Lee Sibley
Poole, UK
@lee_sibs
That Nine Eleven Guy Road to Redline
Model 996.1 CARRERA
Year 1998
Acquired JAN 2019
The downtime from driving has afforded me an opportunity to mull over my 996 project in greater detail: what needs doing, and in which direction I’d like to take the car. I’m obviously still very much besotted with the 996’s Irish green paintwork with its glorious silhouette punctuated by that carbon-fibre ducktail. Its ride height though has bothered me for some time, which of course will be addressed in the coming weeks when I can eventually get those KW coilovers on. This will suitably transform the ride too in its responsiveness to the road.
The next planned improvement after that will be wheels, and it’s something I’ve struggled to find a solution to since the car was adorned with its new paint last August. The factory-optioned GT3 wheels currently on my 996 (made by BBS) are in very poor condition – they’re crying out for a refurb – but I’ve long been keen to just swap them out for something new altogether. I don’t mind the design per se (the GT3 wheels are one of the nicer 996.1 designs in my opinion) but I just don’t think they go with my paint and amber lenses. It needs something retro, I feel.
I don’t know why, but I’ve never liked aftermarket wheels on a Porsche. It just feels wrong: very often the strongest and lightest wheels available to your 911 sports car are already on it, from factory, but I do understand variety is good and there are plenty of people wanting to change things around for the sake of being different. That’s great, and applauded, but it’s just not me.
My stance obviously limits my options somewhat, so I’ve looked at three options: getting the centre of my GT3 wheels coloured as part of a refurb (which really was dismissed as quickly as the idea was mooted), or look at variations of the Fuchs wheel. I did have a look at some aftermarket companies whose designs followed the Fuchs style closely, but after some pretty in-depth studying (a lockdown will do that to you!) I’ve decided the only alloy wheels to go for are genuine Fuchs. I know what you’re thinking: ‘man does extensive research only to find the most suitable wheel for his 911 is indeed a set of Fuchs’, and you might have a point, but while Otto Fuchs’ iconic ‘five-leaf’ design is undoubtedly the go-to option among classics, for water-cooled cars it’s a little more complicated than that.
Anyway, my decision has been made: it’s Fuchs for the 996, and the wheels have been ordered… and are on the car! I’ll reveal more for you next month and bring pictures of how they look on ‘Little Irish’ but I’ve already decided they need further customisation – watch this space!
San Diego, USA @tonymcguinessgt3rs
Model 997.2 GT3 RS
Year 2011
Acquired FEB 2011
Model 991.1 GT3
Year 2015
Acquired DEC 2014
One of the reasons I enjoy Rancho
Santa Fe Cars and Coffee is the weekly gathering has led to developing some close friendships with other Porsche 911 owners. One gentleman I have become particularly close with is a Neunelfer enthusiast named Vic Murray.
Vic, who moved from New York to San Diego, has long been a Porsche enthusiast. However, that wasn’t always the case. Many years ago, Vic owned a powerful Corvette and couldn’t see why anyone would want a Porsche 911 with a small engine in the back.
His view changed drastically when he raced against two of his friends’ 911s through some curvy New York backroads. Vic’s Corvette did well on the straights but as soon as the roads became twisty, the Porsches left his Corvette in the dust.
From that day on, Vic was determined to have a 911. In 1987 Vic had enough money to buy his very first one. His first entrance into Porsche ownership was a brand-new, black 930 Turbo which he purchased from a long-gone Porsche-audi dealer on Long Island.
Like many of us, Vic’s love affair with Porsche is about the heritage, looks and the engineering of the remarkable 911. He stresses even in the early days of the 911, Porsches were much better made compared to the Corvettes he owned. After ten years of ownership and only 15,000 miles, he sold the 930 Turbo.
In 2006, Vic bought a new C4S which he also kept for ten years. He then sold it with 10,000 miles on the odometer. Because Vic worked so much, he didn’t drive his two first 911s often. However, that all changed in 2017 when he walked into a Porsche dealer to configure and order a heavily optioned 2018 GT Silver Turbo S and moved to California.
In just two years he has put 12,000 miles on the Turbo S. While he loves the Turbo S and considers it perfection, and has been enjoying the variety of enjoyable roads in Southern California, he still longed for another special 911.
Many years back, Vic had been involved in racing. He always loved Porsche race cars. And because he wanted the best car Porsche made, he decided he had to have a Rennsport. Earlier in 2018/19, he had driven a 991.1 and 991.2 GT3 but he was determined he wanted something even more special… Not that the GT3 RS is any slouch of course, but the GT2 RS is the top of the Rennsports and more limited in production compared to the 991.1 and 991.2 GT3 RS models.
As a Porsche enthusiast and avid Total 911 reader, Vic has watched the video of the GT2 RS smashing the world record at the Nürburgring countless times. Seeing the Neunelfer perform in such a staggering manner left no doubt in his mind, it was the 911 for him.
After watching the GT2 RS become “King of the ‘Ring”, Vic Murray was unrelentless in his pursuit of a GT2 RS. After months of searching for his perfect 911, this past February, he secured a 2019 GT2 RS in GT Silver complete with the Weissach Package.
This special Rennsport is frightfully fast, and it ticks all the boxes for what Vic wanted in a race car. He can’t get enough of this stunning 911. The car originally came with black wheels, but he had them re-painted to white gold metallic, which matches the white gold stitching in the interior and even matches the colour of the logo on the headrests. In fact, the white gold metallic wheels are the same colour as my GT3 RS wheels.
Vic has obtained his lifelong dream by acquiring one of the finest road-legal cars Porsche has ever manufactured. Next month, I will share what it was like for me to drive the fastest and most powerful road-legal Rennsport made. Stay tuned as I live the legend in Vic’s new Porsche 911 GT2 RS.