by John Glynn | Feb 23, 2015 | Classic Porsche Blog, Market & Prices
The Silverstone Auctions sale at RaceRetro 2015 brought mixed results for classic Porsche 911s. A number of promising Porsche entries were withdrawn pre-sale – a nice 2.7 911 and early 911T amongst them – but a pair of cars caught my eye from either end of the classic price spectrum.
Porsche 930/911 Turbo Targa at auction
This right-hand drive 5-speed Porsche 911 Turbo Targa is a rare car that sold well inside predictions, suggesting the body might have hidden a few more secrets than the auction description suggested. Not sure how likely that is as the pics make it seem pretty reasonable: maybe it was just the Marmite widebody Targa effect.
The very last year (1989) of Porsche 930 with a Targa roof is a very rare car, but the £35,438 this car sold for would just about buy a very nice 3.2 Carrera Targa nowadays. With the clutch replaced in the last 5k miles and a service 2k miles ago, if this a solid 930 with no major oil leaks, someone did well for themselves.
1965 Porsche 911 SWB prices
Elsewhere in 911-land, this apparently very nice LHD 1965 SWB Porsche 911 2.0 blew its £100-120k estimate well out of the water, selling at £133,875. Owned by a Norwegian since 1998, the description for the left-hand drive European example made no real mention of history prior to the current owner, save some details on a rebuild for the matching numbers engine some twenty years ago.
Four owners have kept this SWB looking straight and apparently honest. With the general condition described as “usable with a fair patina”, the decision to send the car to auction paid off. Matching numbers 1965 911s are highly sought-after now, and to exceed the estimate by over 10% shows just how fevered the market can get for early SWB cars. I can’t help feeling that these cars have not reached their peak: I’d rather buy SWB than RS at current prices and I can’t be alone on that.
Porsche 911 Auction Prices UK
I see from the Silverstone Auctions site that a bespoke “Porsche Sale” is planned for October. I have decided to sell my non-sunroof LHD Series 1 Porsche 924 Turbo this year, and it could take me that long to find enough time to put the trim back on the newly-painted bodywork. Might be an interesting story to put the car through auction and see how it does.
by John Glynn | Feb 8, 2015 | Classic Porsche Blog, Market & Prices
After a slow-ish start to 2015, no doubt the investment end of the air-cooled Porsche market is going again. High-end 964s are the latest target and the 964 Turbo in particular seems to be doing pretty well. Let me rephrase that: people have gone mental with the prices being paid for 964 Turbos.
Doing some Porsche insurance valuations this week, I got talking to one 964 Turbo owner with a few other cars in the garage who could not believe the interest in his growing Porsche fleet. Having bought a relatively low mileage car behind closed doors in mid-2014 for £150k, he was recently offered £200k for the same car. That is £50k in your hand after six months of ownership.
Still slightly dizzy from that, I then heard of a 964 Turbo that had just sold through a UK dealer for THREE HUNDRED THOUSAND ENGLISH POUNDS. Not a rare Turbo S: just a low mileage Turbo. Then yesterday I followed the sale of two as-new Turbo S models for more than half a million pounds each. That is a direct sale with no advertising.
It’s not all air-cooled in the mad world of Porsche. 996 GT2s are also being chased pretty hard, with many deals done off the radar. An 11k-mile, two owner car in black has just sold (unadvertised – directly between owner and buyer) for a substantial six-figure sum – more than I would have expected. I value the rare 997 GT2s quite highly for insurance purposes, but 996 GT2s are now chasing them hard.
I am not endorsing the prices or saying that this is the place to put your money! Nor is this a comment on the supposedly respected Porsche dealers all around the world who are still happy to take uneducated buyers for a ride. I hear about them all the time and it is not good business. These are dealers I would be happy to buy from myself, helping sellers and buyers to get what they want.
I know some of the guys buying these cars and they are true-blue enthusiasts: great people to enjoy all Porsche cars with – no airs or graces involved. It is good to know that some of these cars will get used, but scary to think of where they are now and where they might finish. Will we see many 964 Turbos being used and enjoyed through 2015?
by John Glynn | Feb 2, 2015 | Classic Porsche Blog, Market & Prices
Alex sent through these cool pics of his Porsche 964 Speedster. This 911 Speedster is believed to be the sole Tiptronic example manufactured of apparently just 14 RHD 964 Speedsters – although that’s currently unconfirmed.
What is confirmed is this is a 1992 production car, believed to have been shown at the British Motor Show in UK spec before heading off to Singapore. From Singapore, it went to the well-known Giltrap family in New Zealand, who then sold it on to a local enthusiast. It passed through one more owner before being bought by a doctor in 1998. Alex bought it from the doctor.
While the earliest pre-1990 964 Speedsters were built on turbo-look bodyshells, later versions like this one were constructed using standard Carrera 2 Cabriolet shells. I’ve had a few drives in both and the narrow-bodied cars are sharper and tighter.
As with the earlier 3.0 911 SC Cabriolets, the 3.6-litre engine feels notably different in an open-top car. That fat exhaust note is pretty special with the roof off: I have vivid memories of driving alongside the Amsterdam canals with my mate Jan in his silver 964 Speedster.
Jan’s car was a manual – it would be interesting to see what the Tip gearbox feels like in a Speedster. Two pedals in that RHD footwell doesn’t look quite right, but no doubt it adds to the interest factor.
Most people who rule out Tiptronic are just repeating something they heard elsewhere. I know a few 964 Tip owners who really like the cars: a nice 964 Tiptronic Coupe is currently undergoing full strip and restore with a colour change at Rob Campbell’s Racing Restorations in Pershore for an overseas client. I’ll share some pics of that later and maybe sneak a drive when the project is complete.
As for this particular car, I could get a chance to try it out later this year as I hear it is coming to Goodwood. I may be charged with helping Alex find a new home for it if it comes up for sale.
by John Glynn | Oct 13, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Market & Prices
A Porsche friend has entered this matching numbers 1979 Porsche 930 (911 Turbo) for the classic car auctions at the NEC Classic Motor Show next month. Normally my advice is to take care when buying at auction (i.e. what most auction buyers fail to do) but I have seen this car more than once, and it has always struck me as a decent example, so am happy to share it on Ferdinand. That said, buyers should still do their homework.
The car was found in California by Tuthill’s US buyer around the same time I bought my 912E. At the time, Tuthills were rallying that white 930 on Midnight Sun and I did think this might end up as a rally car. As quite a unique colour and spec – Bamboo Beige with dark brown Recaro sports trim – it was one of the first impact bumper 911s I was hoping would not be modified! Not my usual approach, but this was low mileage and really quite nice. Happily, it found a fine home as a road car.
On arrival in the UK, it was given a thorough inspection and much work was done to recommission the Bosch CIS K-Jet fuel injection system, including fitting a brand new fuel tank. Earlier this year, Paragon Porsche fitted new suspension, before it came back to Tuthills for a diff rebuild and new clutch. The car has only done 46,000 miles or so, but the owner has never shied away from spending money on it. He tells me he is selling to buy a horsebox for his daughter: how the other half lives!
The estimate for this car is £40-46k. As a left-hand drive, low mileage 930 in a rare colour, it may find the interested parties it needs to get some competition going on bidding. My only real bugbear is the polished Fuchs, but it would be easy to repaint the centres in proper satin black, as above. Then the car would look like quite a special impact-bumper 911, in my opinion.
by John Glynn | Jul 28, 2014 | Market & Prices, Porsche News, Race and Rally
Porsche’s South African connections have bought the Kyalami Circuit near Johannesburg, South Africa. Recently offered at auction as commercial development land, the South African Porsche dealer CEO apparently had to put £200k on deposit to bid in an auction sale that eventually lasted less than a minute. The final purchase price was just under $20 million, or £11.5 Million.
The purchase joins up a news loose end for me as, a few weeks ago, my number 1 Jo’burg informant sent me a picture of a 919 Hybrid-like creature being trailered away from the circuit. I did some research and found the link to the auction. I suspected something could be happening but did not want to speculate. That kind of chat makes it dearer for everyone. That said, the secret obviously escaped as the reserve went from zero to R129 Million to R200 Million within a few days.
Porsche Kyalami Circuit purchase
What will happen with the circuit? Could be a hot weather testing zone open to Volkswagen/Porsche badge, with the added ability of customer experience and on-site vehicle engineering centres. Jo’burg is also a great place for car launches in the depths of winter without having to fly to Australia. Summer runs from October to April, when snow never happens, rain is infrequent and January temps approach 30 degrees.
The main thing is no one will build houses on it, so well done to the J’Burgers for stepping up. That said, I’m sure it could make a tidy profit if they did split some of it off for development.
The Old Kyalami
Alastair Caldwell, friend of Ferdinand, former McLaren team manager and now erstwhile marathon rally driver, tells some great stories about Kyalami, back when his driver James Hunt gorged on the breakfast of champions. I can’t think of one that’s repeatable, but no doubt the legend of the old Kyalami circuit’s speed and debauchery lives on in race circles. With Mexico coming back on the GP calendar, maybe Kyalami will be next. It would certainly make a good WEC venue, although the new circuit is not as exciting as the old one, which was raced until 1985.
Old Kyalami was absolutely awesome. The lap finished in a huge uphill climb to the main straight where the cars could reach more than 200 mph on a surface rougher than a Belgian motorway. Check out this video of Prost in the Renault during 1983. They don’t make them like this anymore!
by John Glynn | Jul 22, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Market & Prices
Another pair of low mileage collector Porsche 911 models has come up for sale. The prices have already started online tongues wagging, but that is no bad thing when the cars concerned are rare and ooze quality.
Porsche 996 GT3 RS Low Mileage for sale
If someone had told me this time last year that prices for 996 GT3 RS would touch £150,000 within twelve months, I’d have grown a second pair of eyebrows to raise in response. But this low mileage Porsche 996 GT3 RS now on sale is priced just off that.
It’s brave pricing but, with just 9,300 miles on the clock and apparently no track use in its past, this could be a last chance for serious collectors to grab a mint RHD 996 GT3 RS in their ascent towards air-cooled 911 Carrera RS price levels in thirty years.
Before you slam the keyboard, I’m not saying the two are comparable or that 996 GT3s will ever hit half-a-million quid a piece: I’m just throwing it out there. I’m already dazed by current 911 Carrera RS prices, so who knows what is possible for the water-cooled classics.
Porsche 993 Turbo S Low Mileage for sale
In the same used Porsche showroom as the low-mileage Porsche 996 GT3 RS is this rare Porsche 993 Turbo S for sale. Amongst the rarest of the rare air-cooled Turbos, the black-with-tan Turbo S has done just 17,100 miles from new and is offered at a price I am scared to say out loud.
I like 993 Turbos – really like them – but they are one of those super-capable Porsche 911s where, no matter what you do, the car will generally sort your mess out. It is hard to hoon around in a 993 Turbo and seriously scare yourself. In any case, this 450 bhp Turbo S cannot be hooned or used to frighten the driver. The value is in its rarity and low mileage, so no point spending all that cash on a car to go crazy in.
That said, there is more money in the world that I can comprehend, so these two could be gone by the weekend.
