Tuesday, April 12, 2016

I think I found the right 911

A few weeks ago I asserted that I will someday own a Porsche 911 but that I wasn't sure which one. I think I found the right one.

There's a British guy named Rob Dickinson who lives in LA and owns a company called Singer Vehicle Design. I'd say that Singer modifies 911s, but that's kind of like saying Michaelangelo painted ceilings. Singer turns old 911s into rolling art. Specifically, 911s made between 1989 and 1994. These are known as 964s and they occupy a special place in Porschephiles' hearts. They have the traditional air-cooled (as opposed to the heretical water-cooled) flat six engine and rear trailing arm suspension, and they were the first 911 to feature a coil-sprung suspension and a speed-activated rear wing. The headlights and windshield are also much more upright than newer models. All this means that they are a sweet blend of classic 911 characteristics with a few modern nods.

Singer then tears them apart and replaces the body with carbon fiber pieces that evoke 911 styling cues from the late 60s and early 70s. Every detail is compulsively scrutinized and perfected. The interior is sublime. Even the oil and fuel caps are beautiful. They also put in a new engine. You have three options, all air-cooled flat sixes, making 270, 350, or 390 horsepower. Expect to spend about $390,000 for the big bronski. Not a typo.

It's probably worth it. Here's the interior of a RHD Singer sold to someone in Manchester.


That houndstooth pattern is not fabric. It's strips of woven leather. Here's a closer look.


Note that the tachometer goes up to 11 because ... Spinal Tap.

They all look perfect no matter the color. Here's one in pistachio green and it's spectacular.



That said, if you're going to get one of these you really need to get some funky 70s color. Black or silver or white are colors for a Honda Odyssey, and these Singers deserve better. The Manchester car's interior is the best in their online gallery and the exterior color is beyond reproach. I'm not even sure if it's yellow or green or some other previously unseen hue. I want it in my life. And yes, it has Fuchs wheels.


This racing blue Singer sold to someone in Dubai has minimal interior carpeting, flaunting the zippy paint all over the interior.


And if you really want to see (and hear) the goods, fast forward to the 2:55 mark in this video.



I unfortunately do not foresee having the wherewithal to buy a $390,000 car so I'll have to get by with salivating over the Singer website. Unless we can figure out a way to make some money off of this whole blogging thing ...

41 comments:

  1. "Rear trailing arm suspension" sounds dirty.

    I see a mid-life crisis car in my future, but will be - merely nice convertible.

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  2. we could do a team gtb timeshare for one of those bad boys

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  3. You guys are ballers. When I turned 40 I got myself a new (used) minivan. My wife refuses to drive one anymore, so it is all mine!

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  4. forerunner turns 100,000 miles by the weekend. tax day is going to be determining factor in whether I keep her around another 2 years or make a move towards something mid-lifeish.

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  5. I can see a mid-life crisis car if/when we consolidate the station wagon into something with seven seats. If I'm going to own a 7-seater then I also need a 2-seater to balance things out.

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  6. camry's about to crack 180k miles. my kid's gonna look good rolling to school in it 18 months from now.

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  7. Any of you hot-rod drivers have any San Antonio suggestions? Heading there for a conference later this week, and I rented a Hyundai Accent (or similar) to explore the town, for the small amount of time I won't be sequestered in a hotel conference room.

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  8. Quick unrelated question which may have been addressed here before. Are handicapped bathroom stalls to be treated the same as handicapped parking spots (i.e. reserved for those patrons and to be left vacant otherwise)? Asking for a friend.

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  9. Scooter - I was in SA for work in '08. Me and the rest of the entire Westin La Cantera caught an airborne virus. I lost a lot of weight in untraditional ways over the next 2-3 days. Have fun!

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  10. My office is on a floor with about 5-6 other businesses. We've been here longer than anyone - 7 years, and I've never seen a handicapable person here. My regularity is something to be envious of - within the first 15 min of being in the office as long as its between 730 & 830, I tcb. Bc of the time, I'm always the first to use the freshly cleaned and sanitized terlet and am also one of 2-3 males on the entire floor. There are 2 stalls, and I never use the non-hcp one. Ever.

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  11. i think the point of the handicap stalls isn't that non-handicapped people can't use them, it's just that a wheelchair can fit into the stall. but if a handicapped person sees you coming out of a handicapped stall, it's polite to limp.

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  12. I'm starting to think this Cristiano Ronaldo guy may be decent at soccer.

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  13. I don't use the handicapped stall at work only because it's the commode of choice for one remarkably unhygienic guy on my floor--he brings a fistful of paper towels in with him and uses them as anal floss, then leaves them on the floor (because he got in trouble when he used to flush them and clog up the works).

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  14. Greetings from Branson, MO.

    The anal flossing guy should be forced to work from home.

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  15. The facilities guys, unsurprisingly, detest anal floss guy.

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  16. Greetings from Captiva Island, FL. The family saw manatees off of our deck earlier today. Life is good.

    I just found out that 38 y/o Nazr Mohammed is on the Thunder roster. Way to keep getting them checks, Nazr.

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  17. Nice car.
    Does it come with a Jake Ryan?

    And TR, don't pick on Nazr--he's a good dude.

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  18. philosophical question: is that car a porsche?

    and am i allowed to paint the word "porsche" on the side of my minivan?

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  19. Dave, I'd suggest a nice Porsche vehicle magnet so you can slap it on when you're feeling frisky.

    Here's a story on a 1964 911 my Dad's good friend restored.

    On an unrelated vehicular note, my brother in law once stealth mounted a set of truck nuts to his buddy's Prius.

    TR, I'll hope to avoid the fate you met in San Antone.

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  20. Conference center at the Big Cedar Lodge in Branson is blaring "Jack Daniels if you Please" by David Allan Coe at 8:55 AM. Solid start to the day.

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  21. That sounds a little saucy for Branson.

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  22. The guys from the Ranger Boats conference seem to be digging the soundtrack.

    They just mixed in Old 97's, a Lucinda Williams cover of It's a Long Way to the Top and My Name is Luka. Odd.

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  23. Manatees are the best. Fat, lazy and protected by the government. We should all be so lucky.

    Captiva/Sanibel is a great underrated west coast of Florida spot. No waves at all but other than that there's not much bad I can say about it.

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  24. Went to Sanibel for Spring Break in '87. Vomited everywhere one night after boozing. Ruined my shirt. And my relationship with my girlfriend's parents. Awesome place. Would go back again. And do it all over.

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  25. San Antonio... Riverwalk is solid. I did the Alamo tour when I went for a conference 2 years ago, and it's pretty cool. Stunned that the place is in the middle of the city.

    Had good brisket at County Line. Good drinks at Esquire. And Durty Nelly's is memory serves.

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  26. Mark's manatee joke got me and I am totally going to steal it.

    Bully for the Nats for having 6 of their first 8 (or 9) games against the Braves, who seem to have put together the "Major League" roster, with less promising results thus far.

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  27. 2 posts about this car and no 911 is a Joke joke? Huh.

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  28. Despite its mainstream popularity that song is one of the lower points on FOABP. Totally disrupts the flow of the first 5-6 songs.

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  29. Hoyas get Gheorghie

    http://www.casualhoya.com/2016/4/13/11423698/welcome-to-gheorghetown-muresans-son-to-walk-on-with-hoyas?utm_campaign=casualhoya&utm_content=chorus&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter

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  30. this post has made it into my philosophy plans, to be discussed along with this thought experiment:

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ship_of_Theseus

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  31. Singer doesn't replace everything--if they did there would be no reason to start with a donor car in the first place, they'd just start from scratch.

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  32. How about a thought and prayer for my wife's father who late last night fell down the basement stairs and is in icu with skull fractures, the likely loss of eyesight in one eye, and a bleeding, swollen brain. he's a spry 64 and a mail carrier...hopefully that will help him. that call came at 1am..she was out of here by 530 am. drinking a Balvenie Caribbean cask.

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  33. Oh man. That's rough, Dan. Godspeed.

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  34. Terrible news. Hoping the docs can deliver a miraculous result.

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  35. jesus, danimal. thoughts, prayers, all of it.

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  36. Kobe's "20 year" run as a Laker was actually 1,346 games, which is less than 16.5 seasons' worth of games.

    Sage Steele REALLY needs to eat a big chicken Parmesan sandwich. Holy crap, she's emaciated.

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