Pick of the Day: 1969 Porsche 911E, great early model in decent condition

I have been a fan of Porsche 911 since I was 13, and I have owned more than 20 of these iconic cars from essentially every air-cooled series.  Of the classic long-hood 911s (pre-1974), my favorite is the 1969 model.

These are the best of all the early cars as they still have the purity of the original Porsche 911 design powered by the original 2-liter engines but with a slightly longer wheelbase for better balance. The cars after ‘69 had increased displacements for their engines and started to include more of the federally mandated safety and emissions changes.

The Pick of the Day is a 1969 Porsche 911E coupe finished in its original color combination of Polo Red with the optional black leatherette-and-corduroy Porsche Recaro Sport Seats. The Porsche Certificate of Authenticity that accompanies this 911E backs up the combination.

Of those 1969 911 cars, the 911 E is sometimes forgotten. The E (which stands for Einspritzung, the German word for fuel injection) was the middle model between the T (for Touring) and the high-performance S (which stands for Super or Sport depending on the era).

In its merging of the more-docile T and the sporting S, the E is a strong performer and available for less money both now and when new than the top S model. The performance of the 1969 911E was nothing to sneeze at with its fuel-injected 2.0-liter boxer 6-cylinder engine delivering 158 horsepower, making the car capable of a 0-60 time of 7 seconds flat and a top speed of 134 mph.

The 911 cars of the 1960s are quite fun to drive, eligible for countless events, and are true Porsche drivers’ cars of the first level.

The Omaha, Nebraska, dealer advertising this coupe on ClassicCars.com states that both the engine and gearbox are original, with numbers matching those on the Porsche COA. The engine was rebuilt 100 miles ago by a well-respected Midwest Porsche 911 shop, the seller says, which included new pistons, new cams, the original heads rebuilt and a new clutch.

The pictures of this stunning 911E depict a car that looks to be in strong driver-condition car that while not absolutely perfect, is quite good. The paint looks nice, the panel gaps look to be correct, and all trim looks to be correct as well. It features a later-model Porsche radio. The carpet is correct, as is the headliner.

The dash has for some reason been painted red and I personally would correct that to the proper black. I would also replace the later-model Porsche head unit with one of the new Porsche Classic radios that add navigation and Bluetooth to this classic 911, making it all the easier to use on a daily basis.

The coupe is currently running on what appear to be correct Fuchs alloy wheels, with which a 1969 911E would have been shipped from the factory. I would want to check to be sure that these are in fact actual Porsche factory Fuchs as that would add value to this car.

This 911E has a reasonable asking price of $79,900, which would leave room to make the few corrections needed and still not be upside down.

To view this vehicle on ClassicCars.com, see Pick of the Day.