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Thread: Sepia Brown 72E-ST

  1. #1
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    Sepia Brown 72E-ST

    I am the new owner of a rather interesting 72e and would like to share my recent experiences with the community. I’ve spent countless hours researching it's history and after speaking to many members here (people I have known for years and others I only met during this process), I have been convinced to post a thread to follow it's story. I promised Scott Longballa that I would write it down, so I'm finally doing it!

    The car had been sitting for several years. The previous owner asked my friend, who owns an air-cooled Porsche shop, if he knew anyone who might be interested. Luckily, he thought of me, as we had always discussed my ambition to own a 72, as it is my birth year. I bought the car quickly.

    This is where the story started for me and at the time I imagined the ST-look of the car and the fact that its engine was clearly not stock (even though the numbers all matched the COA) was just a result of modifications by a prior owner to get an ST-look hotrod.

    My friend mentioned that when the previous owner had purchased the car, he had been told that it had some very rare parts and was previously owned by a race car driver. Having purchased and owned many air-cooled 911’s, I had heard stories like this before, so I really didn’t pay much attention. It was a numbers-matching 72e and it was almost entirely rust free and drivable. That was enough.

    I had the title, a COA, a bunch of old registration docs, copies of an eBay listing from 2015 and a copy of a 1972 issue of R&T magazine.

    The first thing I did was searched the VIN through Google and found the eBay listing. It made mention of being a barn find in New Hampshire, where it had sat for 9 years. Previously owned by Jim Locke etc. Found Jim Locke and messaged. Then found out he drove with a Bob Bailey. Found out Bob Bailey is the founder of Racemark and sent an email to their info email and crossed my fingers. Luckily, it was forwarded to Bob and he reached out. He immediately remembered the car and also remembered it being sold at a track day in New Hampshire years before by Jim Locke. This explains why the car was found in a barn in NH. He also said he would reach out to Jim and see if he still had any records on the car. From what he remembered, they originally got the car from a guy in Texas in trade for the remnants of a McLaren race car and some porsche tub/parts. Jim’s son (Jimmy) is still seeing if his mom or dad retained any records of the car.

    I also read the Road & Track article and found out about Steve Beizer and his 72e that had factory ST parts installed to make a road going ST. It was based on a Sepia brown 72e (which this car was) and the article gave a very detailed list of all modifications done to the car, upon delivery to his dealership. The original spec included:
    - 5-speed gearbox
    - Rally exhaust system
    - Externally adjustable Koni shocks
    - front spoiler
    - factory flared fender kit

    The article then mentions the modifications that Steve completed on the car, once delivered to his dealership (he was the GM of Northlake Porsche Audi in Atlanta):
    - Install factory flares
    - Bumpers-underbody pieces matched to contours of flares
    - Install aftermarket Coolaire air conditioning system
    - Lower ride height
    - Engine modified (displacement to 2.55 liters, 220bhp DIN)

    I looked for any contact info on Steve and quickly realized that he had sadly passed away years earlier. But his son, Logan, kindly responded to my message and we began communicating about the car and his memories. He had an absolute ton on old photos of the car and told me of his Dad’s love for it. He even sent photos of an oil painting of the car that was done, that is still hanging in his office!

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    He was a kid when his dad had the car, but still remembered riding in it. He said it disappeared in the 70s and he believed it was involved in a rear-end accident. He never saw the car again, but believes the engine work could have been done by Franz Blam Racing. So, next I reached out to Franz Blam Racing and made contact with Melvin Hodges, who worked at Franz Blam and also remembered the car and Steve very well. Logan and him worked together at Franz Blam racing. Melvin agreed to pass on the info to Franz and his son Thomas and I am still hopeful that they have some record of the engine being built or even records of the car being in their shop.

    A day or so after hearing of the accident, I was at my friends shop and told him about it. He got out the wire brush attachment and we went to work removing paint from the C-pillars of the car (my friend mentioned that this is a common place where 911's damaged from the rear will buckle). Half way up the rear C-pillar we found an old weld. I’m not a mechanic or a bodywork guy, but he said it was an old weld that clearly showed previous damage to the car. It was fascinating to watch as we ground off the paint and exposed a very clear repair made.

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    It was decided that I would strip the car down at my friend’s shop, as I definitely didn’t want the current guards red color that the car was wearing. And I really wanted to build a 72ST-type hotrod. My original plan was to install a 3.2 short-stroke twinplug engine that I have in another hotrod, fix body and paint, tidy up the interior etc. I went there to start stripping the car and drove the car for 30 minutes or so. The engine was not running smoothly, after sitting for so long, but it was clear when the revs increased that it pulled very strong and was actually a blast to drive. In the back of my mind, I was now thinking whether a 2.55 liter MFI engine wouldn’t be just perfect for this car, after all… It sounded like a race car when idling and was a blast a 6k.

    I also needed to find out if I could get any additional evidence to support the claim that this was Steve’s car from the Road & Track article.

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    As I started taking the car apart, I was removing the front carpet in the trunk and underneath I found 2 adjustable shocks sitting there, like mentioned in the article. Then I opened the smugglers box and it contained a large plastic unit. I began removing it and when I got it out, I asked my buddy what it was and he told me it was part of an after-market air conditioning system. Low and behold it had “Coolaire” written on the side, just like the one that was supposedly in the article car. I was gently putting all this stuff aside, so I didn’t lose anything or forget to take pics!

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    I mentioned the damage we had found to Logan and Melvin, along with the adjustable shocks in the frunk, the coolaire system in the smugglers box etc and all responses seemed to agree that there were “way too many coincidences for it not to be Steve’s car.”

    I took out the seats from the car and asked some Early S guys help to identify the type. They are Recaro Sports seats with tilting mechanism (thanks for the wonderful info from Recarno and others). However, they were black and the pics of the same seats in the car that I got from Logan were brown. A friend showed me that by pulling the center section apart a little from the side bolster, you can see that these seats were originally brown and had been dyed black. Another confirmation that this “could” be the car from the article.

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    I stripped the interior and found some rust in the parcel shelf and in the drivers side rear seat pan. Next I removed the front and rear bumpers. The front is just a fiberglass piece, but the rears were definitely strange. Frankly they looked a little amateur and were definitely not factory produced. My friend showed me that it looked like someone had modified them to fit the rear fender flares. Then I remembered that the article had mentioned that Steve had “Bumpers-underbody pieces matched to contours of flares”. This certainly lined up with what the article said Steve had done.

    I then removed the wheels. I could see they were fuchs, but wanted to check to date codes on the back. 2 wheels are dated 3/71 and 2 are dated 6/71. I know very little about wheels. So, I asked my friend Harvey for some guidance and sent him the info. He told me that I had “First gen wheels and they would have been finished in RSR (race) finish.” He also told me that they were valuable and rare. So, this was pretty exciting, as it could reasonably be assumed that Steve put these on, after doing the ST body conversion on the car.

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    It's so hard to remember everything I’ve found and everyone I’ve spoken to, who has helped piece this all together. I know that I am eternally grateful to Logan Beizer, Melvin Hodges, Bob Bailey, Jim Braezeale, Harvey Weidman, Scott Longballa and to this community in general. When it was suggested that I write this and put it on the forum, I was reluctant. Mainly because I lack the knowledge of almost everyone on here and also because I wanted to be sure before I started explaining the coincidences. But, one of my closest friends explained it this way:
    “You have a Sepia 72e, with factory ST flares, aftermarket coolaire system, gen 1 fuchs, adjustable shocks, damage where a previous accident happened, and clearly an engine that has been “breathed on” by someone who knew what they were doing. How many other cars would have all of that, if it’s not the one from the article?”

    The journey has been so much fun to-date. It’s been exciting to find all of these things out and be able to actually discuss them with individuals who remember the car and the man who drove it. I’ve learned how important this car was to many. I have a folder of photos that show how the car once looked. And now I have some decisions to make. I’m really not sure what to do. The car is completely stripped and waiting for the next steps and I hope that sharing the story here will be of interest to some members.

  2. #2
    Very, very nice history. Keep it all original!

  3. #3
    Senior Member bob joyce's Avatar
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    hard to go wrong building it as it was in the magazine

  4. #4
    it's curious! I remember the image of the brown car. I kept it because it reminded me of the back of my car. With rubber protectors on. We agreed then, in the image of the brown car, those parts were made by Beizer and the extensions were made by the factory? thanks...
    "....all to be installed locally"

  5. #5
    Early S Reg #1395 LongRanger's Avatar
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    9112200021 . . .

    . . . other threads/posts . . .

    https://www.early911sregistry.org/fo...ighlight=locke

    https://www.early911sregistry.org/fo...l=1#post702538

    https://www.early911sregistry.org/fo...l=1#post932487

    https://www.early911sregistry.org/fo...l=1#post932895

    https://www.early911sregistry.org/fo...l=1#post932905

    https://www.early911sregistry.org/fo...l=1#post932966





    Quote Originally Posted by Cornpanzer View Post
    . . . The car was featured in R&T back when it was new . . .


    . . . . Steve was very kind to share some time with me and I'm excited to finally see the photos. Thanks Logan.

    BTW, this deserves its own thread
    . . .



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  6. #6
    Senior Member
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    What a great pic!!
    72S, 72T now ST

  7. #7
    So is this the R&T car ?
    Also, what does the pic of the sunroof car with Miss Road Atlanta have to do with it ?

  8. #8
    Early S Reg #1395 LongRanger's Avatar
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    How Many Other Cars? . . .

    Quote Originally Posted by billh View Post
    . . . So is this the R&T car ?
    Also, what does the pic of the sunroof car with Miss Road Atlanta have to do with it ?
    . . .
    . . . stripes, mostly . . .

    Quote Originally Posted by 74USCarrera View Post
    . . . I am the new owner of a rather interesting . . .

    . . . The car had been sitting for several years . . .

    . . . I had the title, a COA, a bunch of old registration docs, copies of an eBay listing from 2015 and a copy of a 1972 issue of R&T magazine.

    The first thing I did was searched the VIN . . . Previously owned by Jim Locke etc. . . .

    . . . I also read the Road & Track article and found out about Steve Beizer and his 72e . . .

    . . . quickly realized that he had sadly passed away years earlier. But his son, Logan, kindly responded to my message and . . . . even sent photos of an oil painting of the car that was done, that is still hanging in his office! . . .

    I also needed to find out if I could get any additional evidence to support the claim that this was Steve’s car from the Road & Track article . . .

    . . . because I lack the knowledge of almost everyone on here and also because I wanted to be sure before I started explaining the coincidences. But, one of my closest friends explained it this way:
    “You have a Sepia 72e, with factory ST flares, aftermarket coolaire system, gen 1 fuchs, adjustable shocks, damage where a previous accident happened, and clearly an engine that has been “breathed on” by someone who knew what they were doing. How many other cars would have all of that, if it’s not the one from the article?
    . . .'
    . . . and upholstery . . . and roll bar . . . and head lights . . . and spoilers . . . and flairs . . . and wheels . . . hood-latches
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  9. #9
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    Steve Beizer built a narrow body version of this car for my father. Does your car have a sunroof? I have a great old pic of Me at 4 years old and your car. Will post it Tate
    1965 911 Factory Paint to Sample Orange
    1967 911S Bahama Yellow
    1968 911 S Blood Orange
    1971 911S Gold Metallic Peter Gregg
    1974 Carrera RS Blue Metallic
    1990 RUF RCT Estonia's car

  10. #10
    Senior Member
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    Here I am with your car. Clearly shows the ST fenders. Enjoy. T

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    1965 911 Factory Paint to Sample Orange
    1967 911S Bahama Yellow
    1968 911 S Blood Orange
    1971 911S Gold Metallic Peter Gregg
    1974 Carrera RS Blue Metallic
    1990 RUF RCT Estonia's car

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