CHANGE THE TUNE
The past month has seen a wild number of new Porsche releases, not only from the manufacturer itself — hello to all you GT3 RS fans — but also from independent specialists looking to impress upon the world their reimagining of the Stuttgart concern’s legacy models. As demonstrated by the output of Singer Vehicle Design, personalising a classic Porsche has become big business, which is why we should expect more of the same from established restorers and boutique tuners in the coming months and on into the new year.
Demand is clearly very strong for high-quality Porsche restomods, and though the 911 is the obvious candidate for such treatment, I’ve enjoyed seeing new start-ups look beyond Zuffenhausen’s flagship when trying to make their mark on what has swiftly become a crowded marketplace. Nardone Automotive, for example, unveiled its 928 S4-based prototype grand tourer at this year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed, while new kid on the block, KAMM Manufaktur, has decided to focus its attention on the 912 for a limited run of custom specification, high-output, two-litre builds. With order books now open, assembly is expected to get underway in early 2023. I’m looking forward to getting behind the wheel of the prototype in the coming weeks.
It’s clear to see inspiration for these and similar ambitious Porsche projects has been the success of Singer and its contemporaries, such as Kalmar Automotive. A week before this issue of 911 & Porsche World went to print, I travelled to Denmark, where I was fortunate enough to be handed the keys to the 964-based Kalmar 7-97 owned by nine-time Le Mans winner, Tom Kristensen. Purists may sneer at the idea of messing with factory specification, but if it’s good enough for Tom, it’s good enough for the rest of us.