BaT Auction Success Story: A Monster 914 Moves to Maine — Explained
This Success Story comes to us from BaT member MaineGT, who won this 1975 Porsche 914 from 911r in a September 2025 BaT auction:
I really wasn’t looking for a 914, but this one was different: it was a completely restored track car. No heat, side windows, or power anything. What it did have was a a big LS3 engine packaged neatly with a great modern transmission and a full cage. It had come up for sale in July and I placed a bid or two on it, but at that time I wasn’t ready to sell the car I currently owned. I just couldn’t fully commit. The car sold, and I kicked myself for not seriously going after it.
Despite a huge investment in the build, the car went for a number less than the total of the build receipts—more thoughts on that later. However, it came up again a couple of months later because the winning bidder did not have room for it in his life and tasked 911r with bringing it back to BaT once again. It went up for sale in September 2025.
Around that time, another car came up that, to my eye, was one of the best-looking ’70s era 911s I had ever seen. I flew across the country to test drive it, and thought I could drive the 914 as well while I was out there. While the 911 looked great, I felt there was some play in the steering, and the original transmission was less than smooth, which should not have been a surprise for a 50-year-old gearbox. In the end, I wanted a road course track-focused car, so it was on to the 914. The steering was rock solid, and its modern transaxle shifted butter-smooth. That was all I needed to know. From the pictures and the video, I already knew that the car was finished to a high standard—and it was fast. This time around, I won the auction.
The car was so track-oriented that it didn’t have headlights or working turn signals. The seller agreed to install these, which took some time. By the time it was ready, I was so anxious to drive the car that I decided to pick it up in Arizona and drive it all the way to Maine in the cold of November while visiting family along the way. I enjoyed every mile, truly. It was scary at first with so much horsepower on tap in heavy traffic, but I got used to it. And with some noise-canceling headphones, I was in heaven. The Bid Nerds YouTube show had featured the car during the first auction. They focused on the hazards of driving a car with a full cage and thought that would limit interested parties, which it may have. But once strapped in, I realized I couldn’t hit my head, so that didn’t turn out to be an issue for me at all.
Another theme in the auction was what the builder had paid to create the car versus its value. Unfortunately, the previous owner passed away sometime after building the car. A few commenters suggested the owner had made a mistake, or paid too much to create it. It was clear to me that he did not have it built to sell, but to drive. I couldn’t help thinking likewise. This man’s genius became clear to me over the course of the trip. While most of us would have spent that money on a new Turbo or GT3, swayed by resale value, he created something that I think is far more fun to drive than either of those “more valuable” cars.
Why did I buy a Porsche in the first place? It wasn’t to get from point A to B, certainly. I wouldn’t have had the money to build this car, but I understand it now. You can’t get a new car like this from a dealership. It doesn’t exist—it must be built. If the focus was to truly have a great experience driving, I am absolutely certain that this was money well spent. The smiles per mile exceed any factory car I have ever driven. The fact that I could own it for a price I could afford makes me feel as though I won the lottery. I will always be grateful to the previous owner for building this car and wish I could have met him.
I learned after the fact that this build was not just a unique-looking 914 modeled after a GT with bigger wheels. It was modeled after Porsche’s 916 prototype. It looked practically identical to one. Porsche discontinued production after 11 prototypes because the 916 turned out to be faster and more expensive than their flagship 911, which was a no-no. I never knew these cars existed. Like this car, the 916 came with 17″ wheels. I still like the GT look with the 15″ wheels wrapped in Hoosier slicks, so I will run that setup. But man, the car was built just right. Today, 916s trade for nearly seven figures. Anyway, the car is put away for the winter, and spring cannot come soon enough!
If you have a Success Story about a car you’ve bought or sold on BaT, please send a few lines and pictures (or a video) to community.content@bringatrailer.com, and we’ll send you a $50 credit to the BaT Gear Store when your story posts to the site.
We love to hear from satisfied BaT buyers and sellers, and a Success Story feature is a great addition to any car’s history when you’re ready to sell.
