The 2016 Build-Off Challenge Crowns a Winner

When the Build-Off Challenge was started the goal was to encourage 914 owners to get their cars on the road. We never dreamed we would have over 30 enthusiasts sign up in the first year of the contest. Nor could we have asked for a more fitting end to the event.

Throughout the year-long contest a handful of challengers were at the top of the voting. The leaders were a diverse group of enthusiasts from as far away as the United Kingdom. Each with their unique take on the mid-engine Porsche, they labored to put their car on the road by September 14, 2016.

Once the deadline had come, it was time to tally the votes. Would one of the leaders pull it out? Would a surprise contender surface? The Build-Off Challenge is divided into four rounds, ending in December, March, June, and September. Two different polls are conducted at the end of each round: One with the challengers themselves which carries 75% of the overall weight, and one with the 914world.com members, which makes up 25% of the total vote.

Both of the polls are based on difficulty, quality, and progress of the build. Finally, the builds are weighted based on the type of project. Therefore, for example, a bare metal restoration or full engine rebuild are given more weight than a basic car clean-up, or top-end engine rebuild. The winner is the build that accumulates the most points over the four rounds.

By the time round three was complete, the leaders had been fairly set. John Thurwachter, Andrew Dalen, Darren Collins, Tom Linder, and Joe Dees were the top five. All of the top-five builds were very different. But, they all shared a common goal.

Round four came to a conclusion on 914-day: September 14th. When the polls were tallied it was John Thurwachter who took first place. Although the top contenders were neck and neck throughout the competition, John had led every round. So it was a fitting end.

FIRST PLACE: JOHN THURWACHTER

John’s history with the 914 goes all the way back to 1976, when he bought his first 914. Through the 1980s he had a number of them, and was often seen towing them to the racetrack behind his 1978 VW Rabbit. He did much of the work, from wrenching to welding, himself. During his early years with the 914, he also worked for VW Manufacturing of America, advancing to the T.A.D. Division. He later moved to Ford.

Over the years, John has owned about a dozen 914s. Today he has three: A 1971, a 1972, and the 1973 he entered in the Build-Off Challenge. John purchased his 1973 914 in 1999 off of eBay, sight unseen. The only photos available were two Polaroid pictures. When he picked the car up he realized it needed significantly more work than the owner indicated. But, at least it had a 2.0 liter.

For the Build-Off, John installed steel flares, added 5-lug suspension, replaced the back half of the rear trunk floor, replaced the rear body panel, pathed one half of the left front fender, and rebuilt the engine.

When it comes to creativity, however, it’s the headlights that really stand out. John relocated them to inside the turn signal housings, and filled in the factory hood headlight cutouts. At first sight, you don’t necessarily notice the changes to the hood. But, once you do see the change, it obviously changes the look of the car. It makes it more serious; Somewhat reminiscent of the front of a 911.

Since this year’s Okteenferfest was scheduled for the September 23-25th, the winner was announced at the Saturday banquet. A few weeks before the event, without knowing where he would place in the contest, John decided to drive his 914 down to Okteenerfest. In total it was about 1,300 miles round trip for the Michigan resident. But, who’s counting?

John and his son made the journey having just finished the car. In fact, the 914 was so fresh, that they had just painted it with Plastidip. During the car show he let everyone sign the car with Sharpies. It turned out to be a great way to end the Build-Off. Mark Whitesell of 914rubber was also on hand to present John with the 1st place prize, a full refund of any money spent wiht 914rubber during the Build-off. John donated the money to next year’s Okteenerfest. Way to go.

John and his son headed back to Michigan on Sunday, golden jackstand trophy, and his completed 914 in hand.

SECOND PLACE: DARREN COLLINS

arren Collins gave John a run for his money for first place in the Build-Off. Located in the United Kingdom, his build was one of only a few overseas. Darren spent 18 years in the Armed Forces as an engineer, and worked in the United States for a good portion of that time. He has wanted a 914 for some time, and finally took the plunge. After an exhaustive search, he bought a car in California and brought it across the pond.

Once the car arrvied it was quickly apparent that it needed a lot of work. In addition to normal wear and tear, the paint was faded badly, the engine compartment had desert sand everywhere, and when the engine was removed, Darren found minor rust that needed to be repaired.

Throughout the process Darren’s attention to detail was remarkable. He rebuilt nearly every aspect of the car inlcuding the suspension, brakes, everytihng in the the engine compartment, the interior, the pedal assembly, and nearly every cable, bracket, and latch on the car.

It is a huge understatement to say that Darren’s build is amazing. But his build thread on 914world is simply out of this world. Quite frankly the attention to detail, both on the car, and how he documented his build leaves you speechless. The pictures here do little justice in terms of how far he has brought the car over the course of the year. And his build thread serves as a knowledge base and inspiration for all 914 owners. Thank you, Darren, for an amazing contribution to the 914 community.

THIRD PLACE: ANDREW DALEN

Third place in the Build-Off was taken by a familiar enthusiast in the 914 community. You can frequently find Andrew Dalen, known as Andyrew on 914world, providing valuable advice on the 914 forums.

Andy, who lives in Modesto, California, represents a common type of 914 enthusiasts. Like many others who fell in love with the mid-engine Porsche at a young age, he bought his car when he was 14 years old, before he even had a driver’s license.

Andy debated between buying a 914 or a Mustang. He finally decided on the Porsche, and after looking for about six months, he bought his car on eBay. To buy his 914 he worked detailing cars and other off jobs. In true 914 fashion, the car came with two extra parts cars, and its share of troubles.

He recounts a familiar story of how he “drove” it home in a cloud of smoke, with a loose clutch tube. He had to turn the car off to shift it at each intersections.

Over the years, Andy, has made numerous modifications to the car, including installing a V8 powerplant. He also installed 5-lug suspension and fender flares, before painting the car himself.

Throughout the Build-Off, Andy was a top contender. Over the year, the V8 came out, and the car received a turbocharged Audi AEB 1.8t engine transplant, as well as an Audi A6 5-speed. The Subaru transplant is a common 914 upgrade, and having a leader in the Challenge to represent those interested in this modification was helpful. Numerous chassis modifications were necessary, and Andy documented his progress very well. The thread is a must-read for every 914 owner.

Andy didn’t just install an Audi powerplant. He completely rebuilt it. The list of upgrades and modifications to the car are too numerous to list. It was certainly one of the more interesting builds in the contest. One upgrade that really stood out was the custom interior Andy built for the car. The design sketches, which he posted in this build thread, are very inspiring. Although he didn’t finish the custom interior during the Challenge, his ideas makes you wonder how the 914 might have progressed, had Porsche not stopped production in the 70s.

Everyone struggles to balance their 914 ambitions with life. Andy seems to have this down. Making his build all the more impressive was his trip through Europe with his wife in the middle of the contest. They visited Italy, Germany, and France. He even went to the Porsche museum and the Nurburgring, just to make us all envious. Video of his on-track experiences in the Renault Clio RS200 track car they rented are on 914world. Great job Andy. Thanks for the awesome build.

FOURTH PLACE: TOM LNDER

Fourth place went to Tom Linder, and his olympic blue 914. Having brought his car out of a limestone mine to bring it back to life, Tom’s build turned out to be very rewarding to watch progress.

Over the course of his build he tackled tasks commonly encountered in many 914 restorations. He did countless hours of paint and bodywork, replaced the suspension, and prepared a newly rebuilt engine. Tom’s meticulously detailed blue 914 become a familiar face in the competition. We will be excited to see the build come to an end and have Tom begin to enjoy his car on the road.

FIFTH PLACE: JOE DEES

he fifth place finisher had one of the most challenging builds in the Build-Off. Joe Dees’ 914 represented a tour de force in metalwork. from replacing the longitudinals and suspension consoles, to the floor pans, to bodywork, the project was quite ambitious.

Over the course of his build, Joe documented the metal work and processes he used to repair the 914. His build thread will be instructive to many 914 owners tackling common rust issues in their cars. It looks like much of the hard work is behind Joe now, and we know that his car will be finished and on the road soon.