• Year of manufacture 
    1973
  • Car type 
    Coupé
  • Chassis number 
    9113601226
  • Engine number 
    6631190
  • Drive 
    LHD
  • Condition 
    Used
  • Exterior brand colour 
    Blutorange
  • Interior colour 
    Black
  • Number of seats 
    2
  • Location
    Switzerland
  • Exterior colour 
    Orange
  • Gearbox 
    Manual
  • Drivetrain 
    2wd
  • Fuel type 
    Petrol

Description

‘The power and torque of the engine, and the wide rev-band, really do make this latest Porsche a shattering performer, without the necessity of ‘doing a Vic Elford’. If you do take your jacket off and roll your sleeves up it becomes staggering, and all the while the road-holding, steering, cornering and braking are more than able to cope with it all.’’ – Motor Sport magazine tries an early 2.7 RS Touring in February 1973

Presented in vibrant and original Blutorange (‘Tangerine’ ref 2323) with black
Optioned with rare and desirable Recaro sports seats and limited-slip differential
Left-hand drive, first delivered to Italy June 1973, matching numbers engine
Italian registered

Benefitting from a comprehensive, €127,000+ recent restoration by preeminent Italian marque specialists Autofficina ACR, delivered in a superb colour combination and fitted with its matching numbers engine and known Italian ownership from new, this ‘no stories’ car is the perfect entry to the intoxicating world of the immortal 1973 Carrera RS 2.7.

A definitive, era-defining car

The Stuttgart company’s reason for building the Carrera RS 2.7 was simple: homologation for GT racing. From initial concerns that the car wouldn’t sell (many were allocated to senior management as company cars…) demand outstripped supply to the extent that by July 1973 when production ceased a total of 1,580 had been made – far more than 500 the rules required.

The word ‘Carrera’ has a magic to it for Porsche enthusiasts. It was always the mark of a high-performance Porsche, from the exotic, four-cam production 356s, to the racing cars of the 1960s.

With its fat rear arches – to accommodate wider 7in Fuchs alloys – a wind tunnel-tested rear spoiler and bold ‘Carrera’ motif, the Carrera RS instantly stood apart from lesser species of 911. And under that famous Bürzel (‘ducktail’) sat a special 911 engine with Nikasil-lined cylinders allowing it to be bored it out 2,687cc. Coupled with Bosch mechanical fuel injection, power was a solid 210bhp and the gain in torque was such that at just 2,500rpm the 2.7 matched the old 2.4 motor’s output at 4,000rpm.

Two regular versions were offered: M471 Lightweight and M472 Touring. Whichever was ordered, its performance was electrifying: the Touring sprinted to 60mph in 6.3 seconds and would nudge 150mph flat-out. The full-on Lightweight was only fractions faster.

With the 300 SL ‘Gullwing’, E-type and R-Type Continental, the Porsche 911 Carrera RS 2.7 is a definitive, era-defining car. It is also widely considered by the world’s most experienced drivers to be one of the most exhilarating ever to drive.

This Motor Car

Porsche Carrera RS 2.7 ‘1226’ was delivered to an Italian official Porsche dealer in May 1973, then registered ‘TS 163919’ on 18 June in the name of its first owner, Trieste resident Massimo Corbella. According to the accompanying Porsche Heritage Certificate, the car was built to the following specification:

Touring package (M472)
Blutorange (‘Tangerine’ ref 2323) with black seats
Recaro sport seats left and right (409)
Limited-slip differential (224)
Referring to the records held by the Automobile Club d’Italia (ACI), the next owner was Fiorenzo Boldrin of Padua, who registered it locally ‘PD 417281’ on 22 July 1975. Speaking to the current owner, Boldrin remembers the car with fondness as it was used for family trips to the Dolomites.

Third owner Renzo Santello bought the car in October 1976, registering it ‘VE 358016’ in his home city of Venice on 2 February 1977. Santello kept the car for three years, selling it to another Padua resident, Luisa Fiorita, in whose care it bore the mark ‘PD 572090’. From Fiorita, the car’s fourth owner, ACI records show that this RS was purchased by pioneer classic car collector and racer Piero Brigato of Vicenza. At that time the car shared ownership with, among others, a Ferrari 250 GT SWB Competizione, a Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa and an Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale. In 1982 it was sold to Varese and registered ‘VA 756046’. In 1992 it moved to Milan and was acquired by Giancarlo Galtrucco, a known gentleman driver and collector, who used it for outings with the Italian Porsche club.

Our Milanese client purchased the car in June 2014 from Galtrucco, retaining its Varese number plate. He is the last of an unbroken chain of Northern Italian enthusiasts who have owned ‘1226’. Recognising the inherent quality of the car with its sought-after colour, desirable sports seats and limited-slip differential (all confirmed by the Porsche Heritage Certificate dated 21 July 2014), he instructed marque and model specialist Autofficina ACR to carry out a total restoration to as-delivered.

The Como-based craftsmen have an enviable reputation in Italian Porsche circles and went to great pains to carefully remove layers of paintwork, all the while preserving the original metal. On closer inspection, no evidence of major accident damage was found. The engine, gearbox, suspension and brakes were stripped down and rebuilt, and only when original components were felt to be beyond repair were genuine Porsche replacements ordered. The result, after some four years and €127,000+, is outstanding.

Freshly restored by the experts, delivered in a superb colour combination and with matching numbers, all-important Recaro sports seats and known ownership from new, this stunning 1973 Carrera RS 2.7 is the perfect car to beat the winter blues.

Spring and summer motoring in a dazzling example of a model that the experienced testers of Autocar summed up as “sensational, even by Porsche standards” await.