How-to 914: Rear Trunk Floor Pan Install

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Ever wonder how to install a rear trunk floor pan in a 1973 Porsche 914? In this video, the guys at Restoration Design show you just how to do that.

As always, we recommend doing a lot of the prep work before starting on the installation itself. We’ve drilled out all of our welds, ground down the steel and prepped it with weld-through primer.

It’s also worth mentioning that we coated the inside of the transaxle support channel with POR-15 to help reduce any potential future rust.

We also recommend prepping the floor pan itself by punching holes for the rosette welds and do any necessary trimming to get it the size you need for you specific car.

Next, put the piece in place in the car so you can scribe your line and cut the existing piece to fit the replacement piece. Then, using self-tapping screws, put the piece in place and use your hammer to make any necessary adjustments for fit.

After this, you need to make sure your trunk support fits properly. Using the two holes on either end of the trunk support, make sure at least one of them lines up with the floor pan.

Once you have a nice fit, go ahead and weld in your trunk pan. When doing your rosette welds, make sure to leave enough space between the welds to keep the temperature of the steal down. Then, roll the car over and take care of your sway bar mounts.

You always want to make sure the measurement from centre to centre of the sway bar mounts matches manufacturers’ specifications. If your 914 didn’t come with sway bar mounts, as some of them don’t, make sure you’re installing them properly as they’re essential.

Get more details about this installation and see the finished product in the video below!

How-to 914: Rear Engine Compartment Shelf Installation

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Next up in our 1973 Porsche 914 restoration project is the rear engine compartment shelf installation. This is the follow-up to our suspension console installation video.

The part we used is customizable and none of the flanges are bent. This is to allow you to fit it perfectly to your specific Porsche. After years of being on the road, none of them will fit exactly the same so it’s important to be able to fit it snugly to your model.

Prep your part by bending the flanges and prep for all of the plug welds. It will probably take some time to bend the flanges to fit your car, as this part is very particular.

When installing the engine compartment shelf, make sure you use clamps and self-tapping screws to secure the piece in place. As always, we coated the new part with weld-through primer before installing it.

When you’re happy with the way the part is fitting and everything is secure and in place, you can start welding. Take the time to weld in the corners to get a better seal.

After inspecting your welding and making sure you haven’t missed anything, grind it and clean it up.

Watch the video below to see how we did it!

Porsche 911ST Update

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Did you check out our introduction to the Porsche 911ST project we were working on? Check out this follow-up video update.

Adam takes us through levelling the sled bench, panel installation and fittings for the doors and windows.

The most exciting update for this project is the new car bench. By adding some adjustable legs to the car bench, it allows us to make it level and help with using the zero plane on the car.

You may remember that the 911ST came to us with very little metal left on it. When replacing parts on a car, don’t take too much metal off at one time. In the meantime we’ve taken care of the front end and the door placement. Adam put all of the panels on the front of the car, but is still working on making the left side level.

We’re going to be redoing a lot of the bracing. Once we have door towers on, we can get to mounting the doors, then taking care of the rockers and other essential parts of the front end.

To level the bench, we used an old school machining level.

Adam uses a bunch of jacks and jigs to prop up the car and mark the zero for the car.

Find out how Adam found the zero plane for the car, and see the rest of the Porsche 911ST update!

 

How-to 914: Seat Frame Install

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As part of our series of videos for restoring a Porsche 914, we bring you how to install the seat frame.

As usual, Adam has the prep work done beforehand, by preparing the risers and bolting on hinges to the seat frame. The hinges have to be bolted on in order to position the risers on the new floor of the car.

The seat mount adjustment should be mounted in already, and Adam sets the risers in place ready for alignment.

The first riser is easy to install: place it over top of the seat support channel in the floor of the car. Take your seat frame and get it into the height adjustment bracket on the lowest setting and push it down at the back.

You want to align it with the riser’s centre right on the seat frame hinge. When you’re happy with the placement of the first side, take a square and align the frame with the crossmember. Begin securing your risers to the floor with self-tapping screws.

Double-check that your hinges are aligning with the centre of the risers, and start tacking your hinges to your risers.

Once attached, make sure the seat frame adjusts properly. If you’re happy with it, remove the seat frame and risers to make completing the welding easier.

Find out more about how to complete the seat frame installation on a Porsche 914!