A GRAND Revival

Viewed by the modern world as objet d'art, long-hood 911s are no longer deemed practical enough to be used as regular steers. But does that have to be the case? Makellos Classics has a rather brilliant answer...

- Lee Sibley

The long-bonnet cars: quintessential 911, and Porsche art in its purest form. These earliest of 911s, produced from 1964 to 1973, remained loyal to Butzi Porsche’s original design before (one could argue) the appearance was sullied, somewhat, by the addition of those US-mandated impact bumpers from 1974. The long-bonnet cars are exactly as Porsche intended its 911 to be.

While these vintage 911s are absolutely stunning to look at, even the latest examples are now more than half a century old, and with that comes 50-year-old technology, or lack thereof. Sure, you could argue that this is central to what many enthusiasts find so endearing, but the reality is these beautiful Porsche are seen less and less on the public road – and that really is a shame for all of us.

Thankfully, the restomod world can come to our collective rescue here, because if like us you love the early 911 visuals but crave a driving experience that doesn’t stray into the painfully archaic, this Albert blue beauty in our pictures is your answer. Still rocking that pretty, long-bonnet look, this recrafted 911T has been exquisitely instilled with a little modern impetus (sympathetically, of course) to enhance both performance and practicality, to give a cool and eminently usable 911 package. 

It’s built by the team at Makellos Classics who, as we discovered in issue 242, specialise in the restoration and renovation of the earliest Porsche 911s. The company is renowned as faithful preservers of Porsche history if you’re after a nut-and-bolt restoration in the SoCal area, yet Makellos is also a dab hand if you’re looking to eke out a little more spice from your classic Stuttgart experience.