• for sale

Chassis 017 of the original 20 Rennsport models assembled by the Porsche racing department at the behest of Ferdinand Piëch:

Piëch and his racing mechanics replaced front and rear deck lids, doors, front fenders, and both bumpers with duplicates in fiberglass-reinforced plastic, formed and assembled at Karl Baur works in Stuttgart. Wider rear wheels forced slight flares onto the bodywork. The hinges – doors and deck lids – were in aluminum. Because it was a racing car, engineers shaved windshield thickness to 4mm and side glass was thinned to 2mm. It’s safe to describe a 911R as “interior delete”, because Porsche’s racing shop pulled more content out than it left in. In fact, it was the job of one racing mechanic, Rolf Wütherich, to run a drill press, perforating every pedal, lever, handle, and panel with holes to lighten each by a gram at a time. By the time they finished, the cars weighed just 800 kilograms – 1,764 pounds.

Even the legendary 2.7 RS pales in comparison to the 911R, this is the early 911 to have. #017 is more special still, not only does it have a fully documented history, it is also fitted with a very special engine with a thick race-winning history file.

Currently offered by Road Scholars, $POA.

• porsche
• type 901