Porsche 911 – Still Sexy at 60

Did you really think we were going to get to the end of September without mentioning the 911 on its 60th birthday?! Come on now, we’re definitely breaking out Colin the Caterpillar in honour of one of the most iconic and legendary sports cars to ever grace tarmac as Porsche’s perennially popular paradigm of performance hits the big 6-0! All together now! Happy birthday toooo yooouuuuu…

Not many brands can boast such a rich run of form and even less can lay claim to the fact that one of the most successful automotive icons of all time has remained relatively unchanged for six decades. Along with products like the Bialetti Moka pot and the humble lightbulb the 911 remains instantly recognisable. Yes, technology has moved on but park a brand new 911 Carrera GTS next to an original ’60s 911S, for instance, and the similarities are plain for everyone to see, regardless of any need to visit a popular high street chain of opticians, and the lineage permeating the entire model range is as clear as day.

Beginning production in September of ’64, nobody could predict just how important, and indeed influential, the Porsche 911 would become. A design icon, there’s no doubt about that, but the car would also demonstrate just how effective a rear-engined setup could be, and an air-cooled one at that, something Porsche would continue to pioneer well into the ’90s and one that will forever be associated with the 911. Yes, the Beetle got there first but the 911 took the air-cooled ball and did its best Forest Gump impression.

Developed as a replacement for the 356, the 911 was designed by Ferdinand Porsche (no, not Ferry, his son – nicknamed “Butzi”) with further bodywork input from Erwin Komenda, although the two didn’t exactly see eye to eye when it came to the final styling of the car. Whatever the case though, there’s no denying the final result, and both men should be duly credited and indeed praised for their work.

But instead of re-telling the Porsche 911 story, which let’s face it has been told a thousand times before, we thought we’d celebrate the sexagenarian sportster by picking six of our favourite iterations, one for each decade the old boy has been alive. With so many different 911 models to choose from, from Cabriolets to race-derived GT3s and everything in between, there really is a 911 for everyone, most of which are available right here on Car & Classic, so strap in and see if we include any of your top picks in our list.

1) 911 2.7 Carrera RS

We couldn’t compile a list of 911s without including the first generation OG. This is 911 genesis, the car that started it all, and the Carrera RS, introduced in ’73 just before the G-Series made its debut, is considered by fans to be one of the greatest iterations of Porsche’s most famous model ever produced.

Named for Porsche’s victories in the Carrera Panamericana in the ’50s, the Carrera RS (or Rennsport) was built as a homologation special that developed around 210bhp from its larger 2.7-litre, flat six engine. This extra power, coupled with uprated suspension and brakes, a wider rear track and that now famous ‘ducktail’ spoiler, ensures that the eminently collectible 2.7 Carrera RS is prized by many an enthusiast as peak 911, and rightly so.

2) 930 Turbo

Regular readers of these pages will no doubt already be familiar with our affinity for the 930 Turbo, preferably in black, an affinity that’s bordering on obsession at this point. Yes the turbo lag is akin to waiting for the earth’s tectonic plates to shift and the lack of any driver aids when the boost does eventually kick in has well and truly earned the 930 its ‘Widowmaker’ nickname, but once you’re on song and feeling like an absolute ’80s hero none of that really matters.

In production for 16 years, such was its popularity and indeed capability, the 930 (or G-Series) was a significant entry in the 911 canon as it marks Porsches first foray into turbocharging. Strapping a whirly boy on to the 930 in ’75 pushed peak power to 260bhp, a figure that would rise to 300bhp with the arrival of the 3.3-litre in ’78. Visceral, exciting and a tad unhinged, it’s cars like the Porsche 911 930 Turbo that fan the flames of passion that smoulder within every petrolhead’s soul.

3) 964

We have just two words for you when it comes to the 964: Bad Boys. But there’s more to the 3rd iteration of the 911 than Will Smith and Martin Lawrence’s buddy cop action flick. Much more. Unfairly disparaged until recently as one of the less attractive 911s, values for the 964 are on the rise as people are wising up to the car’s many virtues. It’s a car that perfectly demonstrates Porsche’s ability to update the 911 while still retaining everything that makes them so special and recognisable.

Despite looking incredibly similar to the outgoing 930, the 964 was, in fact, 85% new. Designed by Benjamin Dimson it may still possess those classic 911 lines but it was also a car of firsts, showcasing the now ubiquitous Tiptronic gearbox, as well as four-wheel drive, power steering, and ABS. The result was a more predictable handling 911 whilst still delivering a five-and-a-half second 0-60 time and a 163mph top speed, and the 964 is now rightly revered as one of Porsche’s best.

4) 993 GT2

The 993 bridged the gap between the air-cooled 911s of the past and the more technologically advanced Porsches that we would begin to see filing out of the factory in Stuttgart. Representing the pinnacle of Porsche’s fourth generation 911, the incredibly rare GT2 (only 57 road legal examples were ever made) features a 3.6-litre, twin turbo flat-six driving a whopping 430bhp to the rear wheels.

A lightweight, stripped out race car for the road the 993 GT2 can hit 60mph from parked in less than four seconds and carry on to a top speed of just shy of 190mph which is still pretty lairy, even by today’s standards, and this was all the way back in the ’90s!

5) 997 GT3 RS

Of all the GT3-badged 911s, many would argue that the 997 version hits the sweet spot when it comes to performance, grip and sheer drive-ability. Granted, the GTS may be easier to live with day to day but there’s just something about this generation of GT3 RS that really tickles the old pickle.

With its glorious 3.8-litre ‘Mezger’ race engine (the 911 had switched to water cooling at this point) producing well over 400bhp, performance is still utterly face-melting but it’s performance that can really be exploited, should you have the stones, and it’s this driver-focussed allure that keeps the 997 GT3 RS featuring in lists such as this one. One of the best 911s to ever play the game.

6) 911 GT1

OK, so this is a bit of a wildcard but oh my! What a machine. We’ve talked about the 911 GT1 in our The Homologators series so go and have a read of that particular feature for the full run down but suffice to say, the GT1 is peak 911 for many, at least from a performance perspective. It may have few physical parts in common with those models listed above aside from the front end but the heart and soul of the 911 is still very much alive and kicking in the GT1.

The road going version was built using the race car as a template and as such it remains one of the most riotous, not to mention rarest, 911s ever built. The chances of owning one are about as slim as a Rizla Silver but we just had to include it on our list in a nod to the 911’s racing heritage.

Many happy returns to the 911 then. Here’s to a few more years in the spotlight…