Enthusiasts Blogging Our Favorite Classifieds
If the Porsche 928GTS we featured last week was a bit too rich for your blood but it’s a V8 Porsche you still lust after, have faith. There are still a few options out there on the market. Case in point this tidy 1986 928S for sale in Nevada. This is one of the last pre-facelift 928s, as 1987 would see a more rounded rear end. Under the hood is the 5.0 liter lump, good for 316 horsepower, making this a bit of a straddling year in the 928 production run.
If Thursday’s 3.6 Turbo S has you thinking about the 964 Turbo, but perhaps not one sitting at the very top of the market, then the car here may suit your needs a little bit better. Here we have an example from the first iteration of these cars that utilized a refined version of the 930’s well-known 3.3 liter turbocharged flat-six. While the 3.3 liter 964 Turbo doesn’t have quite the power of the later 3.6 Turbo, it relies on a proven powertrain that still delivers exceptional performance capable of providing plenty of wild rides for any driver whose attention wanes at the wrong moment. While the Carrera 4 first was introduced with the 964, the 964 Turbo itself remained rear-wheel drive only. The example here is a Guards Red over Black 1992 Porsche 911 Turbo, located in Ohio, with only 36,630 miles on it.
It’s been a week of high-priced and rare 911s for me, so we’ll end on the other side of the spectrum seeking out driver-quality value. This Wine Red Metallic 1983 Porsche 911SC with Grey Beige leather interior and 108,927 miles sits right where we might first look when seeking a classic 911 at reasonable cost. The 911SC has long been a favorite of ours here at GCFSB for its combination of value, aesthetics, and performance and while they aren’t quite the excellent value they once were, they also haven’t seen the dramatic rise to equal that of the 3.2 Carrera. Yet, in many respects these models offer a driving experience similar to their slightly more mature counterparts and on the current market almost always strike a better value. Like any car of this age and six-figure mileage a PPI is a must, but these are known for their stout engines so buyers should not be discouraged by mileage north of 100K.
The Holy Grail. Indiana Jones found it and lost it; Arthur and his knights were thwarted by the French and arrested by British police. It is the thing we all search for, but is a constantly shifting and elusive form. For automotive enthusiasts there are numerous possibilities, but for fans of the 911 Turbo this is the model about which most will speak. The 964 Turbo could never be pinned down. Because a turbocharged version of the M64 initially wasn’t ready the earliest cars used the 3.3 liter flat-six from the 930. Then in 1992, as a final send-off for that 3.3 liter engine, a Turbo S was produced prior to the introduction of the proper 3.6 liter Turbo. But even this would not be the last model, because in 1994 Porsche took all of the remaining 964 Turbo chassis, some 93 cars, and created the 3.6 liter Turbo S. Most of those were also optioned as a Flatnose, but there were two variants that remain some of the rarest 911 models ever produced. The Japanese market received 10 examples, all painted Polar Silver Metallic, fitted with the 935-derived Slantnose, made popular on the 930, rather than the 968-derived Flatnose of the Turbo S cars. And then there is the model we see here: only offered in the US market there were 17 ‘Package’ cars, which had all of the standard Turbo S options EXCEPT the Flatnose. The front end was mostly akin to any other 964 Turbo. 17 were produced, 10 in Black, 2 with Black over Cashmere leather, 1 of those was an exhibition vehicle. All of which leaves this car as a 1 of 1.
Modifications to cars can either be a tremendous improvement or a spectacular failure, and the Porsche 911 has occupied both sides of the coin. We’ve certainly seen our fair share of lovely slantnose 911s and 930s, but they can also verge on the tasteless in their excess. It seems that the 1980s really was a period where cars that were the envy of most suddenly became the outward expression of decadence; a cry for help even. There was a great Dave Chappelle skit called “True Hollywood Stories”, where Charlie Murphy recounted some tales of Rick James – describing him as a “habitual line stepper”. To me, tuners in the 1980s were habitual line steppers with how far they would push cars. They passed nip and tuck in order to achieve the dipped look. Thankfully, this all-steel slantnose 911 has avoided the color-matched windshield wiper arms – but still, outwardly it’s a reminder of how Rick James explained his behavior, eerily laughing the whole time; “cocaine’s a hell of a drug!”