We’ve all seen the insanity of the Porsche 993 Turbo market. As air-cooled 911s in general have steadily appreciated in value, the most powerful of the last of the air-cooled models has lead the way with precipitous gains seemingly defying all reason. Naturally, the more rare the model the more extreme those value increases have been and with buyers now showing little hesitation to ask for $200K+ for a standard Turbo it is no wonder that Turbo S owners would seek to capitalize on the madness with even steeper asking prices. That brings us to the example here, a Black and Tan 1997 Porsche 911 Turbo S, located in Florida, with just 9,208 miles on it and an asking price over half a million dollars. There is no doubt that these will stand beside the 993 Carrera RS and GT2 as the most sought-after models, with the GT2 leading the way by a substantial margin. While power increases weren’t substantial for the US market (424 hp vs 408 hp for the standard Turbo) the relative scarcity of the model and the cachet of saying you have the baddest air-cooled 911 around garner these cars significant appreciation. They also marked a slight change in the ethos of the model itself that has continued up to today. Unlike the 964 Turbo S, which was lightened and austere in its fittings, the 993 Turbo S retained the luxurious offerings that have been a hallmark of the 911 Turbo since its inception. It was to be the most refined and powerful road-going 911. Of course, with the release of the GT2 Porsche insured that its customers had both options available to them and sent the air-cooled 911 out in the best ways possible.
