by John Glynn | Oct 10, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Porsche News
Porsche Cars North America has announced that Rennsport Reunion V (RR5) will be held at Laguna Seca from September 25-27, 2015, four years after Rennsport Reunion was first hosted on west coast USA. Note that this is an amended date from the original 9-11 Oct 2015, as that clashed with 919s running in WEC at Fuji.
Previous Rennsports were run out east: once at Lime Rock and twice at Daytona. The feedback from my trusted sources was that Daytona topped Laguna for spectacle, and of course Daytona has heavy links with Porsche history, so was perhaps a more appropriate location for a Porsche racing heritage event.
However, with the heaviest concentration of Porsche collections anywhere in the USA, a high proportion of American Porsche owners living within reach of the circuit and the corporate side of Rennsport requiring the dry and sunny Monterey climate, California was deemed to be a better location.
There’s little doubt that Rennsport Reunion V will outsell previous events, and this will satisfy US sales and marketing. I don’t keep up with new Porsche cars so not sure where it fits with model releases, but no doubt a new car will slot in somewhere. Meanwhile, many European enthusiasts will be asking if Rennsport is worth the effort. The faithful will journey to Monterey, but would the average UK or European enthusiast gain enough from a trip to California to justify the considerable expense?
September 25-27 does not tally with any half-term private or public school dates that I can see in the UK, so taking the kids away for a couple of weeks is unlikely to work. European holidays are not much different, so it looks like a grown-up deal only. This is probably no bad idea, as only the most Porsche-obsessed wife and kids would enjoy it for more than an hour or two.
Flights and Accommodation: Rennsport Reunion V
Flying to Monterey is best done direct into San Francisco, but Los Angeles often offers better prices, and then you have the PCH rent-a-car drive to enjoy. Hotels around Laguna are good, and the R Gruppe Porsche crowd normally stay at the Hyatt Resort on the outskirts of town: there will be a block booking going on there. However, there is a PGA tournament going on during the same weekend, and room rates are now sky high.
Having previously stayed all around the region, Pacific Grove is my choice of overnight halts: great prices and the sound of the ocean within earshot. If standing beer-in-hand with Porsche freaks in the car park late into the night is your choice of bedtime, then grab a room at the Hyatt. I will do the standing around of course, just without many beers in hand and with a short drive back to my digs.
If your visit is only going to be about hardcore track action featuring rare and historic Porsche racing machinery, remember that this is largely an exhibition event with rare cars coming out of collections. Do not forget all the real Porsche racing we enjoy here in Europe. Whether it’s the 917 in the hands of Gary Pearson at Silverstone Classic, 962s racing at the Spa Classic, or 935s and RSRs at Oldtimer GP or Classic Le Mans, there is great historic racing on this side of the pond. Don’t feel bad if you can’t make it to Rennsport.
by John Glynn | Aug 16, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Porsche News
Either I am following most of the Californian Porsche population on Instagram, or everyone else is at the first Werks Reunion at Carmel on the Monterey Historics weekend. My feed has been a parade of 356s, early 911s and latest Magnus Walker video exploits for the last few days.
Not seen many pics of this little beauty, though. It’s Joey B’s 1977 Porsche 911 S in Minerva Blue, which I shared a few weeks ago. Joey has now applied his meticulous attention to detail to what was already quite a nice car, and created something quite remarkable.
“Hey Johnny, hope you are well,” says his email. “Just wanted let you know this middie (what we call a ‘mid-year’ Porsche: post-1973 and pre-SC) is all buttoned up & ready for the prom this Friday at the 1st Werks Reunion in Carmel. Hope you approve of the changes, some more subtle than others.”
Changes obviously include a coat of wax! I spy 15″ Fuchs (of course), some period sounds and a retrimmed steering wheel. That Cork & Pascha interior is just right – makes me think I’d love to see some tan suede or Alcantara centres on early impact bumper Recaro sports seats.
Outside, that no-sunroof narrow body looks sharp with the black H4 headlamp trim rings and single door mirror. “I decided to stay with the 2.7-litre CIS engine with 10k miles on the rebuild,” says Joey and looks like a great decision to me. I see some yellow fog lamp bulbs, too. What a superstar classic!
Who has more pics to share from the Monterey Porsche Werks Reunion? Owner driver Porsche pics like this suit me perfect – we’re not about the garage queens. Drop me an email via the contact page.
by John Glynn | Jul 17, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Market & Prices, Porsche News
The annual Silverstone Classic is next weekend – July 25 to 27 – and of course we will be there to follow the Porsches coming from our friends at Tuthill Porsche, and the mighty EB Motorsport.
This RSR replica has spent the last few weeks at Tuthills being prepared for the Silverstone weekend. Built elsewhere, the car had a number of issues after delivery, so arrived at Wardington with a list of repair jobs to do. It is coming together nicely, so I hope the owner enjoys a reliable weekend.
EB Motorsport’s Light Yellow Porsche 911 3.0 RSR and the Guards Red RS will both run at Silverstone on Friday and Saturday, in the Masters Historic qualifying and race. The SWB 911 sadly won’t be seen at Silverstone but is still looking good for Spa 6-Hours.
As always, Silverstone Auctions is holding a sale at the event. Running over two days, there are a number of Porsches listed for sale. A 1974 Porsche 911 S restoration project is estimated at £10-15k, while an allegedly stunning Carrera 3.2 Cabriolet is estimated at £18-22k. Seems low to me for a three-owner car with 81,000 miles. In Iris Blue, the colour may not arouse a majority of buyers, but only takes one to make a sale (or two to make a war).
The 1967 Porsche 911 2.0 ex-California car in Sand Beige seen above, with low mileage since a full engine rebuild is estimated at £45-55k: sounds alright for a left-hand drive car if it’s in good condition. But my favourite photo from the catalogue must be this Mini Cooper S, which has lived in the seller’s living room since purchased in 2006. It’s been recommissioned and MOT’d since leaving the sofa.
As ever with auctions, do your homework before committing to anything. Estimates are usually low, so expect some auction fever to knock prices up a notch. We’ll be around somewhere to watch how the bidding goes.
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 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.
