- Out to Lunch Archives
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- Issue
97 - Bob Cooper,
a veteran antique dealer, talks shop
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- Issue 96
- George Lawrence talks about restoring old signs etc.
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- Issue
95 - Jean Pollock
of the Super Eight Ladies talks troops support
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- Issue 94 - Gone fishing
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- Issue
93 - John Gronan
of Quebec's North Hatley show is owed a lunch.
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- Issue
92 - A reader explains
the Avro Arrow model engine mystery
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- Issue
91 - Luke Mercier
of Springbrook chats about being a highly skilled luthier
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- Issue
90 - John Cosway,
Wayback Times writer and website keeper, talks shop over lunch
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- Issue
89 - Bradley
Higgins,
13, is a very mature antique collector selling at antique shows
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- Issue
88 - Trevor
Hosier and his Youngtown Rock and Roll Museum in Omemee
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- Issue
87 - Tony Klompmaker,
Bancroft barber with his own barbering museum
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- Issue 86 - Gone fishing
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- Issue
85 - Adrian Tinline
and Stefan McKey represent new generation of antique dealers
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- Issue
84
- Brenda McNeilly, an avid collector of Halloween memorabilia
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- Issue
83 - A tribute to Jay Telfer, founding
publisher of the Wayback Times
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- Issue 82
- Richard Bennett, owner
of the Horseless Carriage Museum, Bobcaygeon
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- Issue
81 - Marshall Gummer, the Canadian
Personal, Property Appraisers Group
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- Issue
80 - A recap of Out to Lunch columns
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- Issue
79 - Bob Murton, builder of a 1912 Model T Ford - in
his basement
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- Issue 78
- Sven Kraumanis of Cobourg's
Legacy Vintage Building Materials & Antiques
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- Issue
77 - Sandy Neilly, editor of the Wayback Times - a second
anniversary lunch
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- Issue
76 - Steven Lloyd, head of the National Decoy Information
Centre
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- Issue
75 - Bill Dobson, promoter of the annual Odessa and Kingston
Cabin Fever shows
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- Issue
74 - Cal Earle, aka Juke Box Cal, a collector and restorer
of vintage juke boxes
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- Issue
73 - Harold Carlaw,
owner of a unique - and
free - Canadian military museum
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- Issue
72 - Jeff Gadsden, Canadian antique show promoter, with
his wife Wendy
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- Issue
71 - Janice Griffith, manager of the Canadian Canoe Museum
in Peterborough
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- Issue
70 - Les Brittan, former auctioneer of the year
and one of the most entertaining auctioneers
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- Issue
69 - Pam Ferrazzutti, Canada's majolica expert, talking about
her dealings
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- Issue
68 - Mike Filey, noted Toronto historian and long-time
Toronto Sun columnist
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- Issue
67 - MacGregor
Roulston, a touching
interview with the 90-year-old vet
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- Issue
66 - Lee Caswell, an appraiser on the Canadian Antiques
Roadshow TV series
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- Issue
65 - Rene Huard of TV's Antique Hunter fame, talks about
how he was chosen by producers
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- Peter Neilly is Out
to Lunch
- Breaking bread with
interesting people
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- Out to Lunch!
- with Peter Neilly
-
 During my five years
of Out to Lunch columns, I have been consistently impressed by
the passion people have for their jobs and their hobbies.
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- Today's guest is Mike Galloway and his passion for his business
is unmatched. Mike owns and operates Mike's 914s, a Colborne,
Ontario, shop that specializes in the repair, restoration and
maintenance of Porsche 914s.
-
- The 914 is a mid-engine Porsche sports car produced from
1970 to 1976. The 914s were named Motor Trend's Import Car Of
The Year in 1970 and in 1973 Road Test Magazine described it
as "the best combination of performance, handling, fuel
economy and utility available in a sports car today."
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- I drove one in the 1970s and I am still impressed by the
handling and road-hugging feel these mid-engine Porsches provided.
Mike has picked Vito's Restaurant on King Street in Colborne
for lunch.
Peter: Thanks for meeting with me Mike. I have to ask
you right off, what got you hooked on 914s? I know you also work
on and restore other Porsches, but you seem almost obsessed with
914s. What got you started?
Mike: I bought my first one in 1978. It was a 73, five
years old. I was working as a supervisor at Rogers Cable in Oshawa.
The cars were more of a hobby back then, but I was really impressed
by the looks and the handling. I actually traded that one in
as a down payment on a house and then I bought another one in
1980. I was watching a TV show in the '90s about an American
mechanic who ran a garage that restored only 1955-57 Thunderbirds.
I thought it would be a great idea to do that with Porsche 914s.
At that time, I started buying them up along with all the parts
I could find. The cars were very prone to rust, so I would buy
up the rusted out ones and dismantle them for the parts. The
parts sold well. Eventually, the 914s became a very collectable
car.
Peter: What do like about that particular model?
 Mike: It's
funny, people either really love the looks of the 914s or they
don't. The design and mid-engine layout results in a near perfect
weight distribution and exceptional handling. I believe the 914
handles better than the more expensive Porsche 911. Locating
the engine in front of the rear axle gives the car better handling
and balance than other sports cars, but it isn't a very practical
vehicle, being a two-seater with little storage. It's more of
a toy, or fun car, for collectors.
Peter: I remember the 914 I drove got a lot of looks on
the road, but it only had a 1.7L four-cylinder engine and although
it handled corners like a go-cart, it lacked strong power.
Mike: Porsche also offered a six-cylinder and a 2.0L engine
that I think was the best air-cooled motor they ever built. The
914 models handled so well I think Porsche purposely underpowered
them so they wouldn't compete with their more expensive, and
more profitable, 911s.
Peter: When did you open this shop?
Mike: I started the business in Oshawa in 1999 and then
I bought this place in Colborne in December of 2003. Restoring
a car properly involves a lot of work and hours. It's nothing
to spend 300 to 400 hours on a car.
Peter: I have never seen a car hoist like the one you
have set up in your shop. It lifts a car off the ground and turns
it on its side so you can work on the bottom of the car while
standing upright.
Mike: It's a Roto-Hoist and it makes the cars much easier
to work on. The 914s are bad for rust because most of their removable
targa tops leaked and acid leaking from the battery would rot
out the rocker panels. Many require extensive welding and floor
replacements. I purchased the uprights for the hoist and then
adapted brackets to bolt on to the front and rear of the car
where the bumpers are mounted. Having the car resting on its
side allows you to rotate and reposition the car, depending on
what part you are welding or replacing. Floors, frames and doorjambs
are much easier to replace with the car on its side. The hoist
is set up to only hold 914s.
Peter: How many 914s did Porsche produce for sale?
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- Mike: From 1970 to 1976, they sold 120,000. In 1973,
they sold the most, 28,000, but by 1976 sales had dropped to
only 4,000 units.
Peter: Why did sales drop off so dramatically?
Mike: In a way, the 914s priced themselves out of existence.
Toward the end, they were priced about the same as a Corvette,
close to $7,000.
Peter: What does a fully restored 914 sell for today?
Mike: You can expect to pay anywhere from $12,000 to $18,000
for a drivable 914 with good cosmetics. That's not a lot of money
for a vintage sports car - and it's a Porsche.
Peter: Thanks for your time Mike and for the tour of your
shop.
Mike's 914s offers Porsche enthusiasts competitive rates for
service, parts, repairs, regular maintenance, or full restoration.
He also sells 914s and other Porsches. His shop is at 243 Industrial
Park Road, Box 454, Colborne Ontario, K0K1S0. Call 905-355-2703,
or email him at mike.galloway@airnet.ca
Visit his website for photos of his vehicles and more info on
Porsches, mikes914s.com
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