As I was driving back with my wife from our weekly restaurant breakfast-date last Friday, I noticed a very familiar, not to say iconic shape arriving on the other side of the roundabout. I was about to meet said shape further down the road.
This is the frontal view I saw (enlarged from the video footage):
And why don’t we watch the video, curtsy of yet another dash-cam capture:
You just gotta love that sound, regardless if you’re into Porsche or not. But that roughty exhaust note, plus oversized wheels had me thinking I witnessed the first – maybe only – resto-mod 911 in Israel, which is amazing on two levels; First, that anyone would have the audacity to do so in a country where most restorers do their utmost to achieve original condition. Second, because not only is it a 911 but an early one, probably an early 1970s model and much more rare than the later ones (of which you can see at least one in classic car meetings in Israel nowadays). Also, this sports an original 1960/70s license plate, so it even started its life here. I’m hesitant but I might place this as one of the early series models, pre-1973.
Back to this 911s modifications, the wheels are massive compared with the original items, almost too large in fact. Not sure if they came off a Boxter or a later 911. And that engine could have come off an entirely different, not to mention younger 911. Final touch is of course, the side mounted sticker. Well, that’s resto-mod, isn’t it? Personally, I like it.
Editor’s Postscript: given the twin exhausts and the decidedly non-Porsche sound (to me), it’s anyone’s guess what’s inside. This 911 has also suffered severe body damage at the rear at some point; notice how the engine cover droops down between the taillights and the panel between the bumpers looks crude and hand made, compared to the real thing (lower photo above).
The wheels and tires aren’t all that big, as they still fit under the small fender openings. But they have lots of positive offset, which does not seem to correspond to the original hubs of the older 911. Who knows what lurks in this beast.
Could be the ubiquitous LS swap. While the Porschophiles may be outraged, it’s definitely a thing, as the attached image illustrates.
If it is a small block swap, I’d be curious how they manage cooling, but it’s really just a matter of spending dollars until it all works…
Sounds like a Porsche to me. I think the wheels are from a base 1995 Porsche 993. That would work with the twin exhausts too if it has a swap but yes, who really knows until Yohai catches up with it at a show…
Thanks for your comments and PN’s postscript. That still sounds like a Porsche engine to me. Stuffing something else in there would be sacrilege in the eyes of Israeli restorers so highly unlikely.
If I ever lay me camera on this car in person, I’ll be sure to come back here and update.
… and would make it totally illegal in Israel. With a later, bigger Porsche engine you have a better chance of no one noticing; those air cooled units all look the same to the uninitiated.
A bit of asking revealed this is indeed a sort of original Israeli import – “sort of” because it started as a 65-built 912 and only got into Israel in 1973. It certainly does not have a 912 four anymore.