VIN: Porsche 911 3.0 Turbo Flachbau Studie chassis 9305700022
/ Ben Tyer
HISTORY OF CHASSIS 9305700022
Chassis 9305700022 was the last of Porsche’s pre-production 911 Turbos. Originally configured in Black with Brown upholstery and Sports seats, the car was registered S-CE 1919 and served as a development mule.
During its early life, chassis ‘0022’ was test driven by renowned Austrian conductor and Porsche VIP, Herbert von Karajan (depicted above). Afterwards, von Karajan ordered his own bespoke 911 Turbo (chassis 9305700208) which he commissioned in a special Martini-inspired livery and had kitted out with an array of custom interior parts.
A little later (by which time it had been fitted with the production 911 Turbo’s shark fin stone guards for the rear fenders), chassis ‘0022’ appeared as pace car for the 1976 Monaco Grand Prix which took place over the weekend of May 29th-30th.
During the winter of 1976-1977, Porsche made some drastic changes to chassis ‘0022’. Most notably, the car was converted to flip up headlights of the same type about to appear on the 928 which debuted at the Geneva Motor Show in March ‘77. In addition, new side skirts were installed, extra driving lights were added to the front bumper rubbing strip, the colour was changed to a Bronze-Brown Metallic and 16-inch diameter Fuchs wheels replaced the original 15-inch items.
The conversion to a Flachbau front end was at this stage most likely a pure aero assessment. However, there was already growing customer demand for a Flat Nosed 911 Turbo that resembled the 935 racing car which had appeared throughout the 1976 season.
In its new configuration, chassis ‘0022’ appeared on the front cover of the October 12th 1977 edition of Auto Motor und Sport where it was dubbed the Porsche Turbo Studie. By this time, the car had already been sold; it was dispatched form the factory in July 25th 1977 and supplied to the first private owner having been returned to standard bodywork.
Text copyright: Supercar Nostalgia
Photo copyright: Porsche - https://www.porsche.com
