911s were never designed to be capable machines off the beaten path, but Porsche did try to make the Neunelfer an off-road warrior on multiple occasions. The 3.0-liter Carrera that won the 1968 Monte Carlo Rally comes to mind, along with the 953 and 959 at the Paris-Dakar Rally.
The Porsche we’ll talk about today isn’t a factory-backed build or a racing car for that matter, but it definitely captures the motorsport legacy of its predecessors. The safari-style build listed on Bring a Trailer started out as a 1985 model with no such thing as a dune-bashing mod, but it currently boasts 16-inch wheels from Braid, 215/65 BFGoodrich All-Terrain T/A KO2 rubber shoes, as well as a custom carrier with a matching spare tire.
Currently sitting at $61,000 with seven days of bidding left, chassis number WP0AB0910FS120615 was modified to this specification by a Californian shop called Vali Motorsports of Corona. Re-painted red under previous ownership, the Neunelfer is kitted with a hood-mounted light pod, front and rear skid plates, off-road bumpers, mud flaps, and LED plus HID lights.
The mods aren’t only skin deep, though, because the lifted suspension includes MCS dampers, replacement torsion bars, new bushings, wheel bearings, axles, and front camber plates. A hydraulic handbrake complements the refurbished brake calipers mounted over all-new rotors.
Open the driver’s door, and the first thing of note is the black Alcantara with red stitching on the carbon-fiber seats. Powder-coated panels, a four-point roll cage, six-point harnesses from Sabelt, a red-faced tachometer, air conditioning, Bluetooth connectivity, and power windows are worthy of your attention, along with the rear-seat delete and MOMO steering wheel.
Currently showing 127,000 miles (204,387 kilometers), of which 1,000 were added during current ownership, the car hides a 3.2-liter boxer under the hood. The engine puts the power down to the rear wheels with the help of a five-speed transaxle and a limited-slip differential. In addition to the vehicle, the sale includes a clean Carfax report and a clean Tennessee title.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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