First a little background. As the Martini car project was coming to an end and the decision was made to let it go to a new home, I began to look
around for it's replacement. Ideally I wanted another 911 but I have to say my taste is quite specific. In the first instance it had to be around the
72/73 age as that's when I learnt to drive and formed my love of sports cars, but of course as I started looking it was obvious that the market
had gone crazy and prices were stupidly high. Anyone with a old 911 though he was sitting on a goldmine, and as I was after something a little
more sport orientated than a 'T' or an 'E' I began to realise I might have to broaden my search and perhaps consider later cars as well.
I didn't want to do another rep and my budget meant that an 'S' was out of reach, although I have to say the 'S' while undoubtedly a great drivers
car, has never really cranked my tractor. I find early 911's a little slab sided design wise in the door area without the Carrera decal and rarity is
one of the things I like most in a car, and at 5000 odd made it's not exactly scarce.
A car I did try for at the time was Tim Clifford's ST rep with an idea of making a real top end hot rod out of it, it was the right year and had a great
shape with Steve Monk rear arches so was a good basis for a new project. Sadly at the time Tim was trying to put together a deal to sell it with an
engine that he was trying to get hold of, so as I just wanted it without as I had the perfect engine lined up the deal couldn't be done.
It sold without an engine in the end, but I was pleased for Tim.
So I started looking at the later Impact bumper 2.7 Carrera, a fantastic car with that wonderful 911/83 engine, I would push the budget but again
even the most expensive restored ones had 'stories' attached to them, and as for the basket cases people where living in cloud cuckoo land with
their expectations of what they were worth. I did spend a while negotiating for this one, but we were always 10K apart.
My final foray into a potential Porsche replacement was really off the wall, as I mentioned, rarity and low volume models really do get me going so
after briefly flirting with the idea of a early 930 I latched onto the Flatnose the 930SE, and started a hunt for one of those. I've never known a car
divide opinions so much, Neil Bainbridge said he'd refuse to have it in his workshop, and I have to say the owners are an odd bunch on the whole,
with the exception of you Vic of course!
I do love the shape, to me it's not all that symbolises the evil yuppy culture of the 80's but it's a tribute to one of the finest Porsche racing cars
ever the 935, well that's the way I looked at it anyway......and only 75 rhd made. They do tend to come in weird colour combinations, lobster red
interiors aren't every one's cup of tea and as most aren't used very much they have low miles and suffer broken head studs because of it.
I contacted the Porsche Club Register Secretary for help in finding one and to cut a long story short, he's been replaced now and I went right
off them! This was one I saw and passed on.
So I started to think I may have to look at other marque's, and I have to admit my first love was always Ferrari. As a young man as soon as I
started earning decent money I bought a 246GT and had many years of fun with it. After getting married and starting a family I needed extra
seats for the kids, and that's how I fell into Porsche ownership. Not for me the aircooled route up through the VW ranks I'm afraid, in my case
just those two little folding seats in the back started the 20 year affair with Porsche's.
