Will This Paul Newman-Raced Porsche 935 Be A Monterey Auction Star?

June 30, 2016

Some cars have all the luck. This one was born deep in the Porsche werks, ended up being raced by Paul Newman, won major races, was liveried by a young Apple Computer, and even wears the good-looking serial number 009 0030, which is definitely easy enough to remember for its next tech inspection. At Gooding & Company’s Monterey auction, it may even find a new owner.

^{Images copyright and courtesy of Gooding & Company. Photos by Mathieu Heurtault.}

^{Image copyright and courtesy of DPPI.}

1979 Porsche 935

This car was run by Dick Barbour’s team at the 1979 24 Hours of Le Mans, with actor-turned-racer extraordinaire Paul Newman teamed with Rolf Stommelen and Barbour himself. Finishing second overall, it wouldn’t get a huge trophy during the 1980 season, when it wore a fetching Apple Computer livery. Its biggest honors come in 1981 and 1983, where it won the 24 Hours of Daytona and the 12 Hours of Sebring, respectively. Gooding & Company expects it to earn between $4.5 and $5.5 million when it comes up for sale.

Can’t stretch to put yourself in Newman’s seat? There are two other gems the auction house has been able to source two other hugely impressive specimens from Stuttgart.

^{Images copyright and courtesy of Gooding & Company. Photos by Mike Maez.}

1984 Porsche 911 SC/RS

Safari 911s are the ‘in’ variant of the venerable coupé for many, but among the more original produced by the factory is this one (of six), built as part of a Rothmans cigarettes-backed 911 rally entry for the Middle East Rally Championship and the European Rally Championship. With “King of the Dunes” Saeed Al-Hajri behind the wheel, it won that year’s Middle East Championship, with another overall championship taken in 1987 in this car. Winning multiple events on different continents, it must be one of the best examples of a dune-jumping 911—and even comes with a treasure trove of original documentation for its next owner. Gooding & Company estimate it to sell for between $1.4 and $1.8 million.

^{Images copyright and courtesy of Gooding & Company. Photos by Mathieu Heurtault.}

1994 Porsche 964 Turbo 3.6 S Flachbau

Estimated at an identical amount to the 911 rally car above, this 964 ‘Flachbau’ is a completely different beast. In period, it was a limited-run, super exclusive, hush hush sort of car—“I heard Porsche made a…” sort of thing. With near-400 horsepower, uprated suspension, differential, interior trim, exterior body panels, and a number of other items, it was basically’s Porsche send-off of the 964. This example, however, still has its window sticker and shows fewer than 40 miles traveled since new—I get that it’s a nice car but jeez. Its new owner will be happy it’s been serviced, fully-documented, has a Porsche Certificate of Authenticity, service receipts, tools, and a number of all small items.

But please, Gooding & Company, include a full tank of fuel so it ticks over a few well-earned miles in its new owner’s hands after the August 20-21 weekend.

H/T to Gooding & Company