The ancient Porsche 911 sports car’s shell was brushed off and examined by Porsche’s repair experts 18 months ago as they pondered the possibility of what may have been. Project Gold, a contemporary reproduction of the final turbocharged 911 of the air-cooled era, made its public appearance this past weekend.
The automobile was on exhibit at the sixth semi-annual Rennsport Reunion in Monterey, California, the world’s largest gathering of Porsche aficionados as the company celebrates its 70th anniversary this year. The original golden-yellow 911 was produced in 1998 as the final design of the 993 series.
Porsche Classic, the automaker’s in-house restoration division, rebuilt a car from scratch for the first time with Project Gold. According to Alexander Fabig, head of Porsche Classic, “It was the last body in the warehouse, sitting there for 20 years waiting for some guys to have a crazy idea.”
The vehicle has a new 3.6-liter twin-turbo flat-six engine with 450 horsepower as well as a revised transmission, interior, and wheels. The director of special vehicles, Boris Apenbrink, declared that “we did not employ anything that would not be used in 1998.”
On October 27 at the Porsche Experience Center in Atlanta, RM Sotheby’s will hold an auction for the Ferry Porsche Foundation in conjunction with its “Porsche 70th Anniversary Sale,” which will feature close to 70 rare Porsche vehicles.
Despite having no cost, Project Gold will receive a new Vehicle Identification Number as a 2018 production vehicle. However, because it does not adhere to the most recent safety standards and is not street legal, it cannot be registered with the Department of Motor Vehicles.
The fact that this is the final air-cooled Porsche model is believed to increase its value. Porsche amassed a devoted fanbase for its air-cooled engines during the first 50 years of its existence. The carmaker moved to liquid-cooled, water-cooled engines after 1998. “This was first incredibly tough for the community to accept, and it’s still a major milestone,” said Fabig.
From its handcrafted air intakes to its hand-painted, black wheels with gold accents, experts said finding or reassembling more than 6,500 parts for Project Gold proved difficult. Its wiring harness, which consists of miles of cable connecting the car’s parts, had to be constructed from the ground up, which was a challenging and uncertain procedure. Fabig added, “In the end, you only know if you hit a button and it works.
Although the methodical approach and focus on detail remind one of another restoration shop for vintage Porsches, Porsche insisted that Project Gold was not meant to compete with Singer Vehicle Design, the Los Angeles firm that bills up to $75,000 to upgrade specific 911 models’ bodywork and interiors.
The entry point for a new business unit is not here, according to Apenbrink. “That would likely diminish its enchantment,” the author said.
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Water-cooling: A History of the Porsche 911
Everyone is aware that 1998 marked the beginning of the Porsche 911’s water-cooled era, right? Yes and no, I suppose. The Porsche 996 Carrera, which was introduced just before the millennium, may have been the first production vehicle to be entirely water-cooled, but it wasn’t the first to receive the H2O treatment.
For that, you must turn the clocks back to 1978, the year Porsche introduced the 935/78 racer, affectionately known by most as “Moby Dick” due to its long, sweeping tail.
The 935/78, which was raced by the factory Martini Porsche team, had redesigned cylinder heads with four valves per head and, most intriguingly, water-cooling (although the block remained traditionally cooled by air).
The Porsche 959, which was introduced 30 years ago this year, had a similar cooling system. The supercar’s 2.85-liter flat-six engine is a close relative of Moby Dick’s 3.2-liter unit with its water-cooled cylinder heads.
Porsche was preparing its first fully water-cooled flat six for the dominant Porsche 962C sports prototype around the time of the 959’s delayed 1986 release. Driven by the works Rothmans team, this car would win the 24 Hours of Le Mans in both 1986 and 1987.
Hans Mezger, a renowned Porsche engineer, was largely responsible for the engine’s design, and it was in another Le Mans-winning car that a variant of his water-cooled engine had its Neunelfer premiere.
While the iconic air-cooled flat six was still present in every production Porsche 993, a 3.2-liter twin turbocharged engine based on the fully water-cooled engine initially seen in the 962 was used in the 911 GT1 homologation special of 1996.
In the same year that Porsche decided to introduce the new 996 Carrera, the first water-cooled production 911, the water-cooled engine installed in the carbon fiber monocoque Porsche 911 GT1-98 would aid Weissach win its 16th 24 Hours of Le Mans victory.
When the Porsche 996 GT3 was introduced for the 1999 model year, it used a naturally aspirated engine; the twin turbocharged version followed in 2001 in the rear of the 996 Turbo. In contrast, the M96 engine of the new Carrera featured an entirely new design.
More Water-Cooled 911s Than Air-Cooled Models Have Been Produced by Porsche
We couldn’t help but ask which individual vehicles are still roadworthy when Porsche stated today that about 700,000 of the one million 911s created are still in operation. We thought that most of the 700,000 911s were more recent models, but investigating that assertion turned up some intriguing data: Most 911s that are made are water-cooled, not air-cooled.
Porsche created a movie to commemorate the millionth 911 that details the model’s development and tracks the quantity of cars produced before each generation change. Porsche produced a total of 443,134 911s between 1963 and 1998, when the final air-cooled variant was finished. Porsche unveiled the first water-cooled 911 at that time, the 996-generation model.
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556,866 911s have been produced since the 996’s debut, making up a sizable portion of Porsche’s rear-engine sports car.
Given the enormous popularity of air-cooled 911s and their 35-year production run, this revelation initially caught people off guard. Contrarily, Porsche has only been producing water-cooled 911s for about 20 years.
But this number makes sense. With the launch of the 996, Porsche experienced a significant increase in sales, and both the 997 and the current 991 have enjoyed success. The Porsche 911 has had a good twenty years.
However, as the recent air-cooled television program Luftgekuhlt reminds us, Porsche enthusiasts will continue to run their belt-driven fans for some time to come. Even though the air-cooled 911 is currently outnumbered, it will always be around.
History of the Porsche 911 air-cooled
The first automobile to bear the Porsche nameplate wasn’t the 911. The 356, a sports automobile that substantially borrowed from the Volkswagen Beetle, came before it. Which makes sense given that Ferdinand “Butzi” Porsche, the creator of the 356, was the grandson of Dr. Ferdinand Porsche, the brains behind the Beetle. The main similarity between the two was their air-cooled, four-cylinder, rear-mounted engines.
According to Donut Media, the first air-cooled Porsche 911 was simply a development of the 356. It had a six-cylinder engine rather than a four-cylinder. Additionally, the Porsche 911 had four seats rather than just two. However, the six-cylinder air-cooled engine remained positioned behind the cabin. The majority of the weight was over the driven wheels, which rendered the 911 susceptible to snap-oversteer if driven wrong. According to Popular Mechanics, this led to more traction. Along with communicative steering and a finely tuned suspension, this helped the air-cooled 911 acquire popularity early.
Over time, Porsche improved the 911, giving it more power and introducing trims like the Turbo and Carrera, which are now commonplace in Porsche lingo. According to Autotrader, Porsche revamped the air-cooled 911 in 1989 and produced the 964-gen 911, the first 911 to feature all-wheel drive, power steering, and ABS. In 1995, the 911 underwent another redesign to become the 993-gen.
However, the 993 would be the final air-cooled Porsche 911 (even though, according to Car & Driver, it is also officially oil-cooled). According to Gear Patrol, the water-cooled engine could be tuned more easily, whereas the air-cooled engine was unable to fulfill emissions rules. Unfortunately, the following 996-gen had some well-known quality issues, which accounts for those vehicles’ subpar resale values. Additionally, the 996 didn’t quite resemble earlier 911 models in terms of appearance, which turned some Porsche fans off.
History of air-cooled Porsche 911
The first car with the Porsche logo wasn’t the 911. Prior to that, there was the 356, a sports automobile that substantially borrowed from the Volkswagen Beetle. Which makes sense given that Dr. Ferdinand Porsche, the designer of the Beetle, was the grandfather of Ferdinand “Butzi” Porsche, the designer of the 356. Their rear-mounted, air-cooled, four-cylinder engines were the major common factor between the two.
Donut Media reveals that the first air-cooled Porsche 911 was basically a development of the 356. It had a six-cylinder in place of a four-cylinder. The Porsche 911 also has four seats as opposed to simply two. The six-cylinder air-cooled engine, however, was still situated behind the cabin. However, it also meant that the majority of the weight was over the drove wheels, making the 911 susceptible to snap-oversteer if driven poorly. This, according to Popular Mechanics, boosted traction. The air-cooled 911 soon gained admirers as a result of that, as well as communicative steering and finely calibrated suspension.
Porsche improved the 911 over time, increasing power and introducing trims like the Turbo and Carrera that are now commonplace in Porsche lingo. Porsche updated the air-cooled 911 in 1989, producing the 964-gen 911, which was the first to feature all-wheel drive, power steering, and ABS, according to Autotrader. The 993-gen 911 was redesigned once more in 1995.
The 993, albeit technically oil-cooled as too, would be the final air-cooled Porsche 911, according to Car and Driver According to Gear Patrol, the water-cooled engine was easier to tune and could fulfill emissions rules instead of the air-cooled engine. Unfortunately, the 996-gen that came after it had several infamous quality issues, which accounts for those cars’ generally low resale values. Some Porsche aficionados were further turned off by the 996’s dissimilar appearance to earlier 911 models.
Porsche chose water-cooled engines for what purpose?
Four valves per cylinder and water cooling enabled an engine redesign that produced the increased power outputs, more fuel efficiency, and decreased emissions that the market and regulators were all requesting.
What Porsche models use water cooling?
- RM Sotheby’s 2002 Porsche 996 GT2; 996 Twin Turbo; 996 GT2; and 996 GT3.
- Porsche 928 from 1978 to 1980. Mecum 1979 Porsche 928.
- Porsche 968 (1992–1995). 1995 Porsche 968 Mecum