Porsche 911 SWB Coupe Race Car Raced by Walter Röhrl Heads to Porsche-Only Sale
Images thanks to Auctionata
On Saturday, December 12, Auctionata will hold their inaugural Porsche-only sale, hosted by Dr. Ulf Poschardt, and put a stunning collection of classic air-cooled 911s under the hammer.
If we had to pick one 911 to take home, it may well be this stunning 1965 Porsche 911 SWB Coupe Race Car. It’s not only gorgeous, but significant – the car is from the first year if the iconic 911’s production and has history with motorsport great Walter Röhrl.
The car is from the first production year of the 911 and was delivered new to the United States in 1965. It was a trip back home to Germany in the ’90s that saw its history get particularly interesting, however.
There, it was rebuilt and developed to obtain an FIA pass to go racing in historics. German automotive experts Bienert handled the work, with Rugen looking after the engine and Kluge the transmission, and one Walter Röhrl providing the specifications. Röhrl oversaw the conversion, taking on the role of test driver and developing the setup of the car.
Invoices and technical documentation of the process have been retained and are included in the sale of the car. They demonstrate the elaborate and extensive development of the engine, transmission and chassis to bring down weight, reinforce the chassis and give the engine plenty of pep.
Röhrl raced the car for the first time in the Bavaria Classic in 1996, and the car bears his signature thanks to his role in developing and driving it.
When the current owner purchased the car, it was converted from circuit configuration to rally configuration, with Matthias Höing and Thorsten Hanenkamp from Merzgerwerk handling the conversion. All of the parts that were changed during the process have been kept and are sold with the car.
It’s in beautiful condition and ready to rally, or race! Not just an object of great beauty, this is a motoring artifact of great significance as one of the earliest of arguably the most recognizable and enduring sportscar model in existence. Add to that Walter Röhrl’s role in its development and time racing it, a Porsche icon himself, and you have something pretty special, and utterly unique.
It’s even sold with an identical limited model of the “Bienert-Röhrl 911” to 1:40 scale, as well as vehicle documents and an official Walter Röhrl-DVD, showing Walter Röhrl driving the 911.
You’ll need to set aside upwards of €160,000.00 to secure a seat in this 911.
Auctionata’s Porsche-only sale will be livestreamed from two separate locations – the Prototyp museum in Hamburg where the cars are hosted, and the Auctionata studio in Berlin where the auction itself will be held. It’s available to bidders worldwide and can be followed live at www.auctionata.com as well as through Auctionata’s iPhone app ‘Auctionata Live’, which you can grab from the App Store here. It will be broadcast on Saturday, December 12, 2015 from 6 pm CET.
Images thanks to Auctionata
