Table of contents for No. 212 in Total 911

As you’ll no doubt know, these are exceptional times we currently find ourselves living in. As we accelerate away from the worst of the pandemic, the world has been hit by new challenges around supply. The automotive industry has been caught up in this, including Porsche. “You should be basing your finances on an ownership period of at least two years” As you’ll probably know, the issue affecting car deliveries specifically lies around a shortage of semiconductors (otherwise known as computer chips). You’ll find a useful note in our Views section of this issue, where we document in a bit more detail why this shortage has taken hold, but there’s no doubt the ramifications of this shortage have positively impacted used car values over the last 12 months. It’s been…

HEEL TREAD SOCKS From £9 9WERKS offers a stunning array of Porsche-themed socks for the discerning enthusiast: if you’ve a passion for pasha, a hankering for houndstooth, or indeed a penchant for Porsche’s iconic Pink Pig livery, then these are for you! Choose from single pairs paying homage to iconic models such as Martini-clad RSRs and 953 K3s, or go big with the special-edition packs dedicated to the 930 Turbo, 917, or pepita trim. 9werks.co.uk/shop/products 911 SPEAKER SPECIAL EDITION £375 The original tailpipe of the Porsche 911 GT3 built as a high-end Bluetooth loudspeaker with brushed aluminium housing and high-gloss edges. Featuring Bluetooth 4.0 and aptX technology for wireless music transfer from smartphones, tablets and PCs in CD quality. 60-watt system power. True Wireless mode. NFC technology for the most…

“Porsche cheerily added that the club sports cover can be swapped for the roadworthy serial windscreen with just a few screws” Porsche spent much of the 1970s trying to kill the 911. Despite – or maybe because of – being a forward-looking and steadfast engineer, Porsche’s first-ever CEO in the 1970s, Ernst Fuhrmann, was determined the 911 would die under his watch. His 928, developed to be an ultra-modern GT immune to proposed US crash protection regulations, was the future. It wasn’t until 1981, when Fuhrmann was replaced by an American 911 aficionado, Peter Schutz, that such thoughts were laid to rest. Finally, development of the 911 could begin again. The company had a lot of catching up to do. Evolution of the 911 had effectively been paused for years.…

Lap times and race results, that’s how you’ll be familiar with the name Lars Kern, but there’s a lot more to Kern than the headline-grabbing, rival-baiting stopwatch work at the Nürburgring. Kern’s a factory driver: he’s paid by Porsche, he races for Porsche, but he’s got an office in Weissach and studied engineering at university. He’s not a typical racer. Instead of the familiar route of karting, formula this, formula that and the untold expense to do so, Kern spent his childhood gaming. He was good enough and as a teenager he won the opportunity to drive a real car, and then his parents and some sponsors realised his talent might be worth investing in. “My parents saw, okay, there’s a little talent, and they helped me a little bit…

“My intention from the outset was to find a project that I could work on with my son Dylan… it would allow us to bond even further” In Porsche terms, ‘T’ is for Touring, as signified by the 911T which was first introduced to the 911 lineup in 1967, alongside the 911L (for Luxury) and 911S (Super). The T was the entry-level 911 of the time, and largely due to the fact a T doesn’t carry the same price tag as the L, E (which replaced the L) or S models, many 911Ts have been modified by owners over the years. It’s worth having a quick recap on the 911T from which this delectable restomod spawns. The 911T was a crucial part of Porsche’s expansion plan in the late ’60s,…

Data file Full specs, ratings and market values of every Porsche 911 model, including the 996 generation, can be found beginning on page 76 Plus Showroom Looking for a new 911? The classifieds from our independent specialist partners are the first place you should start your search Servicing & tuning Get the very best from your Porsche 911 with the help of our selected performance and maintenance specialists Porsche lifestyle Helping you make the right lifestyle choices to complement you and your 911. Don’t just drive Porsche, live the brand Insurance & finance Get your Porsche covered with the best insurance deals for road and track to ensure happy, safe motoring…

Porsche Bugatti Rimac project gets underway With the merger complete, a new chapter in the history of the automotive industry is being written The electric hypercar company Rimac has successfully completed its merger with Bugatti. Porsche became a stakeholder in Rimac in 2018 and has steadily increased its involvement ever since. News that Porsche would join with the Bugatti brand and Rimac to form a partnership broke a few months ago, and now the project has begun work – providing a clearer picture of how the collaboration will operate. Under the new structure, 55% of Bugatti Rimac will be owned by the Rimac Group, based in Croatia, with Porsche AG taking the remaining 45%. Bugatti remains under the control of the Volkswagen Group, while Hyundai Motor Group owns 12% and…

Just do it, part 2 Dear Sir, Thanks for printing my previous letter in issue 210. I thought I'd send an update as requested and share some hard-earned lessons for any others embarking on an engine re-build. My 996 Targa engine has now done 2,000 fun and healthy miles since I completed the engine re-build in September and the rest of the car passed 100,000 miles last week. I use it more or less as a daily now, in the knowledge that if bits wear or break I can now fix or replace them myself. One of the hardest things of the re-build was dealing with rusty nuts and bolts. Exhaust header bolts seize, along with the header/cat box flange bolts. Only six of my header bolts came out, leaving…

The call came late on Tuesday night. Tomorrow’s off. With the rain outside bouncing with enough ferocity to consider boat building and lining up two by two, JCR’s Jonny Cocker has sensibly suggested that the planned Donington track day drive in the JCR 991 Speedster might not be particularly wise. Not that he’s precious about it: the Speedster is used, it’s very much a working car, but as such it’s on a set of Cup 2 R tyres that have seen a bit of track work, and there’s no time to get suitable replacement rubber. There’s another option, though: it’s forecasted to be dry on the other side of the country, that usefully being where both JCR and I are located, so plans are changed and we’ll drive the Speedster…

HISTORY AND TECH The 997 was universally praised for its looks and Porsche was keen to tell correspondents that this was no mere reskin – all body panels except the roof were new, and Peter Robinson of Autocar was largely alone in finding the shape of the new 911 a shade too conservative. All testers though were impressed with revisions to the chassis which endowed more stable handling and a smoother ride. Robinson atoned for his earlier observation by adding that adhesion was so good that he could not make the 911 oversteer on dry roads, and body control was “brilliant”. There were no complaints about performance either, especially the S for which Porsche claimed a top speed of 182mph. In 911 history, the ‘S’ began as a higher-tuned model…

911s in the data file are organised in rows according to release date, beginning with the very first model in 1964. Many models were available in Coupe, Targa and Cabriolet forms, with the option of automatic transmission. Here, data has been provided from the Coupe variants unless stated. All data here has been compiled, where possible, from Porsche’s own figures. General valuations This reflects the general market trend for a model’s used value compared to the previous financial quarter. The review for 2022 Q2 will be April. The review for 2022 Q1 was January. Ratings Each model is rated out of five in our half-star system according to their performance, handling, appearance and desirability.…

While the 911 has been revered for pushing the boundaries of sports car technology and performance, the heating of air-cooled cars is often thought of differently. Water-cooled 911s rely on a simple, proven system, whereby a small auxiliary radiator behind the dash is fed with hot coolant from the engine. This system is easy to blend hot and cold air, then feed it to where required. With air-cooled cars – specifically pre-964 – the system is totally different, and has a reputation for confusing controls, and working ineffectively. That system works using a pair of external manifolds on the exhaust, through which air is forced through, forwards to the cabin. The exhaust heat is used as a heat source and the engine cooling fan used to move the warmed air.…

10th Porsche Experience Centre to open Following on from the opening of the recent Tokyo Porsche Experience Centre comes news that the 10th version will be built in Toronto, Canada. Only the third of its kind in North America, the latest Centre will be the first ‘urban’ version of the concept, occupying a 20-acre site in Ontario which will also feature more than 400,000 square feet of retail space, a casino, concert hall and a luxury hotel with more than 300 rooms. It is slated to open by 2024. 996 coilover suspension GAZ Shocks is now offering a height and damper rate adjustable suspension kit for the 996. Adjuster knobs on the body of the units allow damping adjustment, the shortened body and stroke lengths provide a 25 to 55mm…

997 Carrera This was the less popular model, but if the ‘S’ on the engine cover and marginally more torque and power are not important, a one- or two-owner Carrera with low mileage and unimpeachable history might offer better value for money at £30,000. 996 4S The handsome widebody 996 remains very popular and because it was always slightly special, many were pampered and have remained low-mileage cars. £27,500 here may be preferable to a more worn and used 997 S. 997.2 S These are generally in a higher price bracket: GT One offers a well-specified, 53,000-mile 997.2 S with PDK at £42,995: this is the very top of Gen1 territory – at this level a pristine, barely used C2S Gen1 should be expected. 911 SC The classic option. The…

Electronics started to appear in premium cars in the 1970s: the 911’s fuel injection, introduced in collaboration with Bosch on the 1973 G series, was the first significant application on a Porsche and marked the beginning of a process. The Mercedes S class was the first production car to feature ABS in 1978 and five years later the Carrera 3.2 was launched with one of the first comprehensive engine management systems. This linked fuelling, air mass, temperature and other parameters and was the precursor of the sophisticated and complex software which today underpins all dynamic (and even static) aspects of the 992. The ubiquity of electronic controls and safeguards is such that we tend to overlook just how ingenious some of them are. While most cars have some form of…

Anthony Coyne Fort Lauderdale, FL @elferusa Model 997.2 CARRERA S Year 2009 Acquired FEBRUARY 2021 It’s been madness here. We drove the 911 from Fort Lauderdale, FL to Minneapolis, MN so Alfie (our dog) could have a life-saving second craniotomy. And then we drove back again. Around 4,000 miles. Four huge sessions in the car between 12 and 18 hours. A couple of issues back I reported how we rushed him to the emergency room following an horrific cluster seizure. A high dose of medication had kept them from returning but that can only last so long, so we drove up to see his neurological team who did imaging confirming what we all suspected – the tumour had regrown. Well, it’s gone again now, and he’s enrolled on a new…

There’s no doubt about it, 2021 was an exceedingly good time for the used 911 market. “We discovered how powerful our reputation was,” says Jamie Tyler of Paragon. “Cars being sold on a click and collect type basis, we didn’t have one disappointed customer,” he reveals. He believes there is going to be a continuation of a strong used market for 2022. “There is still a shortage of new cars due to the chip shortage, with rumours of that continuing, so the market will remain strong for used cars.” That sentiment is echoed by Jonathan Aucott of Avantgarde Classics. “I’m hoping, and expecting, a pretty seamless extension of 2021,” explains Aucott. He sees steady price rises, rather than any feeding frenzies “which typically are followed by flatlining,” he adds. People…

An elegant, sophisticated male in his mid-thirties, his success in life underlined by his upmarket sports car and classy young female companion all in an attractive setting. Such was the Porsche publicity material 50 years ago. Simple, but a distinct improvement on the photography for the original 901 brochure of 1963 quickly cobbled up by Huschke von Hanstein, shot at the back of the factory and featuring his secretary Thora Guttmann in a hastily purchased sleeveless dress standing beside the new Porsche. Porsche’s advertising photography was relatively restrained – this was the era of the Pirelli calendar which specialised in pneumatics that had nothing to do with the tyres, and of motor shows where what the popular press demurely referred to as ‘scantily clad young ladies’ adorned the bonnets of…