Two Friends Carving Malibu Canyons In 964s Is The Definition Of A Perfect Sunday

It’s 5:30am, Sunday morning, and my alarm clock is ringing.

Sounds like the worst nightmare for most humans on this planet, although weirdly not for a Petrolhead. Quick breakfast, coffee on the go, and the best moment of the day is about to come. Key on the left, turn it to the right and wait for the inimitable sound of an aircooled flat 6 firing up. Or on this morning, two identical aircooled flat sixes, both owned by my friend Arnaud Deligny.

We then proceed to the usual 20min empty leg from West L.A to the entry of the canyon at dawn, a quick fill up at the fuel station and the usual tyre pressure check done, now it’s hammer time.

In terms of pure performance the 964 shows it’s 25+ years, in stock form it isn’t really quick but speed isn’t our goal here. The 964 has what it takes to make a great classic. First the driveability, from the sound of the engine, to the light steering, the comfortable ride or it’s ability to eat up the miles without making you tired. Then the overall reliability making it, still today, a perfect daily driver with a radio, aircon, and plenty of torque on the whole rev range to move in everyday traffic with ease. Finally it’s ability to reward the driver. A lot of classic cars aren’t in stock form really tuned to be driven at 100%, or even at 90%. But in a 964 you can spank until the limit.

Hit the brake hard, dive in the corner with the weight on the front, feel the steering getting harder, wait until the rear wants to turn on you, let it move a bit, neutralise the steering and then hit the gas earlier than almost any classic car can do. Like our fellow countryman would say “Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger.” Reaching that tipping point where you balance the car perfectly to manage the fastest corner entries and exits, is one of life’s greatest feelings. That is the naughty side of the 964, it will handle that, and repeat it corner after corner until you overheat those tires.