It’s hard work keeping up with a blog when you are writing elsewhere non stop! A lot has changed since I scrapped that 924.

I have sold my bike for a start. I just wasn’t using it more than twice a month (if that), and it was going to endure a winter in the cramped garage and a year of book drops, so I put it on eBay and it went to a very nice guy who is taking it back to uni with him - look out for it in the Bristol area. Did think about getting a Gilera to replace it but have gone cold on that for the time being - when the garage is up maybe.

I bought a Golf GTi which is a beautiul little thing. 90K miles from new in 1986 and only a few rust spots on the bottoms of the doors to show for it. It goes well enough though I do need to double check the timing on it as they have usually been retarded to run on 95 RON. I bought a Jetex SS exhaust and G60 manifold for it also, that should be getting picked up sometime soon. Plus I have a PAS setup coming for it - they are so heavy without that parking is a real chore for Mrs G. Then it is top mounts and suspension, bit of a tidyup on the body and job done.

Just been offered a Corrado by a buddy however which is a very pretty car; 1996 2.0 litre 8 Valve in Blackberry, so the lovely little Golf may have to go to make room for that. Not sure what to do yet, driving the Corrado tomorrow. Sarah will probably like it, but is it worth spending another grand on top to have something that essentially does the same job of spare car? Maybe not. Pic:

Lots of car stuff up in the air at the minute. We are waiting to hear back from the council regarding our loft extension planning permission, so the bank acounts are locked down pretty much (doesn’t sound like it though does it LOL). That will be great when it kicks off, as the house will then be huge and the kids will all have their own rooms. After that it is garage all the way, which should be great when done. So lots of hard work ahead, but will all pay off.

Next event for the IB Porsche boys is Classic Le Mans, and we are away from the 10th to the 18th of July - bring it on!

Classic Porsche enthusiasts are often derided as anoraks, but so what, asks John Glynn, who urges 911 fans to embrace their detail-loving tendencies.

The recent Techno Classica at Essen in Germany was the usual mecca for Porsche fanatics. Though there was a stunning selection of Stuttgart’s finest on show, there was a noticeable shortfall of pukka 911 racing product present, leading me to wonder whether there is perhaps an opportunity for some bright spark to come up with an off season, access-all-areas, indoor historic race car show on the mainland.

What about the Goodwood Festival of Speed and Classic Le Mans you say? Yes, thrilling celebrations of amazing racing cars, but not necessarily fully open to all and sundry. The Rennsport Reunion comes close in concept, apart from being held in a thunderstorm three thousand miles away. Personally speaking, I would like to see a similar event to Essen: indoors, with the world’s greatest motorsport machinery organised by manufacturer, and where enthusiasts like myself would get a chance to examine the engineering details in depth. Is this a workable concept, or just me being sad?

Sad is a word often used to describe men of a certain age who are consumed by the intricacies of their hobby. This use of the word is utterly incorrect in my opinion, as I see nothing remiss in an awareness of the minutiae of one’s chosen subject. Ponder this example. Driving down a local road the other day, I spotted a remote-controlled aeroplane flying up from behind a hedge on my left. As we drew nearer and slowed down, my travelling companion and I saw two men about the same age as ourselves, using this field as a airstrip for flying their planes in and out of. “Cool!” I exclaimed. “Sad!” my friend insisted. (more…)

The little Porsche had its chance on eBay, but the £249 purchase price was apparently too rich for the cash-strapped 924 faithful. I was getting offers down around the £150 to £175 mark for the project car, and lots of the remaining bits were worth keeping for the 944s, so I decided to kill it off.

Though they are extremely pretty cars, I didn’t enjoy driving it, so one less 924 in the world is good news as far as I am concerned. Plus it means one more clean 944 saved, which has got to be a worthy trade.

Here’s a few pics of the car on the way to its last ever (com)pressing engagement.

(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…)