Porsche 911 Project Gold Isn’t Street Legal In Most Countries

Blame modern emissions and noise regulations.

At Pebble Beach last week Porsche unveiled the prestigious Project Gold, an air-cooled 993-generation Porsche 911 Turbo for the 21st century. With its vintage styling, striking gold paint, twin-turbo flat-six engine, and luxurious interior, it’s hands down one of the most desirable Porsche 911s we’ve ever seen. However, there’s a catch if you were hoping to own it – it isn’t street legal.

Speaking to Jalopnik, Philipp Salm, head of sales and marketing at Porsche Classic, explained why the car can't be registered for road use. While it's based on a body shell and chassis from a 1990 993 Turbo that was never used, it’s still technically a 2018 model year car. This, of course, means it has to comply with modern emissions and noise regulations.

The US and Europe has notoriously strict regulations, and Salm confirmed there is no way “an air-cooled engine with specs from the 1990s” would ever pass them. You can still admire it in your garage or take it for a spin on a race track, but if you want to pose in it on the public road you’re out of luck.

Salm did, however, point out there are “certain countries” where Project Gold could possibly be registered for road use. According to Jalopnik, a Saudi businessman quizzed a Porsche representative at the reveal event to find out if it could be driven on the road, and after choosing his words carefully they confirmed that it could be possible in some countries with fewer regulations.

Project Gold is finished in the same Gold Yellow Metallic as Porsche 911 Turbo S Exclusive Series, complemented with gold accents in the interior. Under the hood is a brand new 3.6-liter twin-turbo flat-six engine developing 450 hp, with performance matching the original 993-generation Turbo S. The modern Porsche 993 Turbo will be going under the hammer at RM Sotheby’s Porsche 70th Anniversary Sale in Atlanta, Georgia on October 27. We wouldn’t be surprised if the owner finds a way to make it street legal.

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Project Gold Is The Ultimate Air-Cooled Porsche 911 Turbo

You’re looking at the rebirth of an icon.

We knew Porsche has been preparing something special for its 70th anniversary ever since dropping a teaser for its “Project Gold” restomod project last month. But now the wait is over. Porsche has presented the finished project at Pebble Beach, and it’s a feast for the eyes. 20 years after production of the 993 generation wrapped up, Porsche Classic, the automaker’s restoration division, has created a bespoke 911 Turbo with an air-cooled engine.

Based on an original 993 body shell, the car has been painted in Golden Yellow Metallic, the same color as the 2018 911 Turbo S Exclusive Series, creating a unique fusion of classic and contemporary. Golden Yellow accents also highlight the black wheels, while the seats and interior trim are finished in black with Golden Yellow details. The body shell features the prominent side air intakes of the 993 Turbo S that were also available as an option for the regular 911 Turbo in 1998.

The Porsche Project Gold took around one and a half years to complete. After being stripped down, the body shell went through the same meticulous corrosion protection and painting process applied to modern Porsche production cars. Porsche Classic specialists then installed a brand new 3.6-liter twin-turbo flat-six engine developing 450 hp, with performance matching the original 993-generation Turbo S.

The car’s original manual transmission and all-wheel drive components were also sourced from the Porsche Classic range of genuine parts. It even has a hand-stamped chassis number following the last street-legal 993 Turbo that rolled off the production line in 1998.

The interior was designed by experts from Porsche Exclusive Manufaktur and is also inspired by the Turbo S Exclusive featuring gold accent stitching and black leather upholstery. This very special Porsche 993 Turbo will be crossing the auction block at RM Sotheby’s Porsche 70th Anniversary Sale in Atlanta, Georgia on October 27. Given its significance, don’t be surprised if it sells for seven figures.

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Project Gold Porsche Sells For Over $3 Million

Not bad for a newly built 20-year-old design that can’t be driven on public roads

Project Gold truly lived up to its name as the Porsche 993 Turbo S that was built by Porsche Classic over a painstaking one and a half years was auctioned off at the Porsche Experience Centre in Atlanta as part of the “RM Sotheby’s – The Porsche 70th Anniversary Auction 2018” event. After 37 bids that took a mere ten minutes, this one-off 911 Turbo Classic series car was sold for 2,743,500 Euros (around $3,127,060 US dollars), with proceeds from the sale going to the not-for-profit Ferry Porsche Foundation.

That may seem like a rather steep price even considering the current stratospheric amounts air-cooled Porsches are commanding these days, but this is one very special vehicle that is effectively a brand-new car built up from a stock of 6,500 original parts offered by Porsche Classic for the 993.

The original 993 bodyshell was galvanized using modern techniques and finished in a Golden Yellow metallic paintwork referencing the shade used on the current 911 Turbo S Exclusive Series. The seats and interior trim are in black with Golden Yellow details and the turbo-style wheels are also black with subtle yellow detailing. Every other component of the car is from components that were available to customers purchasing the last-of-the-line 993 Turbo S back in 1998, even the chassis number follows on from the last Turbo that rolled off the production line.

The engine is a brand-new 450-horsepower 3.6-liter twin-turbo air-cooled motor mated to a six-speed manual transmission driving all four wheels, exactly as in the earlier cars built 20 years ago.

The car may have been built in the Porsche factory using an original bodyshell but thanks to modern safety and emissions regulations it will never be allowed to drive on public roads. It could be used as a track toy but we highly doubt its new owner will do much more than park it in a secure garage and wait for it to appreciate even further in value.

The Classic division that made this build possible also stocks around 52,000 parts for all types of older Porsches and as a treat for 911 owners, Project Gold created two more genuine parts that they can now order for their cars. These are a new aluminum tank cap and black tailpipe that can be fitted to any 911 built between 1980 and 1998.

There may be thousands of retromod 911s prowling the streets these days but this 993 Turbo S stands head and shoulders above them all in a way only Porsche could have done.

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Acura NSX Dream Project Is A 610-HP Beauty

The second-generation Acura NSX is already a striking-looking supercar, but the automaker has spiced it up with the “Dream Project” NSX which is making its debut this week at SEMA. Acura teamed up with tuning firm ScienceofSpeed to create the custom NSX featuring an aerodynamic body kit inspired by the NSX GT3 racecar. Among the exterior enhancements include aggressive front strakes, wider carbon fiber ducted rocker panels, a rear wing and a larger rear diffuser.

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