Porsche 911: Perfection by DesignFor over 40 years, Porsche’s legendary 911 has ruled the realm of sports cars. The Porsche 911 is the benchmark. The 911 recently celebrated its 40th anniversary, making it one of the longest-running models currently in production from any manufacturer. A leader on the race track as well as the street, it posted an outright, overall victory at the 24 Hours of Daytona in 2003, beating Corvettes, Ferraris, and even purpose-built Daytona Prototype race cars. This, despite the fact the 911’s rear-engine configuration was long ago rejected by rivals. Why does it hold such a coveted spot at the pinnacle of the sports car world? In Porsche 911: Perfection by Design, best-selling author/photographer and noted Porsche historian Randy Leffingwell adeptly answers this question, tracing the amazing story of its development and rise to international success, from the 1963 Type 901 through 2005 models. In tandem, he weaves the racing 911’s rich history, where it reigned victorious at Le Mans, Daytona and many more of the world’s most prestigious races. With more than 350 pages and 300 vivid color and black and white photographs, this amazing hard-cover book showcases why the 911 continues to impress enthusiasts and engineers alike. Leffingwell interviewed dozens of former and current Porsche engineers, designers and executives – including Ferdinand “Butzi” Porsche, the father of the 911 – as well as Porsche competitors (who used the 911 as a benchmark for their own designs) to create a true, hands-on anecdotal history of the 911. Straight from the key players and decision-makers, he explains: “This book is an inside story of how the 911 came to be what it was, what it is now and how it moved through 40-plus years of evolution, growth and improvement.” A jaw-dropping and unprecedented collection of 911s between two covers (Leffingwell and David Newhardt’s stunning, full-page, color photography features more than 80 Porsche 911s) complements the text, enticing readers to an up-close-and-personal view of these exotic, wish-list cars. |
Contents
911 | 18 |
CHAPTER ONE 6 | 28 |
CHAPTER THREE | 75 |
CHAPTER FOUR | 109 |
CHAPTER FIVE | 163 |
CHAPTER SIX | 209 |
CHAPTER SEVEN | 249 |
CHAPTER EIGHT | 285 |
CHAPTER NINE | 325 |
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS | 348 |
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aerodynamic all-wheel-drive automobile BILSTEIN BOSCH Bott's Boxster brake horsepower Brodbeck Butzi Porsche buyers cabrio cabriolet Car and Driver car body car's Carrera chassis competition concept coupe created cylinder deutsche marks emissions engine developed Ernst Fuhrmann fenders Ferdinand Piëch Ferry Porsche fiberglass five-speed flat-six ft-lb of torque fuel gear Harm Lagaay headlights Helmuth Bott Huschke von Hanstein inches interior Jürgen Barth kilograms kilometers per hour Komenda Lapine's manufactured Mercedes-Benz mid-engine miles per hour models Norbert Singer option owners percent Peter Schutz Pinky Porsche Archives Porsche introduced Porsche offered Porsche's pounds production car prototype race car racers racing engine rear window rear wing roof series production Speedster spoiler sports car styling stylists Targa target Tiptronic tires Tony Hatter Tony Lapine top speed transmission Turbo Turbo-Look turbocharged United water-cooled Weissach wheels Wiedeking wind tunnel Wolfgang Zuffenhausen