Menu
CONTACT US: 855-914-4897 (GUYS)

BLOG

Mark's Corner: Announcing the acquisition of a 1974 2.0 LE Can-Am car by 914Rubber

Tuesday, June 29, 2021 2:22 PM

Say hello to our new Bumblebee 914! So first off what the heck is a Can Am or Limited Edition (LE) car?

 


In 1974 Porsche decided to capitalize on their success in Can Am racing and introduced a Limited Edition series of 1000 cars in 2 color schemes (500 each). The first was option was Black with Sunflower Yellow, also known as a Bumblebee, and the second option was Ivory White with Phoenix red, also called a Creamsicle.




Karl Schulz's LE Creamsicle from our Customer Car Story in May.


It’s easy to see that the how the black and yellow got its nickname, but why was the white and red called a Creamsicle? The red actually has a strong orange tint and against the white body it really looks orange.



So these colorful cars were definitely eye catching but to many the color schemes were seen as over the top. Most of these cars went into hiding as subsequent owners removed the orange and yellow decals from the car and repainted the wheels and front valance. Many were lost to the rust monster before their notoriety ever came to light.


There are a few ways to spot an LE car. The front valances were built from a heavier fiberglass and featured a notch in the center to allow for more cooling in the engine compartment. They look like this - https://914rubber.com/limited-edition-fiberglass-front-spoiler-for-914 Some retain the metal tabs that mounted to the back of the spoiler on the bottom of the undercarriage of the vehicle.




These cars all came with the M-778 CanAm equipment package from the factory. This was the only year it was available. It is also the only way to know you truly have a LE car. The Certificate of Authenticity (COA) from Porsche will specify whether or not your car originally came with this package.

 
 
Jeff Bowsbly maintains a registry of the Limited Edition cars on his website and currently has 277 surviving cars listed at https://bowlsby.net/914/CanAm/. If you have verified that you own one and have not yet registered, now is a great time to do so.




With the rare opportunity to acquire one presenting itself we had no choice other than to buy it. This car is fairly unmodified from its original state and we will be sharing updates on the disassembly and rebirth of this car. We are excited to have this opportunity to restore a part of history with you.



Sincerely,

Mark Whitesell

AKA Mikey914 on world

Tags:

0 Comment Posted in Mark's Corner

Customer Cars: Mick Hovsepian's 1972 914 1.7L Resurrection

Tuesday, June 22, 2021 1:19 PM

We love seeing what exciting projects our customers are currently working on. Every month we would like to showcase a couple of cars in whatever state they are in - on the road or on the rack.



This month’s submission comes from Mick Hovsepian who is in the process of resurrecting his one owner 1972 914 1.7.




Mick bought the car new at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport from a Shipside Showroom back in 1972. His sole purpose for buying the car was for him and his wife to drive south to Monaco for the GP.


After the event, his 914 was shipped stateside to the Port of Jacksonville FL and then driven home to Atlanta. The car then became his daily driver for several years. In 1974, Mick decided it was time to pull his baby off the street and put her on the track to get his SCCA ticket in the Showroom Stock category. As he puts it, it was basically the SCCA's way to get new members into the club by adding a roll bar to a streetcar and going racing.


Things initially started off well in the school races at Palm Beach, where it easily beat out the D-Sports Racers, but at Road Atlanta he found the car simply did not have the power needed to be competitive. The stock fuel-injected engine was slow, even for the Showroom class, and the only way he could pass was by out-braking the other drivers in the turns. He was in desperate need of more HP.


So, Mick found an engine builder and got to work polishing, porting, Magnafluxing, and balancing. The stock fuel injection was removed, and 48 IDA Webbers were added. The engine received bigger jugs and high compression pistons and the flywheel was turned down to 12 Lbs.   


While this brought him the competitive edge on the track, it was not meant to last. The upgraded pistons began to overheat and the cam and crankshafts which were original to the car caused continuous problems. Before he could get these issues sorted out, life happened. Mick found himself in the middle of a divorce, effectively ending his racing career.

 

The car was relegated to storage where it sat for several years. The rollbar was removed, the Webber 48s as well as the front & rear bumpers were pulled off the car and sold to local race enthusiasts.

 

Some 49 years later the car is now at DC Racing & Development in the capable hands of Dan Cashman. Dan builds and races 914's and services all the air-cooled Porsches as well as preparing them for racing. The old 1.7 has been rebuilt to 2.2 specs with dual 40 IDA's & a performance cam. He has also sourced a rebuilt 73 side shifter transmission to get rid of, as Mick puts it, “the fly swatter shift linkage”.


His 914 already has the upgraded 914-6/911 suspension and brakes. The body is going to be a GT Clone, though the car will be a 914-4 until he can find the right 911 engine to swap in. The oil cooler mods will all be installed without the cooler so his car will be ready for the transplant at moments notice. This is one of the more detailed builds we have featured, and we love seeing a vision come together. We look forward to seeing you on the track again soon Mick, thanks for the great submission!

Please submit your image and a brief summary to blake@914rubber.com. If we select your photo for the newsletter you will win a $15 914Rubber gift card!

Tags:

0 Comment Posted in Customer Car Stories

Mark's Corner: The Porsche "914S”

Sunday, June 20, 2021 6:52 PM

The Porsche "914S”



After recognizing the need for more horsepower in the European market, the factory decided to increase the performance for the launch of the upcoming 2.0 model. They built around 2000 cars originally intended for the European market. These cars were meant to be more refined than the standard 914 but they never made it to European dealers and would eventually become  somewhat of an enigma in the 914 community.



Did the factory produce them?



Yes, they did create an “S” model, but it was done unintentionally.  When they created these European Spec cars, they included the larger displacement motor and used an 8.20 compression ratio to give the car more of a sports car feel. Front and rear anti-roll bars were now stock, also included was the appearance group package which came with alloy wheels, leather steering wheel, center console with padded armrest, and a leatherette wrapped roll bar pad.




Despite originally being made for the European market, Volkswagen of America decided to purchase the entire production run of the cars. They immediately went to work on a marketing campaign to announce this new 914 model in America, and thus the “914S” was born. This was highlighted in the dealer handouts and a few automotive publications at the time where it specifically called out the “S” designation.


Due to the lack of some specifications on the back of the hand out (ie weights, a mpg specification), I believe the handouts were printed right away to help promote the new improved model. This is where the “S” designation first came into play.

 

The Timeline



January of 1972 - Motor Trend does a comparison between the 914 and the “S” model that had an additional $288 price premium over the stock 1.7. No mention of a stock 2.0 vs the “S”.



February of 1973 - Road and Track publishes an article on the 914 2.0 where it highlights the tension between the Factory and VOA, specifically noting that they were self-designating the model as the 914/2 after the backlash from the "S" designation. 



According to R&T, comparisons were being made between the 911S and the 914S in the early marketing literature and that rubbed factory the wrong way. The 911 had a bad habit of the rear end sliding around if you let off on the throttle. While this characteristic could be exploited by experienced drivers, in the hands of a novice it could end badly.



With the 914, the center of gravity was so close to the middle of the car that it was a much safer and easier to drive car that could utilize the HP in cornering. With the added stiffness of the roll bars (producing understeer) and the increase in HP there was more and more talk about the 914 compared to the 911S.



This is where the the engineers realized they had made a car that could kill the flagship model if it was given the same HP. After the initial delivery of the 2.0 European spec cars the compression was lowered and the appearance group package was split up with a few a omissions. 



In late 1972 the updated brochures and literature eliminated the "S" from the official 914 line up. We will probably never know the entire story, but you can see that from 1973 forward the cars only got bogged down with more heavy emissions equipment and no further increases in HP. In all actuality this “S” designation may have put the prowess of an improved 914 on the factory radar and may have contributed to its subsequent elimination early in 1976.



So how can I identify a model “S”? It should have a late 72 production date and a serial number in the 1st 2000ish of production. They start at 473290001. The true tell tale sign is the leatherette roll bar pad. They do not crack like the factory non-wrapped ones. I actually came across this as a prospective sample for our tooling on roll bars we made, but ultimately we made the more common texture as it would suit a larger number of cars.



One of our customers is currently selling a car that fits into the category as far as we can tell. It exemplifies all the attributes of the cars first designated as an “S”. The VIN is 4732900184 and it is a well cared-for rust-free Oregon car.
 



 
If you are interested please contact Pete Olson via email at visach9@gmail.com. 



Sincerely,

Mark Whitesell AKA Mikey914

Tags:

0 Comment Posted in Mark's Corner

Customer Cars: Karl Schulz' 2-time PCA National Concours Winning Creamsicle

Friday, June 18, 2021 2:05 PM

We love seeing what exciting projects our customers are currently working on. Every month we would like to showcase a couple of cars in whatever state they are in - on the road or on the rack. This month's winner is Karl Schulz! Karl is the owner of a 2-time PCA National Concours winning 1974 914 2.0 Creamsicle, which he has proudly driven for over half his lifetime!



The car came into his possession in 1986 when he bought it from the second owner in Texas. Being a midwest resident, Karl realized that he had to take extra care to ensure the car never saw the snow during the salty winter driving season. Despite it being a seasonal car, he still managed to put over 200,000 miles on the odometer. 


The engine has been fully serviced twice in its lifetime. The transmission was serviced by Brad Mayeur years ago and is still running strong. Other than that the car is completely unmodified and Karl has noticed the interest in it increasing as the years go by. As an added bonus, his PCA show-car placard was included with his submission and has been listed below. Thank you for sharing this great piece of Porsche history Karl, we hope to see it on the road for many miles to come!





1974 PORSCHE 914 Limited Edition ‘Creamsicle’

  • 500 built to commemorate Porsche’s 1973 CANAM Championship
  • This car is UNRESTORED ~ (mostly) original paint, interior, carpet. 
  • Daily summer driver for 35+ years ~ 237,000 + miles.
  • 2-time Porsche Club of America National Concours winner,

    Preservation Class, 2001 & 2010
  • Mid-mounted, fuel injected 2.0 liter flat four engine, air cooled, 95 HP
  • 4-wheel disc brakes, 5-speed transmission
  • Cost new in 1974: $6,500 ~ about the same as a Corvette or Cadillac

Please submit your image and a brief summary to blake@914rubber.com. If we select your photo for the newsletter you will win a $15 914Rubber gift card!

Tags:

0 Comment Posted in Customer Car Stories

Customer Cars: Richard Nyberg's 1973 914 2.0L

Wednesday, June 16, 2021 10:45 AM

We love seeing what exciting projects our customers are currently working on. Every month we would like to showcase a couple of cars in whatever state they are in - on the road or on the rack.



This month's winner is Richard Nyberg! This is his 1973 914 2.0 project. He stripped the car in November and began a full rotisserie restoration.

 
 
Richard has completed over 30 restorations in his lifetime and this was his first Porsche. Overall, he says that he has been very impressed with the fit, finish, and engineering of the car and it certainly won't be the last Porsche he owns.



 


His car recently came back from the paint booth sporting this stunning blue. The exciting part of his build is coming up next as he begins to put the car back together. We look forward to seeing this car on the road soon and wish you the best of luck in your restoration. Thanks for the great submission Richard!


Please submit your image and a brief summary to blake@914rubber.com. If we select your photo for the newsletter you will win a $15 914Rubber gift card!

Tags:

0 Comment Posted in Customer Car Stories
Page:
  2. 1
  3. 2
  4. 3
  5. 4
  6. 5