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11 minute(s) of a 133 minute read
12-12-2011
So...
..how about a little walk thru!
Needed to make mods for the dry sump too.
looking for some proper euro lights.
Got these for the front:
What?? You say these clear lenses are not DOT approved, even with an amber bulb????
Well... I won't tell if you guys don't tell. Besides, if I get a hard time about it, I'll just order up the half amber/ half clear ones from eBay.
Some issues with our little transformation:
1. Many RS clones/ tribute cars have 16" wheels. There are many more tire choices available for 16". The Carrera RS had 15" wheels. Those look better on older cars IMO, and they're the correct wheel to put on the car if it's going to look like a '73 RS. Trouble is that nobody makes a good tire for 15" wheels anymore. Tire Rack has Pirelli P600's but I've heard from a few sources that these tires suck REALLY bad! They dry rot in 6 months, I've heard. I've also heard they're not that sticky and cost a ton of $$
Also, the '73 RS tires are meaty. A lower profile tire won't look right, so I'm searching for the right set.
2. The 993 motor needs a lot of oil cooling, and the large oil cooler I need to use is too thick to fit in the front bumper. ProtoSport will need to custom fab a duct that leads to the oil cooler from the fron bumper. They're going to try stuffing it somewhere near the front wheel.
3. Getting a 915 trans to mate up to a 993 motor may take some work.
4. This car is meant to be daily driven. It needs A/C, but this compromises the weight. Hopefully we can put one of the new style A/C upgrades for these old cars on and it won't be so heavy. The new stuff is all mostly aluminum. We'll see.
5. Retro style seats are usually not DOT approved. If I get hit hard in this car, the seats may collapse, as well as my back. Currently searching for some tube-frame retro-style seats.
Another issue is that this 915 trans does not use mechanical drive for the speedometer. It's an electronic drive. It's not possible to get the 1973 gauges to work with it.
Therefore, I'm going to have to use the updated electronic gauges (tach, speedo).
I'm going to have to send these style gauges out to be backdated. They ought to be able to chnge those needles for me.
A little icing on the cake....
If the car is light enough, it'll get some A/C. If it's still light enough, then perhaps I'll put a few light speakers in there. I have in my posession a very special head unit for just this type of application. Enter the Becker Mexico 7948. It has classic retro styling, and if there's any head unit that belongs in this car, it's a Becker!
Trouble is that it's a Euro version, and the Sat/Nav won't work here in the US. At least I can get the iPod interface to work. If I decide to put it in, I'll have to find a hack or a crack for the GPS. If I can't, then at least I'll have a sweet lookin head unit and some tunes.
I was so surprised to find out that the '73 RS flares are totally different than the '76 911/2 flares. I completely overlooked this fact, even after the bodywork was complete! 
As it turns out, the 1976 911/912 flares actually mate up perfectly with the '73 RS rear bumper!!!! PERFECTLY!!!
It's because they're a different shape at the top and only come out further at the top.
Engine bay lookin a lot better now...
Interior is starting to shape up now too...
Lighweight soundproofing and lightweight carpet!
The red bits will get the suede treatment.
12/18/2011
To be continued....
Porsche replaced the 912 with the 914. The 912 then disappeared for 6 years.
When they were ready to replace the 914 with with the 924, they brought the 912 back from the dead. They did this in order to have another entry level 4-cyl car available to the public, because the 924 was not quite ready yet. That's my understanding of it.
Previous 912's had a slightly different body style and appearance. Since these were entry level cars, almost none came with a sunroof (1965-69). When the 912 was brought back for a year in 1976 to cover (the entry level, 4 cyl market) for the 914 as it was being killed off, they used the 911body to make the 912.
EDIT: I like the fact that mine has no sunroof!
One of my favorite Porsches. Also a 4 cyl VW.
are the fenders 'glass
It's all fiber-composite.
They have a tech manual there online.
http://www.gettydesign.com/general_frp.html
If you were to try and make a fiberglass hood for this project, you might have to lay down so much fiberglass that it winds up being so heavy it's not worth the trouble in making it out of FG.
There is a fiberglass honeycomb core used in the process (in which they suck out excess resin from the mold). It's in the layers of plastic or whatever it is, lol!
http://www.gettydesign.com/911_body.html
Did 912Es have aluminum trailing arms?
Tell us about the suspension setup please. I'm guessing some Elephant Racing goodies?
Nothing wild. Nothing squeaky. Nothing that rides hard like a racecar. Nothing that'll have noisy and creaky bushings. I plan to dd this car and want to be able to take wifey out in it and have her be comfortable.
On a separate note, I've made my mind up about the A/C. Upgrading to a colder lighter one.
The suspension is all pretty standard 911 stuff.
Tubular aluminum trailing arms in the rear.
Bilstein sport shocks all around.
Torsion bar.
Turbo tie rods.
There's a debate as far as how galvanized early 912Es are. Some sources say that all are fully galvanized, some say that the roof isn't, and some say that they aren't galvanized at all (but the galvanization process on 911s started in 1970, and everything but the roof was apparently done by 1975).
I'm fairly sure it's been galvanized, because there was almost no rust at all on the car.
There was a bunch of rust on the cowl by the windshield, but almost every older 911 has some rust there. On this car, I had it properly repaired.
Turns out I won't need to keep looking for the pics of the bodywork! My body guy has a copy of the folder with the pics of all the bodywork! Hope to have that soon so I can post it!
Even if it's not galvanized, I guess the only things that could rust on this car now are the roof and the quarter panels. Everything else has been replaced. The doors have been replaced as well.
Hmmmm. Did they make a 912 Sportomatic? That theory dictates that it'd be one hairy-chested beast! 
All joking aside, and in all fairness, I have heard 912's could be quite peppy with that 4 cyl. because of their weight.
'76 was the last year before significant weight increases in the 911.
Speed is relative. Relatively speaking, this car was a bullet with the 2.7
I think that even a veteran driver would have needed to be cautious with it on the street, and it was known to be a "fast" car.
With the 3.6 VarioRam and the narrow body, the car should be be positively lethal! In relative terms, a missile compared to a bullet. The LSD should help a lot, but this car is going to be a real handful.
To be honest, neither myself nor ProtoSport know exactly what to expect. On paper, the car should be an animal.
Great story !
Posted by Diggymart on 3/19/20 @ 2:49:29 PM