Year after year, car guys drive to the same places with the same people. Why do they do it? Discuss.

Rolling into the Chunnel car park and finding twenty of your friends waiting for you in similar cars is a great feeling. Camaraderie engulfs the entourage, with anticipatory awe permeating the queue of cars headed for check in.

Off the train in la belle France half an hour later, we gathered to discuss the route options. A red Carrera GT filling up next door was a positive Porsche portent, with the same good vibrations evident throughout our journey west to Rouen and south towards Sarthe. An unbelievable amount of rain means marine terminology is required to describe making way along the A28, each 911 creating a huge rooster tail of spray. France is famed for its joi de vivre though, so torrential rain and a few wet clothes do not dampen our high spirits. (more…)

This spotless IROC RSR replica blends old-school style with modern technology to give a truly unique ride. John Glynn reports.

The secret of success is a question that has tested the greatest minds for centuries, and most agree that the recipe relies on two critical ingredients: hard work and vision. The historic backdrop to today’s photo shoot is a perfect example of hard work and vision, combined in perfect proportions to yield spellbinding results.

Taking a year to buy, a year to plan and two years to execute, this recently restored medieval manor house is unspeakably impressive, and is testament to the tenacity of its owners, Graham and Babs Stanton. The strength of their vision, and desire to create something truly special, meant that the budget for the rebuild bore scant relationship to market value. “I probably spent more than it’s worth to other people” muses Graham, “but nothing like what it’s worth to me”. The owner of our stunning feature car can sympathise completely. (more…)

DP Motorsport have announced the final edition of their DP Cargo, a ‘shooting brake’ estate based on the 944. The DP Cargo first appeared in 1988, and fewer than ten cars have been built to date, for those seeking a unique but still very usable style of Porsche. With only eight sets of the bespoke rear glass remaining, the company recently decided to build the final five cars, with four deposits already received.

DP built their first Cargo in 1988, after experimenting with the roof of a VW Passat estate laid over the top of a 944 bodyshell. The conversion eventually evolved into a complete remodel of the 944’s rear section, with a fibreglass roof and rear door supported by a tubular steel framework, adding increased rigidity to the otherwise open-backed coupe.

Inside, the custom creation features a cleverly relocated spare wheel and flat load floor. The Cargo is impeccably finished, with colour-matched side panels and headlining retrimmed in leather. The conversion takes two months and costs €18,900 including VAT.     

The DP Cargo was one of the stars of the recent Essen Techno Classica, where it attracted many positive comments. Look out for a full feature in a future issue.

(This was run as Part 2 of the Perky piece)

The main advantage of buying from abroad is obvious: better choice. Most Porsche production was exported, with the USA the biggest customer, and the vast American market offers a selection of cars far beyond what is available here in the UK. Thanks to this extensive supply, prices for most cars on the American market have remained low in relation to ever-increasing European prices. Combine this with a US Dollar priced very low against Sterling and the Euro, and it’s no wonder that huge numbers of people are importing vehicles from the ‘States; cars like this SC are cheap.

To some people, talk of US imports conjours up images of sunburnt 356s, and scruffy but solid early 911s, brought to the UK as cheap entries into classic Porsche ownership. Importing from dry states remains a useful method of acquiring rust-free base vehicles, but the current flow of Porsches across the pond spans the spectrum, from would-be restos to full-blown RSR replicas and all manner of exotica. This time last year, I spoke to a pair of Porsche enthusiasts who had snapped up a couple of Carrera GTs from a dealer in downtown New York when the dollar rate hit what was then an all-time low. (more…)

The low dollar means that bargains currently abound in the good old USA. One man’s passion for modified Porsches recently led him to look across the pond for his dream 911. John Glynn tells us more.

Astronauts often say that the most impressive aspect of space travel is seeing a jewel-like Earth set amongst the stars, and realising just how trivial our personal concerns are when viewed against the grand scheme of things. Today, we are only a few hundred feet up, but the increased elevation has a similar impact on proceedings. Under unfettered cerulean sky, glistening lacquer ignites in the ultraviolet, and worries fade away, as we focus on an iridescent hum of light and shade, floating atop this 911’s beautifully pressed metal like a Star Trek deflector shield. It’s silver Jim, but not as we know it.

This car began life as a 1978 911SC. Originally finished in Grand Prix White, it was supplied in lightweight guise: without sunroof, aircon or front fogs, and with manual windows. Little is known of the car’s early history, but in 1986, it left Charles Ivey Porsche in Fulham, bound for Florida. At the same time, a young Irishman, new to London, was working right next door to Charles Ivey Porsche. It’s amazing to say that, 21 years on, this may not be the first time our paths have crossed. Small world. (more…)