Ferrari 599XX
Maranello, Italy.
Porsche 959.
Professor Ferdinand Alexander Porsche, the man behind the Porsche 911, died today aged 76.
The Porsche 959 was perhaps the most extreme road-going evolution of the 911 design. Developed under Group B regulations for motorsport the engine needed to be smaller than the standard 911 of the time, to account for the 1.4 multiplier enforced on turbocharged engines, so a 444bhp 2.85 litre version of the flat-6 was produced (from the 935 race car no less). It’s twin sequential turbochargers ensured minimal lag and although the block remained air-cooled, the heads gained water cooling. A complex 4 wheel drive system and driver adjustable active suspension only added to the technological marvels. The wheels were hollow and wore run-flat tyres with tyre pressure sensors. Altogether it was the most sophisticated car of the day. Upon it’s release in early 1987 it was the fastest production car in the world.
With a 1-2 finish at the 1986 Paris-Dakar and a class win at Le Mans by the one-off 961 race version Porsche had no trouble selling just under 300 of the 959 road cars, although at over 3 times the cost of a 911 Turbo they still lost money on every car.
The death of Group B may have meant we never got to see the 959 go head to head on track with the beautiful 288GTO from Ferrari, but it provided us with one of the masterpieces of automotive engineering.
M3
My wife’s old BMW M3 stopped for a rest. This is just off the A828, north of Oban, which ultimately meets up with the A82 just along from Ballachulish. Scotland has some of the greatest driving roads in the world and if your timing is right you can pretty much have the place to yourself.
When Lindsay sold this car a guy came all the way from Bath in the south of England on the sleeper train, had a test drive, bought it and drove it 450 miles back home. He’s now stripped it out, put a cage in and turned it into a rally car.
Loch Creran, Scotland.
Lamborghini Estoque Concept.
At first glance you may think the rear brakes on the Estoque are rather feeble looking, then you notice the markings on those Pirellis and realise that’s a 23 inch wheel.
Lamborghini Museum, Sant’Agata Bolognese, Italy.
