Living the Legend
Ben Przekop
Mercer Island, WA
Model 996 40TH ANNIVERSARY
Year 2004
Acquired MAR 2018
They say you never forget your first love, and in my case that definitely includes my first Porsche! My lifelong passion for the sports cars from Zuffenhausen started with a sceptical test drive of a 2003 996 Cabriolet in Seal grey. The scepticism lasted one corner… this car was unlike anything I had driven before. There was a nimbleness, a directness and an immediacy to everything, including the powerful engine, and it made driving a totally new experience. But a bit of oversteer wiggle on a tight corner reminded me of that pendulum of an engine hanging out behind the rear axle, and right after buying the car I booked a one-day Porsche Sport Driving School at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham.
Porsche had recently decided to change its programme from a ‘travelling circus’ that rotated among various tracks in the US to a single facility with its own permanent classroom building, and as it happened I attended the very first class taught there. That amazing day driving the school’s 996s taught me how to safely push this wonderful car to its very high limits, and I became totally addicted to high-performance driving. It also led to my purchase of 14 Porsche over the succeeding years, in the constant search for ‘more Porsche’.
And while each new car was undeniably ‘better’ than its predecessor, I also began to realise with the benefit of hindsight that my very first 996 could easily have served me all those years as a perfectly capable car for everything I have done with my Porsche.
It was no surprise to me that when I was looking for my next Porsche two years ago after selling my 2014 991, my head would be turned not by one of the latest models from Zuffenhausen, but by another 996 – this time a 2004 40th Anniversary 911 – that reminded me so much of my very first 911.
I have always loved both the exterior and interior styling of this special-edition 996, and found the performance of the X51-optioned car a sheer joy. Ferry Porsche was once asked, “Which 911 is your favourite”, and he replied, “The next one”. As the head of a company which has always prided itself on continued improvement, he was justifiably proud of each new model with its improved power, handling and overall capabilities. In my case I would tell you without hesitation that my favourite 911 will always be that 2003 Seal grey beauty, my first Porsche love, and that I would give anything to be able to grab the keys, put down the top and take just one more twilight drive into the sunset.
Chris Wallbank
Leeds, UK
chris_wallbank
@chrisjwallbank
Model 997.1 CARRERA S
Year 2005
Acquired NOV 2012
It was back down to supercar tuning house Litchfield Motors for me this month; it needed some professional photography of a brand-new, Guards red 992 Carrera 4S that it had been testing for the last few weeks on its dyno.
The guys at Litchfield were confident they
