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The Porsche Testarossa – A Rare Rinspeed Porsche R69 Turbo

This is the Rinspeed Porsche R69 Turbo, or as it was better known in the 1980s, the Porsche Testarossa.

This nickname was unofficial of course and it’s likely that neither Porsche or Ferrari were particularly fond of the limited production car from Switzerland, but approximately 12 are thought to have been build for clients in Europe around the world.

The Rinspeed Porsche R69 Turbo

In order to get yourself a Rinspeed Porsche R69 Turbo in the 1980s you first needed to buy yourself a Porsche 930, the turbocharged variant of the Porsche 911.

Once you had your 930 you would have it shipped to Rinspeed in Switzerland, and they set to work transforming it into a car with no small amount of inspiration from the Ferrari Testarossa.

The R69 Turbo was launched in 1985, just a year after the Testarossa had been unveiled by Ferrari at the 1984 Paris Auto Show. The reception enjoyed by the new car had been overwhelmingly positive, with its distinctive side strakes becoming an instant global sensation.

Rinspeed had been founded in 1977 as Rinspeed Garage, named for founder Frank M. Rinderknecht. They initially focussed on importing sunroofs from the United States and converting cars to make them suitable for disabled drivers.

Above Image: The R69 is undoubtably a child of the 1980s, though the styling has been somewhat controversial over the years.

In 1979 Rinspeed unveiled the VW Golf Turbo based on the GTI, and they later released a Golf with gullwing doors. As the 1980s progressed the company turned their attention towards the Porsche 911, unveiling the Rinspeed R69 Turbo in the mid-80s to a mixed global reaction – some loved it and others were a little more critical.

The fiberglass bodykit for the R69 included a new front section, new sides, and a new tail. The sides were clearly influenced by the Testarossa with their long strakes, the nose was also transformed with pop-up headlights borrowed from the Porsche 944, and the new wider rear made use of Porsche 944 taillights.

The Porsche 911 Turbo

Performance of the Porsche 911 Turbo was famously brisk, it was the fastest production car available in Germany when it was introduced in 1975.

Porsche had been experimenting with turbocharged cars since the late 1960s however this experimentation was kicked up a notch in order to create the turbocharged Porsche 934 and 935 models for Group 4 racing.

In order to homologate these cars for racing Porsche needed to build and sell a minimum of 400 over two years. The 911 Turbo proved so popular that Porsche sold 400 of them before the end of 1975, homologating the car in the process. They would sell 1,000 of them by May of 1976 and the car remained the marque’s halo model until the release of the 959 in 1986.

The performance capabilities of the 930, particularly the earlier models, was borderline brutal. Turbo lag was a notable issue and it caught many drivers by surprise, resulting in quite a few wrecked early Turbos and the car gained a reputation as a widowmaker.

Porsche worked on refining the model over its production run and later examples tend to have more predictable road manners than their early forebears.

Above Image: The interior of the car has shades of the 1970s about it, with those famous Porsche plaid seats and brown everything else.

The first year Porsche 911 Turbo was capable of 0 to 60 mph in just 4.9 seconds, a remarkable feat by the standards of the mid-1970s and still an impressive figure today.

The top speed was 155 mph however this was limited to some degree by the use of a 4-speed gearbox, Porsche didn’t have a 5-speed that could handle the torque however the Getrag G50 five-speed manual transmission would become available in 1989.

The Rinspeed Porsche R69 Turbo Shown Here

The car you see here is one of those original ~12 R69 Turbos from Rinspeed. It’s finished in Pearl White though in the ’80s this became known as “Cocaine White” in certain circles. It’s riding on 15 inch Gotti split-rim alloys with white centers and the interior has shades of 1970s-retro cool thanks to the extensive use of brown and plaid.

It’s currently showing 69,478 miles on the odometer and a full mechanical rebuild was completed by Porsche Centre Leeds at 67,334 miles including new studs, O-rings, sealing rings, and gaskets, as well as vapour blasting of components. The turbocharger was reconditioned, the fuel tank was replaced, and two new fuel pumps and fuel filters were also fitted.

If you’d like to read more about this unusual Porsche or place a bid you can click here to visit the listing on Collecting Cars. It’s up for auction now with the bids sitting at £50,000 at the time of writing.

Images courtesy of Collecting Cars

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from Silodrome https://silodrome.com/rinspeed-porsche-r69-turbo/
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An Original 1996 Caterham 7 Roadsport – A Scalpel-Sharp Driver’s Car

This is one of just 30 examples of the Caterham 7 Roadsport Limited Edition that were built in 1996, the Roadsport model has become a mainstay of Caterham’s modern offerings in the years since but the car you see here is a member of the first generation.

As a member of first year Roadsport production this car has an engine upgraded for additional power, it has an ECU modified to match, and a 56mm throttle body mated to a forward-facing aluminum alloy plenum.

The car is also fitted with removable door tops, carbon fibre fenders, shift indicator lights, a push-button starter, a removable Momo steering wheel, 14 inch Minilite alloy wheels, and an FIA-compliant roll bar.

The Caterham 7

The Caterham 7 started life as the Lotus Seven all the way back in 1957. It was a car developed by Colin Chapman to best exemplify his “simplify, then add lightness” ethos, and although it was always popular with the enthusiasts there can be no way that Chapman could have guessed that the humble Seven would be his most enduring automobile design.

Above Image: The Caterham 7 is among the lightest production cars in the world, and they’re famous for their scalpel-sharp handling.

When Lotus decided to discontinue the Seven in 1973 it sold the rights to the model to two of its distributors – Caterham Cars in England and Steel Brothers Limited in New Zealand. Both of these companies put their own version of the car into production, however it would be Caterham who would become by far the best known.

The reason Lotus dropped the Seven is because it was still being offered as a kit car and Chapman wanted to focus on fully-built cars that would be competing with the big names from Europe.

It’s important to note that by the end of 1973 Team Lotus had won six Formula 1 Constructor’s World Championships, and five Drivers’ Championships, so Chapman’s desire to take the brand upmarket was perfectly reasonable.

Caterham Cars began selling their own kits of the car from 1973 onwards. The model was in production with Lotus for 16 years, but it’s now been in production with Caterham for 48 and counting, with each new generation of drivers discovering the car and its remarkable driving experience for themselves.

Above Image: The car has snug seating for two, a removable Momo steering wheel, and a 6-speed manual transmission.

Over the decades the engineers at Caterham have completed redesigned the chassis and suspension of the car more than once to keep up with modern engineering standards. Current generation Caterhams are considerably faster than their Lotus forebears, however they’ve always managed to keep the spirit of the original Chapman cars intact.

The 1996 Caterham 7 Roadsport Limited Edition

With just 31,201 miles on the odometer this 7 has been used sparingly, as most are. These are typically used by their owners as weekend cars and as such they rarely see rain, snow, heavy traffic, or salted roads.

Perhaps a little unusually, this car is fitted with both a cabin heater and a heated windscreen, meaning winter drives on crisp sunny mornings would be on the cards – not something many would enjoy in a car without the supplemental heat.

This car is powered by a 1.4 litre Rover K-series four-cylinder “Supersport” engine, a reliable twin cam, 16 valve motor producing 128 bhp and sending power to the rear wheels via a six-speed manual transmission.

The curb weight of the car is somewhere in the range of 500 kilograms or 1,100 lbs, so ~130 bhp is more than enough to embarrass many far more powerful cars around the track.

This car is currently being offered by Collecting Cars, the bidding is sitting at £5,000 with 7 days two go and you can click here if you’d like to read more about it or register to bid.

Above Video: In this classic Top Gear episode, James May and the Stig take a closer look at the Caterham 7.

Images courtesy of Collecting Cars

The post An Original 1996 Caterham 7 Roadsport – A Scalpel-Sharp Driver’s Car appeared first on Silodrome.

from Silodrome https://silodrome.com/caterham-7-roadsport/
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A Complete Ferrari 250 GTE Body – $20,000 to $30,000 USD

It’s not everyday the opportunity arises to buy an all-original Ferrari 250 GTE body for somewhere in the $20,000 to $30,000 price range.

Without the original chassis, engine, or running gear the car could never be returned to number matching condition, however it would make a great starting point for an outlaw build that’ll rustle some jimmies among the purists.

As the story goes, the Ferrari 250 GTE was conceived and put into production specifically for Enzo Ferrari himself, as he needed a Ferrari with comfortable seating for four to accommodate himself, his wife, their driver, and their dog.

I’ve never been able to 100% verify that story but it’s too good not to share, and we do know that Enzo was indeed ferried around in a 250 GTE with his wife and their beloved pooch.

Years ago when the values of these cars were far lower than they are today it was relatively common for people to remove bodies from Ferraris in the 250 GT series and replace them with a replica 250 GTO body. This was the ignominy suffered but the car you see here.

It’s now a complete body shell minus the floor, and it needs a powered rolling chassis under it before it can once again take to the street under its own steam. For well-connected collectors it may be worth hunting around to see if the 250 GTO replica that is using this car’s chassis and engine is still around and able to be purchased.

Barring the above, this body shell will likely either end up being used for spares by a current 250 GTE owner or it’ll be bought by someone with more ambitious plans for it. Like a four-wheel drive Ferrari safari build or a Lamborghini V12-powered chimaera that’ll cause a total collapse of the space time continuum in the classic car world.

If you’d like to read more about this body shell or register to bid on it you can click here to visit the listing on RM Sotheby’s.

The post A Complete Ferrari 250 GTE Body – $20,000 to $30,000 USD appeared first on Silodrome.

from Silodrome https://silodrome.com/ferrari-250-gte-body/
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For Sale: A 1963 Grand Sport Corvette From Fast Five

This car is one of the 1963 Corvette Grand Sport Corvette replicas built for the film Fast Five, alternatively known as Fast & Furious 5, starring Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Tyrese Gibson, Ludacris, Dwayne Johnson, and Gal Gadot.

Movie cars can vary wildly in build quality, some are just built to appear stationary on camera, some are built for interior shots only, some are built to be blown up, and some are built to be driven. Fortunately this car belongs to the latter variety.

Just five original Grand Sport Corvettes were built in 1963, two were convertibles and three were coupes. They’re currently valued in the millions, so in order to use one in the film the team at Mongoose Motorsports, a GM licensed manufacturer, were contracted to manufacture 12 cars for on camera work.

Anyone who’s ever seen a Fast And The Furious movie will already be aware that many cars used during filming don’t survive. This was certainly the case with the Mongoose Motorsports Grand Sport Corvettes, just three of the 12 survived and remain in functional shape, with the car you see here being the best example.

Above Video: The car’s most famous scene in the film, showing why so many of the stunt cars ended up as scrap.

This car was built to be driven hard, so it has a full custom tubular chassis with C4 Corvette suspension, it’s powered by a GM performance crate 350 cu. in. V8 producing 380 hp, which is mated to an automatic transmission. Of course if any future owner really wants to take the car to the track rather than just the 1/4 mile strip they may want to looking into swapping that auto to a five or six speed manual.

The car now rides on 17″ PS Engineering wheels, the largest visual deviation from the original Grand Sport Corvettes from 1963, as these wheels allowed the use of modern high-performance rubber.

In the film Vin Diesel can be seen aggressively changing gears in the car, a common theme throughout the movie franchise, however that above mentioned gearbox swap would need to be done to make this a reality.

Above Image: The car was used extensively during green screen filming, helping to preserve it.

The reason this car is in better shape than the other survivors is because it was only ever used as the stationary green screen car. Walker and Diesel spent a lot of time in it (and on it) as a result, and because it was used on green screens only it avoided the calamitous fate of its sibling car that was sent flying into a ravine (see image sequence below).

After filming was completed the car was bought by the transportation coordinator for his own personal classic car collection where it spent many years being carefully preserved.

It was then bought by the current vendor from him directly, and they’re now selling it with a price guide of $95,000 to $100,000 USD – not a terrible figure considering the fact it costs $85,000 to buy a GM licensed Mongoose Motorsports Grand Sport Corvette without an engine or transmission fitted.

If you’d like to read more about this car or register to bid you can click here to visit the listing on Volo Museum Auto Sales.