First Drive: Theon Design’s Latest 911 Restomod Is Both Raucous and Refined
When I was a kid in the 1980s, modified Porsches hailed from the likes of Gemballa, Strosek, Rinspeed and Koenig. Pop-up headlights, “Testarossa” side strakes and elongated whale tails were de rigueur, while turbocharged flat-sixes were short on subtlety and big on boost. This was the 911 turned up to 11.
The ever-vibrant Porsche scene is now more about restomods, particularly when it comes to air-cooled cars, and companies such as Theon Design, Singer Vehicle Design, Gunther Werks and Paul Stephens Autoart have come to the fore. They celebrate the 911’s classic curves, rather than grafting on supercar styling cues, and have, in many cases, abandoned the horsepower race in favor of naturally aspirated engines (although Singer’s new Turbo Study is something to behold). The focus is on high fidelity, rather than playing it loud.
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Today, a stock Porsche 992 Carrera offers the same 385 hp as the original Gemballa Avalanche (Google it and be amazed), so maybe this shift was inevitable. Nonetheless, there’s a part of me that yearns for a time when Porsche tuners pushed boundaries and stretched the 911’s potential. That’s where this car comes in.
After sampling one of Theon Design’s earlier restomods, known as Hong Kong 002, about 18 months ago, I jumped at the chance to get behind the wheel of this project, named Chile 001 after the location of its soon-to-be owner. The car moves the game on decisively, with more power, less weight and plenty of cutting-edge chassis tech—all wrapped up in a tastefully retro package. The best of past and present? Let’s find out.
Based in the UK’s “motorsport valley,” close to the famed Silverstone circuit, Theon Design hand-builds about six reimagined Porsches each year. The cars are based on the 964 generation of 911 (built from 1989 through 1994), and prices start from $430,000—plus a donor car and local taxes. “It’s all about keeping these classic Porsches alive,” says Theon Design’s co-founder Adam Hawley. “As we move towards EVs, the analog driving experience they [air-cooled Porsches] offer will only become more appealing.”
Commissioned by a blueberry farmer with a penchant for purple, Chile 001 is the same Viola metallic as the “30 Jahre” 964 Anniversary special edition. The paint looks almost black in the workshop, then pops with color when it emerges into the sunlight. Riding 10 mm (.39 inches) lower than a 964 Carrera RS on deep-dished Fikse wheels (three-piece replicas of the iconic Fuchs design), the modified 911 looks squat and perfectly stanced. Even without OTT aero add-ons, it bristles with latent aggression.
Unlike the car I drove previously, this Porsche has a carbon-fiber body, which saves 220 pounds over the steel equivalent. Curb weight is just 2,566 pounds, which is 360 pounds lighter than a 964 Carrera. And with 400 hp coursing through the rear Michelins, it’s rabidly quick off the mark. Theon Design estimates a zero-to-60 mph time of less than 4 seconds.
Beneath a half-height “duck-tail” spoiler, the 4.0-liter engine is finished to show-car standard. The power-steering and air-con hardware have moved to the front trunk to improve weight distribution (now 42 percent in front and 58 percent at the rear), while other ancillaries have been tucked away or trimmed in leather for a minimalist look. Polished trumpets feed air to six individual Jenvey throttle bodies, then gasses are exhaled through a custom exhaust with switchable baffles. As I’m soon to discover, neither setting is what you’d call quiet.
The door is the only exterior panel still made of steel, a requirement for crash protection. Open it and the blueberry bonanza continues with the interior. Deep and intentionally aged purple leather swathes the Recaro seats, pleated door cards and dashboard. It looks like something Stuttgart’s legendary Sonderwunsch (Special Wishes) department might have cooked up in the 1980s. A magnetic smartphone mount and Focal audio system provide infotainment without spoiling the old-school aesthetic. “The buyer admits he’ll probably never listen to music while driving,” says Hawley. “For him, it’s all about the orchestra playing behind your ears.”
Those tuned 930 and 964 Turbos I idolized majored on visual drama, but they certainly don’t sound this intense. The free-breathing engine idles like a bulldog clearing its throat, its single-mass flywheel grumbling with the surly impatience of the hardcore 964 RS. There’s sufficient torque for town driving, but the motor really comes on cam above 4,000 rpm—at which point you still have 4,500 rpm to go. Keep the right pedal pinned and the multilayered mechanical snarl seems to increase exponentially, reaching a crescendo that’s pure RSR race car. I keep gratuitously dropping down a couple of ratios just to relish it again.
The gearbox is also a joy to use. A six-speed manual made by Hewland and based on the 993 Turbo ’box, its slick and springy shift is a world away from the “stirring a bucket of sand” 915 transmission of retro Rennsports. Beefy carbon-ceramic brakes from Surface Transform provide a suitably modern degree of stopping power, too.
The modified 911’s suspension feels like the biggest step forward, though. The car I drove last year had passive KW coilovers, but Chile 001 rides on TracTive adaptive dampers with five switchable modes and a reaction time of just 0.06 seconds—a setup also used by the 993R project from Paul Stephens. The result is a chassis that raises its game far beyond any 964 built by Porsche. The vehicle attacks corners with alacrity, resisting body-roll while not getting deflected on uneven roads. And it reacts to throttle inputs with a progressiveness that quickly builds your confidence.
Factor in the 911’s modest size and relative practicality (hey, it still has two rear seats) and you could enjoy this car every day. “Porsches are designed to be driven,” says Hawley as I park up and take a breath, the sound of flat-six fury still ringing in my ears. He’s right, of course, and Theon Design has enhanced that experience without diluting what makes the air-cooled 911 so special. Now, I wonder what he’d say to some Testarossa side strakes . . .
Click here for more photos of the latest Porsche 911 restomod from Theon Design.
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