Why I’m Not Buying The Hype Around The New Porsche 935

You might not agree with the title I’ve chosen for this story, but let me just say that the new 935 is also why I love Porsche. Maybe. Allow me to explain…

Firstly, the concept itself is really awesome. The classic Moby Dick 935 is the stuff of motorsport legend, so why not celebrate 70 years of Porsche with a factory remake? The end aesthetic is quite nice, and the project came together with exactly the poise and polish you’d expect from Porsche.

Revealed at the sixth Rennsport Reunion, this time held at Laguna Seca, Porsche Vice President of Motorsport and GT Cars Dr. Frank-Steffen Walliser has described the “spectacular car [as] a birthday from Porsche Motorsport to fans all over the world.” In fairness, with only 77 units being produced — all of which were spoken for before the world knew the thing even existed — it seems more like a birthday present from Porsche to Porsche. This isn’t an automaker that needs to swing their stuff around, but here we are anyway.

Dr. Walliser went on to explain that since the 2019 935 isn’t homologated (or street legal even), Porsche’s engineers and designers had “freedom in the development.” I’m not sure if the word ‘freedom’ means something a bit different in Germany, but here in America where the car was revealed it means you get to go berserk and do awesome things that don’t make sense. Instead, the end of the 935 result seems to be little more than a carbon-reinforced plastic bodykit for the 911 GT2 RS.

The 935 even makes the same claimed horsepower as the car which it’s based upon. Even worse, despite being unable to drive the car on the road, Porsche has only found 90kg they could throw out with this “new” car weighing in at 1,380kg. It’s not crazy enough, not by a long shot.

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But Porsche knows exactly what they’re doing here; everyone’s been talking about the 935 (myself included) and, of course, everyone seems to love the thing. Just look at it. But as wicked as it is, this car is the epitome of why Porsche simultaneously excites and disappoints me.

What has the potential to excite is that Porsche is clearly pointing to their past here, back to a time when people buying their cars actually wanted to race them. This was the ethos behind the original 935 and the point of special editions like the RSR. Lap times were what mattered – nothing else.

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So, is this that car? Is this a blistering, insane, race-bred creation from Porsche that genuine racers will buy and race? Of course not. Not even a little bit. But, again, it sure is nice to look at, isn’t it?

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That’s just as well too, because 99% of anyone’s time spent with this car will likely just be looking at it. Back in the ’70s and ’80s no one cared if they binned their 935 at the track because there were plenty to go around and they were easy to repair, compared to today at least. With this thing it’s the exact opposite.

It’s just another pointless special edition Porsche; a ‘future classic’ that will cause the world to go bonkers when one goes up for sale in a year for $2,000,000 or some similarly outrageous sum.

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On that note, it (sort of) makes sense that the car is based off of the GT2 RS, as this base 911 is another waste of an amazing car by Porsche. It was for the first time this weekend that I actually saw one, or actually four, on track. This isn’t to say it doesn’t ever happen, but let’s be realistic. Anyway, were they racing? Of course not, these were parade laps.

We’ll be lucky to see the new 935 being used even for that, as I can only assume the vast, vast majority will be delivered with options which cost more than entire cars, only to be locked away in climate-controlled collections curated by rich old men.

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I suspect this encounter at Rennsport Reunion will be the only time I see this new 935 for a few years. The next time it’ll likely be similarly cordoned off, with everyone drooling around it from a couple meters back.

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Even here, my visit with the car at the end of the day (basically the only time it wasn’t surrounded by said droolers) was short-lived; the thing was soon covered up, never to be seen again. I think the only way I can really forgive Porsche for what they’ve done here is if they invite me for a drive in it around the track. Wink, wink. Yeah, right.

Honestly, if they positioned the car such that anyone could hammer it around a circuit and go racing with the thing I’d be happy. Porsche isn’t stupid, though, so it’ll never happen. Instead we’ll get awesome special edition cars which turn out to be boring and, thus, purchased exclusively by boring people.

As much as I might ordinarily love Porsche for doing this sort of thing – since no other automaker really does – I just can’t quite say that this time around. I want to, but all they’ve really done here is create another collector car that won’t be used as it could and should.

But it sure looks cool, doesn’t it?

Trevor Yale Ryan
Instagram: tyrphoto
TYRphoto.com

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1

Best pictures, better words! Now somebody needs to build a conversion kit to transform a 991.2 Turbo S to this 935 at a reasonable sum of money. Sharkwerks, you better be reading this!!

2

Thanks Michael!

3

I couldn't agree more. I would rather see a bastardized abomination than some shiny kit that collects dust. It might as well be at SEMA with a Bluetooth driveshaft.

4

I totally agree with you. This reminds me of Aston Martin's news of a continuation DB5 adorned with all of the lovely gadgets found throughout it's life as James Bond's go-to set of wheels. They are selling them for millions of dollars...and they ARE NOT road legal. Clearly the missiles don't fire and so on and so forth but what is the point of getting excited about a car that you aren't "allowed" to drive?

The whole purpose of a car is to move. If I'm going to spend that money, I want to be able to drive it. Yes the 935 is gorgeous, but it's just a pretty garage piece. If you want to look at a company going crazy on a car that's not street legal, look at Aston Martin's Vulcan. That's what going crazy looks like. But I guess to the Porsche demographic (old, rich, white men) this would be crazy.

5

Implying that AM customers aren't also primarily old, rich, white men? The same people buy their cars, Porsche has simply grown fat and happy with the status quo and is too comfortable to take proper risks.

6

I absolutely agree with everything you wrote... Except the fact that you don't see the new GT2 RS "racing" i live about 40 Minutes away from the Nürburgring and of course it's a hot spot for cars like this but to quote a phrase i heard very often "the gt2 rs has become the new golf at the ring" and it's true! Every single Weekend you see at least 3 to 4 or even more gt2 rs at the ring bashing at an incredible speed around the nordschleife! I get your point that Porsche now days creates more like high society collector items instead of racing machines but don't worry there are still many people who drive these cars like they should be driven!

7

That's awesome, I'm sure there are some out here being used as such but I personally havent so much as seen a photo of one at a local track on Facebook. Makes me sad.

8

I thought I read somewhere that it was homologated for racing, but I don’t remember what series/class. Not true?
I’d love to see teams campaigning this car in WEC.

9

No it isn't, so it basically can't be used for racing -_-

10

agreed. when the first pics showed up i was really excited. it certainly has some beautiful historical design cues. but as soon as i read about it, i realized it wasn't a race car (and few will probably see any track time at all) but just a marketing exercise.

ultimately i guess they are company that has every right to capitalize on it's sporting history and make easy money. somewhere in there you maybe lose a few 'real' car people who appreciate a car's engineering being experienced and tested i.e. racing, track days. but there is probably much more to gain financially from those who appreciate the brand as a status symbol.

11

Is this amateur hour? I mean come on: Zip-ties to secure the turbo fan onto a forged centre lock rim????

12

Nah, those aren't zipties, they couldn't get Nakai-San over in time to work on this car.

14

Lol, you knuckle heads. It's a display car. Even if it wasn't can you guys explain why that's bad or how another engineering solution would be more cost effective?

It's a car on display and Porsche has been winning le mans since you were learning how to masturbate.

Please elaborate in detail what the problem is...I'm all ears

15

@ Vick: Your point being? It's not a display car like a SEMA builder, as thats a whole different ballgame alltogether. This is a car manufacturer. Name one other Porsche thats been produced by Porsche with this type of fabrication? Even as a pre production/concept car? As far as I know there isn't one. So prove me wrong????

As for the masturbation sentence: You are right: First Porsche win is 1970 as an overal winner and in 1951 as a class winner. I'm involved in Motorsport since the 80's.

It isn't cost effective one way or the other. (although that isn't a point I brought up in my comment, so I'm wondering why you brought it up?) But it's all about selling 77 of them. Might as well make a decent one don't you think? If the Ring Brothers can do it, why cant a manufacturer do it. This just looks like a rush job. And if this is production ready this would cause unbalance the size of an earthquake.

So, I'm all ears as well, fanboy....

16

You give an aspirin a headache Kevski

17

@ Tylrnol:

Great answer! Mature! You should probably go back to school....

18

They made a car...that looks like a race car...that's not allowed to be a race car...or road legal. It's like a shoe you're not allowed to wear. It's pretty and it's stupid.

19

Not the biggest fan of Porsches, but it sorta looks like the older flatnose 911 which is the only porsche i like

20

I feel the same way as Austin and agree with the article. It seems as though Porsche is nothing more than a show car piece and status symbol for most, especially here in the US. I prefer the smooth lines like of a slant-nose 930/935 as well.

21

There are straight up thousands of Porsches from 964 to 991 GT3 RS being raced (or at least driven at HPDEs) every single weekend, all over the world. Complaining about Porsches not being raced is like complaining about water not being wet.

22

I mean of all Porsches, this is one that definitely should be used for racing - given the lineage. It's a pretty valid complaint.

23

Yeah. But I didn't complain about all Porsches not being raced, just two.

24

Wow, couldn't have read my own thoughts written more perfectly than Trever has. Porsche ALWAYS has been a half-love/half-hate scenario for me, and for all the reasons given.
This car looks OK-ish to me (possibly in the minority here...that bizarre rear treatment just irks me badly), but combined with the fact it isn't even a really good racing car even IF some rich old Moneybag decided to do so it does bring about a definite "WTF" thought process...until you settle on simple greed and Easy Money as motivation and then I guess it makes sense.
Hope the Richie Riches like their new toy.

25

exactly. and Ilia's comment above yours is why, like you, i have a love/hate view of the brand.

26

I totally agree, it's basically just a waste of resources and engineering capability, if they even limit the car, they could have at least gone a bit crazier on the exterior. Personally I like the approach of Kremer Racing (yes the real Porsche Kremer), they took a 911 Gt3 cup car and built a bodykit for it, which really looks like the old 935 K3 they raced back in the day. They also use this car in the VLN endurance championship on the Nürburgring.

27

as far as I know they ´ve a second (road-legal) one based on a 997 Turbo and will be happy to build some more

28
Brennan McKissick

Not gonna debate the fact that this particular car is kinda dumb because it's not road legal and *probably* will never see the track. What I will debate is that while yes, some owners of GT3/2s will never track their cars I don't think that's a fair assessment of the entire ownership base. The fact you don't see many GT2s on track here in the US is because there's not a ton of them to begin with and the owners may or may not own other vehicles they actually take to the track. Example, there's a guy here in Nashville where I live (@mazer327 on Instagram) who's got quite the collection (458 Italia, GT3RS, GT2RS, 911R, had a 918 but sold it for a CGT) and he drives all of them on a weekly basis. Rain or shine and in the snow. He's also got a Cup Car that he tracks fairly often and his logic which I agree with is that why should he risk his GT3RS or GT2RS on the track when he has a perfectly capable Cup Car that will cost significantly less to repair if he goes off or if something breaks? Don't get me wrong, I'm sure there's a lot of owners who daily something generic and their GT3/2 sits in their garage unused but I'm sure there's just as many people out there with the means to own these cars who can afford to really abuse them on the track.

29

I agree with every word on your comment

30

Yeah, i bet a small number of the buyers will even drive them. Kinda dumb when you think about it the way you explained. BUT it looks really really cool.

31
Gwynn Ballantyne

Agree with the words. I think Porsche has really lost their way and let their marketing team lead the company. Not that their products are bad, but what's the point. Even the base GT3s are hard to buy in the first place unless you have lengthy history with the brand, and then you can't use them because you'll take a severe hit on depreciation since the market is always flooded with unused cars lucky buyers are looking to make a substantial profit from. Used P-cars of any era are way, way too much money for what they are performance-wise and rarity-wise.

32

I have to agree with you on this. If we're honest, the "I'm rich, I collect cars and lock them" has always existed, but somehow I don't see it as being as drastic as it is now. I blame the whole EV/hybrid/green car thing going on, where we as car enthusiasts are a minority and the "eco" people are controlling manufacturers. This whole limited run, not street legal, not race legal thing comes like a last hurray(in a wrong way) before the internal combustion engine goes extinct.

Some 20 odd years ago people wanted to go fast, wanted to modify cars and work on them. There wasn't as much "rich" people that wanted super cars/special double digit editions, so manufacturers didn't really care as much about them as they do now. It's sad that the automotive industry became what it is. It was always about money, but manufacturers cared about personality, individuality and the drivers.

33

Well, I guess we all now know why Porsche doesn’t radically alter the 911. Their designers are LOUSY!!!
This car is hideous and amateurish...”aero” be damned!!!

Every time they deviate from the standard 911 aesthetic, it’s a mess. The 918 is an eyesore, the Panamera is the Hunchback of Norte Dame on wheels and they’ve even bungled the (now overly-chunky) Boxster/Cayman.

Makes you wish for the egg-light era cars.

They’d be better off poaching design “talent” from backyards.

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34
Jay Soh Tsu Chung

918 is an eyesore? I beg to differ.

35

Should just have been a "special performance pack" for the gt2, then it would have been fantastic, but it wasnt. It was just a historic throwback that'll probably only be seen in concours events.

36

Someone could literally say exactly this and be crucified in the comment section. A writer writes it and all the pole greasers come out to say how much they agree. Lol.

People complaining about it being a show car is laughable. Wtf do you donuts think stance and bags are hahaha

37

Yeah, but no one stancing their car is suggesting it be raced, or saying it's a tribute to a race car...

38

Donuts, LOL.

39

Entertaining article and sadly so very true. Appreciate the nostalgia of the build, but Porsche steeping into RWB territory here. Also Since the values of Porsche’s have risen, so many of them sit no longer driven - to risk damage to an appreciating asset sort of goes against the theory. Sadly most were bought pre the boom for the exact reason of being driven. How things change...

40

Make a limited edition super expensive run and use cable ties to hold on the turbo fans..... Hmmmmm

41

I agree with this and i don't. I like anyone that visits this page would love some crazy radical 935 to absolutely send around a track, but at the same time that era has come and gone. We all know were in a time that inst exactly great for performance cars. Yes a crazy carbon wide body 935 would be great, sadly Porsche wont put in the resources to do so. Its all about refined and sleek cars that can make some quick money based on an old legend.

42

in my opinion, if a supercar company is allowed to only sell to selected customers and refuse service to someone like the kick-ass mofo that did donuts in a chiron, then they should be able to only sell limited-run cars to people that will actually drive them, not collectors/flippers.

43

Love the salt you're throwing out. Couldn't agree more with your take.

44

Yup, I HATE cars built to racing specs that sit in a garage. Love grassroots, time attack, and other forms of racing where people show up to thrash their creations. I'm pretty sure more grassroots racers at those 24 Hours of LEMONS races have more fun then most of these guys with these SPECIAL EDITION COLLECTOR rides.

45
Jay Soh Tsu Chung

I'm pretty damn sure even the Aston Martin Vulcan will barely be driven in anger on tracks. Even Pagani's Zonda R are barely taken to tracks.

46

Fair enough, but they aren't naming/branding these cars after actual race cars either.

47

Agree 100 percent. They at least could have given it 3 pedals.

48

Wooden shift knob wasn't enough? Can't say I blame you, a proper manual would surely up the GT2 RS drivetrain.

49

New porsche 911 GT3-R, built by porsche for racers. Pure track performance. Redundant article.

50

Trevor, I completely agree with the sentiments here. You should check out @tartan_outlaw on Instagram. I think it'll bring a smile to your face. You'll see a GT2-RS that is driven hard on the road and the track, something that will never happen with this 935 unfortunately.

51

Awesome! I know a number of the GT2 RS are tracked, but the majority are collector items :(

52

I disagree with many of the comments. I think Porsche desrves credit for doing these commemorative editions. For those who complain about not racing these expensive cars, well because they are expensive, there are a lot cheaper ways to go around the Nordschlife

53

nice photos but what aload of bollox , dont hate , stop complaining and work harder , earn more money and maybe oneday you will be able to afford one and do what ever you like with your porsche

54

Fair enough, but I would never in a million years buy this thing. Give me an actual 935 or slant nose conversion before this.

55

Right on. Hating on someone because they have money is childish. Grow up, do something to earn money, and buy what you want.

56

i prefer oldnew kits over this

57
Daniel P Huneault

YA BUT BUT just look at that ass!!!

58

Welcome to the car hobby as an investment/money-laundering opportunity for rich boomers.

59

Aha, you have no idea how true that is in the private sector...specifically the collector world. Insider trading and shoe boxed with cash are just the beginning...

60

Well, it's official: this site is run by millennials with no racing experience...

61

Absolutely share your thoughts Trev. I got excited with the teaser photos, the livery, the shape reminiscent of my favorite 935-78 Porsche, just to discover only 77 will be hidden away and collected like fine wine, will never turn a wheel in anger (on the world stage, not amateur track days and marque meets) and put Porsche at the top like they did decades ago. It was too good to be true. Now we need Lancia to follow with a new 037, Audi with a new Quattro S1...

63
Chris Colouryum

Great article.

The fact it's not homologated means some tracks won't even allow it run on them. Sad. However. Following on from the old new slant nose and now this - I don't think it's going to take long for a few more slantnose and whale tale conversions to be coming out of their shell on newer Porsche platforms.

The lust is there! If only I had the money...

64

There's literally a video of the car racing on a track.

65

I've seen it, it is awesome. But I'll be here waiting for videos of customer cars doing the same...

66

Porsche brought back the slant nose. Even if they built 5000 of them none of you could afford it. Just be happy it exists beyond a simple rendering

67

you're about right there. But the worst thing in my eyes are these "retro" things. The exhaust tips who weren't even period on the 935, the brake cooling wheel covers who are to be retro instead of really needed and such things.
It's not very "Porsche" to add things that aren't really needed.

68

it's an aston martin way, selling the look

69
Georg Grünewald

Brilliant article! But I gotta say that many GT2RS actually make a regular appearance on race tracks. I have the luck to live in Leipzig, Germany where Porsche's second factory and their big test track are located. They often have track days here and tons of GT3s and GT3RSs attend and even a good amount of GT2RS often attend from everywhere (we only have one directly in Leipzig :( ). Also many US customers who choose the European delivery race here. I hope I'll see some 935s when they get delivered although I gotta agree with you on that point, it probably won't happen :/

70

Thanks! Yeah, it just doesn't seem to happen as much in the US. There are plenty of guys who drive the piss out of GT3s and GT4s, just haven't seen a GT2 really getting beat on here. I'm sure it happens though, and likewise hope you run into this "935" out there ;)

72

It doesn't look as good as I thought it would. Don't like the look of it much TBH... too rounded, not 'wide' enough (I guess it's plenty wide but the base car is already wide so the effect isn't much)

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