1974 Carrera Coupe - RHD, UK car

[Mitch]

I'm taking a perverse pleasure in having the wrong knob.

Maverick!

At least the Sporto diagram will remind you not to be driving along with your hand on your knob!

All very exciting stuff and great to see the Carrera released into the wild. Bet Pendine Sands hasn't seen that shade of lime for a while, if ever!

Good to have the chance to fix the shake down niggles, will be great to see it on the road in France

[KS]

Can't wait to see it! Well done Paul. Well done Nick!

[Ferry Man]

OK, it’s simple, the car is fantastic.
It drives superbly, I’ve not driven a better early 911.
Nick is not surprised but he is delighted at just how good it is.

I was hoping to send the car up to Redtek and get Nick Fulljames to check the engine over before Le Mans Classic but sadly I ran out of time. That can now wait a few weeks until the car is ready for an oil change and spanner check.

However, Jez at Carrera Performance (conveniently geographically close to Early911) was able to fit in a session on his rolling road at very, very short notice. Thanks Jez.
And that was a great result. He did some marvelous work.

Jez found a reluctance for the distributor to advance enough and he fixed that issue. There was also a non-return valve within the MFI system that was starving fuel to one cylinder and it was identified and replaced. Finally he swapped out the spark plugs for a type he prefers.

And the result is superb. Redtek have built a wonderful engine and I never doubted they would.
The car pulls cleanly all the way around the revs. It powers strongly right to the limit (I’ve constrained myself to a self imposed 6,500 rpm limit for the moment).
There’s no stutter, no popping or banging, no hesitancy anywhere in the power band. Just a surge. A wave of power.
Plus the car drops back to idle with no fuss or drama. Even after a long Motorway spell, it just falls easily to a steady tick over. Starts easy too.
Powering out of roundabouts and running it right round the rev counter is intoxicating. Lovely.

[911hillclimber]

That is a great up-date and I'm sure we all 'feel' for your elation.

A car to be enjoyed after so much investment by a lot of skilled people with your dedication and nerve.

"Bostin'" as they say round here (at my age)

[Bertroex]

Absolutely, utterly brilliant. And you're happy: that's even better!

Congrats!

Bert

[KS]

Cross that one off the list. So, what's next?

[Ferry Man]

Cross that one off the list. So, what's next?

Crumbs, no, not yet. I can't face another restoration for a while.

[Ferry Man]

I spoke earlier about a low ride height exacerbated by a full load of passengers, baggage and fuel.
Well, the reason I’d ‘brimmed’ the petrol tank was my fuel gauge is being troublesome.
My restored gauge wasn’t indicating any reading.
So Nick replaced it with a second hand one he had in stock and it read half-full, correctly showing the fuel load Nick had added.
Or so he thought.
It turned out to read half-full all weekend. When full. Or when empty.
So, there’s something amiss there to sort out. We both feel the sender is good and the float freely moving so maybe it’s a wiring issue.

But the fact that I was brimming the tank meant that after each refill I could work out my fuel consumption.
And it averaged 21mpg. Which – for an engine that’s still ‘tight’ – is excellent news. I’m happy with that.

[Ferry Man]

I know it might seem a small thing but the steering wheel is wonderful.
Those points of contact within the vehicle matter and the feel of the fat rimmed, freshly re-covered leather wheel is superb. I like the steering wheel.

And I love the sports seats.
For the first time in an early 911 my head slightly brushes the headliner.
The seats were restored with new foams & new webbing so they probably just need a little time to settle and I will then find myself seated slightly lower.
The heavy weight of the driver will help expedite that process.
They are very supportive though, I’m pleased with the seats.

[Peter]

It looks fantastic Paul and sounds like a great car to drive.

[sladey]

It does look awesome Paul - glad to hear it's all going so well and looking forward to seeing it in the flesh

[Nige]

I spoke earlier about a low ride height exacerbated by a full load of passengers, baggage and fuel.

Be careful when you roll on and off that Ferry, I also got mine hooked onto some gate post metalwork at Arnage, I bet it's still there too. You still want it green underneath.

[hot66]

.. less of the 'early 911' ... it's an IB don't you know ... next thing we know you'll be confusing vintage cars & classic cars

[Ferry Man]

The car is far from quiet – by modern standards – but it’s certainly quite civilised inside.
Soundproofing is standard with full carpeting and whilst the engine sounds throaty enough you can hold conversation above it without the need for shouting.
The best bit is to drop the passenger window and listen to the exhaust bouncing off the walls.
It’s a very different note to the engine, far more sharp, a real chainsaw rasp. Mmmmm.

I’m also delighted with the ride. Really pleased with the suspension.

I determinedly set out to use standard Porsche components and not be tempted to ‘upgrade’ to bronze bearings or poly bushes or adjustable solutions or any racing style improvements.
The whole car sits on genuine Porsche rubber bushes as it would have done in the seventies and I thought that would leave me with a soft ride.

And yet.... ...it’s surprisingly firm.
Very comfortable, yet precise and with excellent road holding.
There’s very little roll and it’s all very controlled and forgiving.
I guess that – in its time – this car was a high performance sports car and I shouldn’t be surprised at the superb handling. But I am.

I assume that many cars (especially those with the originality and 40 year old parts so favoured by some) may have tired and worn components that disappoint. And then folk are inclined to try and overcompensate to improve the set-up.
Well, let me tell you, the standard Porsche gear is more than up to the job.
It’s been a big revelation.

[Ferry Man]

.. less of the 'early 911' ... it's an IB don't you know

True, and I apologise.
But it's an IB with claim to association to the mighty RS.
I've fought hard to not align this car with the earlier top of the range model and yet....

As I drove the car and became amazed by it's performance I wondered if it was due to the thorough restoration or something else?
Then it dawned on me that much of the excellence is down to the equal specification to the 1973 RS.
I will concede that on my car those famous two letters are not in the badging but cast your mind back to the very first page of this thread.....

The official weight claimed by Porsche was 1,075kg, exactly as per the ’73 RS touring. The same weight, the same engine, the same gearing.