The Purple Peril

[Gustosomerset]

Very belatedly, I thought it might be of interest to post a thread on the 1970T hotrod that a friend and I have been building over the last 18 months - starting, illogically, with a picture of the finished article.

By way of back story, I’ve owned a number of Porsches over the years – including a 73 2.4S, a 3.0 SC, a G50 3.2 Carrera, a 993 C2, various 993s, a Boxter and a 996 GT3 Mk1. My friend and neighbour, Jason Moore is in the middle of several restoration projects, including an Aston Martin DB2, a 1968 SWB 911S, various Austin Healey 100S’s and a couple of 50’s Alfas. See more of his work here: http://www.jpmclassics.co.uk

Two good friends, Nigel Mitchell and Mike Chadwick each own ‘73 2.7RSs - one an M472 and one an M471 (amongst various other Porsches). Pilgrimages with them to Hedingham over a number of years convinced us that it was time for a project. Jay Kay's Aubergine RS displayed at the 2013 event decided us on the colour, but we still needed to find a donor car...

Would be very happy to post details of what we built if of interest to others here.

[Ian 2.2S]

Would be very happy to post details of what we built if of interest to others here.

Nah, don't bother - no interest on here

Get posting before the lynch mob arrives.

Looks fab

[Bootsy]

Post away, looks very nice

[210bhp]

Fabulous,

It reminds me of Luke's old Italian car which was equally fabulous (with a stunning tan interior).

Or this car, which some here will also remember,



Aubergine has to be a top four early 911 colour and you seem to have captured the richness in the paint that the name itself suggests (egg plant). Let's see more.......

Regards
Mike

[Darren65]

Lots of photos and details please. Car looks fab, nice flares.

And thanks for posting

[Gustosomerset]

Many thanks for your interest. Well, thus encouraged, I'll start at the beginning.

The car we found was originally a U.S. Spec MY1970 911T, built on the 1st December 1969 and finished in Bahia Red. Original special order items included ‘basketweave’ seats, ’S’ spec instruments and door speakers...none of which remained. The certificate of title shows it’s last U.S. owner was in Sumner, Washington State and it had the registration UHG 911. In 2011 it was discovered, without an engine, and in in a poor state in Los Angeles by a fellow DDKer and was subsequently imported into the UK.

The new owner began restoring the car and spent some time collecting various parts to create an RS hotrod. Some limited work was carried out, including the addition of steel RS style rear arches and then a repaint in Viper Green that, in the words of the owner, appeared to have been undertaken by an infant. The owner's work meant he needs to move back to the U.S., and agreed to sell the project to us in early 2014.

We wanted a car to drive, not polish, that would be neither necessarily a faithful restoration of an early 911, nor a replica of any specific model. Instead, with the guidance of Mike and Nigel we decided to follow a spec based on the answer to the question: “If you had a standard 911T in the 70’s, what would you have done to improve it - if you had a reasonable but not unlimited budget - to make it look better and go faster?” Inspirations came from Mike and Nigel’s cars - although we specifically didn’t want to build an RS replica…we wanted to build the car we wanted to drive.

A few pics of the car in its original Bahia red and of the rear arches being added, before we owned it:

[Gustosomerset]

....and here's how it looked by the time we acquired it... with its unique matte green paint job. Missing interior, glass and engine but generally sound - with a big box of bits and a C of A.

[Zim48]

Love the colour and the result look forward to reading the story.

Not to hijack but Mike is there a thread somewhere on the aubergine car you posted a pic of?

thanks

Paul

[FLY 7]

I've seen the 'Purple Peril' - in fact I saw the restoration project at various stages.

I'd describe it as a largely original car, with a few period deviations and later upgrades to enhance its appearance and functionality.

Make no mistake; Jason's attention to detail and the quality of the workmanship are right up there at the highest level, and the Nick Fulljames engine is a masterpiece.

I gather there is still a bit of minor detailing, inc the correct finish to the genuine Fuchs wheels, and then it should look even prettier. Just a shame that the its completion coincided with the onset of winter. Still, roll on springtime, it's going to provide a lot of pleasure next year

[Gustosomerset]

Thanks Mike - and thanks for the inspiration...

[Gustosomerset]

Meanwhile, once back in the workshop, an assessment of what we had - and hadn't got. Good news and bad news throughout.
Good steering wheel but all the original instruments 'lost' by a previous restorer.
New suspension components but wrongly assembled.
Hideous paint but sound metal beneath.
Good rear arches but nasty repro wheels.
Original door handles but no keys.
And so on...

[Gustosomerset]

Having stripped the shell we found, inevitably, that some of the previous bodywork restoration had been completed to a good standard and some not. We removed a badly fitted replacement front wing and other sill, repaired the originals (that came with the car) and refitted.

We added a new front suspension pan, aluminium Rennline floorboards and various other panels including a repro RS rear bumper. Other than these items, the body shell was rust free. We found a GRP RS ducktail bottled with the car but decided instead to restore the original item - because, as we kept reminding ourselves - this is not an RS replica.

Bodywork restoration was followed by a complete bare metal respray in Aubergine 025 2K solid colour.

[Gustosomerset]

We looked at a number of options for the engine (as we had none with the car). In fact we bought and subsequently sold a couple before acquiring an entire 1972 Targa project donor car in pieces. We kept the engine and a few other bits that we needed, then re-sold what remained of the car for £500 less than we paid for it. A rare bargain...which, foolishly, made us think we might be able to afford something a bit special....

The magnesium case 2.4 engine was stripped, examined and, with a sharp intake of breath, taken to Nick Fulljames. At this point, we had to modify our guiding principle of “If you had a standard 911T in the 70’s, what would you have done to improve it to make it look better and go faster?” to: “If you had a standard 911T in the 70’s and Redtek had existed, what would you have done to improve it to make it look better and go faster?”

From the base engine, Nick built us a bespoke ‘fast road’ power plant to his full Gruppe R 2.7 specification. The spec includes GE40 cams, gas-flowed heads, PMO 46mm carbs, SSI heat exchangers, heavy duty head studs, shuffle-pinned core halves and a full set of RSR fan shrouds and tray. Power is estimated at 245bhp. We haven't driven it much yet - but that feels conservative.







Off Topic but, in response to those that have asked, the cars in the background of the earlier workshop pictures are:
1. Above: A replica Austin Healey 100S - (at this stage a toolroom copy of the chassis and tub)
2.Behind: A complete matching numbers 1968 911S - (midway through complete restoration)
3. Left: An Aston Martin DB2 (ditto)

[dragonfly]

That sounds a great engine spec and what a superb colour, I look forward to reading more

[FLY 7]

I hadn't seen the engine pictures before - it really is 'work of art' and a good indicator of the quality of the whole project.

Very impressive!