Saying Hello to the Group — Just Order from VMC!

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@Teammccalla , you should have no regrets.

This sounds like a great build, but if you have any remorse by the time it's delivered, it will probably be worth half again more than you paid for it.

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Congratulations and welcome aboard!

Congratulations. My experience with VMC was great. Just one thing. I don’t think IRS is possible with anything earlier than a ‘69 chassis. I may be wrong but Greg told me that so you may want to check it out. Good luck with the build. Sounds awesome.

@MikeM posted:

Congratulations. My experience with VMC was great. Just one thing. I don’t think IRS is possible with anything earlier than a ‘69 chassis. I may be wrong but Greg told me that so you may want to check it out. Good luck with the build. Sounds awesome.

You can put IRS in any year chassis, you just have to weld in inner trailing arm pivots.

@MikeM posted:

Congratulations. My experience with VMC was great. Just one thing. I don’t think IRS is possible with anything earlier than a ‘69 chassis. I may be wrong but Greg told me that so you may want to check it out. Good luck with the build. Sounds awesome.

There are aftermarket irs pivot brackets that you can weld in to earlier floorpans.  If you can weld it's not hard to make a jig using an original irs pan.  A friend has converted several buggies with earlier pans.

Thanks for the input and well wishes.  I’ll definitely talk to Greg about the IRS.  I just thought it would be cool to have an older title year, and yellow plates. If GGreg thinks a newer pan is definitely the way to go, I will follow his recommendation.

The “have it right now or wait 20 months” value proposition is kind of bizarre, but the same situation exists for a lot of highly sought after cars.  That car, in hand today, sells for $65K+ perhaps.  I want to use it, not sell it, so it doesn’t matter, but the math is strange for sure.  It’s worth 10% more used than new?  Strange times we live in….

I had one that I knew I was going to sell so I put low miles on it and got every penny back. I ordered my new one last March and it is just about ready. You color choices sound awesome!

And here is my 95 993 getting taken away. Ouch. Selling all my valuables. I sold this one a few years ago for $30k. I was so happy with that. Now I’m kicking myself lol. I had it 16 years.

That is the funny thing about present value & future value and it is mostly seen when all of a sudden the shift happens you. Can be a bigger winner in short order but as always for speculation timing is king!

Inflation is not with us

Great looking car!

I would have done better financially to keep the ‘69 S, but I have loved the RSA.  The RSA gone up in value, but not as much.  However, it’s not all about money, and the RSA served its purpose as something I could drive to work and not stress.  It was a newish car when I got it, and it’s been super super reliable.  Still is.  It’s a ton faster than an old S for most situations, and has cold AC.  Haha.

My guess is that I will drive the Speedster way more than the RSA, and maybe close to as much as the S5 cab.

@Teammccalla, congratulations and welcome to the group!

I'm glad you found Jerome Bosch and Maui Roadsters while you were on island. Jerome and his wife are good people. I'm thinking that everyone who's considering buying a speedster should make a trip to Maui and try out one of theirs just to make sure. 😀

That RS America is a beauty. I can see why you're so attached. One of Greg's plastic fantastics will bring plenty of smiles and as you say, reduce some of the anxiety of having to be a good steward of a rare car.

Oh so many little decisions to come. Welcome to the madness!

Jerome and his wife are great people.  Pure class.  And his car brought me here!  The attached heavily inspired my choices.  You’re welcome for the free plug, Jerome.  You deserve it!

I just don’t drive the RSA enough. Especially with the new concours paint, I just tend not to take it out. It’s getting new H&Rs and B8 as we speak, so I imagine I’ll be putting on some miles soon enjoying it.

I'm sorry, @Teammccalla- "It’s getting new H&Rs and B8 as we speak"

Translation please? _{(I'll probably feel foolish when you tell me but right now nothing's ringing a bell...)}

H&R is a spring/shock/swaybar company. I'm clueless on the B8.

The RS America was the last new “911” I really liked. I can still remember reading the R&T road test. And the white one that was pictured in the article.

I agree. I saw an article in Excellence in ‘92 or ‘93 and said “I want one”!  At the time I couldn’t afford one.  I had a somewhat thrashed ‘69S and was restoring it little by little.  When I could finally afford one in 2001, I found one and jumped on it.  

All 964s were kind of the red-headed step children, so I got one with 30k miles at a good price.  It’s still not that much different than a regular 964, but I think the differences have a big effect.  

No power steering with sport suspension changes the car.  It feels raw like an old car, just with more power.  Now, I’m excited to get another new “old car.”

https://www.speedsterowners.co...5#692914442419112785

Thanks guys.

I went and drove the S5 Cab to Santa Cruz today.  Nice day.  Even with the ECU and TCU done, it’s sterile.  It’s a very fast sterile, but sterile nonetheless…. I’ll keep it because when the side gets bashed in San Francisco (it just did last week — hit and run — people suck), I won’t shed a tear.  Just patch him up and keep rolling.  I don’t like sterile though.  I want my Porsche back, and a Speedster too please….

@Teammccalla posted:

I went and drove the S5 Cab to Santa Cruz today.  Nice day.  Even with the ECU and TCU done, it’s sterile.  It’s a very fast sterile, but sterile nonetheless…. I’ll keep it because when the side gets bashed in San Francisco (it just did last week — hit and run — people suck), I won’t shed a tear.  Just patch him up and keep rolling.  I don’t like sterile though.  I want my Porsche back, and a Speedster too please….

Not sure if one would have helped you or not but I'm a big fan of dash cameras for this very reason. They run in the background even when you're out of the car and can save a pretty fair amount of data for when you need it.

Sounds like a beautiful build and will be worth the wait

Can you please elaborate on the following:

Customer will supply horn button - which horn button are you going with?
Customer will supply LED 7 inch round headlights - which headlights are these?
Headlight Grilles- Customer prefers bar grilles - I prefer the bar grilles vs. the mesh grille as well. I've seen them sell elsewhere online, and its a easy install you can do yourself if Greg doesnt have availability
Extend dash to cover door jam like original - how will this look, and how much extra cost is it? did you go with leather, or vinyl?
1962 or older chassis preferred - what is the purpose?

Best of luck on the wait! lol

I think Sierra Madre has the bar headlight covers.

@beemerb0y posted:

Sounds like a beautiful build and will be worth the wait

Can you please elaborate on the following:

Extend dash to cover door jam like original - how will this look, and how much extra cost is it? did you go with leather, or vinyl?

1962 or older chassis preferred - what is the purpose?

Best of luck on the wait! lol

Here is an original Porsche 356 with the dash cover from side to side:

And I'm just guessing here but I imagine he wants to be able to use an original black lettering on yellow license plate since he is in California:

My Speedster has a 1960 chassis and I registered it with a black on yellow plate as well. It really looks cool.

Robert is correct on both fronts. I want the dash to look like a real speedster. It just bugs me to have the ends sticking out.  I chose leather.  There was no extra charge for this on the invoice.

I do like the idea of yellow plates. Black would be fine, but I prefer the yellow. You may know that in CA you can put “year of manufacture” plates ona a car. You can buy a nice vintage set with a letter combo you like off of eBay. If they match the year of your title, you can use them. They are taxed as vanity plates. 1962 is the last year of yellow plates, and they are what would have been on a 1956-58. Just a nice touch.

Horn button?  Haven’t decided. I might find a nice used Nardi with button and use that. I haven’t found a crest one I like yet.

For whatever reason, I like “bar” headlight grills. Thanks for the tip on sourcing.

I think the headlights are called VC 4000s without looking g them up.

@Teammccalla posted:

Robert is correct on both fronts. I want the dash to look like a real speedster. It just bugs me to have the ends sticking out.  I chose leather.  There was no extra charge for this on the invoice.

I do like the idea of yellow plates. Black would be fine, but I prefer the yellow. You may know that in CA you can put “year of manufacture” plates ona a car. You can buy a nice vintage set with a letter combo you like off of eBay. If they match the year of your title, you can use them. They are taxed as vanity plates. 1962 is the last year of yellow plates, and they are what would have been on a 1956-58. Just a nice touch.

Horn button?  Haven’t decided. I might find a nice used Nardi with button and use that. I haven’t found a crest one I like yet.

For whatever reason, I like “bar” headlight grills. Thanks for the tip on sourcing.

I think the headlights are called VC 4000s without looking g them up.

The "Special Plate" fee for a YOM plate is only $10.00 whereas the personalized plate fee is $49.00 in California. I just renewed mine last week so it's fresh in my memory.

I was lucky in the sense I was able to find a black on yellow plate with a "1960" sticker on it to match my chassis. If you can't find a set with your chassis year sticker on it there are some reproduction stickers available that are spot on. The person doing your paperwork probably won't even notice since they don't/can't look up the sticker number to authenticate it. It isn't in their system any longer anyway. The person helping me never even mentioned the sticker and it looked brand new so I don't know if it was original or a reproduction.

@Robert M posted:

the personalized plate fee is $49.00 in California.

Annually? Here the personalized fee is only for the plates. Thanks to the nice DMV lady who let me title my Spyder as a ‘55, my registration fee is $20/year.

@dlearl476 posted:

Annually? Here the personalized fee is only for the plates. Thanks to the nice DMV lady who let me title my Spyder as a ‘55, my registration fee is $20/year.

Yes. People with personalized plates pay an ADDITIONAL $49.00 annually just to have whatever it is they wanted to tell the world printed on their license plate. This is in addition to all of the other fees.

In California you pay a registration fee, a license fee, maybe a weight fee if you own a pickup truck that MIGHT haul something, a special plate fee (YOM or similar), a personalized plate fee if you have one, county and district fees, and an owner responsibility fee. I had to look that last one up. If your vehicle is ticketed for a parking violation, red light photo ticket, unpaid toll fee etc then they just add it to your registration even if you weren't driving the vehicle at the time of the violation.

@Teammccalla posted:

I chose leather.  There was no extra charge for this on the invoice.

Leather is a $1900 upgrade at VMC

I just double checked the headlight reference.  It is indeed VC4000.  I don't know if links are allowed here, so you can find it by looking at the vintage car led website.  The one I drove on Maui has VC3500s on it, and they were very good, definitely better than my regular manufacturer headlights on my Audi.  The VC4000 is a bit brighter, so what the heck.  As long as they aren't drawing much more, or getting too hot, I say the more light the better.

Thanks for that anecdote on the yellow plates.  I was worried about repro stickers.  Sounds like they have no way to tell if your 1962 sticker is legit.  They can only check whether the plate is in use.

Can anyone here weigh in on Greg's wood steering wheels versus real Nardi's? 

Does anyone know if the trunks are carpeted? 

Are there mats?  It looks like Cocomats are the way to go.  Tan with white spots.

You all might notice that I left off a radio.  I plan to use a bluetooth one of some sort.  I saw an article about people doing "hidden" stereos in the front with only a volume control discreetly under the dash.  Anyone have experience with that?

Another question on the trunk release.  I couldn't find good info on how to have a locking handle.  I expect to leave it wide open, so it might be nice to have a way to lock stuff in the trunk while I go in for coffee.

On the same vein, what prevents people from just picking these little guys up and carrying them away?!  Hotwiring?  I guess I won't spend my life worrying about it.  Alarm systems have always screwed up my cars' electronics so I am not a fan unless they are factory.

Thanks for the input everyone!

NY is similar to CA fee schedule. I pay 50-60 bucks a year for YOM plate, instead of 25-30 for TWO years for regular plates.

I'll gladly pay as only one plate is required with 1955 or 1956 YOM plate. All other years REQUIRE TWO.

Also, I can never be ticketed for no front plate. I'm pretty sure I'd have to go to court(it would get dropped), the officers of today are simply too young to know any better.

@beemerb0y Correct.  I will pay $1,900 extra for the leather upgrade, but no extra charge for covering the ends of the dash.  There wasn't an extra charge listed, at least.

@DannyP That is an interesting wrinkle about the front plates.  I don't know of any such law in California.  I know I had to put one on my '69S and on my '94 RSA.  I didn't do either until I was under threat of death from the fixit police.  If there is a way to avoid putting one on the Speedster, I will.

@Robert M posted:

I was lucky in the sense I was able to find a black on yellow plate with a "1960" sticker on it to match my chassis. If you can't find a set with your chassis year sticker on it there are some reproduction stickers available that are spot on. The person doing your paperwork probably won't even notice since they don't/can't look up the sticker number to authenticate it. It isn't in their system any longer anyway. The person helping me never even mentioned the sticker and it looked brand new so I don't know if it was original or a reproduction.

please elaborate

Im in California…do i search ebay for a yellow plate and get a reproduction sticker of the year matching my chassis and register it without hassle?

@beemerb0y you can click here for information about California Year of Manufacture plates.

There is a troubling statement:

• Replica vehicles, such as specially constructed vehicles (SPCNS) and Kit cars (for example, a replica of a 1928 Duesenberg Model J)) do not qualify for YOM license plates.

My guess is that it’s titled as a ‘62 VW on a ‘62 VW chassis with a ‘62 VW VIN.  It’s a ‘62 VW so can have yellow plates. I am sure Robert M will chime it to elaborate.

@Teammccalla Links are allowed.

https://vintagecarleds.com/sho.../vc3500-classic-kit/

I have found several sets of yellow California plates on eBay and other sites.  As I understand it they can be purchased and you can register your vehicle with those plates IF, and only IF, the plate is no longer in the DMV system.  Although I have not confirmed the DMV aspect of things.  For what people are asking for those old sets I don’t know if the risk is worth the reward.

On the other hand, I found a company who will make a “copy” of my current plate with yellow background and black lettering.  It wasn’t terribly expensive, but could cost me a ticket.  If you know what your looking at they are not quite the same, but it looks period correct-ish.

I have resigned myself to keeping the correct plates with me at all times while wearing the aftermarket 1956 plates I purchased.  I figure if I get pulled over I can just make the swap under the guise of saying I only wear the aftermarket ones for shows, etc.

So far, so good.  But I’ve been fortunate.  

As a disclaimer I don’t advocate being a scoff-law.  But I’ve always been a bit of a rebel.

@Teammccalla posted:

@DannyP That is an interesting wrinkle about the front plates.  I don't know of any such law in California.  I know I had to put one on my '69S and on my '94 RSA.  I didn't do either until I was under threat of death from the fixit police.  If there is a way to avoid putting one on the Speedster, I will.

California has pretty much always required a front plate except for 1941, then again from 1945-1947, and once again in 1956. All other times they have required two plates. I have never had a front plate on my Speedster and the traffic guys have never bothered me. I also don't have a front plate on my wife's Porsche and so far so good. I realize that could change at any time but until it does.....

@Teammccalla posted:

Thanks for that anecdote on the yellow plates.  I was worried about repro stickers.  Sounds like they have no way to tell if your 1962 sticker is legit.  They can only check whether the plate is in use. - The only way they can tell is by the color and the reflective properties of the sticker but there's a chance they won't even notice.

Can anyone here weigh in on Greg's wood steering wheels versus real Nardi's? - My car just came back from VC after a refresh and I have one of Greg's wheels and I like it a lot. It's the same one I previously purchased from a shop in the UK. I've never held a real Nardi so I can't tell you if it's nicer than that.

Does anyone know if the trunks are carpeted? -If you pay for a frunk carpet kit it can be.

Are there mats?  It looks like Cocomats are the way to go.  Tan with white spots. - No mats and Coco Mats are the best. They have a selection online for Speedster replicas based on the builder.

Another question on the trunk release.  I couldn't find good info on how to have a locking handle.  I expect to leave it wide open, so it might be nice to have a way to lock stuff in the trunk while I go in for coffee. - You won't need one. No one here has ever posted that someone took stuff from the frunk. Just use common sense about what you put in it.

On the same vein, what prevents people from just picking these little guys up and carrying them away?!  Hotwiring?  I guess I won't spend my life worrying about it.  Alarm systems have always screwed up my cars' electronics so I am not a fan unless they are factory. - I put in an alarm and eventually just quit using it. I just recently took mine out. A hidden kill switch might be all you need if it makes you feel more comfortable. Greg could probably do the for you.

Thanks for the input everyone!