DDK - Die Deutschen Klassiker

I thought I would share some insights into my 73T to ST replica project in this thread. Upfront please let me state that I am unfortunately not a guy with a spanner and a garage at home so all work is carried out by the experts.

My bare metal restoration project was not really what I had planned when I purchased the car in the US and imported it to the UK in late 2006.



The car is a 1973 T/E 2.4 MFI with matching numbers (VIN 9113100675), which I got confirmed by HQ in Zuffenhausen. When the car arrived in the UK the local London shops of Steve Winter and Chris Turner kindly helped me to get the car UK roadworthy.



My initial plan for the car was to have a “solid driver” that one can take out for a spin on weekends or on the occasional track day. But that was going to change soon.



My first track day in Silverstone in late July 2007 was great fun hearing that engine roar in the back and feeling the steering wheel rattle while only doing 60mph when accelerating onto the main straight.



There were many nice cars out on that day in Silverstone and my T with a fainted and scuffed black paint and a smoky engine when coming off the throttle at high revs felt a little bit like a black sheep in the herd of immaculate cars. A top engine rebuild was definitely on the horizon soon if I continued planning to drive the car in anger on the track.

The usual "rebuild" versus "replace" engine dilemma started and a decision was taken in mid 2008 to order a stronger but more or less period correct replacement engine in the US, while keeping the 2.4L MFI engine original to the car in storage. More about the replacement engine later.

During the long wait for the replacement engine I’ve decided to get the car stripped for a repaint and converted to a lightweight look. While the car overall was solid it was no big surprise that there was rust underneath the scuffed paint.



Those rear window rubber seals should have been replaced some time ago...



...which would have left the rear seat pan area a safer place to sit on.




Door sills also needed replacement...



...as well as the see through front wing...



...and the front hood full of filler.

The steep prices for steel replacement panels and the promising weight savings with fibreglass alternatives brought the ST inspired lightweight theme into play for this restoration and initiated the search for ST steel replica rear arches.

Luckily I found a nice pair of rear arches in mid Wales that were custom built from a fibreglass mould taken from a real ST in the US.







more to come...

Always enjoy a good resto thread

One question though - whats with the number plate?

James,
the DVLA at the time of the first UK registration made a mistake and gave the car an L plate. They later corrected their mistake and gave the car its current registration TGF 699L. They also paid for the cost to print the new license plates and change the parking permits.

Some pictures of the fitting of the ST steel rear arches to the car.

Existing rear wings were marked...



...before a good part of them got cut out...



...and new arches were welded onto them.





Quite a change!

Looks very neatly done.
Are the 'kidney bowls' ok?
With the sills like they are I would expect the bowls to be 'delicate'.

A project to be followed with interest - looking very neat there.

Who is doing the work for you ?

What is the bigger 'vision' - interior, brakes & suspension, interior etc.

Any ETA for completion ?

Ian

Nice work !!!!
Where did you source the rear flares ?
Thanks!

Ian,

the bigger 'vision' is to save weight and increase performance in a period correct fashion, i.e. going towards an ST theme without trying to create an exact replica. The end product should work well on the track but also survive a London Sunday evening traffic jam.

The car was already sitting nicely on the road before the start of the restoration, as the previous owner had already replaced front brake discs and shocks. Besides a proper cleaning and a front strut brace not much is planned in that area for now.

Interior still to be decided but likely two replica ST seats, a bolt in half cage, racing seat belts, lightweight carpet sets and door cards and a Prototypo or similar steering wheel.

Expectations are that the car will be back on the road in early spring 2010, if Mark at rs911, who is doing all the work (to OliveR: he is also the source of the flares) keeps a safe distance from motocross bikes for now

Looking good - keep those pics coming

Went to visit Mark in his new shop in Wales last weekend to see how my ST replica is progressing. Inside of car is already painted in the bahia red colour original to its 73T donor car. Outside of car will get a spray in the same colour soon.










Unfortunately my visit to Mark also confirmed what I had feared when reading about Gib's engine failure after only 600 miles in the early911sregistry forum. The 2.5L engine waiting to be fitted into my car was built by the same guy in the US so I asked Mark to check my engine. Turns out we found lots of silicone where it should not be and some other nasty surprises.



While I have not spent a fortune on that engine and was aware of the risks when purchasing from the US, I am still gutted about the low quality build. However, one has to move on. The car is too nice for another try of a shortcut so the search for a suitable quality engine has started.

Nice project!
Seems like the Toyo R888s are a bit stretched on the rear Minilites. Could you share with us what are the rim/tire sizes? I suspect you have 225/50 (or 235/50?) on 10*15 am I correct?
Best,
Mathieu

Mathieu,
the wheels and rubber on the latest pictures belong to Mark at RS911. The rear rims are 10x15 Minilites. Not sure about the Toyo size. Agree they look tight.
A new set of 9x15 and 10x15 Minilites is waiting to be fitted to the car once we have the rest of the project including engine sorted. Regarding tyres I am not decided what to fit yet. I am currently in the process of relocating from the UK back to Switzerland with the car to follow me once finalised. Still need to check what rubber is compatible with Swiss MOT rules.
Best,
Marius

I'm not sure those rears are as tight as they first appear - the dust mark on them is considerably narrower than the actual contact patch but gives the impression/illusion that the dust patch is the only part of the wheel touching the floor. The left hand side of the tyre looks like it's pulled tight because there is no dust on it so it appears it's not even touching the floor - but if you look at the bottom of the wheel the contact patch is considerably wider than the dust patch.



Look in this second picture - look at both wheels and how much tyre is actually touching the floor





Disclaimer: I generally do not know what I am talking about and can produce evidence from wife and 3 kids to confirm that.

I think when you slip 500 odd lbs of engine and box in the back, the wheels, tyres and contact patch will look a whole lot better

On competition wheels and tyres they usually say have the wheels 1 inch wider than the tyres. This gives more stablity in the sidewalls, so I'd say those tyres are just about right for the rims

But then again I'm no expert either