pick it up, he's north of Orlando but worth the 4 hour drive. It's looking like the 914/6 GT rally clone won't get any attention until next year. :(
[quote=Kitdy;968194]It looks great csl! I hope your wife enjoys many miles driving it![/quote] Thanks, Kitdy... she is stoked. It was worth the effort just for her reaction when we unveiled it. :D
Wow, that's a wonderful job there. Nice work!
^^^ I can't take credit for most of it, just the disassembly and parts of the trim and interior. And writing checks. Lots of checks. ;)
Excellent indeed.
Enjoy it (if she lets you drive it, that is). :)
Hi csl177,
that is one beautifully restored long hood. Congratulations!!
If I could ask: How has your experience with the Sportomatic been so far? Reason I am asking is I am considering to buy a 73.5T Sporto but am not fully convinced that a Sporto is right for me, therefore I am looking for first-hand experience from others.
Also, I've heard that it has become increasingly difficult to find spare parts for the Sporto - what's your view on that? Did you rebuild the transmission during the restoration?
Thanks so much for your input - highly appreciated!
What a lovely car! Always had a soft spot for these...great drivers. The original 911's manage to look sporty and classy, Porsche's evolution of the styling even allows a hint of the contemporary through too. Though for some reason I have always wanted a 912?!?
Anyhow, car looks tops. What a lucky wife! I'd steal her away from ya just to get the car :P
Nice, great restoration.
[quote=kp.sfo;980846]Hi csl177,
that is one beautifully restored long hood. Congratulations!!
If I could ask: How has your experience with the Sportomatic been so far? Reason I am asking is I am considering to buy a 73.5T Sporto but am not fully convinced that a Sporto is right for me, therefore I am looking for first-hand experience from others.
Also, I've heard that it has become increasingly difficult to find spare parts for the Sporto - what's your view on that? Did you rebuild the transmission during the restoration?
Thanks so much for your input - highly appreciated![/quote]
Thanks, we've owned it 7 years now and the car has been trouble free. The transmission wasn't overhauled for the restoration, it worked fine with no indication of wear. Often problems with shift engagement can be traced to the shifter microswitch, a simple (if sometimes fiddly) thing to fix. Proper hoses and seals eliminate vacuum leaks, but usually that's easy to determine. Since most Porsche mechanics don't have any interest in Sportos, many owners learn the system and do their own maintenance and repair. Many of these cars have had standard manual gearboxes swapped in, mainly because mechanics (US especially) don't understand them and can't or won't work on them. Frustrated owners park them, and people who want an early 911 cheap buy them to swap transmissions. That means there's a bunch of Sporto trannies and parts out there, but who knows where? As a result, parts are getting hard to find. A concern is replacement main diaphrams, but they rarely fail. Small parts for the system are still available, but getting expensive. :(
Most of us own spare systems, just in case.
You're probably already aware that some people consider the Sporto a lesser Porsche. It's unfortunate, but a holdover from the perception that it's an automatic, which of course it is not. If you've driven an early 911 you already know they're entertaining; driving a Sporto properly is more so; you shift the same way but can keep the engine in the power band longer... believe it or not, Sportos are quicker/faster in many situations. I also own a '68 911S Sporto, awaiting restoration. Quite rare, very few were built.
Even huge success couldn't dispell the "slushbox" myth in US buyer's minds:
[B]1967 Marathon De La Route[/B]
In order to break the association of automatic or semi-automatic cars with unsporting drivers, Porsche wanted to showcase the sporting potential of the Sportomatic transmission. An ideal opportunity was the 1967 Marathon De La Route, an 84 hour trial at the Nürburgring.
Not quite a race, more a reliability trial, the event ran for three and a half days without a break.
For the event, Porsche entered three cars: a 911R (modified 911S for racing) fitted with Sportomatic, another 911S with Sportomatic
and a final 911S with a 5-speed gearbox. While over 84 hours unsurprisingly none of the cars were without some kind of problem, the Sportomatic-equipped 911R won the event (by 13 laps!!). It was no coincidence that the winning car was crewed with Porsche's finest drivers at the time: Hans Hermann, Vic Elford and Jochen Neerspasch.
Google Sportomatic, study the tech papers at [url="http://www.sportomatic.org/"]Sportomatic.org[/url] and your decision should be made.
They aren't for everyone but those that own them are enthusiasts for a reason. ;)
BTW, your 1973 has the last version of the Sportomatic system that was 4-speed, the 925/10 transmission.
Good luck! :)
Wow! Awesome restoration. Thank you for taking the time to share.
How's the resto coming along?