As background I've recently sold my absolutely original, very lovely 2.2E....In short as the value/rarity played with my mind, I felt more a museum manager than an enthusiast - I guess I had an epiphany and the line between pure collector and enthusiast became clearer to me
. What I really wanted was a fast road car (with more grunt) that specifically wasn't original, but which looked very neat and which I could personalize without feeling guilty or indeed destroying inherent value (monetary, historical and/or other). This was the theory but couldn't be tested irrefutably without actually taking the step of selling the E and stepping into the "void". Needless to say there was much thought and finally, after one aborted sale (unexpected family/kids sentimental reasons, to my surprise) I rationalized everything and made the plunge when I found what I thought was an appropriate replacement.....
After a long negotiation I bought a well sorted 1972 911T which had been completely rebuilt and turned into an RS lightweight by John Abbot (SA Porsche specialist) about 17 years ago, and then later had a very low mileage 3.2 motor (from crashed car) swapped in by John's son Tim. The motor is on Motronic but has been "hotted' up with lightweight flywheel, chip etc and so, despite my initial concerns about a 3.2, it spins up and down with alacrity whilst offering reliability and loads of torque!
So mechanically this car had just about the perfect specification I was looking for - additional power wasn't actually necessary as I'm conscious of exceeding my skill level and with about 250bhp is definitely fast enough! To boot, other nice features the car included all steel panels, strut brace, Bilsteins all round, turbo front struts, factory short shift kit, SC brake calipers, 7 & 8" fuchs, RS door cards, racing headers & exhaust, RS carpet set.
The only areas left for consideration were interior and bodywork. Bodywork was easy - the car is in great condition, the colour wasn't my first choice but was growing on me. Frankly I didn't have the stomach to change the colour or embark on major changes to arches(although I love the ST look, however I suspect there is a fashion/fad element to this and how could you go wrong with a lightweight RS.....) etc. or indeed lose months of use. That's aside from not wanting to commit the funds to an area that didn't enhance the user experience, and which could be tackled long term in any event....
As far as interior goes, this is a vital area for me - I consider this the enjoyment area, and where the connection is made. The existing interior was functional but not to my taste, and further I wanted to personalize in the style of period "Sports Purpose" car, although of course some liberties taken - I've basically "magpied" from various sources and created this!
It's been a fun journey and I've leant something about myself personally - the "museum manager" analogy that I used to justify (the selling of the E) to myself, family and friends has proven true and I've resolved that I'm more an enthusiast than a collector. Therefore a large part of my return is calibrated in enjoyment/use of the car and I need to be aware of that in future.
In fact I think this takes self inflicted pressure off to have an absolutely original car with attendant higher purchase cost, however flip side is possibly lower capital appreciation, however, refer to "return" comment above
Hope you enjoy the pictures and let me have feedback and/or ideas!
Cheers
