Enthusiasts Blogging Our Favorite Classifieds
It hasn’t been all that long since I looked at a 7A-powered 90 or, for that matter, a very clean Coupe Quattro:
However, today’s car – while broadly similar to that Coupe above, is definitely worth a closer look. That’s because it has a scant 27,000 miles on the clock. How is that even possible?
The 1998 model year was the swan song for the 993 generation, along the air-cooled engine. For some reason, Porsche skipped on the 1998 911 Turbo for the US, so we were left the Targa, Cabriolet 2 and 4, Carrera 4S, and Carrera 2S to chose from for the last of the run. All models were wore the wider body shell, supposedly because Porsche had an abundance of them they needed to use before switching to 996 production. But “abundance” doesn’t necessarily mean there were a lot destined for North America. For the most desirable Carrera S, that meant 1,292 for North America. However, there was some funny math from Porsche on these. All of them were technically manufactured in 1997, but Porsche held some of the supply back and rolled them out as 1998 models. Today’s car was built in October 1997, so it would have been considered a 1998 model year anyway, but I’m guessing this was near the end of the run.
Now as we are well over 20 years-old on these C2S examples, demand for them is high. It is totally understandable. It’s the last air-cooled naturally aspirated, manual gear box, rear-wheel drive Porsche 911. They can even sell for Turbo money if the spec is right. The thing is, just because they are in demand, doesn’t mean you shell out the money simply because they exist. This car in Texas is a perfect example why.
Hey there. This is something different. What we have today in a 1994 Mercedes-Benz SL280 up for sale in the heart of London. If the car being a 5-speed manual didn’t raise your eyebrows, how about I tell you it is actually left-hand drive as well? According to this dealer, the car was originally delivered to Monaco, which probably explains why it only has 35,000 miles. However, a quick check of the UK MOT shows consistent tests starting in 2005, so this one was booted from the beautiful ̶t̶a̶x̶ ̶h̶a̶v̶e̶n̶ vacation spot long ago, probably for being far too plebeian. Naturally, my gear were immediately turning seeing how this would be an ideal import to the US. However, once I saw the price, I threw in the towel rather quickly.
Two names appear in this post that aren’t nearly as widely recognized as they should be. The first is Andreas Glas, the proprietor of Hans Glas GmbH. In the 1960s, this company briefly moved away from its bonds as constructor of sewing machines and licensed Goggomobils to produce some seriously pretty coupes; the 1300GT and 1700GT were the first and better known, but the 2600 and 3000 V8 were no less striking. That’s because of the second name involved in this post; Pietro Frua.
Frua isn’t nearly as well known as the other great Italian designers of the 1960s, but he had a unique style all his own. Well before Gandini and Giugiaro capitalized on the angular wedge era of automotive design, Frua’s low, long and flat lines stood sharply apart from the rounded arches that dominated Pininfarina, Ghia and Vignale. Glas used the designs, along with the pioneering use of timing belts, to offer a slightly different vision of German transportation. It was more emotive, more flowing and, frankly, more pretty than just about anything else in period from the major manufacturers. Indeed, many compared Frua’s work on the 2600 to the Maserati Sebring – exotic company, indeed, and fitting given that the designer went on to work on several of the Trident’s designs.
But Hans Glas GmbH was bought out outright by BMW, mostly for the procurement of the Dingolfing plant and engineering crew. Before BMW closed the chapter, though, they updated a few of the Glas designs with new Munich power, stuck some BMW badges on them and Viola! A new catalog of cars! This 1968 BMW Glas 3000 V8 is an example of the seldom seen period of BMW history:
Early Porsche 911 Turbos are a sight to behold. A raw and dangerous car if there ever was, which is a major plus for some, but also can be a turn off for those who have to provide for their families. No, I’m not talking about crashing and dying, but rather when it comes time to pull the engine and split the case for a rebuild. That will put you out on the street real quick if you don’t have the cash set aside. Generally, unless you are getting an absolute steal of a deal on buying one, this is not a car you want as a project. It is much cheaper and faster just to spend the money to buy a completed example and be done with it. If you want an early 3.0L Turbo Carrera model like this one up for sale in Texas, start looking. Just around 700 came to the US for the model year, and I’m willing to be much less survived given how many crashed or cut up for racing duty.
As you might of noticed, this is not your typical earth tone color 930. Although they did have some really great colors from the production line, Signal Green was not one of them, so a color change was required. Still, is it worth buying? Or maybe spend your piles of money elsewhere?
