Harvey, I do not think anyone on this board would describe the impact of your work on a finished 911 as "small". Harvey was gracious enough to source a fifth 9/72 flat six to match the original four it still had. I can see my beige grey '73T hiding in dad's hanger in one pic - how I wish I could afford to send it to Devlin for similar treatment. But with a third kid on the way and Marine Corps KC-130's that need to be flown, that will have to wait
Jordan
Now that the undercoating and some of the painting is complete it is time to install the suspension to get the car off a dolly and on some wheels. I had repainted / powder coated and installed new bearings / bushings / shocks about 3 years prior and it was great to see those parts again on the car. The brake calipers had been redone by PMB Performance and had been in a box for a few years. When Devlin pulled them out to install they noticed some damage on the front calipers of unclear origin. PMB was notified and offered to completely re-due them at no cost to me. I can not sing their praises loud enough for the outstanding quality of their work.
Now that she was a roller, priming and blocking could begin. One step closer to a new top coat. A special thanks to Tim Owen of Topeka KS who built the engine (pictures coming soon) who loaned me the wheels / tires for this phase of construction and was able and willing to take many phone calls and questions through the entire restoration project. Without him, this car would still be in my garage collecting dust.
Next the final coat is applied, the dash is painted and Lizard skin is applied to the floor pan.
I had originally planned on using the main wiring harness with new harnesses for the engine and four corners, but when it come time to begin the reassembly I decided to replace every wire in the car. I contacted Gerard Kroon who provided a beautiful new harness.
Congratulations! That is an impressive restoration and coming along beautifully. I have something similar ongoing and the pictures do not give credit to how much work has been done!
Do you have any pictures of the inside areas that were factory painted black. Was it black also under the dash? I just started a thread on this and your car looked original. What is lizard skin? One more: How important is it to keep the fender mounding plates original down to the bolts? I kept my old ones, but didn't make it to such detail.
Well done and thanks for sharing!
Dario
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1972 Targa 911S (one day), silver gray (maybe), member 3337
Dario,
You are absolutely right, there were many hours of work not captured in the photos. It took me almost 3 years to find all the correct missing parts and have them rebuilt and it was at Delvin's for almost 18 months. I will look for inside photos and message you if I find any. I do believe the under dash area had been painted black. Lizard skin is a newer product that is sprayed on for sound deadening. Definitely not OEM, but a great product that is reasonably priced to apply. I'm a Porsche novice and have no idea how important originality is for the fender plates. It was an easy correction so we did it.
Greg
This morning's photos are of the fender oil cooler. The car was a 9/72 production date base S model sold in Kansas City at Art Bunker Porsche. It did not have a fender oil cooler originally and it wasn't until after I decided to rebuild the engine to 2.7RS specs that Tim Owen felt this motor would be healthier with an oil cooler. Sadly I was unable to locate any used '73 fender oil cooler parts and had to buy all new (ouch). A young man name Barry Nelson had been to the dealership a few days prior and fell in love with a new 914-6. His father tried to purchase it for him but was unable to settle on a price. Reassuring his son that if the left and come back in a few days it would be theirs, Barry was heartbroken to find it had been sold and so he left that day with a shining new silver 911S Targa as a consolation prize. It must have been a heartbreaker.
As I near the end of this story I wanted to share a few more pictures. Attached are pics of the black painted on the doors (something I learned about here) and beneath the rockers (likewise learned here) and the new Lakewell dash (acquired here). This website has been a God sent, not only for the information available, but the people willing to help a newbie like me.
Early this summer the car was ready to have the engine installed. David Leivian of European Car Company in Wichita was kind enough to come to my home to pick up the engine that had been sitting on a pallet for well over 2 years. The pictures show my two sons and myself stopping by to see the engine run for the first time. It was great that Jordan, my oldest, was on leave and happened to be in town at the time. If not for him, I would have never ventured down this rabbit hole. My other son, John, who now lives back in Wichita, had spent many hours on helping me disassemble the car, so having them there was very meaningful for me. After hearing that motor run for the first time I told David I felt the way I felt when my children were born (almost). It was great. David and I had been class mates in high school in shop class. He went on to become a master mechanic and lover of all European cars, the older the better.
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