The Porsche 356 is one of those cars to which I always enjoy returning. Whether it simply be to return to a vintage automobile whose lines I always enjoy or to gain a fuller appreciation for the elements of design, shape, and performance that went into these early Porsches. The ethos of the company is built into these cars and even today, more than 60 years since the first model was introduced, we still can see the evolutionary nature of the marque and the relationship not only of design but also performance. With the 356 Porsche had already begun offering their cars in varying levels of performance and here we have the highest available of those utilizing the 1.6 flat-4 engine, the Super 90. While 90 hp doesn’t seem like a lot, tasked with propelling a car that weighed less than 1000 kg these offered brisk performance for their time all while retaining the lightness and directness of feel possessed by many vintage machines. The particular example we have here is a restored Ivory over Tan 1963 Porsche 356B T6 Super 90 Cabriolet, located in Miami, and on auction with no reserve.
Category: Porsche
We will conclude what has become Targa month with an example that reaches back to the beginning of the 911SC model run and a car that reaches back to my own personal history with the 911. Here we have a Black on Black 1978 Porsche 911SC Targa, located in Pennsylvania, with 50,833 miles on it. My dad owned a 911 quite similar to this, differing only in that it was from 1979, and in many ways the aspects of the 911 Targa that appeal to me surely stem from many of those early experiences. I have begun to really enjoy the Targa in lighter shades as I’ve seen more of them, but a basic black on black model still ticks all the right boxes and, frankly, looks really nice. The 911SC wasn’t the first Targa produced, as they had been made available beginning in 1967, but during these early years of 911SC production the Targa was the only open-top option available. They were perhaps a peculiar design, but spoke to Porsche’s desire to meld performance with a driving experience that was both less confined while also meeting basic safety standards for roll-over protection.
CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1978 Porsche 911SC Targa on eBay
4 CommentsIt is always interesting to take a look at the first version of a particular 911 model, whether to understand how a particular variant took shape or, for those on the investment side, to consider which might be the next model to take off on the market. Here we have the 993 Carrera 4S, the first version of the model produced for the 911 line and the only model produced with an air-cooled engine. It would be difficult for these models to show significant appreciation in the short term for the simple fact that they are already fairly expensive. Long term, however, this is the sort of variant that we could see do very well for buyers that are patient. There are a lot of similarities between the two cars featured here and both share one trait that I particularly like: each is fairly low mileage, but neither is ridiculously so. Meaning, each could still be driven and enjoyed to a reasonable degree each year without concern for killing the premium that comes with any low-mileage vehicle. We will start with a C4S from the first year of their production: a 1996 Speed Yellow C4S, located in Connecticut, with 33,800 miles on it.
CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1996 Porsche 911 Carrera 4S on eBay
2 CommentsI’ve certainly been a big fan of the Porsche 911 Cup; today, it strikes me as not only one of the best deals going in racing Porsches, but perhaps the best all-around deal in the Motorsports world. The success of the 996 and 997 Cup chassis has to come close to the E30 M3 as one of the most raced and most winning German designs in history. They were so successful that they built a lot of them, making them today slightly devalued in the world of track cars. We’ve even seen full-blood, turn key factory race 911s up for auction below $50,000; simply staggering when you consider the original purchase price. Of course, also staggering are the running costs of the Cup cars; 40 hour engines are the max, and Porsche Motorsports recommends transmission refreshes as 20 hours. The costs add up; rebuilding your 996 or 997 Cup running gear will cost you between $15,000 and $30,000 – presuming nothing big is broken. Okay, so the purchase price is only the tip of the iceberg. But what if you took some of the aspects of the Cup design and incorporated them into the even faster and cheaper to run Turbo model?
CLICK FOR DETAILS: Porsche 911 Twin Turbo Cup Conversion on eBay
4 CommentsThere are some cars I come across that are so visually arresting that I start thinking about featuring them before even delving much beyond the basic details of the car. I would say this is one such car. The color. The execution of the design. Everything about the overall aesthetic at work here is remarkably beautiful, but also properly conveys the sporting pretensions lying behind the car’s genesis. As one of the most highly regarded 911s of all time the Carrera RS design has been mimicked by builders for many years and as values for an original RS have shot into the stratosphere the impetus for undertaking such projects has only increased. When executed well these RS recreations can themselves become highly sought after, though always for much less money than the original, with the added benefit that it is a car that can be driven and enjoyed as these cars were intended. This all brings us to the car we see here: a Gemini Blue 1971 Porsche 911T Coupe, located in Oregon, that has been built as a tribute to the great Carrera RS showcasing many of the exterior details of the original combined with a period-correct interior that leans toward performance.




