About a month ago, Porsche unveiled the all-new 911 GT3 RS with an aggressive body kit and a naturally aspirated 4.0-liter boxer engine. Long before hardcore performance cars debuted, the Stuttgart-based company was selling Germany’s fastest production sports car. The car is a 911 Carrera RS 2.7 and is now celebrating its 50th birthday.
Porsche has decided to mark its anniversary with a new special video, in which two legendary pilots discuss the vehicle and its impact on the automotive industry. Sitting inside the legendary RS model are Walter Rohrl, two-time world rally champion, and Timo Bernhard, Le Mans winner.
23 Photo
When the 911 Carrera RS 2.7 debuted in October 1972 at the Paris Motor Show, it was unveiled as the ultimate version of the first-generation 911. This was one of the first expressions of Porsche’s idea that a performance car could be used for everyday transportation and even a race car-derived engine could be a great everyday ride.
Based on the 911S 2.4, the 911 Carrera RS 2.7 features a larger and more powerful engine and modified construction for a lower weight. All of that combined with improved aerodynamics, making this model one of the greatest sports cars of its time.
Powering the vehicle is a 2.7-liter boxer engine with 210 horsepower (154 kilowatts) and 188 pound-feet (255 Newton-meters) of torque mated to a five-speed manual gearbox. Thanks to its low weight of only about 2,149 pounds (975 kilograms), this car can reach 60 miles per hour (96 kilometers per hour) from rest in just about 5.6 seconds. Top speed is around 150 mph (241 kph) – a number that still sounds impressive even by today’s standards.
The interesting part about the life of the 911 Carrera RS 2.7 is that it wasn’t available in North America, at least initially. It is not equipped with the proper emission equipment which basically makes it illegal in the United States. When the EPA finally relaxed emission standards, examples of sports cars were legally imported into the country.
