A Porsche 964 for three quarters of a million that is not from Singer? Yes, there is. Because 911 Turbo with factory tuning are rare and expensive. Like this one-off in Speed Yellow.
A Porsche 911 Turbo S, which RM Sotheby's auctioned on January 26, 2023 in Phonix, Arizona, fetched the equivalent of around 763,600 euros. The speed yellow 964 is unique because of the combination of increased performance, flat front and paintwork, explains the auction house.
X85 turbo with more power and a flatter snout
One special feature is visible at first glance from the front, connoisseurs will notice the second on the flanks and at the rear: air inlets in the rear side parts and four exhaust tailpipes indicate the increase in performance. A larger turbocharger and various detailed changes such as larger injection nozzles and a modified camshaft increase the performance from the standard 360 to 381 hp. Some sources call 385 hp, which would be 390 hp. A five-speed gearbox (G50) and a 40 percent limited-slip differential transfer power to the rear wheels. The chassis of the Porsche 911 Turbo has been retuned, the body has moved a little closer to the road. Three-piece 18-inch Speedline wheels are part of the package.
However, the X85 Turbo is not conspicuous because of the speed yellow paintwork or the lowering. Instead of upright fenders, as has been standard on the 911 since 1963, this conversion by Porsche Exclusive has pop-up headlights from the 968 in the front. This handmade "Flat-Nose" was extremely expensive and rare: Porsche only built 39 examples for the American market. The price new in 1994 was $162,000. That was the equivalent of about a quarter of a million marks.
Low-rise: X83, X84, X85
For Japan, the USA and the rest of the world, Porsche built the 964 Turbo with a more powerful engine and a flat snout as a special series. The ten right-hand drive vehicles for Japan had pop-up headlights in the style of the 930 Flat Schnauzer and the abbreviation X83. Another 12 right-hand drive and 15 left-hand drive for the rest of the world have 968-style headlights and the X84 abbreviation. 39 left-hand drive vehicles with 968 headlights and the abbreviation X85 were intended for the USA. Most recently, a "Slantnose" was sold for $654,000.
Package: 17 Turbo S for the USA
In total, Porsche built between 51 and 55 Turbo S with factory performance upgrade (WLS) to 381 hp. Of these, 17 copies went to the USA, which are referred to there as "Package". They have the abbreviation X85 in the equipment list, air holes in the side panels behind the doors, 18-inch Speedline aluminum wheels like the lightweight Turbo and enlarged front and rear spoilers.
A Porsche 911 Turbo that was auctioned on the auction platform bringatrailer.com in early December 2022 cost exactly 1.265 million US dollars (1.2 million euros). According to the dealer's description, it is one of 17 Turbo S 3.6 "Package" sold to North America with some special equipment.
X88: 3.6-liter boxer with 381 hp
The 911 Turbo of the 964 series is equipped with a few abbreviations from the Exclusive department: X88 for the increase in performance, for example. Modified cylinder heads and camshafts, a larger turbocharger and several detail changes increase performance to 381 hp. Transmission and clutch are adapted to the additional power of 21 hp; a limited-slip differential helps put the power on the road. The 3.6-liter boxer engine with the abbreviation M64/50 can hardly be seen when you open the engine flap, which has a huge wing: intercooler, fan wheel and air conditioning compressor block the view of the six-cylinder. From the outside, an X88 turbo can be recognized by four tailpipes.
The "Package" turbo has side air intakes (X99) as well as front (X92) and rear spoiler (X93) from the Exclusive program. Three-piece 18-inch Speedline cup wheels complete the look. The offered 964 is painted black, has black leather seats with electric adjustment as well as sunroof and CD changer.
The car that has now been sold was offered by RM Sotheby's on October 27, 2018 at an auction in Atlanta/Georgia. The estimated price was 775,000 to 950,000 US dollars, a sale did not materialize. The car cost $126,360 new.
Lightweight construction, flat snout, package
After Porsche stopped the ambitious Projekt 965 as the 959 successor in 1988, a top model for the fresh 964 was missing. Therefore, the 3.3-liter turbo engine from the previous model initially took over this part. It was not until 1993 that a further developed version with a displacement of 3.6 liters and 360 hp followed. There were also various special series, three of which are particularly noteworthy.
911 Turbo S lightweight construction
In the 1993 model year, i.e. after the 1992 factory holidays, Porsche Exclusive built the special Turbo S lightweight construction model, which was the wildest of all 964 with an output of 381 hp and an unladen weight of 1,290 kilograms. Measures similar to those of the Carrera RS reduced the weight by 180 kilograms: air conditioning, power steering, rear seats and noise insulation were all eliminated. The windows were replaced with thinner glass, hoods and doors were made of fiberglass.
The price was 295,000 marks. That was around 90,000 marks more than was due for a 911 Turbo. There was a 911 that accelerated from zero to 100 km/h in 4.7 seconds and reached a top speed of 290 km/h. Most recently, the prices for lightweight turbos at auctions were between 1.1 and 1.3 million dollars, the equivalent of around 1.0 to 1.2 million euros.
Conclusion
A Porsche 911 Turbo S 3.6 was auctioned on bringatrailer.com, of which there were only 17 units for the USA. The small number and the low mileage of a little more than 10.000 kilometers were probably the deciding factor for the high price: the equivalent of around 1.2 million euros brought in the 381 hp rear-engine sports car. It is one of the most expensive Porsche 964s that has been auctioned publicly to date. Restomods from Singer are usually similarly more expensive.
