911 & Porsche World

Is it an exaggeration to say the new 718 Cayman GT4 RS is the most significant Porsche production car of recent times? I can’t remember a new Stuttgart-crested speed machine so many marque enthusiasts have been excited about. Ever since the model was announced, anticipation has been strong, with many questioning whether the GT4 RS would pose a serious threat to the 911. After all, it’s not unusual to hear enthusiasts talk about the Cayman’s mid-engined configuration delivering superior handling. Coupled with the GT4 RS’s adoption of the 992 GT3’s flat-six (albeit with a few less ponies, but still significantly more power than the 718 Cayman GT4), this is surely the biggest challenge from any Zuffenhausen product to the 911’s status as the de facto dream Porsche? And all before…

Exactly thirty-two years ago, Gemballa, the German tuning firm known for its outlandish RUF-powered Porsches, revealed its then new reimagined 911 at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), held at the Las Vegas Convention Centre in Nevada. You might think the annual Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) event held at the same venue would make more sense for the unveiling of a new sports car, but CES — a trade show presenting new-to-market technologies in the consumer electronics industry — was a good fit for Gemballa due to the company’s habit of loading its products with state-of-the-art in-car entertainment equipment and novel driver aid technologies, such as cameras in place of door mirrors and a dashboard-mounted high-resolution colour screen to display the feed. Based on a 964 Turbo and announced as successor…

GOODWOOD MEMBERS MEETING CELEBRATES FORTY YEARS OF 956 In the early 1980s, the world witnessed a revolution in sports car racing. The arrival of Group C ushered in an era where fuel efficiency was paramount and the aerodynamic advances of ground effect would revise the accepted norms of design and performance forevermore. At the vanguard of this brave new world was Porsche, which produced a world beater in the 956, the manufacturer’s first monocoque sports-prototype race car. Fast forward four decades and the legacy of Porsche’s Group C behemoth remains unrivalled. At Goodwood Motor Circuit, on the south coast of England, for the venue’s seventy-ninth Members Meeting, some twenty-one examples of the 956 and its successor, the 962, assembled, spanning a scarcely credible twelve years of international competition, underlining the scale…

DANSK 356 SPEEDSTER BUCKET SEAT The 356 Speedster is one of Porsche’s most desirable products. Among the individual components which make the model so identifiable is its seats, specifically developed to fit the Speedster chassis and taking the form of a metal bucket pressed from a single sheet to ensure lightweight construction. JP Group (the parent brand of Porsche restoration parts manufacturer, Dansk) has now re-launched the 356 Speedster seat as a family of chairs for enthusiasts to park in their dealer showrooms, garages, mancaves or other cosy environments. Bringing the exact seating position of the 356 Speedster from car to chair rack, this hand-crafted Porsche pew maintains the original bucket’s seat angle. The framework is constructed from 22mm-diameter pipe with stabilisers in 6mm steel (choose between chrome or powdercoated black…

Tim Harvey is best-known for being 1992 British Touring Car Champion and for being crowned Carrera Cup GB victor in 2008 and 2010. He’s contested the 24 Hours of Le Mans four times, competed in British GT and currently serves as a presenter for ITV4’s extensive BTCC coverage. Find him at @timbo_harvey Words I hear quite often: “you’ve still got it, mate!” They’re usually uttered after I’ve given someone a passenger lap in my 991 Gen II GT3 RS MR (as featured on the cover of March’s issue of 911 & Porsche World) on an RPM Technik track day or after one of my occasional race appearances. As flattering as it is to hear such compliments — may be older, but my ego still needs massaging — I know it not…

Anders Hildebrand is Managing Director of Anglo American Oil Company, providing fuel and oil supply, blending, testing, warehousing, delivery and pump services from its base in Dorset, southern England. You can find the company by searching Instagram for @sunoco_uk. Visit the firm’s website at aaoil.co.uk. My business, Anglo American Oil Company, was established in June 1999. Up until the summer of 2015, the firm was based out of two locations: our office, located in Dorset on the south coast of England, and our warehouse and blending plant, located in Berkshire. In June 2015, the whole operation relocated to a single purpose-built facility comprising a two-storey office block, laboratory, workshop, oil bottling department, warehouse, tank farm and fuel production area. Anglo American Oil Company represents and distributes Sunoco Race fuels on an exclusive…