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This one is just for a bit of fun because I’m not sure the asking price here really makes too much sense, even if it is apparent that a ton of work went into bringing life back into this 911. But who knows? Maybe there’s a buyer out there looking for exactly this type of replica and would prefer the finished product rather than putting the work in himself. It only takes one such buyer. This was originally a 1983 Porsche 911SC Coupe that was in pretty rough shape and in need of full restoration. The seller has included a few “before” pictures and we see a 911 suffering from serious neglect. Rather than return the car to its original specifications, which probably would not have been worthwhile strictly from a financial standpoint, it was decided that a tribute car would be built instead. In this case, the build was modeled off of the Porsche 954 rally car carrying the Rothmans livery. These were designated as an SC/RS and were purpose-built racers intended to run in the FIA World Rally Championship. Like any part of Porsche’s racing history the original cars are highly coveted. For comparison with the price here, there was a 1984 SC/RS Rothmans, said to be the most original remaining example extant and with a distinguished racing history, up for auction at Gooding and Company’s Pebble Beach Auctions back in August. It didn’t sell (and I can’t recall where bidding ended), but Gooding’s low-end estimate was a cool $1.4M. Maybe the price here isn’t so bad after all!
Long before the E36 even debuted, the Porsche 944 was deeply entrenched in the track scene. From weekend warrior autocrosses to full out Le Mans endurance racing, the 944 touched all aspects of motorsports, and in many cases won. While the roots were in a economy sports car, the 944 Turbo took well to supercar slaying – massive flares hiding brakes borrowed from its brethren and boosted performance from the all-Porsche turbocharged 2.5 inline-4. With near perfect weight distribution, these Turbos were relatively easy to drive and accepted high levels of modifications well. Into the 1990s, the continued to be favorites at track events – and today, even nearly 30 years later, they’re still potent packages capable of winning club races. Today I have three different takes on the 944 Turbo; modified but still streetable track event car, stripped and turned up club racer, and a collectable bit of Porsche racing history with a Turbo Cup car in original configuration. Which is your flavor?
If you don’t know about the Rothmans Cup 944s, you’d be not the only one. As one of the lesser known single-make race series from the 1980s, the Canada-only Rothmans Cup series didn’t have the flashiest, fastest cars on the planet. It wasn’t even as crazy as the later Turbo cup, where the cars had magnesium and unobtanium bits. No, what the Rothmans Cup was all about was the bare-bones racing. Some of the best drivers in the world signed up, proving the idea was a good one – and the sealed motors ensured a level playing field. It was all about the driving! To help a bit though, the Rothmans cars were stripped to the bones; no A/C, no power steering, no sunroof – and they were beefed up with the M474 Koni suspension and M220 limited slip differential. This isn’t the first time I’ve written up a 944 Rothmans car, as last year we saw a Rothmans Cup in need of a restoration that had trouble trading hands. In much better overall shape and ready to race, this car looks splendid in its original colors:
In 1984, Porsche modified a version of the 911 for the sole purpose of competing in the 1984 Paris to Dakar Rally. This car was known as…
From the very beginning, “Porsche” and “motorsport” are two words that have lived in harmony. From LeMans to the Paris Dakar Rally, there are few…
