Indholdsfortegnelse for July 2025 i Classic Porsche

PORSCHE MODERN CLASSICS BOOKAZINE From the team behind 911 & Porsche World magazine comes this 164-page celebration of the 996- and 997-generation 911s and their Boxster/Cayman 986/987 counterparts. We chart the design and evolution of this hugely popular range of Porsches, going on to examine the long-lasting impact these cars have had on all subsequent Porsche products, not to mention the sports car world as a whole. Along the way, we get behind the wheel of standout models, delve into owner stories, explore ground-breaking engineering and show you what to look out for when on the hunt for an early water-cooled 911 or Boxster/Cayman to call your own. Essential reading for marque enthusiasts, this beautifully presented bookazine comes hot on the heels of our successful Porsche Air-Cooled Classics title and…

In early 1974, when it became clear a turbocharged 911 would work as a production car, the topic of retail price became critical. This was a subject of long and bitter debate. Ideas ranged all the way from a stripped, bargain-basement 911 Turbo offered for $15,000 (the original concept) to a deluxe model, complete with all possible comforts, for $25,000. This was a tricky issue for the sales department at Ludwigsburg, which would be responsible for selling the four hundred 911 Turbos required in 1975 if the model was to be accepted as a Group 4 Grand Touring car under then new racing regulations. Indeed, this was a key question for sales chief, Lars Schmidt. “If we wanted to sell four hundred turbocharged 911s at what would be a much…

California. It’s the Golden State, where the sun always shines and rain never falls. Well, that’s what many sellers of Stateside classic cars would have eager buyers in Europe believe. In fact, if many of today’s classifieds are to be taken at their word, all classic cars residing in the USA have spent the majority — if not all — their lives lapping up the warmth of the Pacific coast, their only fault being sun-faded paintwork. In today’s sales terminology, you can expect this to be described as patina, which we’re led to believe is hugely desirable and, consequently, demands your budget to be stretched even further than you’d otherwise anticipated, potentially eating into the money you’d allocated for shipping costs and applicable import duties. It’s worth it to get…

At leisure on the Robert Ley holiday liner in the summer of 1940, Ferdinand Porsche reflected on yet another commission for his designers. On the first of July 1940, Germany’s Army Weapons Office (HWA) asked him to design and build an amphibian version of his four-wheel-drive Type 87 Kübelwagen. Here, Porsche well knew, was a clear sign of future maritime missions for the Wehrmacht. On the day he received the commission, German troops disembarked at the Channel Islands. An invasion of the main British Isles could not be long in coming. THE ODIOUS HIMMLER WAS THE MAN ON THE SPOT AT THE FOREST PRESENTATION OF PORSCHE’S SPRUCE AMPHIBIAN The order for an amphibian Beetle followed an initial request prepared on June 18th outlining such a vehicle was “urgently” needed by…

Ludwig Lohner, head of Jacob Lohner and Company, a Vienna-based coachbuilder counting kings and emperors among its customers, was eager to stride into the twentieth century as a successful car maker. He began with several false starts, but hit success with electrical engineer, Ferdinand Porsche, who was only twenty-three years old in 1898, yet served as chief of the test laboratories and assistant in the calculations office of VEAG, Vienna’s leading light in the rapidly growing industry of electricity. KNOTTY PROBLEMS IN CONTROLLING THE ENGINE, DYNAMO AND WHEEL MOTORS WAITED TO BE SOLVED As Lohner’s request, VEAG assembled an electrically operated prototype, which Porsche found to be less than satisfactory during testing. This led to discussions resulting in Porsche applying his considerable knowledge to the design of an electric car.…

The Classic Porsche European Tour has been extended due to popular demand, which means another couple of days in the Bavarian town of Augsburg and hanging out with members of the local Porsche Owners Club, who have made us very welcome and wheeled out some great machinery for our delight and delectation. Think of it as a kind of Porsche cultural exchange and rebuilding those Brexit bridges, our common language being Porschespeak. STEALTHILY ENHANCING THE OVERALL APPEARANCE WITH A SET OF EIGHTEEN-INCH ROOCK RACING SPLIT-RIMS Since we’ve decided to stay on, a bit more about Augsburg, because it is one of Germany’s oldest cities, located thirty miles from the Bavarian capital, Munich, and founded by the Roman emperor, Augustus, in 15 BC. That’s proper history. There’s plenty of it to…

Nestled in the charming town of Waalwijk, located in the Dutch province of North Brabant, lies E&R Classics, one of Europe’s most vibrant centres of automotive excellence. What began in 2008 as a small-yet-passionate venture offering classic vehicle sales and maintenance, as well as the availability of a small fleet of wedding cars for hire, has since evolved into a powerhouse in the classic car sales market, culminating in a huge showroom, where timeless elegance meets mechanical artistry. A GENUINE LOVE FOR VINTAGE VEHICLES, NOT MERELY AS MACHINES, BUT AS TANGIBLE STORIES OF THE PAST From its early days in nearby Kaatsheuvel, the company grew quickly, commanding the need for larger premises to accommodate rapid expansion. In 2010, the business was moved nine kilometres west to the town of Dongen,…

During the many years I’ve spent writing about air-cooled Porsches for this magazine and others, I’ve shadowed a high number of exquisite restoration projects. Many have focused on returning a car to original specification. Well, let’s face it, in the current climate, this is where much of the value of a classic Porsche lies. Other builds have targeted personalisation, resulting in a bespoke retro ride configured to its owner’s exacting needs and wants. Considering the complexity of sympathetically restoring any air-cooled Porsche, which becomes increasingly complicated the further back in the manufacturer’s history the car was manufactured, it’s not unusual for the timeline of these projects to be measured in years, a schedule often dictated by the available funds an owner can spare at different points in time during the…

Remember the buddy cop flick, Bad Boys? Any Porsche enthusiast surely can. The star of the film? Some would say Will Smith. Then again, perhaps Martin Lawrence, given Smith was a couple of years away from going global with Independence Day. Whatever. As we all know, the real star of the movie was a black 964 Turbo 3.6. WITHOUT HAVING TO DO MUCH TO THE BODY SHELL, PORSCHE USED THE FRONT AND REAR APRONS TO DRAMATIC EFFRECT Yeah, yeah. The likelihood of a Miami police detective fighting crime from the wheel of a Porsche — 964 Turbo or otherwise — is as realistic as those other two Miami based super-sleuths, Crockett and Tubbs, busting crims from the confines of a Ferrari Testarossa. Hey, it’s the movies, so who really cares?…