Perfectly Imperfect

A MANIACAL FIVE-YEAR RESTORATION ILLUMINATES THE BEAUTY OF THIS PORSCHE 906, WARTS AND ALL.

- A.J.BAIME

GUNNAR JEANNETTE has the best job in the world. He is, among other things, the go-to hotshoe for the Revs Institute in Naples, Florida, home to one of the most valuable collections of vintage race cars on earth. Jeannette spends his workdays in the driver’s seat of some of the most heralded cars in existence, in wheel-towheel combat. Most days, these excursions go smoothly. But not on this one. It was five years ago at Porsche’s Rennsport Reunion at Laguna Seca. Jeannette was in a rare surviving 1966 Porsche 906 approaching a corner when another driver scraped his right side. A few seconds later, that same driver swatted him on the other side. By the time Jeannette made it back to pit lane, his 906 had a bent wheel and torn fiberglass.

A. During the original build, a Porsche craftsman applied resin by slapping it on with a brush, leaving behind drips and brushstrokes. The restorers reapplied resin the same way, so drips and strokes are visible.

The owner of this 906 was furious, right? Think again.

“For me, it was a sign from God,” says Miles Collier, founder of the Revs Institute and author of the book The Archaeological Automobile. “We thought, if we are going to fix this car, let’s do everything right.”

So began a five-year odyssey to perfectly restore a coveted Porsche from the golden age of racing. The job would put into practice Collier’s unique philosophy.