Hershey Meet Thread - Hershey, PA, April 26, 2008

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Kevin Wiggins
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#46 Post by Kevin Wiggins »

Great meet. Had a very good time, bunch of great cars and the weather held out! Some pics in the below link:

http://www.356registry.com/forum/album. ... &mode=list
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Cliff Murray

#47 Post by Cliff Murray »

Quite a lot of 356 stuff for sale. I bought a 67 912 engine, complete, for a reasonable price. I should have bought a S90 tach, so if the guy reads this and still wants to sell, send me a PM via the forum. Great fun!

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Albert Tiedemann
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#48 Post by Albert Tiedemann »

LOL,,,Adam, realistically I could make it & still get a couple hours sleep...In 2001 I drove the 356 from Jax, Florida to the Penna state line in 13hours
.

Must have a 6/31 and a 4A gear
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Rick Cicciarelli
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#49 Post by Rick Cicciarelli »

Great show and the weather was excellent...just enough sun. Some beautiful cars. It was educational for me, to say the least. People want a lot of money for C coupes that either still need to be restored, or have been restored, but don't seem to have a lot of nice details I'd be looking for for the price. Perhaps I am naive, but things seemed pricey. At the same time, I need to get my butt in gear and get my hands on a coupe or else I never will. Of course there was a beautiful selection of speedsters to drool over. Definitely a dream car of mine, but again, at the prices they seem to bring it will likely never happen for me. Funny that they are bringing these crazy high prices and yet, there seems to be at least one, if not two, at any given time on ebay, and looking over any of the online dealers, it seems everyone one has at least one speedster for sale at any time....so they are obviously not rare....and yet, they still seem to bring high dollar. Like I said, very educational. Now....if I could just find someone to give me a ride in one of these cars....I have still never even sat in one. :wink: Great fun today overall..glad I made the trip and I am looking forward to the next show. :D

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Kevin Wiggins
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#50 Post by Kevin Wiggins »

Rick Cicciarelli wrote:I need to get my butt in gear and get my hands on a coupe or else I never will.
I thought the same thing a year ago. Seeing that this baby was going for $25k and boy was it ever rough, I'm glad I bought when I did. I paid about the same for mine. This car was rusty had a lot of bondo and looked like it was clipped. There was no engine in the car, but I'm not sure one he had sitting nearby went with it or not.

[albumimg]1463[/albumimg]

[albumimg]1462[/albumimg]

[albumimg]1461[/albumimg]
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Mark Pribanic
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#51 Post by Mark Pribanic »

Ab: Not sure what a 6/31 is. I believe 4th is a B gear on my coupe

Rick: Good to see you had an opportunity to browse and educate yourself more. Now you need to get a ride in one.

Kevin: Thanks for posting the pics in the Album. I noticed a couple of beehive cars& one earlier coupe. One looked like a 1951/52, & also an open cab, maybe a 1955?

Here's the two I'd like to see in person:

Image

Image
Mark Pribanic
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Kevin Wiggins
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#52 Post by Kevin Wiggins »

The cab was a 54. Nice car. Was for sale, but didn't get the price. Did anybody get it?
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Rick Cicciarelli
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#53 Post by Rick Cicciarelli »

No...I too heard it was for sale, but didnt hear a price. There was a later '60's cab in ivory that had an asking price of $135,000 on it. I enjoyed noting some of the things to look for from Brett Johnson's books...in particular the gaps. It was interesting to note just how off the gaps were on so many of these old 356's....including ones that had been restored. Some are more offensive than others of course.
-yeah...I definitely need to get a ride in a couple of these. A '60's coupe would be nice to sit in the driver seat (just to feel), and get a ride in just so I know what I am looking at for myself down the road...and also a Speedster would be nice to get a ride in...just to feel the "dream." I'd be grateful to anyone willing to help me out in this regard at one of the future shows :mrgreen:

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Eric Wahlberg
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#54 Post by Eric Wahlberg »

The Coupe is a 52 and a good 10 footer. The kustom vynal trunk with covered fuel tank and spare tire highlights this. The interior carpet is not even close to what the factory used, and it also covered the floor. Gaps were so-so. He did not show the engine this year, but last year did and it is a later three piece case with Solex carbs. More padded beige vynal in the trunk area. The owner complained at concours registration about not winning the 356 class last year and said he usually takes best of show. Obviously he is not showing it at many Porsche events.

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Eric Wahlberg
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#55 Post by Eric Wahlberg »

[quote="Rick Cicciarelli"] There was a later '60's cab in ivory that had an asking price of $135,000 on it.

Your observations about this car were good. I was at Hershey for set-up Friday afternoon when this car was brought in on a trailer. It was stunning from a distance, with the bright white paint and blue top. Up close there was evidence of poor body work. The wheel well arches were jagged, not smooth. There were some sanding marks visable and I saw a blister on the left rocker panel near the rear wheel. The longitudinals looked poor as well. Those are things I noticed with only a quick look at it and it was enough to make me walk away. Unfortunately, with today's prices, quicky restorations are being undertaken to see if sellers can land a big fish.

Too bad we did not get to meet each other. I would have gladly given you a ride in my Speedster, although I did not leave until 3:30.

Keep looking. The car you want is out there somewhere. Be patient and keep searching. Brett's book is a good primer. Also, you may want to but a copy of Jim Schrager's book on Buying a 356.

Rick Cicciarelli
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#56 Post by Rick Cicciarelli »

Eric,
I didn't notice all of the details that you pointed out with the white cab, but like I said..I'm still learning. I would love for someone to show me some of those things at some point. There was a freshly restored black '64 coupe that I noticed had some gaps that weren't really that impressive for the price that was on the car.
I should have stepped up and introduced myself. I was drooling over your car when that guy and his wife were questioning the ignition switch on your Speedster. I would have introduced myself but everyone seems pretty busy today and I didn't want to get in the way. Perhaps we can meet sometime in the future...I would certainly appreciate taking you up on your offer for a ride...especially in that beautiful Speedster of yours...it is a beautiful car.
Cheers!
:mrgreen:

Rick Cicciarelli
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#57 Post by Rick Cicciarelli »

Eric Wahlberg wrote:
Rick Cicciarelli wrote: Brett's book is a good primer. Also, you may want to but a copy of Jim Schrager's book on Buying a 356.
I've got both of Brett's books, as well as Schrager's and Conradt's books. Now I just need a car :mrgreen:

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Mark Pribanic
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#58 Post by Mark Pribanic »

Rick Cicciarelli wrote:
Eric Wahlberg wrote:
Rick Cicciarelli wrote: Brett's book is a good primer. Also, you may want to but a copy of Jim Schrager's book on Buying a 356.
I've got both of Brett's books, as well as Schrager's and Conradt's books. Now I just need a car :mrgreen:
Rick,
I bet if you keep looking, you'll discover the next barn find. With Ithaca, being as close to Watkins Glen, I would guess there's a good chance of a couple 356's in hibernation either on a farm or in a garage. You just gotta sniff 'em out.

Best of luck,

Mark
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Cliff Murray

#59 Post by Cliff Murray »

Hi Rick

I will try to be diplomatic so as not to offend the owner of any particular car. Remember, love me, love my dog.

You are doing exactly the correct thing by attending events and giving every car a thorough look over. In this overheated market, the poorly restored cars are offered for prices that approach closely the prices of great cars. There are too many buyers that don't know the difference and too many buyers that are buying before they inspect the car.

The body structure of a 356 is absolutely the most important factor when putting a value on your purchase. Here is where the money is and if you buy a poorly restored car, it will cost much more to fix than a well worn car with lots of patina. The quality of the body fit and finish is what set Porsche apart from all of it's competitors including the exotics. Gaps were perfect. When you sight down th side of the car, there should be zero waves and zero valley at the door gaps. It should look like the doors were cut out with a laser after the car was formed. The VAST majority or the 356s out there will not pass the test. When you see thick panels, lumps, stress cracks, and zigzag gaps, run away fast! That said, you will decide what makes you happy and what compromise you are willing to accept to get a car that fits your budget. Just don't pay for a body that you did not get.

Mechanical issues are easy to find and deal with. Get the car inspected by someone you trust and is not representing the seller.

About the way the cars drive and feel....... I have owned or driven dozens of cars from the 356 era and only the 4 cylinder Alfas come close to feeling as modern as a 356. Many of the others are beautiful and fun but feel ancient by comparison. Every control feels like a truck and requires great effort. The fun diminishes as you tire of the controls. A 356 delivers fun all day long with it's, happy go lucky, light hearted nature.

You are right about the cars that you saw for sale at Hershey, I only saw one(Ivory SC sunroof coupe unrestored Ca plate) that did not scare me. There was a lot of discussion about two high priced, restored, cars that are going to make their future owners very sad when reality sets in.

Once you feel up to speed, pull the trigger on the car that fits you and start to enjoy!

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Adam Wright
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#60 Post by Adam Wright »

I got the best thing you can ever hope to get at Hershey, sun burn!!!

What a great time, seeing everyone, finding some good parts, the turnout was very good.

The only problem I had was I overbought parts, we had to pack the truck like a jigsaw puzzle on the way back, but that is a good problem.

I will have pics later today.
www.unobtanium-inc.com
Check out my Barn Find column in the Registry magazine, always looking for good stories.

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