The Porsche 914: From College Campuses to Cult Classic

The 1970’s were a time of rock n roll and muscle cars; it was a time where people drove their ‘69 big block Camaro in the salt and snow, not giving a second thought. The same can be said of the Porsche 914.

It wasn’t rare. It wasn’t expensive. And it certainly wasn’t what you would call “prestigious,” at the time. What it was, however, was widely attainable.

The Porsche brand as a whole conveyed an established tone of success, with cars like the 911 serving as flagship models of exotic performance. The 914, however, represented an entrance into that world. Appearing at college campuses instead of valet parking lots, at autocross events instead of track events, at the beach on summer break, and in parking lots across America.

For many drivers, a 914 was their first experience in a mid-engine sports car, and it could have also been their first experience in any car not made in Detroit. 

We are going to explore the 914’s place in our culture and some of the special editions built by Porsche through the years. 

The Underdog Reputation

Because of its joint development with Volkswagen, the 914 carried the “Volks-Porsche” nickname — sometimes said with pride, sometimes with sarcasm.

Purists debated whether it was a “real” Porsche. But younger buyers didn’t care. It was an affordable mid-engined car that handled great, and had Porsche’s signature styling that fit into the young car culture of the era. 

Over time, the car has acquired a fantastic following and has become more than the throwaway sports car Porsche first designed it as. It’s also become a collector's car in its own right alongside the 911 and brings back nostalgia for many who remember the days in high school and college when they or a friend had one. A trait many other luxury or exotic cars don’t have. 

While the 914 built its reputation on campuses and autocross courses, Porsche’s racing program was dominating at the highest levels.

A Bumblebee And Creamsicle Colored Celebration

Led by the legendary Mark Donohue, Porsche’s 917/30 crushed all competition in the Can-Am series in 1973. So well in fact, that after winning the last six of eight total rounds, the SCCA rewrote the rules to essentially ban the last of the unlimited cars from competition. 

Porsche celebrated this win and outlaw badge of honor by selling 1,000 special edition 914s for the 1974 model year. Each packing a few specific options and two very distinct color schemes. 

These came standard with the regular appearance group option (fog lamps, center console with clock and additional gauges) as well as the LE package (special interior, alloy wheels, a spoiler below the front bumper, front and rear anti-roll bars) and either what became known as either the Bumblebee, or Creamsicle color schemes. 

500 of each were imported. The black cars featured Sunflower Yellow rocker panels, bumpers, spoilers, and wheels, which earned them the “Bumblebee” Moniker. While the 500 white cars same parts were accented with Phoenix Red, an almost orange color, giving them the “Creamsicle” name. 

These special editions also came packing with the higher-horsepower 2.0L over the base 1.8L. Giving it over 95 horsepower vs the 72-ish horsepower they normally have. 

The ironic part of this is that these special editions had a hard time selling, and even though they are part of the “celebration” of dominating in the Can-Am series, the color schemes had nothing to do with the blue and yellow color scheme Mark Donohue’s 917/30 drove. So in an effort to sell them, many dealerships re-sprayed these cars to more “palatable” colors.

But as the decades roll by and poor-selling numbers turn into “rare options” and nostalgia, these color schemes are brought back in force in recent years. People now seek these original cars with a passion, as well as build their own “clones” to resemble these cars today, to capture that 70’s feel again. Today, roughly 25 percent of the original 1,000 imported cars are known to exist.

Visit Our Porsche 914 Shop — Just Over an Hour from Salem

Martin Mid Engine
📍 25858 S Elwood Rd, Colton, OR 97017
📞 (insert phone number)
🕘 Mon–Fri, 9am–5pm

Just northeast of Salem via OR-214 through Silverton. If you're serious about fixing building the perfect 914, we are the shop for you!