NC to ATX in a 951 (Porsche 944 Turbo)
Before we moved to Austin, I had nine cars. My neighbors in Santa Cruz weren't too happy about it. We sold some before the move. And sold some later to fund the house construction. We had a nice pair of early (long hood) Porshe 911.
My favorite was the last Porsche to be sold. I think we got $16k for it. The same Porsche would have a value of around $80-100k today. Mine was a mild RS tribute or 911 Porsche hotrod project. I had lightened and enhanced the car wherever I could.
I don't think I'll ever have another early 911 in my garage. That brings us to the 951 (944 turbo). These cars are starting to appreciate as the early 911 have done.
I contacted a mechanic that works on them, and posts videos to YouTube. I was in the process of acquiring a broke 951, and hiring him to fix it. He got back to me with news of a nice example in NC, at a fair price. I dismissed the option as Kat had requested "NOT RED!". But the bright Guards Red paint problem became less of an obstacle as we learned more about the car. I made a deal with the seller. Had my brother in NC go see it in person (late 2018) and put a deposit down for me. My mechanic later trailered the car to his shop (yard) and fixed a bunch of small issues and performed the Front Of Engine service. These cars have a rubber timing belt that should be changed every 30k miles or risk major engine failure. The age of the belts on this car were unknown. Edredas (mechanic) finished the car mid March 2019.
The week after SXSW, I boarded an early flight to NC. I was scooped up at the airport in the car, I was travelling south moments later. I didn't have any time to get acquainted with the new car, I had miles to consume!
First day was ATX to Houston and on to Charlotte (via plane). Then I drove from Charlotte to Atlanta. I got 24.5 MPG, and a good bit of that was stop and go urban Atlanta traffic.
I had my first real look at the car when I arrived at my hotel in Atlanta. NICE! The red is growing on me.
The drive across Alabama was really nice. Brent/Edredas had said "this is the fastest 951 I've ever driven. When that turbo kicks in, if feels more like a 930". This car has a long list of performance updgrades. I learned real quickly that any acceleration can get out of hand real quickly. You could sneeze and that needle will jump from 60 to ### (number redacted on advice from my attorney). I did well maintaining a reasonable speed of 75 MPH most of the trip. The car drove wonderfully. It features a new suspension with adjustable Koni shocks.
Day two had me leave GA, cross Alabama, Mississippi, and most of Louisiana.
I spent the night in Shreveport Louisiana with friends.
I even drove by one of the homes I used to live in... decades ago... My fondest memory in that home... I saw the Talking Heads on SNL.
I made it home on the third day of travel. I was explaining to a friend "this car is scary fast. It's no grocery getter!"
The next morning, I suggested Kat should drive the car. We went to the Asian grocery....
I shuffled the stable and it fits nicely into the garage.
Edredas posted a video featuring the service of this car. It adds to the provenance.