There are few Porsches in the history of the marque which garner as much eyebrow-raising as the Porsche 914 – in fact, only the 924 comes to mind. For one, like the 924, the Porsche 914 makes use of a meager, underpowered engine from Volkswagen. And where the 924 was originally intended to wear the “VW-Porsche” badge, identifying it as something lesser than a proper, prestigious thoroughbred, the 914 actually did – in Europe, at least.
All skepticism about its origins aside, the Porsche 914 is a peachy little mid-engine sportscar in its own right. So says Automobile magazine, who recently profiled a private owner 914 in an article. Sure, 60 mph only comes at a leisurely rate – 13.7 seconds – but it’s a lightweight, lithe, good-handling roadster. And, being motivated by a 1.7 liter VW flat-four, the Porsche 914 typically requires little in the way of maintenance.
In fact, the example profiled by Automobile has only needed a new clutch, a valve job, paint, and replacement wear items over the past 38 years that it’s been on the road. It’s no babied garage-dweller, either; the magazine says that this Porsche 914 owner racked up over 88,000 miles before the odometer broke in the 1990s. The owner estimates about another 40,000 miles since then.
Best of all, where classic 911 prices have ballooned into the stratosphere, the 914 remains ludicrously undervalued. So while the Porsche 914 may not be the hottest, most desirable classic set of wheels out there, it’s very difficult to do better for less coin.
And hey, if it’s more power you’re after from your Sunday cruiser, why not try and land a six-cylinder Porsche 914/6?
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