Total 911 No. 226

Our annual feature looking at the best Porsche models to buy for the year ahead is always popular with readers. We’ve witnessed the market fall back slightly in the past few months as economic pressures around the world begin to bite, which I believe is a good thing. The values of some cars, particularly the air-cooled models, have gotten a bit silly in recent years, pricing a lot of people out of the market. These cars belong in the hands of enthusiasts who can appreciate them and, most importantly, drive them – exactly as they were intended. The same goes for modern GT cars too, which have also seen a slight fall-back. In times like this there are opportunities and great deals to be had, so I hope our look…

Porsche celebrates 25 years of 996 It’s the 25th anniversary of the trailblazing 996, the first water-cooled 911 and the car that helped saved the brand When Porsche revealed the 996 generation of the 911 at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 1997 it was a game changer. The car broke with convention in a number of ways, and wasn’t without controversy. Some 25 years on, Porsche has been fondly recalling that era, with insights from the major players involved in its creation. With the exception of the rear-engined, rear-wheel drive concept, pretty much everything else was novel when it came to the 996. Retaining the principles of the six-cylinder boxer engine, the new 911 broke with Porsche tradition by being cooled not by air, but water. And that wasn’t all.…

Contact Total 911 Facebook /total911magazine Email editorial@total911.com The story behind the picture Dear Sir, In issue 223 I wrote about taking my 991 Cabriolet back to the Porsche factory in Zuffenhausen for the car’s 10th birthday. The article, Going Home, included a photo of myself and my wife Iris celebrating the car’s birthday with champagne on Porsche Platz. Since the article was published a lot of people have been in touch about the picture. All was not, however, quite as it seemed. I thought I’d share the story. We had negotiated with Porsche that we could park the 991 on the forecourt of the Porsche Museum on Porsche Platz. This would allow a picture of the car with the Porsche works sign and the Inspiration 911 sculpture in the background.…

Dear Sir, I have a 1988 Carrera 3.2 Coupe that I’ve owned for a number of years and love every mile, but I think my alternator may be on the way out as my battery light is coming on intermittently. I’ve seen some 911s with a colour-coded fan that I would like. Are these simply painted or are they powder-coated, and I guess it all has to come apart for the alternator repair? Thomas Wadsworth Firstly, regarding the alternator, you have a few options such as replace the complete unit with a genuine Porsche unit or aftermarket equivalent. There are a few manufacturers for these nowadays (with prices varying), or you can have your original one rebuilt and refurbished by an alternator/starter motor specialist. This is what I tend to…

A combination of factors has dictated our browsing this month for interesting Porsche. Last month’s RSR recreation by Josh Sadler inevitably sent us looking at racers, as has our recent experience of the new 992 GT3 RS. Every time a new RS lands we find ourselves not just being blown away by it, but also asking why wouldn’t you buy a dedicated race/track car instead? After all, if you’re that invested in track driving then the GT3 RS, however incredible it is, won’t deliver the same experience as a proper racer. We know this after having experienced and, if we’re being honest, frightened ourselves in a 991 GT3 Cup car. Frightening can be both fun and challenging, particularly in relation to a GT3 Cup car. This is a racer that’s…

This time last year when discussing the 911 marketplace we stated “the only thing that is certain is uncertainty.” Now, though, there’s a feeling that – the odd hiccup aside – that’s changed. Our collective expert insight from Paragon Porsche, Cridfords, Hexagon Classics, Jonathan Franklin Cars and RPM Technik describe 2022 as a year that became a bit more predictable post-Covid but, like everyday life, retains a few hangovers from that disruptive period of time. Supply of new cars has been picking up – in some areas too much – with all our commentators noting that some models have reached the point of market saturation, with plenty of availability of models like the 992 Turbo S seeing that car, which was once commanding significant premiums over list, now settling back.…