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9114400120 - Skittles - Here we go again
I thought Schtroumpf would be my last early 911 project…
Link to Schtroumpf build on PP Forum
Built to my ultimate spec, and a so-called “dead man’s” car, meaning I’d own it until I died, and since it was to my exact spec I wouldn't need or want any other early 911… Famous last words I guess…
While we were working out the final snag list on Schtroumpf, I kept seeing 1974 2.7 RoW and US spec Carreras for sale… I have always thought the MFI cars were undervalued compared to the 1973 RS… Especially the ones built early in 1973 while the factory used up all the leftover RS parts that they could, including the tunnel chassis brace, the rear flares, the duck tails and even some of the early gauges…
Without getting into too much dialog or “dialogue” depending on where and which side of the ocean you are living in (I tend to default to whatever laptop default I’m working on and it’s autocorrect)… The 2.7 MFI Carrera basically has the same performance and driving characteristics as a 1973 RS, so in theory, should be a magical car to drive and indicative of the pinnacle of the NA cars in their “sports” oriented guise - or so my thinking went… It was just thinking, as I had never owned a 1974 - 1976 2.7 MFI impact bumper car…
I went to see and drive several for sale in the UK and the EU… They all varied in price from about 150k USD GBP to 400k USD, and varied in condition, from being in need of full restoration, badly restored heavily previously “beat up” cars, to really good and expensive restorations…
At the same time, I was also considering a couple of 1970 - 1973 911 narrow bodied S cars, as I just can’t seem to not “look”... I think I might need to see a doctor about this disease…
After several months of looking and driving many examples, I settled on the fact I would look for an early 1974 2.7 MFI Carrera in one of the more rare colors - like Jade Green, Light (Birch) Green, Fraise (Rose) Red, Gulf or Mexico Blue, and if one turned up at the right price, I would go ahead… I made a few offers on a few cars that I thought were good candidates, but a deal never materialized… All while the little voice in my head kept telling me I didn’t need another 911 and to just be happy with Schtroumpf…
Then I saw a Light Green (code 253) US spec car for sale not too far away from me in the UK… Great color, but US “wrong” spec, and a previous owner had already done a bare metal respray, rebuilt the engine (with RS pistons and cylinders, E cams and Weber 40s), and rebuilt the gearbox… But had also made some questionable (in my mind) changes… early style seats, changed the windshield washer system to an SWB style set up, and the work wasn’t to the best standard, and ran rich and needed some tuning to run right… It was a numbers matching and a September 1973 build, but it was a US car, so I passed… While home later that evening, I just couldn’t get the the color out of my head… I loved it… So, as I imagine some folks reading this might do, I did some rationalizing that if I could buy it at the right price, I could just convert the engine to a 2.7 MFI spec, and have basically the same car, the way the factory “intended” the car to be without the US CIS spec engine… I know, it would no longer be original, but all the mods would be reversible, and give me a cool early build 1974 Carrera in a color I loved, with a 2.7 MFI spec engine to drive, and not feel so worried about… A true driver…
I made an offer, and… But, we couldn’t come to a deal… I kept looking, but nothing else showed up in a color I was interested in… Then about 9 months later, a friend sent me a link to a light green US carrera for sale in the UK… It was the same car for sale again… The gentleman that had bought the car, had driven her very little, struggled tuning the engine - electrical and carbs - had replaced the replica early seats with better quality replica early sport seats from D’eser in black leatherette and corduroy, and done a few cosmetic things… He liked 356s and older cars, and had decided it wasn’t for him… I went to see the car, and fortunately took my wife with me… When she smiled and gave me “the nod” on color, we made a deal that day… My wife loves to nickname cars, and on the way home, had decided this car would be called Skittles…
And so the journey begins...
Some photos from 2 previous owners as posted for sale...
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And at home in the garage...
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