Rare 1976 Porsche 912E Comes Out of the Barn, Gets First Wash in 15 Years

The 912 debuted in 1965, one year after the 911 arrived into dealerships. That's when the aging 356 was discontinued. Concerned that the flat-six 911 was considerably more expensive than the 356, Porsche developed a cheaper 911 with a flat-four mill.

Powered by a 1.6-liter engine sourced from the final version of the 356 (102 horsepower), the 912 outsold the 911 in its first years on the market. The nameplate remained in production until 1969, when the 914 co-developed with Volkswagen was introduced.

But the 912 made a brief return in 1976 as a U.S.-only offering. With the 914 discontinued that year and its official replacement, the 924, in its final development stage, Porsche created the 912E. Much like its predecessor, it was a 911 with less expensive features and a flat-four engine in the rear (this time around a 2.0-liter based on VW's Type 4 air-cooled unit).

Production of the 912E lasted from May 1975 to July 1976, during which only 2,092 units were built. The red example you see here is one of those cars. It was recently dragged out of a barn and taken by its owner to WD Detailing for a thorough cleaning and detailing for the first time in 15 years.

Yes, this 912E has seen better days, but the cleaning reveals a survivor that's still in decent shape. And the good news is that the Porsche will be rebuilt, and we'll see it get back on the road sooner than later.

With fewer than 2,100 units built and with only half of them still running as of 2022, this car deserves to be saved. Especially since prices keep going up for these one-year Porsches. These cars changed hands for around $30,000 in 2019, but 912Es went for at least $35,000 and up to $56,000 in 2022. Pristine examples will probably hit $100,000 at auctions in a few years.