First, a summary of its main good points:
1971 (1972 model year) 911T Coupe
RHD supplied by Agnew in Belfast on 13th December 1971
Original 2.4 engine and 5-speed gearbox
78000 miles recorded
Original Fuchs alloys
Period Recaro seats
Photos below summarise the bad points:
It had been in New Zealand for 30 years but was never put on the road there. A few spiders have been living in it over that time but fortunately no sign of rodents.
I have started the process of stripping the car but I can thank the folks in NZ for simplifying that task by removing some parts for me like front and rear windscreens and much of the interior.
Some, actually, most nuts, bolts and screws have not been keen to come off. Having said that one nut came off easier than expected. Unfortunately, it was a captive nut holding the bonnet hinge which meant removing the hinge from the inner wing to make it easier to separate bonnet and hinge off the car.
At least now after finding a few hours here and there over the last few weeks the bonnet, front wings, dashboard, dashboard dials and switches, steering wheel, heater control boxes, windscreen wiper mechanism, headlining and rear side windows are now off the car.
Some parts will clearly need replaced but others look a lot better even with a simple clean.
Some more work required on them but at least they now look as if they can be reused.
In parallel with the practical work, I have requested a Certificate of Authenticity and submitted a V888 form to the DVLA for the vehicle history.
I was fortunate enough that the export of the car had not been recorded at the DVLA and the car still had its UK plates. As it came from NI to the mainland, it received a V registration in 1979 rather than an age related plate. I was able to register the car and submit my V888 request. Within a few weeks I had a stack of paper and on one of the sheets it mentioned the car’s original NI plate. Well worth the £5 cost. A new V888 request to NI DVA and I wait for what they can find.
Contrasting with that I submitted my request for a Certificate of Authenticity in November and I am still waiting for a correct one. Having initially waited the four weeks suggested I chased it up. They first said they had no record of the request, which I thought may have explained why I had not received it, but they did find it. When it arrived in January it had the car listed as a 912 and the gearbox type as 911/12 rather than 915/02. After chasing through email, with either little or no response, a phone call resulted in a new certificate at the end of March. Despite me pointing out the mistakes, the gearbox type is still wrong but at least it is now a plausible 915/12. I phoned over two weeks ago and they agreed it was their mistake as the serial number of the gearbox does mean it is a 915/02 but I still wait. The CoA is not costing me anything, as free to Porsche Club GB members, but if I was I really would have cause to complain in waiting over 5 months to get a correct one.
My intention is to restore the car back to its original colour of tangerine rather than the white that it was repainted in 1981. Exact finish is to be determined but I am aiming for a good restoration rather than concours. Disassembly and reassembly I am keen to do myself but I’ll leave the more complicated tasks to more suitably qualified experts.
I know it has been discussed on other threads whether a car like this is worth restoring but in my opinion it is. My previous Porsche project was a Cat D Boxster S. Although I enjoyed repairing it, it did not take that long to do and my intention was never to keep it. Now I have a project that will run for much longer, some may say indefinitely. If I get stuck on one bit there will always be another bit to do and at the end I will have a car that I do want to keep.
Anyway, that will do for now as I have some more parts cleaning to do which is only half done.
