by John Glynn | Jul 2, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Modified Porsche Hot Rods
Having heard some nice reports from various sources about Lewis Hauser and his Karosserie restoration company in Fairfax, Virginia over the last few years, it was great to finally swap a few emails with Lewis this week, discussing one of his most fascinating Porsche projects to date: the 356 Sportolet.
Outlaw Porsche 356
I first came across the 356 Sportolet via a Google search, inspired by Facebook messages to Ferdinand Magazine’s page from a Pre-A owner restoring a car with Lewis. The Pre-A was one of the best I had seen, so I did some more searching and it led me to the Porsche Club of America’s Potomac Region magazine, Der Vorgänger, from June 2013.
In there was a piece on Lewis written by Jonathan Kinberg. It mentioned a 1953 356 Cabriolet restoration that Lewis completed for John Wood in 2008. I remembered a magazine feature on the car a few years ago and being blown away by the quality of the work. Another noted restoration (for Dick Brumme on a super rare 1950 Cabriolet) drew some interesting owner comments.
“I’ve known Lewis since the early 1980s,” said Dick. “He has worked on several of my cars including a ’72 Mercedes coupe, my ’61 roadster and the 1950 cab! He does excellent work and runs a great shop. Everything is done on time and with no surprises. He has a really weird sense of humor, but I like it. He is a good guy!”
My sense of humour often draws the same remarks, so we were off to a very good start. No doubt the Sportolet has drawn a few sideways glances too, so I asked Lewis how the project got started.
Outlaw Porsche 356 Coupe/Roadster Conversion
“The Sportolet started life as a ’56 Coupe. After doing so many of these cars, I thought it would be fun to make a coupe into an open unit. I had a Convertible D dash with cowl and two Roadster doors that I thought I would graft to the car. I also had a Convertible D rear lined up to complete the Roadster, but the guy sold that to someone else.
“After doing the door and dash cowl work, the project stalled for about 5 years. I had the car in my storage shed when a hurricane knocked the corner off the building, just missing the car. I took that as a sign that I needed to complete the project.
“Without the rear clip, I decided one day that the front cowl and hood off a ’62 parts car would look good as the back end of the car. The louvers on the rear cowl came from the inside of a Cabriolet deck lid. The louvers on the hood came from the inside of coupe deck lids. I made the mirror shell out of aluminum, just like the factory did with the Carreras.
“The engine is out of a 912. The seats came out of a GT Coupe. The interior has original door panels: everything else is wrapped with vintage vinyl, taken from various seats and things that I’ve been collecting for the last 30 years. The horns are very rare ‘fanfare’ horns that I took off a Pre-A.
“We finished the car just in time to display at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History’s ‘America on the Move’ exhibit. The car was the first Outlaw to win Best of Show at the 30th anniversary 356 Registry Holiday in Williamsburg, Va. I have since sold the car to Rob Abbott: he keeps it in Southern California.”
What a superb story so far, and nice to know it lives with Rob, who has a great eye for classic Porsche. That means I’ll get to see it in person one day! I sent some of Lewis’ Sportolet pics to a couple of friends and the reception was mixed: seems you either get this or you don’t. Maybe it’s just like Lewis’ sense of humour. If this little Outlaw sums up the man, we should get along just fine.
by John Glynn | Jun 23, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Modified Porsche Hot Rods, Road Trips
Nice email thread this weekend, as my buddy Craig from San Francisco picked up his latest Porsche purchase: a 1976 Porsche 911 Turbo Carrera. Bought in Denver, Colorado, Craig and wife Lori picked it up in person, then drove it home to California in a two-day road trip.
On my last trip to northern California, inveterate Porsche chopper Craig had the most amazing early 3-litre 930, in special order Albert Blue. He’d found that one on the other side of America, bought it and attempted to register it under the state’s smog laws. However, the work required to get it CA legal put him off. Being a muppet, he sold it.
Now, I can’t say too much here. I’ve sold cars I should have kept: no doubt you have too. But a SPECIAL ORDER ALBERT BLUE 930 is not the same as a common or garden SC, so I’ve booked a nipple tweak for Craig next visit.
Our friend then attempts to soothe his troubled soul by snapping up a 930 advertised on one of the US boards, within hours of it going online. Silver with Lobster interior is a nicely period combination, but the new owner has some work ahead to find the missing 15″ Fuchs, Recaro sports seats and who knows what else is no longer present. If anyone can do it, Craig can. That’s why they call US classifieds “Craig’s List”.
“It’s official,” said Craig. “I’m now the owner of a ’76 Turbo Carrera…again. Last year (for reasons that still escape me) I sold my Albert Blue Turbo Carrera. I’ve regretted that decision ever since. These cars have really gone ballistic since: mine sold for $155k shortly after I sold it. Just as I was thinking that I would never be able to afford one again, this one popped up in CO for a not-so-crazy price. I still can’t afford it but I bought it anyway! Not pretty, but all mine.
“With the keys in hand, it’s time for an epic road trip. I took the top shot from our hotel room while waiting for the wife to get ready, best angle of a 930 in my opinion. The first mod is already complete: R Gruppe license plate frame! WerkCrew sticker coming soon.”
The drive home offered a number of options. Ironically, Craig chose to ignore the opportunity to visit Craig, CO, and instead headed north from Denver into Wyoming. Cutting through Laramie and over the Medicine Bow National Forest, husband and wife entered Utah at Salt Lake City, skirting south of the Great Salt Lake before stopping briefly at Bonneville Salt Flats.
“I have to say, as bumped and bruised as the body is with 167k miles on the clock, she drives like it’s 1976 again,” says our hero. “This Porsche 930 is a good thirty-footer, but tracks perfectly straight and feels as solid as the day it was screwed together: a testament to Porsche engineering. No funny noises or smells or anything but, yes, those wheels must go!”
From Bonneville, it was over the border into Nevada for a monumental thrash through nowhere.com. I offered $50 towards a full-bore speeding ticket, quickly supported by fellow upsetters. When Arjen then shared a copy of his $1300 fine for doing 70 in a 55 and Craig said the tyres were 12 years old, we let him continue in peace.
The car eventually reached the safety of its new home late on Sunday night. Will he find the bits and pieces? How long will he keep it? What dramas are waiting to befall the Porsche fan when he goes to register it? All this and more in future updates. As the licence plate frame Craig took off the car on purchase said: “it’s cheaper than being married.” Aha!
by John Glynn | Jun 20, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Modified Porsche Hot Rods
Just added another article to our series on Porsche people. This piece introduces Cary, an R Gruppe friend in California who runs a beautiful Porsche 911 Carrera RS replica.
In rare Silver with Mexico Blue accents, the RS recreation was purchased via eBay a few years ago. Cary bought it from a seller based in North Carolina and had it inspected by nearby Porsche specialist, Chuck Miller, before committing to the bidding process. Cary scooped the RS recreation for $30k: right at the top of his original budget, but it certainly looks like a mega bargain now.
Californian Carrera RS
The car started life as a 1969 Porsche 912. It was driven for a few years before being parked in a garage, where it sat for over 25 years until the RS project was born. The bodyshell was stripped down to the bare essentials, then media blasted and repainted silver. Silver is a quite a nice choice, as there was never an original Carrera RS in silver. I didn’t know this until Cary told me – quite a surprise.
Featuring RS bumpers front and rear, the classic RS ducktail and de rigeur Carrera rear arches, the newly painted shell was fitted with good bits including a 2,000-mile 2.7-litre flat six, with PMO carbs. Inside the cases were JE 9.5:1 pistons and GE40-profile camshafts. Electromotive electronic ignition gets it all fired up.
A short ratio 901 transmission puts the power on the road. The interior is simple classic RS ingredients and attractive OMP seats. “I wasn’t a fan of these at the start,” says Cary, “until someone told me they were rare carbon/kevlar mix seats so they were definitely staying at that stage.
Cary’s RS was great to meet and great to shoot. Shot in an evening session on a back road just outside San Francisco, we ran the RS up and down a country road and a guy came out of the stables alongside. Cary’s car is pretty quiet really and we weren’t being hooligans, but I still expected to get a mouthful from the stable master.
“Looks like a good one,” came the holler. “Is it a real one?” Turns out the horseman was a big Porsche fan. He had an original Speedster in a barn out back and drove an early 911 himself. This is how small our Porsche world is. Love the Porsche life in California!
Read about Cary’s Porsche 911 Carerra RS recreation and share your Porsche experiences over email. Send me some pics and text: I will feature the best ones in the Ferdinand Porsche blog.
by John Glynn | Jun 18, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Modified Porsche Hot Rods
Had a nice email from Raleigh up in Utah, who thanked me for pointing him towards Impact Bumpers (you’re welcome mate) and shared some pics of this very smart 1984 Porsche 911 3.2 Carrera Coupe in rare Ruby Red. With just two owners and low mileage from new, it’s the antithesis of yesterday’s Targa Speedster feature car.
Introducing the Porsche 911 3.2 Carrera
1984 was the first year of the 3.2-litre Carrera. The new 911 was a development of the 911 SC, which had sold well for Porsche through the late 1970s, when Porsche management was planning to axe the 911 in favour of the 928.
New Porsche CEO, Peter Schutz, saw that enthusiasts were not ready to abandon Stuttgart’s rear-engined sports car. Schutz reversed the 911’s sentence, and gave orders to restart product development. In 1981 there was had a power hike for the SC, then another in 1983 (RoW) and then a displacement increase and fuel injection system change for the new model 911 3.2 Carrera in 1984.
The 911: Saved by Schutz
“The decision to keep the 911 occurred in the office of (engineering chief) Helmuth Bott, when I noticed a chart on the wall,” recalled Schutz. “It showed the ongoing development schedules for the Porsche 911, 928 and 944. Two of them stretched far into the future, but the 911 line stopped at the end of 1981. I walked to the chart, took a black marker pen, and extended the 911 line clean off the chart. I’m sure I heard a silent cheer from Bott.”
Bott went on to father the 959, and the work his engineering team did on the Carrera paid off handsomely, as the new 911 sold in record numbers. Bosch Motronic was a clear step up from the earlier CIS or K-Jet system used on the 911SC (and every other contemporary Porsche), giving better efficiency. While the bigger displacement came via a longer and lazier stroke, the increased capacity and better intake system gave more headline horsepower: quite a marked jump for US enthusiasts. More power, more prestige, more sales.
Two Owners from New
One man keen to sign up for the 3.2 Carrera was Raleigh’s father-in-law, who ordered this 911 brand new in 1983, and had it delivered that Christmas. Those early 3.2 seats are still as 911SC: most early 3.2 trim shows no change from previous. Teledial wheels were Carrera additions and are rare items now: sunroof and air con is not super common outside the US.
The classic Carrera has covered just 41,000 miles and looks in superb condition. Raleigh took over the 911’s upkeep one year ago, and reports the only change to standard as an updated radio – literally nice to hear. Good job, Utah Porsche guys: this 3.2 is a cutie.
by John Glynn | Jun 17, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Modified Porsche Hot Rods, Project Cars
Fellow Porsche hot rod fans will totally get this Porsche 911 Targa Speedster. Originality crew, avert your eyes now.
Vincent in Colorado emailed me last night with pictures of his Porsche street rod creation. Known affectionately as ‘Butzi’, it’s a lightweight Speedster-style project, based on a 1971 911 E Targa. Inspired by a visit to the Porsche Museum, close inspection of the 550 Spyder and 909 Bergspyder hillclimb special drove Vincent to create a lightweight version of his early 911.
Hot Rod Porsche 911 Targa Speedster
“I bought my 1971 Porsche 911E Targa in California on 9/11, 2000. Always maintained by Andial, the car had been stolen from its previous owner, but subsequently recovered. While stolen, it had picked up body damage: a smashed front wing and door, clipped in a collision. Now far from immaculate condition, it was ready for a transformation along the lines of home-brew early race cars.
“I welded in rear flares to fit 8 x 15” Fuchs wheels, and added lightness to the entire body. Fibreglass bumpers, bonnet, deck lid, and front fenders keep with the lightweight build theme. I have yet to weigh the car, but you can be sure it’s in the 1800 lb range (800 kilos).
eBay Porsche Parts Find
“The most challenging part of the build was committing to the Speedster theme. This required removal of the original Targa roof components and fabricating the windshield. I got lucky and found the rear clamshell on eBay.
“Powered by the original 2.2-litre engine, refreshed and on Webers with the 901 transmission, I’m enjoying driving it, but have to start work on the suspension and get some ideas on paint. Originally silver, I really like the early Porsche race cars in white, hence the theme it is now: in various shades of white primer, awaiting the next stage.”
As a Porsche feature car veteran, I like the hot rods: cars with personality. I rarely get super excited by perfect Porsches that the owners won’t drive due to spotless condition. For me, a Porsche on the move is the real deal: even Zuffenhausen drives its museum exhibits every now and then.
Vincent’s 911 Speedster is towards the opposite end of the Porsche preservation spectrum, but this doesn’t make it less engaging. It’s a work in progress, and sometimes progress has to shake a few cages. Kudos, Vincent and Salut, Butzi. Keep on rocking in the free world!
![Impact Bumper 1977 Porsche 911 2.7-litre S Trending]()
by John Glynn | Jun 12, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Modified Porsche Hot Rods
In February 2006, I started a website called Impact Bumpers. Based on a suggestion by my mate, Tripe, it was a forum for Porsche guys into aluminium ‘impact bumper’ 911s from 1974 to 1989: what we quickly christened the ‘IB’ 911.
Back then, the cars were unloved by Porsche clubs and there was no place outside Pelican for owners to congregate. My aim was to get twenty guys together who liked working on their own cars and would do a few events every now and then (I had a secondary agenda of lifting regard for the 911 SC, but that’s another story). Eight years later, impactbumpers.com is still going strong, with thousands of Porsche fans online every month.
Just as the SC was looked down on back then, so the 911S also suffered. Built pre-SC with narrow rear quarter panels, the S has a lowly 2.7 litre engine, strangled by K-Jet and emissions exhaust, normally making just 165 bhp. Without the SC’s RS-style arches, it was neither fish nor foul – no pretty early bumpers and no chunky IB rear. On the cusp of full galvanising, many 911S bodyshells rotted away and were not worth repairing. No doubt the narrow body had style: but its moment to shine would just have to wait.
That moment has arrived in 2014. As a mark of its rising regard, two R Gruppe friends have each bought impact bumper 911S models in the last seven days and both plan to keep the appearance as-is. They’re not the first narrow IBs in an R Gruppe garage, but it goes to show what people are up to.
1977 Porsche 911 S
The car seen here is Joey’s in Northern California. “I just got this rather pedestrian narrow body US version 911S coupe,” says Joe, “not normally on my radar but what got me off the fence was the color combo of Minerva Blue with Cork interior. Also it’s a full delete package from the factory: sans sunroof and power windows, with driver side-only manual mirror.”
I love that Joe thinks poverty spec was an option (!), but what a cool 911. My first 911 (SC) was almost going to be the same colour combination, as it really pings in the metal. Joey is looking at mods that will keep it low-key: a bit of a sleeper. 3-litre power is likely, with SSIs adding a bit more grunt.
Personally I would fit modern air con, take weight off stealth-style with aluminium panels, lightweight bumpers and run it as-is, but it’s not my project to build: I’ve got my own narrow-body Porsche 912E project waiting for that. But this 911S looks a beauty! I’m looking forward to having a drive myself sometime soon.
Got a new/old 911 you want to share? Send us some pics: mail@ferdinandmagazine.com. We’ll feature the best ones.
