by John Glynn | Jul 18, 2010 | Classic Porsche Blog, Modified Porsche Hot Rods, Road Trips
Just sorting through the pics of the recent R Gruppe Grand Tour for a Porsche World magazine feature. Here’s one that brings back happy memories: the time the front runners came around a corner at a rate of knots, to find one mountain collapsed in a landslide and a road full of Volvo earthmovers shifting the debris. Everywhere we went, workmen were repairing landslide damage.
Sam and I actually came back down this road about twenty minutes later. There was a ten-ton rock in the middle of the road, right where my car is parked out of shot. It fell off the top of the cliff just a few minutes after we left to head back up the Col as part of a second, smaller landslide. Two lucky R Gruppe escapes in one day! We were on our best behaviour after that.
Don’t suppose I need to say that a bit of Porsche tyre smoke needed to clear before I could take this picture.
About Alpine Landslides
Landslides are apparently pretty common around these parts. According to this New Zealand geology website, “in the terrain made up of hard rock and steep, high slopes, landslides range from huge rock avalanches that can shape mountain peaks and travel several kilometres in minutes, to massive rock slides, rock falls and debris flows.
“It can be difficult to distinguish between rock avalanches, and ice or snow avalanches. Most avalanches originate as falling snow or ice, which can include rock and other debris. Avalanches of rock can also pick up ice and snow.” The landslide seen here originated as falling rock, which are “typically characterised by rapid, turbulent movement.
by John Glynn | Jul 17, 2010 | Classic Porsche Blog, Modified Porsche Hot Rods
Classic Le Mans was HOT. Too hot! As we were so busy with shooting a Total 911 piece and sorting bits for Jamie’s uber-cool Renault 8S, I didn’t get much time to wander around the car park to see anything resembling a Porsche hot rod either.
Thankfully, I can count on some stalwart Porsche pals to help me out with keeping an eye on the public parking. My buddy Chris Tarling took a couple of shots of an interesting early 911 (since discovered to be an SC backdate).
The colour on this hybrid Porsche hot rod looks like Irish Green. I love the front flares and curved rear quarters. Black-rimmed rear lenses do the business. Contrasting bumpers and engine grille are groovy, and loud pipes save lives!
Banded steels and sticky tyres are a look – no idea what it must drive like with all that dish.
The front end is love or hate, with grilled-out markers and indicators and the black-rimmed lights. The flip up centre filer is sweet, and I love the wiper-off look. Like being back in California. I think the whole thing is old-school cool.
I’ve been giving serious thought to selling my Carrera 3.0 and building something irreverent on that early T shell I have. I’m sort of on the fence over whether to sell the T as a potential rally car project or just do something with it and buy another Varmint-type SC from the US. I’m not dead set on owning an all-original early 911, but this car gives me the hots for the early 911 outlaw look. Tough to decide which way to go sometimes.
If this car rings a bell with anyone, get in touch!
by John Glynn | Jul 7, 2010 | Classic Porsche Blog, Modified Porsche Hot Rods, Road Trips
Today was the last day in Monaco for the 2010 R Gruppe Grand Tour. With no group plan for the day, I was up at 7.30 and out in the Orange 911 Carrera 3.0, to repeat yesterday’s drive up the Col De Turini, and the amazing road from Turini to Sospel.
Col de Turini is the heart of the Monte Carlo Rally. As Monte has been a dream event for me for many years, driving the core stage of this monumental test of man and machine was a must.
At just 1607 metres high, Turini is a relatively low mountain pass, but that does not take away from the sense of occasion one enjoys upon reaching the summit. Once at the top, there was no doubt in my mind: a life goal had been reached.
After driving up the Col, I spent the early part of the morning seeking out locations for a photo shoot planned for later that day. I came up with some places and plans, which ultimately did not work out anything like I’d intended but, regardless of the operational challenges, it was great to spend time with the five faithful Gruppers who returned to the mountains to help me with the work. Many thanks to Leonard, Jan, Guenter, Gerd and Martin.
Tomorrow we drive to Le Mans, for a weekend at the biannual Le Mans Classic. It’s my first time there with press accreditation, so I’m looking forward to the challenge of working at Classic Le Mans, rather than just being there as a Porsche fan and car guy in search of entertainment.
Not that there won’t be entertainment to hand! My fellow Bergmeisters are all coming to Le Mans, where we’ll be joined by the ImpactBumpers.com crowd, and the Dutch R Gruppe posse. The Amsterdam massive includes good buddy Arjen Bosman, who has rented a (British) caravan to camp at the event: bound to be unmerciful fun.
The exception to the attendees will be little brother Sam, who flies back to Dublin from here tomorrow. He has been to every CLM with me so far, so it’s going to be strange not having him with us this time around.
We leave Monte Carlo at 7am. After today’s drive down from the mountains through Castillo and the other lovely villages overlooking the bay, I’m missing it already.
by John Glynn | Jun 30, 2010 | Classic Porsche Blog, Road Trips
Things are absolutely flat out here, as I try to get two US features and a pair of magazine columns done, before readying my Orange 911 Carrera 3.0 for the 2010 RGruppe Bergmeister Tour, and our subsequent trip to Classic Le Mans; back to our beautiful gîte in Dissay-sous-Courcillon.
The Dutch posse leaves Amsterdam at 07:30, heading for Belgium. The original idea was for the latecoming members of UK RGruppe (i.e. me and Hamish) to hook up with the German and Dutch cars (and the US IROC car which has been shipped in especially) somewhere south of Brussels at around 09:30, but that would mean getting an 05:30 train, so my leaving home before 3am.
Little brother gets in to Brum from Dublin at 8pm the previous night so, between getting the car done all day Friday and the Saturday night arrival in Geneva, I was staring down a double-barreled all-nighter. Not impossible with two drivers, but not much fun for either.
I considered missing the convoy and going straight to Geneva from Brittany Ferries’ Portsmouth to Caen route, which is actually quite a bit shorter, but a: it was booked solid and b: it kind of felt like cheating. I also considered an 11pm Chunnel crossing, driving to a hotel south of Brussels and getting 5 hours’ sleep before the Dutchies arrived, but that didn’t feel quite right: the tunnel is quick, but it’s a romance-free zone!
Then the thought occurred: what about sailing to the Netherlands overnight? Take a leisurely drive from Birmingham Airport to Harwich, slip onto Stena Line’s midnight boat to the Hook of Holland, which would get us into Rotterdam at around 08.30 CET as close to the tour start as possible, fully relaxed and rested. I ran the idea past Chaptermeister Stolk and he liked it too.
So that’s the plan. Pick up little bro, head to Harwich, put the Orange in the safe hands of Stena Line while we head upstairs, have a bit of dinner and chill out. We’ll then squeeze in some zeds in comfortable beds, before kicking off the 2010 Bergmeister Tour with enough energy to really get the most from the drive south to Thonon-les-Bains, on the shores of Lake Geneva.
Day two brings us to Briancon. Day three then takes us to Monaco, where Bergmeister Base Camp will be established at the Novotel in the old town. From there, our ten classic Porsches will spend three days running along some classic Monte Carlo routes and also the the famous Mediterranean Corniches: those unbearably photogenic roads, carved into the mountains where they meet the glistening sea. James Bond: eat your heart out! I’m looking forward to more France Porsche pictures like this:
Don’t miss the story of this sure-to-be magnificent event. Follow it here on The Classic Porsche Blog and on The Classic Porsche Blog Twitter feed.
by John Glynn | May 17, 2010 | Market & Prices, Project Cars
Things are crazy around here at the minute. Millions of words to write since landing back in the UK post California, trying to tidy up loose ends on my day job so I can leave with a clear conscience, and also trying to get moving on clearing out some of my projects. I figure it’d be better to put some cash back into the house at the minute and get my extension going. Realistically, that leaves little time for projects.
First one advertised is my 911 T on eBay here. (edit 19/04: the Buy It Now has just been pressed after I took the price down to £10,750 – it is sold).
The car is a non-sunroof ’71, originally from California. A few years back, it sold to a guy up in Canada who wanted to build an RS replica. He spent a lot of money on the body: new sills, RS arches, hours spent on prep for paint and a decent enough job on the finish, in lovely Gemini Blue.
The engine is a 2.2E motor which we were told was recently rebuilt with S pistons and cams. It runs MFI. It came on a pallet and was just bolted in for transport so I have never fired it up: lack of time really. My plan was to buy a past-it SC targa in less than pristine condition out in California and drop all the running gear into this. I hasd planned a rally interior with a cage and all nicely trimmed. I seriously am never going to have time to get stuck into this so it has to go.
I’ve put it on at €12500, which is £11,000. It would cost more to buy an average LHD T, sort a non-sunroof roof out and then do the body and paint it all. I think it’s priced right but we’ll see. The pics are a bit crap (dusty dash and loose headlining) as I didn’t even clean it after I picked it up, just put it straight into storage. If it doesn’t arouse some interest, I’ll bring it home, give it a clean, do some reassembly and put it back on a bit higher.
Failing that I’ll advertise the Orange. £30K would see my 1976 Carrera 3.0 Coupe off to pastures new: Australia maybe. They love 911 Carrera 3.0 coupes down there and mine has some nice light bits following a full bare metal resto. I think it’s old enough now that the LHD doesn’t matter. I have lots to move on, lots and lots. Busy busy busy!
