by John Glynn | Aug 16, 2014 | Modified Porsche Hot Rods, Porsche News
Enjoyed a run in this sweet used Porsche 997 GT2 for sale earlier this week: a 2008 registered/2009 model year car with the full Manthey M600 power upgrade and some other fun bits. The car arrived for sale and was sold soon after to a keen driver and regular customer. Small wonder when it is such a special machine.
JZM is the UK Manthey agent and built this car from new for the original owner. The factory spec is comprehensive enough, but this GT2 also runs: M600 engine upgrade, Manthey MM1 magnesium wheels, KW HLS2 nose lift system and Nürburgring-approved Manthey carbon bits including front spoiler, front arch Gurneys, sill trims and rear wing extension.
Inside it has even more carbon with PCM3, black leather sports seats and Schroth harnesses as well as the normal seatbelts. Upgrades to the six-speed manual transmission include a Manthey short shift and gearbox overhaul with a few tweaks at Frikadelli Racing. Manthey replaced the upgraded 890 Nm clutch in April of this year. It shifts like a dream, and needs that upgraded clutch pack.
Standard power in a GT2 is 530 bhp, but only a stone cold example holds on to those horses. As heat increases so power is lost, with the plastic-capped intercoolers soaking up heat and frying intake temps. Manthey solves the problem with bigger all-aluminium intercoolers, also adding adding 200-cell cats and an all-new Akrapovic silencer.
As intake temperatures are now much lower, and the gases can exit the car freely, Olaf’s boys remap the better-breathing GT2 on their 850 bhp Maha dyno, taking power to a dependable 600 horsepower (hence the M600).
On the road, the car is a pussycat. JZM’s Steve McHale took us up the nearby A41 for a few miles, exploiting gaps in the traffic to best advantage. An older Porsche with this much power on a wet greasy road would be a proper handful, but even when the traction light flashed at 5,000 revs in fourth gear, the car never deviated from the straightest of lines.
Noise is my only complaint about modern 911s. They all make a stunning amount of noise through those massive rear tyres, and the M600 GT2 is no exception. Trying to make a hands-free phone call on a grainy road surface like this English dual carriageway would be somewhat frustrating, but talking on the move is no problem.
All too soon, our twenty mile spin is over. The car gets a clean bill of health and I tick another 911 off the bucket list. A police car out front on the return leg kept our speeds fairly sensible, but the Manthey Porsche 997 GT2 M600 will top 203 mph where limits allow: 200 reasons to open your wallet.
![Kremer ST Replica: Porsche 911 Desert Drive]()
by John Glynn | Jul 14, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Modified Porsche Hot Rods
I caught up with my Arizona Porsche driver friend and fellow 911 Carrera 3.0 fan, Gib Bosworth, over the weekend. Gib sent me these wonderful photos of his Kremer Porsche 911 ST replica on the famous Apache Trail – what a route to drive!
“The Kremer ST rep is a special sports purpose car, not intended for Sunday cruises,” says Gib. “It’s a blast to drive with strong acceleration and great sounds inside and out. It has a very vintage feel, which is what I was after. I’ve got a 1990 964 for comfortable cruising, with good air conditioning!
“The ST is based on a Euro ’72 T, just like the original car. It has a 2.5-litre twin plug MFI engine, and runs 9 x 15″ Fuchs front with 11 x 15″ Fuchs rear. The project took about two and a half years: I enjoyed the learning experience when researching the details of what the Kremer Racing team did with this private entry in Europe’s GT class events. The original car won the European GT competition in 1972, and also took the Porsche Cup.”
The product of Gib’s fascination with the classic 911, it must be an incredible car to see on the road in the proper wild west of America. That said, it’s highly fitting that this unique machine should race through such a unique landscape, where the early pioneers pushed into unknown territory, just like the Kremer brothers back in the day.
The peak seen here is Superstition Mountain, king of the Superstitions and topped by Flatiron Peak: a well-known Pheonix hiking favourite. Climbing to the top is doable as long as you have stamina, plenty of water and a strong head for heights. The last part of the ascent is a 12-foot vertical climb, guaranteed to test your staying power.
Back in the Gold Rush times of the 1890s, nearby Goldfield was a booming mining town with a population of five thousand. More than fifty working gold mines once graced the area, but the original town eventually disappeared and a tourist attraction cowboy site now stands in its place.
Arizona is a beautiful state and towns including Tombstone, Bisbee, Jerome (once named wickedest town in the west) & Vulture Mine are all on my list of places to go in a Porsche. I don’t believe in a previous life, but if I had one it was something do with gold mining. You know when you just get a feeling?
by John Glynn | Jul 13, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Modified Porsche Hot Rods
This Kremer Porsche 962 was a recent visitor to a friend’s service workshop. Despite my spending at least one day a week there, I missed it, but am working on future visiting rights.
Everyone knows about the Porsche 962: super successful Group C racer that claimed abundant silverware for owners with the nuts to drive them properly. However, a number of customers were unhappy with Porsche’s version of the 962 and decided to do things their own way.
Formula One of the time was breaking new ground with composite tubs, but Porsche stuck to single-skin aluminium monocoque. When Kremer drivers Manfred Winkelhock and Jo Gartner were both killed in 962s – Mosport 1985 and Le Mans 1986 respectively – Kremer contacted John Thompson in the UK and had him build a stronger aluminium honeycomb tub with composite inserts and bodywork.
Scratch-built Kremer 962s using Thompson’s much stiffer tubs were badged as 962 CK6s, and Thompson went on to build full composite 962 chassis’ for Brun Racing. Despite 962 variants running well into the 1990s, Jo Gartner was the last man to be killed at Le Mans until Allan Simonsen’s death last year.
Flying slightly blind here, I’m half guessing at this being Kremer 962 CK6 09, one of the last Kremer 962s built, although it could be chassis 05. Shown on the JZM Hunter chassis alignment ramp, it’s fitted with Volk Racing centrelock wheels, which were chosen by many 962 teams. CK6-09 enjoyed an interesting career. Built specifically for the Le Mans 24-Hours, it raced in 1991, ’92 and ’93, with a highest placed finish of 11th overall.
Manuel Reuter’s name can be seen on the door. While not a household word outside of Germany, Manuel enjoyed sportscar success, twice winning Le Mans and racing 962s for much of his career. The 1992 Interserie Division 1 champion in a Kremer K7, he also raced DTM for Opel and was a DTM TV commentator too.
How many Porsche 962s were built? Depends who you read and how you add up the numbers. Counting later derivatives, it is certainly more than three figures.
by John Glynn | Jul 9, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Modified Porsche Hot Rods, Project Cars
Love these new Porsche 911 anti-roll bars (sway bars) from our friends at EB Motorsport. Sold in matched pairs for front and rear, the front ARB runs through the body, while the rear is suspended across the chassis using the original mounts.
“The EB Motorsport anti-roll bar set has been developed on our own cars in racing,” says EB’s Mark Bates. “Front and rear bars are available in various sizes: 22mm is the most popular size for 3.0 RS and RSRs like our race cars. We use hollow bars as we prefer the characteristics. The ARB stiffness is fully adjustable.
“The EB Motorsport anti-roll bars feature elegantly simple engineering. The bushed mounting system on both front and rear installations is less likely to distort in extreme conditions. Consequently, it resists “grounding out” as many other ARB types are prone to when under high load, such as at the bottom of Paddock Hill, at Brands Hatch.
The original design of this product is multi-piece aluminium, TIG welded. The bushes used by these EB Motorsport Porsche 911 anti-roll bars are a modern polymer equivalent to the original Delrin Acetal resin. Drop links are beautifully machined from aluminium and anodised. Cross drilled moment arms allow for easy adjustment. All connections feature rose joints with machined spacers, to allow free movement.
Some friends of mine use the Smart Racing rear ARB on their classic Porsche 911 for track days, and I have definitely seen those ground out at Paddock. In fact, I have even seen the rear tyre rub against the inside of the wheelarch through that compression zone and burn the paint off the outside of the arch on a 3.2 Carrera. It’s a pretty intense Porsche workout around Brands Hatch! Impressive if EB has found a way around the issue.
The EB Motorsport anti-roll bar kits retail at £1215 ex-works. They are suitable for most early cars, and all 911s up to 1989 with some modification to front fitment: impact bumper 911s are not through-the-body as standard. Contact EB Motorsport via their website to find out more.
by John Glynn | Jul 6, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Modified Porsche Hot Rods, Project Cars
Many of you will probably wish there were different wheels on this Porsche 356 Outlaw, recently spotted at an EASY Porsche meet in San Francisco. I reckon they are covering a brake upgrade – especially given the drivetrain changes – but no doubt this is an interesting car.
Super smooth bodywork with some urban stealth touches: grey primer with wiper delete, and Michelin Pilot Sport Cup rubber wrapped around those twist rims, the pics came from my buddy John G up in northern California. JG recently picked up a dune buggy body, and the emails have been flying on plans for chassis and drivetrain.
Air-cooled is obviously the only way to go for power, and JG likes the flat-four seen here. “I think I found what I want for a dune buggy motor this morning. Type 4 VW with Webers and Porsche shroud and vertical fan. This one was a bus motor, taken out to 2.7-litres. But super clean, no wires showing, nothing but the good stuff. Very cool: me likey.”
Me likey too. Dune buggies have been a bit of a thread around here lately, with a big buggy rebuild project in progress alongside my Porsche 911 Carrera 3.0 at Racing Restorations. Rob Campbell has built a complete safety roll cage with seat belts for the owners and his kids, and sorted a lot of original fabrication issues.
I had a chance to drive the dune buggy around the estate before it was picked up, and that was a tick on the bucket list. I’ve always had a thing for dune buggies. Now that the mid-life is in full swing, I’d sort of enjoy having one for the odd days of good weather we see in the UK, although I prefer the shorter wheelbase models.
Looking forward to having JG’s buggy sorted in California. No doubt it will be a project for many years yet, but that will be a laugh when it’s finished!
by John Glynn | Jul 4, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Modified Porsche Hot Rods, Project Cars
Happy 4th of July to all my friends in the USA! Hope you all have a great day. My last post was on Lewis Hauser’s Porsche 356 Sportolet. Lewis sent me a nice story afterwards of meeting Doctor Wolfgang Porsche with the 356, which is well worth sharing.
“I can’t believe I forgot to mention meeting Wolfgang Porsche! It was at the 50th Porsche Parade in Hershey, PA. We ran into some of the Porsche family members looking at the car. One of them was Wolfgang Porsche, who said he thought it was one of their original prototypes and that it was beautiful.
“Dr Porsche was a very nice man. He also talked with me about my ’55 coupe that was at the first Parade in 1956 and on display with the other historic Porsches that weekend. He liked it because he could tell that the car was driven regularly. He said that his father intended for Porsches to be driven, not scrubbed with Q-Tips.”
One man who is definitely not a Q-Tip scrubber is the Sportolet’s current owner: Rob Abbott in Maryland. Rob has a number of vintage Porsches, including the superb ST rep seen here. It was built by another pair of non-Q-Tippers, Dave B at TRE in Los Angeles and our hot rod hero, Hans Lapine at Kundensport.
“This project started with a very nice, original Signal Orange 1971 911T,” says Rob. “Having spent entire project budgets just sorting out previous rust-ridden 911s, we decided to start with a good car. The idea was not to build a perfect ST replica – no two were alike, in any case – but something that could have been ordered from the factory by someone with connections.
“All the bodywork was done at Kundensport. The car is mostly steel bodied including fenders (wings) and bumpers, which were cut and formed to the fenders, and slotted for the Carrera oil cooler. It has an aluminum rear deck lid and a factory-style balsa-reinforced fiberglass hood.”
The interior is super trick, and the engine is a hot rod 3.2 running PMOs. I’ve got some more build pics and detail shots from Rob to share later. For now, enjoy July 4th and the pics of this pair together on a Pacific coast drive during R Gruppe Treffen. Looking great!
