Previously, I wrote an article entitled "The best Porsche that was never built." I chronicled a special car that I was determined to build. A car that — like the title of the prior article implies — Porsche never made.
Inspired by the 924 Carrera GT, I have challenged myself and my team to produce a correct Carrera tribute based on the car that saved Porsche, the 944.
After the release of my article, I had dozens of correspondences from readers. Most were well-wishers and fans. Others offered suggestions for my design including various aftermarket systems, add-ons and components to build horsepower or alter handling.
I received sketches suggesting outrageous bodywork and paint schemes and even several V8 conversion ideas. I found that most of the ideas were good for custom 944 cars and, accordingly, I read each email and comment carefully and responded to as many as I could. I cataloged several for future use and took all of the rest into account.
I will not lose sight, however, of my original plan to build a car that Porsche itself could have delivered had the company produced a 944 Carrera GT.
Among the messages, however, two caught me off guard. They also made a tremendous impact personally. They were notes from owners of original 924 Carrera GT cars. Both cars remain in mint condition and are enjoyed by their caretakers regularly enough to be reliable, usable vehicles, despite their significance in Porsche history.
I had the opportunity to speak at length with both of these enthusiasts. As much as I was thrilled and surprised that they had read and enjoyed my article, I was equally excited to learn that they were both eager to help me build a correct car.
These are among the hundreds of photos sent in by the owners of the original 924 Carrera GTs. They were particularly helpful because, while plenty of exterior photos are available online, finding detailed interior photos has been much more challenging.
Between the two, they provided hundreds of pictures of their respective cars. Their help has made my planning process more precise and my specifications more concrete. Of course, a new problem arose. I had already selected a car to use as the foundation for my first Carrera but I now, it seems, I had changed my mind.
I originally planned to use a second-generation, naturally-aspirated 1985 car with a factory LSD transaxle and no sunroof. The real problem was that my example cars were powered by turbocharged Audi motors, and they were based on the 924. Therefore, they were better represented by a first-generation 944 visually or any solid 951 if the powerplant would play first fiddle.
The reason I originally chose the '85 car now made it seem incorrect In both instances.
After several weeks of deliberation, I made the first of several major changes to my build plans. I moved the sunroof delete 1985 car back to my storage lot and put it into our build rotation to become a 944 Cup race car instead.
Next, I narrowed my choice of a build platform to one of two other cars to take the 1985 car's place. My first choice was a very early 944. It is a 1983 model-year car, built in the middle of 1982. The serial number identifies the car as among the first few hundred to reach the U.S. With its manual steering rack, manual roof and 924-based interior, it should prove less difficult to build an authentic Carrera that will pass the taste test at completion.
The other potential platform car is a 1987 model 951 that I had purchased without specific intention. It was the victim of a heated divorce, part of the property awarded by a judge to a jilted ex-wife and then sentenced by her to languish behind a shed for 15 years, if only to disgust her ex-husband.
With a clean title and only 55,000 miles, I figured it could be a good restoration candidate but hadn't really given it much thought in the nine months since I bought it. After I spent some time researching the file I had on the car, I found it also had a factory LSD, a sport suspension and completely original motor. It seemed that this car also had the correct traits to become an R7 Carrera GT.
If you haven't figured it out yet, my new problem was that I was torn on which car to build. Should it be a naturally-aspirated, early 944, improved and tuned, but inspired by one of my new friend's road-going Carrera GTs or should I throw caution to the wind and come right out of the gate with a 924 GTR-inspired 951 Carrera GTS?
I found my inspiration to undertake this project in the first place from Dr. Ferdinand Porsche himself. His quote, "I couldn't find the sports car of my dreams, so I built it myself," cemented my decision to build a 944-based Carrera. This time, I could only look within for which car to build. It is, after all, my dream.
Well, after careful deliberation, I chose both.
This time, my mind is made up and work has begun. We will, unfortunately, have to deal with time and budget constraints that arise from building a second car. I just put my pencil to paper and revised my calendar and worksheets. My project plans were modified, and as of the beginning of February, the build on the 944 Carrera GT was underway.
The motor and transaxle have been removed from the 1983 944 and custom fabrication of a few components has started. The rest of the car will be stripped to its chassis and reassembly will begin in April. As the 944's reassembly begins, the breakdown of our 951 platform will be started. My goal, while perhaps a little aggressive, is to complete both cars by the end of 2014.
I shared with graphic artist Dan Winter the rendition for the 944 Carrera GT in my last article. Of course, after the shakeup, I got back on the phone with Dan and ran through the details of the second build and covered what I believed a proper 951 GTS car should look like. Again, his interpretation of our conversation was spot-on.
Graphic artist Daniel Winter created this design for the styling of the 951 GTS from conversations with Jason Gonzalez.
I hope that you'll follow the build of these two special Porsches. Maybe one day you'll be able to see them live at an event where, perhaps, they are headlining.
