Lot details Registration No: WHJ306M Chassis No: 9113501620 Mot Expiry: Feb 2011
After a lengthy gestation period, the now ubiquitous Porsche 911 entered production in 1964 and, despite Porsche's own attempts to replace the model with the 928 in the 1970s, much evolved versions of it remain in production to this day, 46 years later. The design was the work of Dr Ferry Porsche's eldest son, Ferdinand 'Butzi' Porsche and the company's joint founder and chief body engineer Erwin Komenda. The car featured rack and pinion steering and both torsion bar suspension and disc brakes all round. It was initially powered by a dry-sump, air-cooled, 2-litre, flat six engine which was overhung at the rear and allied to a five-speed manual transmission. Power output was restricted to 130bhp, though with an all-up weight of just 1,080 kg this was sufficient to provide the new car with a top speed of over 130mph and a very respectable 0-60mph time of just 8.5 seconds. Having competed successfully with the 356, Porsche was quick to do the same with the 911, and laurels in both racing and rallying came quickly and easily from 1965 onwards. Indeed, a mere four months after the first car rolled off the production line, the company entered one for the Monte Carlo Rally. For a lesser organisation this would be a baptism of fire. Porsche fans, however, will not be surprised to know that the car not only completed the event without trouble but finished an astonishing fifth overall.
The 1973 car offered was reconfigured as an historic rally car in 2004 and sports an engine of 3.0-litres capacity. The original competition conversion was apparently carried out by James Avis for the 'Slowly Sideways' group, but from 2005 to 2007 it was prepared by XS Racing and Elkin Robinson Motorsport for Adrian Corkill of the Chester Porsche Centre. Known as the Martini Porsche in deference to its livery, 'WHJ 306M' performed on the rally stage at the 2006 Race Retro Show in the hands of Michelle Mouton and Russell Brookes. In recent years it has been campaigned by Derek Boyd, and finished third in class in the 2009 British Historic Rally Championship and took top honours in the 2009 Post Historic class of the Irish Tarmac Championship. The vendor describes the Porsche as being in "good" condition with regard to its engine, gearbox, electrical equipment, interior trim, bodywork and paintwork and the car is MOT'd until February next year. Good 911s are the first choice of many for historic rallying and this well known car has proven credentials. There seems no reason why it should not be a winner again in the right hands.
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