First Drive: This Feather-Light Porsche 912 Restomod Is 4 Cylinders of Pure Fury
The 912 is the original “poor man’s Porsche”. Long before that aspersion was cast upon Porsche’s Boxster or Cayman—and before even the front-engined 924 and mid-engined 914, both of them joint-ventures with Volkswagen—this sports car from the mid-1960s offered a more affordable alternative to the German marque’s 911. Yet that’s certainly not the case with the Kamm 912c, a road-racer restomod of the 912 that’s built in Budapest, Hungary.
Excluding taxes, each Kamm 912c restomod starts at $390,000, or $350,000 if you supply a donor vehicle. And each example is customized, though standard kit includes carbon-fiber body panels, semi-active coilover suspension, a limited-slip diff, and a frantic four-pot engine.
Four cylinders? Yep, the 912 swapped its sibling’s famous flat-six for an air-cooled four-cylinder shared with the Porsche 356 SC. From the factory, it displaced 1.6 liters and produced 90 hp. Here, with help from Swiss specialist JPS Aircooled, those numbers swell to 2.0 liters and 190 hp, which is more output than delivered by a Porsche 911S from the period.
If you think 190 horses sounds a tad underwhelming in 2023, Kamm’s secret weapon is weight. The company makes its own carbon fiber (the “c” in 912c) and the checkered stuff is everywhere, from the feather-light door skins to the passenger foot brace. Factor in Lexan polycarbonate windows, thinner carpets, and an almost masochistic lack of luxuries (electric air-con is the only concession to comfort) and the 912c tips the scales at a mere 1,650 pounds.
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For context, that’s half the heft of a 992 Carrera, and nearly 1.5 tons less than a Taycan. Opt for a full carbon body shell—not fitted to this hard-worked development car I tested—and the 912c totals just 1,500 pounds with fluids. Forget any “lightweight” modern Porsche with an RS badge or Weissach Package, they simply don’t come close.
Pleasingly, despite the radical changes beneath its skin, the 912c still looks like a classic car. Kamm has resisted the urge to fit glittery LED headlights, distended Turbo arches, or the default RS ducktail. Instead, the car retains its rain gutters and delicate chrome trim, with modest 15-inch wheels and a single tailpipe. It’s beautifully understated.
The “less is more” theme continues inside, where you’ll find fixed-back bucket seats trimmed in black leather, a Momo Prototipo steering wheel, and a traditional Porsche five-dial dashboard. The gear lever has been moved rearwards, closer to the driver, and is now a shaft of carbon fiber rather than a spindly metal wand. There’s also a motorsport-spec Tilton pedal box, a switch to adjust the dampers, and a small lever labeled Drive Me Crazy. More on that shortly.
The 912c’s flat-four boasts new heads, a higher compression ratio, uprated conrods, and a stainless-steel exhaust system, plus electronic fuel injection with individual DBW throttle bodies and a Life Racing ECU. Turn the key and the engine bursts raucously, even angrily, to life. I slot the dogleg first gear (a racing configuration, with first on a limb and ratios two to five in an H-pattern) and rumble somewhat falteringly towards the English countryside.
Safe to say, this isn’t a car you acclimatize to straight away. Its unassisted steering is weighty and its un-servoed AP Racing brakes demand a concerted shove. The engine is also fairly lumpy at low revs and, like the 911s I’ve driven from this era, working deftly through the gears takes time (and a few crunching cogs) before you master the manual ’box.
Given time, however, everything starts to coalesce. The tuned motor absolutely relishes revs, spinning freely to its 7,200 rpm redline with a ferocious, buzz-saw snarl. The cacophony isn’t as cultured as that from a 911’s flat-six, but it’s equally impactful. I convince myself I can hear elements of the Volkswagen Beetle, the Subaru Impreza WRX, and even the Cayman GT4 RS. In truth, it sounds like nothing else.
The TracTive coilover suspension—also used by several 911 restomod houses, including Theon Design and Paul Stephens AutoArt—replaces the 912’s stock torsion bars and offers five stages of adjustment, from relatively pliant to brutally firm. It effectively means that you can drive to a track day and set the car up in seconds.
Even on the road, the 912c is an intense experience. With less engine behind its rear axle and huge grip from its semi-slick Yokohama tires, you can press on with confidence. And when you do approach the limit, the car feels so analog, its controls so finely calibrated, that it won’t catch you unawares.
Above all, the 912c simply demands to be driven. You can’t switch into auto-pilot or simply go with the flow; your brain and body need to be actively engaged at all times. Its lightness seeps into every input, and every reaction to the road. Poor man’s Porsche? Not a bit of it.
As for that Drive Me Crazy lever, pulling it changes the ECU map, ramping things up still further. Now the engine idles at nearly 2,000 rpm and feels even more unhinged as the revs rise. It’s a bit much for the road, but I’m told Kamm founder Miki Kázmér uses it all the time. Hats off to him.
Kamm aims to sell four cars per year, with the first customer 912c already in the build process and destined for Miami. If the idea of a restomod 911 seems a bit obvious, this unique alternative will surely be a talking-point at your local Cars and Coffee meet. And a blast on the drive home.
Click here for more photos of the Kamm 912c restomod.
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