I sent out a press release and did some blogging for Jonny at Classic Retrofit yesterday, telling the story of a German 911 enthusiast who had gone to the trouble of measuring the improvement in headlight output after fitting one of Jonny’s replacement blade fuse panels.
I just love the story: it is charming and simple and so down to earth. Perfectly suited to Classic Retrofit. Jonny’s clever replacement fuse panels for classic Porsche 911s have proven to be an exceptionally popular upgrade amongst owners who wish to add reliable modern blade fuse technology to their vintage air-cooled Porsches. With several hundred of these plug-and-play Porsche fuse boards now in active service beneath factory fuse panel covers, one defining feature of the Classic Retrofit fuse panels is a pair of built-in headlamp relays.
The relays divert current for the infamously dim headlamps away from the column-mounted light switch, supplying the headlamps directly from the battery. Most of us who started in 911s many years ago fitted headlamp relays to improve light output – I have put them on all of my 911s – but Jonny’s boards go a step further, integrating the relays into the fuse panel and making the whole lot fit under the standard fuse panel cover.
Wolfgang’s Porsche 911 3.2 Carrera
Based in Potsdam, in the suburbs of Berlin, Wolfgang Nothnagel is the owner of a special edition US 1989 Carrera 3.2 in superb condition. Wolfgang keeps his car classic and looking as close to stock as possible, so his subtle mods to date include a stainless steel exhaust system, Osram ‘Nightbreaker’ street legal headlamp bulbs in standard light units and all new suspension rubbers underneath. With ‘everything stock’ as the mantra, Jonny’s upgraded blade fuse panels were the perfect low-key upgrade for the standard factory fuse panel.
“With the storm going over Germany, I used the time to finally fit the fuse panel,” said Wolfgang, who runs a lighting design and event staging company in Berlin. “Replacing the fuse board was done without issues in just forty-five minutes. On the incoming side, there was a need to redistribute one or two of the bundled wires, because the opening receptacles of the new fuse board are smaller. Other than that, the changeover was easy.
“To measure the light output, I used a Gossen Mavolux light meter from our workshop. I don’t claim that the measured output is the highest possible peak point, but the spot used for the measurement was more or less in the centre of the beam. Also, the sensor and car were not moved in between the process. So the delta in readings is valid to display the change in light output due to the relay circuit.
“To my surprise, I got a very different readout in between the original wiring style and switching to the new relays. There was an improvement of some 18%: just the right thing to have through the darker autumn and winter evenings. I am very pleased with the results!”
I have some panels to fit to my car and will get around to it eventually, but my favourite part of this story is a: that Wolfgang is such a cool character and b: that 911 people all over the world who run apparently stock examples still love to play with their cars. So much of the original technology in an old 911 has now been superseded, so it makes perfect sense to fit improved technology that doesn’t interfere with the look of the car, but will deliver more effective performance and improve the ownership experience. This is exactly where Jonny comes at all of his products from.
“As Wolfgang pointed out in one of his emails, the original fuse panels in his car worked for twenty-five years without major issue,” says the esteemed Mr Hart, “but upgrading to our fuse panels using the more available blade fuse type with LED blown fuse indicators and additional headlamp relays makes perfect sense. The project is easily DIY-able, our fuse panels for pre-73 and impact bumper 911s are very affordable and everything fits under the original covers.
“Kudos to Wolfgang for measuring the improvements and sharing his findings. It reminds us what we love about our work: so many great people!”
Porsche may not have won the penultimate round of the 2017 FIA Word Endurance Championship in Shanghai, China, but second and third on the podium was enough to secure the manufacturers’ title in LMP1. The positions also allowed Brendon Hartley, Earl Bamber and Timo Bernhard to secure drivers’ world championship titles.
The race took place in cool, dry conditions and began with a hitch for the Porsches, when the Jani/Lotterer/Tandy car had some problems early on and lost time in the pits. The rival Toyotas held first and second until lap 174, when the second Toyota was involved in a crash. That car was forced to pit for repairs and Porsche moved into the podium places, eventually claiming enough points to get the job done.
Quotes from the world champion Porsche Works Drivers
“I was second in the car and stayed there for 76 laps,” said incoming F1 Scuderia Toro Rosso driver, Brendon Hartley. “We lost a lot of downforce in the beginning, so the first stint was hard work. At the stop, we changed the nose which improved this issue. We also had one set of tyres less than all the other cars after we lost one in qualifying, so this was a kind of game over for us. But we definitely have had an incredibly year. Taking the World Championship title after winning Le Mans – it might take a while until it all sinks in. I’ve had a busy few weeks but, sharing this moment with Earl and Timo? I will not forget for the rest of my life.”
“World Champion! It just sounds amazing!” said a delighted Earl Bamber. “The team was fighting hard for it all year and now we’ve grabbed the manufacturers’ and drivers’ world championships. I did a double stint at the start of the race. It was okay but it didn’t look like we were on the right tyre. I just tried to manage the tyre as best as I could for the double stint. The tyres held on well, but we didn’t have a chance against the Toyota. The task was to bring it home in third position which ultimately became second. This weekend is super special. I can hardly believe that I won my first championship with Porsche back in 2013, only four years ago.”
Timo Bernhard echoed the thoughts of his team mates. “The second world championship title: this is kind of crazy and difficult to put in words. It is an honour to drive for the Porsche LMP Team and I am relieved that we have secured both titles here. Now we can face Bahrain a little more relaxed. My stint was good, but of course we knew that a third place finish would be enough. I could have pushed harder but it just wasn’t necessary. Instead we slowed the car down a bit for safety. Toyota was not really within reach today, but the car was reliable and the crew did another sensational job. This is what endurance racing is about. Many, many thanks to everyone and of course to Brendon and Earl.”
With both titles secure, I was sort of expecting Porsche to stay home from Bahrain as it has nothing left to accomplish, but it sounds like the 919 will take to the racetrack for one final event in front of the management board. That will be a fitting send-off for this technical tour de force as Porsche shuts down its LMP1 squad to allegedly focus on a secret F1 programme.
One bright spark in my inbox this morning was this nicely preserved Porsche 550A Spyder, which is heading for the Bonhams Scottsdale auction in January.
There can’t be too many 550A Spyders left with the provenance of this one. Apparently the penultimate 550A Spyder produced, chassis number 0145 began its racing life in the 1958 season, including taking part in the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort, where it finished 11th. Eleventh was also last place but owning an ex-Grand Prix Porsche is a good story.
Going by some online detectiving, this particular 550A has been with the current owner since 2013, and appeared back on the market in 2015 with Fiskens at Retromobile Paris. Offered for sale at $6.5 million back then, it subsequently popped up again at Goodings Pebble Beach sale the following year, with an estimate of five to six million dollars – quite a bit lower. No estimate has been placed on 0145 for Scottsdale just yet, so Bonham’s sense of where the market might be for the car will be interesting. My own feeling is that they will match Goodings’ guidelines at 5 to 6 million dollars.
Porsche 550A Spyder race history
One previous sales text for the car says it was a works race car, competing at four events through 1958 before passing into private hands, but another text tells a different story, with the car being bought by privateer Count Carol Godin de Beaufort from new and raced all over Europe, including Aspern-Vienna airport, Nürburgring 1000kms, Dutch Grand Prix, Le Mans 24 hours, the 12 Hours of Rheims, Zandvoort NAV, Trento-Bondone hillclimb, 10 Hours of Messina, Zandvoort, the Rheinland Palatine Prize, Nürburging Grand Prix, Karlskoga Grand Prix, Goodwood, Innsbruck and more.
After Count Carol sold the car, it spent time in Canada and then sold into America, where it raced extensively. It came home to Germany in the early 1990s and then moved to Italy in 2002, with an owner who campaigned it on ten Mille Miglia reruns. Good times! Now it is back up for sale.
Scottsdale is always an interesting auction. It takes place at the start of the year, when many classic collectors may be feeling less certain about how tastes have changed through the end of the previous year. Some come into the new year feeling upbeat about prospects but hanging back on bidding just to see what their rivals think. Other buyers will be looking to score a bargain and this can encourage some competitive bidding up to a preset maximum, usually well below the reserve. It is then up to the auctioneer to keep bids coming in, with the backroom team trying to make a deal happen if the car fails to sell on the block.
550 Spyders are often a good signpost on high end collector sentiment. A nicely patinated but unraced 550 was offered at Goodwood Revival in Sep 2016 and sold for £4.6 million – just over $6 million at current exchange rates but well short of the £6.2 million top estimate. How this is estimated and what it actually tops out at (or sells for) will set a tone for the start of 2018. All very interesting.
Photos by Bonhams/P. Litwinski
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First drive reviews of the brand new Porsche Cayenne have been popping up across the credible motoring sites and the reception is generally excellent. Porsche flew lots of reviewers to Crete for the European launch, which won’t have done their feedback any harm, but what the journos are saying makes sense.
The new Cayenne shares its platform with the Bentley Bentayga, Audi Q7 and forthcoming Lamborghini Urus. The Cayenne S has abandoned the beautiful big Porsche-built V8 that my old bus uses and gone to a group-derived 434bhp, twin-turbo V6 with eight-speed automatic transmission.
The 2.9-litre engine has an exceptional torque curve, with 405lb ft on tap from 1800 to 5500 revs! That is really something else and a chunk more than a standard V8 S, which had 310lb ft from 2500-5500. Mine has been ECU flashed, so maybe makes a bit more, but would love to try this twin-turbo with a car trailer on the back.
Matt Bird at Autocar gave the new truck just shy of a five-star rating, calling it “fairly tremendous at a great many things. The Cayenne’s cabin is a triumph, comprised of sumptuous materials, seamlessly integrated technology and considerable style.” The Autocar review goes on to rate the chassis pretty highly:
“Our test Cayenne S featured carbon ceramic brakes, adaptive air suspension, rear axle steering and 21in wheels. When you bear in mind that a standard car would use steel springs, half the amount of steered wheels, smaller rims and iron brakes, you can see how it is hard to make a definitive judgement on the standard Cayenne S. As you might expect, however, the test car delivered a stellar dynamic performance.”
I can’t say that ceramic brakes or rear wheel steering would be essential additions on what I use my Cayenne for, but if you want to hoon it while the kids are in the back trying to Snapchat each other then good luck to you – don’t forget to tick the wipe clean upholstery box.
For the 500 miles a year that a family man might get to really thrash a Cayenne hard with no one else in it, and given how well mine goes on steel springs and steel brakes, not to mention the lack of complexity, I think I would just spec it as standard, but that is not the press fleet way. If you’re going to fly hundreds of road test heroes to Crete at great cost, you must give them air suspension and 21-inch wheels to caress.
Meanwhile, regular people with cash will buy the S with nice paint, simple leather, smaller wheels and reasonable spec. The huge central screen is a must. Pano roof also nice but big glass roofs have a name for playing up in the long term. I don’t miss a leaky, creaky sunroof on mine.
This weekend’s 6 Hours of Shanghai is the penultimate race for the successful Porsche 919 LMP1 hybrids. It will be Porsche’s second-last race in the premier league of endurance racing.
Current championship leaders, Earl Bamber, Timo Bernhard and Brendon Hartley have scored 172 championship points while second-placed Toyota drivers, Nakajima and Buemi, are on 133. Should the Toyota (Nak/Buemi and our hero, Ant Davidson) take maximum points in China and score 26 points, the Porsche trio need to finish the race in at least third position for them to clinch the drivers’ world championship title.
In theory, this should not be difficult. There are only four LMP1 cars taking part, so even if the leaders are running last and Toyota is running first and second, Porsche could apply team orders and move the 919 in front of the sister car. But that assumes they reach the finish, and as we all know, nothing is certain in racing.
Brendon Hartley odds-on for F1 drive
Well, that may not be quite true, as it seems Brendon Hartley is 99% certain to clinch the Toro Rosso drive in 2018. Team boss Franz Tost has been open about Gasly and Hartley as his top picks for next year in press conferences so it’s likely to happen. This is great news for Brendon and a well deserved drive in F1. A final WEC championship title would keep him warm while he battles with the Scuderia’s incoming Honda power unit next year, so we’re all wishing him well with that.
How Hartley might jump from a Toro Rosso drive into the full Red Bull team will also be interesting. Red Bull has Ricciardo and Sainz under contract for the next year or two, and Max is signed up for another three years, so Hartley’s path is not clear cut. Who cares for now: as long as he’s racing in decent cars and on my TV that is all I’m really bothered about. It is clear that Porsche was not getting the sort of spectator engagement in WEC that teams get in F1, so I am still putting money on an F1 entry after the new engine rules are announced.
Porsche wants third WEC crown
“After three consecutive Le Mans overall wins, we also want to get both world championship titles for the third time,” said Fritz Enzinger, Porsche’s LMP chief. “This would be the crown of our LMP1 programme and this is what we are aiming for. At the most recent six-hour race in Japan, we had our first match point but we didn’t succeed. Instead we lost ground to our competitor Toyota. In Shanghai we’ve got our next chance, so staying fully focussed remains our priority.”
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