For Sale: A 1978 Porsche 924 Built To Safari Rally Specification

This is a 1978 Porsche 924 that has been rebuilt to classic Safari Rally specification, with lifted suspension, a wider track width, larger all-terrain tires, front-mounted spotlights, and a roof rack carrying a spare tire and sand ladders.

The Porsche 924 was raced regularly in-period, its aerodynamic styling and almost perfect weight distribution thanks to its rear-mounted transaxle made it a perfect choice for a variety of motorsport formats. and Porsche created two variants specifically for racing – the Carrera GT and Carrera GTR.

Fast Facts – The Porsche 924

• The Porsche 924 was originally developed by Porsche for Volkswagen. It was planned to be introduced as a VW sports car and it was designed with many VW and Audi parts including the engine and transmission.
• Volkswagen ultimately decided to axe the car quite late in the development cycle, Porsche bought the rights to the design, then released it as their own new entry level model to replace the Porsche 914.
• Though it was initially deemed to be underpowered, the 924 was praised for its styling, aerodynamics, and handling. Later versions like the 924 S and the 924 Turbo would significantly increase power. The Porsche 944 that came later was closely based on the 924.
• Special racing versions of the 924 were made including the Porsche 924 Carrera GT and the Porsche 924 Carrera GTR.

The Porsche That Was Almost A Volkswagen

Volkswagen hired Porsche in the early 1970s to build them a new affordably-priced sports car. They were instructed to use as many pre-existing parts as possible (including engines and transmissions), and it’s possible that the design of the car was influenced to some degree by the Volkswagen SP2 from Brazil.

A slew of modifications and upgrades have been applied to this 924 to bring it up to Safari Rally specification, among other changes it now rides on lifted suspension and Toyo all-terrain tires.

Due to a number of factors including the 1973 Oil Crisis, VW decided not to proceed with the project quite late in its development. Porsche negotiated to buy the design, a deal was struck, and Porsche further developed the car as a replacement for their outgoing 914 model.

The Porsche 924 has long been viewed as a somewhat undesirable vehicle due to its lower entry level price point and the lower power output of the original 1970s-era 924. In recent years they’ve been seeing their popularity begin to rise alongside the closely related Porsche 944.

Though it was never as desirable as the Porsche 911 or other exotics from the Stuttgart-based automaker like the 944 Turbo, the Porsche 924 played a key role in keeping the company in business through the late 1970s and into the 1980s.

150,000+ examples of the 924 were sold which brought in much needed capital, and the model is remembered today as the first front-engined Porsche, the first Porsche powered by a liquid-cooled engine, and interestingly enough, the first Porsche offered with an automatic transmission.

The interior of this 924 has been significantly modified, with Auto Style bucket seats and harnesses, a hydraulic handbrake, VDO gauges, a Vigor steering wheel, a fire extinguisher, and retrofitted toggle switches.

The 1978 Porsche 924 Safari Shown Here

The car you see here is a significantly modified 1978 Porsche 924, it’s been built to Safari-specification, a reference to the great African safari rallies.

The team behind this car integrated a range of modifications to bring the car up to Safari Rally standard, the suspension has been lifted, the track width increased with spacers, and Toyo all-terrain tires have been fitted to the original 15 inch mesh alloy wheels.

A roof rack has been added up top, it carries a spare tire and a pair of sand ladders, presumably for use in the Sahara. Martini Racing livery has been added to the outside and hefty spotlights have been installed up front.

Inside the car you’ll find Auto Style bucket seats, D1 Spec race harnesses, OMP footwell plates, VDO gauges, a black Vigor steering wheel, a hydraulic handbrake, a fire extinguisher, and a number of retrofitted toggle switches.

The car is currently being sold in a live online auction on Collecting Cars, and at the time of publishing there are a few days left to bid. You can click here if you’d like to read more or register to bid.

Images courtesy of Collecting Cars

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Flamethrower Equipped: A 1968 Chevrolet C20 Longhorn Franklin Camper

This 1968 Chevrolet C20 Longhorn pickup and its Franklin camper may be the perfect home-on-wheels for the modern age. It’s equipped with a flamethrower that shoots out of the nose of the grille-mounted Longhorn skull, and it has matching propane flamethrowers fitted to the exhaust tips.

Inside the Franklin camper on the back you’ll find accommodation for two people, with a toilet, a hot shower, kitchenette, and dining table – everything you need for life on the road.

Fast Facts – A Chevrolet C20 Longhorn Franklin Camper

• Campers like this are becoming increasingly popular due to the surge in popularity of the “Van Life” movement, fueled in equal parts by a desire to travel after two years of Covid and the unattainable cost of housing in many major cities.
• This camper is made up of two parts, a restored 1968 Chevrolet C20 Longhorn pickup and matching a restored 1968 Franklin 11FK6 camper, it’s also been modified with front and rear mounted flamethrowers and a front mounted CO2 sprayer. Because reasons.
• The C20 has been fitted with Firestone Ride-Rite rear air springs to allow the ride height to be modified depending on whether the camper is fitted or not.
• It’s powered by the 396 cubic inch L66 V8 with a towing-specific camshaft, paired with a New Process four-speed manual transmission that sends power to the Dana 60 rear axle.

The Chevrolet C20 “Longhorn” Pickup

The Chevrolet C20 Longhorn was a factory special built from 1968 until 1972 with a frame and bed that were 6 inches longer than stock – with a wheelbase of 133 inches versus the two shorter wheelbase options of 115 inches and 127 inches.

This Longhorn C20 is equipped with both a propane flamethrower and a CO2 blaster that shoot out of the skull’s nostrils. No explanation is given for these unusual additions, but it would certainly make starting and extinguishing campfires much simpler.

The Longhorn was intended for the booming camper market and for the cattle industry in Texas, the longer bed in the back made it ideal for accommodating campers. Engine options included V8s up to 402 cubic inches (6.6 liters) offering plenty of power to get the truck and camper up to highways speeds when needed.

The benefit of this bolt-on campers was the fact that they could be quickly removed when needed, leaving you with a standard pickup truck. Campers with permanently built-in camper sections lack this additional functionality.

The Franklin Coach Company

The Franklin Coach Company was founded in 1945 by Paul Abel, it was one of the earliest camper manufacturers in the United States and the company played a pivotal role in the development of campers and caravans/trailers.

Abel was one of the founders of the Recreational Vehicle Industry Association (RVIA) which established safety standards for the industry. His company remained in business for over 60 years, well into the 2000s.

Inside the Franklin camper there is sleeping accommodation for two, with a dinette table and seats, a kitchenette, and a toilet and shower with hot water.

The Flamethrower Equipped Camper Shown Here

The unusual combination of a Chevrolet C20 Longhorn and a Franklin camper you see here is equipped with triple flamethrowers. No reason is given for this unusual modification but if the past few years has taught us anything, it’s that it’s probably a good idea to have a flamethrower handy because you have no idea what’s coming next.

Both the truck and camper back have been restored to a high level, before and after photographs are included in the listing, and the entire rig is now ready to hit the highways and byways of North America.

Should you need to light a campfire it should be just a matter of placing a pile of wood in front of the longhorn skull mounted to the grill and hitting the red button on the shifter knob. No need to fiddle about with firelighters or kindling.

Power is provided by a 396 cubic inch L66 V8 with a towing-specific camshaft, this is to better cope with the weight of the Franklin camper on the back, and power is sent to the Dana 60 rear axle via a four-speed manual transmission.

If you’d like to read more about this camping rig you can click here to visit the listing on Bring A Trailer. It’s currently being auctioned live with seven days remaining to bit at the time of writing, and the current highest bid is $30,200 USD.

Images courtesy of Bring A Trailer

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A Rare 1988 Isuzu Piazza Nero XE: “Handling by Lotus”

This is a rare Isuzu Piazza in Nero XE specification with the desirable “Handling by Lotus” package that vastly improved the capabilities of the Italian-designed, Japanese hatchback.

Despite its eye-catching looks the Isuzu Piazza is still a relatively little-known sports hatchback from the 1980s. Unlike many of its contemporaries it’s rear-wheel drive, and it was styled by Giorgetto Giugiaro – the designer of the DeLorean DMC-12, BMW M1, Maserati Merak, and the unusual Gordon-Keeble GT.

Fast Facts – The Isuzu Piazza

• The Isuzu Piazza was introduced in 1981 to offer an alternative to the common front-wheel drive hatchbacks pouring out of Europe. With its rear-wheel drive arrangement and futuristic Giugiaro styling, the Piazza became a cult classic.
• In the US market the Piazza was marketed as the Isuzu Impulse and in Australia it was sold as the Holden Piazza, carrying Holden badging.
• The first generation of the Piazza was powered by either a naturally aspirated or turbocharged 2.0 liter engine, a 2.3 liter naturally aspirated engine was later introduced for the US market. Front suspension was independent and the cars received a live axle rear end.
• The most desirable version of the Piazza is the “Handling by Lotus” variant that featured largely redesigned front and rear suspension and improved brakes, paired with the 2.0 liter turbocharged engine option.

A Different Kind Of Hot Hatch

Though there is some disagreement it’s generally accepted that the VW Golf GTI launched what would become known as the “Hot Hatch” phenomenon in Europe and around the world.

Above Video: This is a 1988 review from the Isuzu Piazza Lotus by MotorWeek, known as the Isuzu Impulse in the US market.

Though performance versions of small cars had been made before, like the Fiat 595 Abarth and the Mini Cooper S for example, the Golf GTI was the first to include all of the ingredients of the hot hatch into a single vehicle.

By the late 1970s it was clear to executives at Japanese automaker Isuzu that the Isuzu 117 Coupé was getting long in the tooth, and that a replacement was needed for the rapidly approaching decade of the 1980s.

Isuzu worked with legendary Italian designer Giorgetto Giugiaro of Italidesign on the project, the same man who had designed the earlier 117. Giugiaro created a modern, almost futuristic design with a wedge-shaped side profile, a hatchback (or lift back) rear, two doors, and seating for four.

The concept car was first shown to the public at the 1979 Tokyo Motor Show where it proved hugely popular, so popular in fact that Isuzu rushed it unto production.

Isuzu Piazza – Specifications

The first generation Isuzu Piazza was built from 1981 until 1990 at which time it was replaced by the notably less successful second generation version. We’ll be focussing solely on the first generation cars here today.

The styling of the Piazza was futuristic by the standards of the 1980s, you can see shades of the DeLorean and BMW M1 in its lines as well – all three cars were designed by the same man within a few years of one another.

Four primary engines were offered over the Piazza’s 10 year production run, the least powerful was the 2.0 liter (1949cc) naturally aspirated engine producing 90 hp and 108 lb ft of torque.

A turbocharged version of this engine was offered which initially made 140 hp and 166 lb ft, and this was later updated to the 4ZC1 turbocharged inline-four producing 180 hp and 185 lb ft of torque.

A naturally aspirated 2.3 liter engine was later introduced for the US market, which made 110 hp and 127 lb ft of torque.

Trim Levels And Handling Packages

At least six trim levels were offered including Bella, XN, XJ, XE, XG, and Nero, there were also three different suspension tuning levels, standard, Irmscher, and Lotus. The Lotus option was by far the most desirable as it included redesigned sway bars, new stiffer dampers, new bushings, and a change in spring rates that noticeably improved handling. The Lotus package also included uprated brakes.

The Piazza rides on independent front suspension with a live axle in the rear, coil springs were used at each corner. The use of a live axle in the rear was mildly controversial as independent four-wheel suspension was standard for the hot hatch genre, however with the Lotus handling improvements these criticisms were largely resolved.

This is the 2.0 liter turbocharged version of the Piazza engine producing 140 hp and 166 ft lbs of torque.

With its distinctive Giugiaro styling and the solid performance of the turbocharged versions it’s surprising that the Isuzu Piazza isn’t better known that it is. It remains a solid 1980s cult classic with a dedicated fanbase, you have to wonder if it’s only a matter of time before the Radwood generation discover the model en masse and pricing soars.

The 1988 Isuzu Piazza Nero XE “Lotus” Shown Here

The car you see here is a 1988 Isuzu Piazza Nero XE with the “Handling by Lotus” package. It’s listed as a highly original example and it’s powered by the 2.0 liter turbocharged inline-four, delivering 140 hp and 166 lb ft of torque to the rear wheels via a 5-speed gearbox.

This car was well-optioned when bought new, it has cruise control, electric windows and mirrors, a Technics Dolby stereo with a graphic equalizer, and air conditioning. The exterior is Nero black and the interior is trimmed with grey cloth, and it rides on 15 inch multi-spoke BBS alloy wheels.

This car is for sale out of Hong Kong, it’s being auctioned live online by Collecting Cars and it’s currently showing 90,804 kms on the odometer (56,422 miles). If you’d like to read more about it or register to bid you can click here to visit the listing.

A period advertisement showing the 1988 Isuzu Impulse with the Lotus handling package, this was the American version of the Piazza.

Images courtesy of Collecting Cars

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