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Racing, the Ultimate Proof; Early Porsche slogan, which lives through this day.

So many of our readership are proud owners of an early 911. An original piece of engineering history; a marvel of 60’s and 70’s automotive history. As you are well aware of, these cars were built with Motorsports in mind.

Early 911s in action in GT Racing and the Monte Carlo Rallye. Pictures from the US 1968 Porsche 911 brochure.

The factory provided OEM after market parts for all sorts of applications and privateers invented even more. In reality only the fully specced early 911s with so-called S packages were truly equipped for Motorsports as they came with proper sway bars and light alloy front brakes. Engine wise I have found that you can have a whole lot of fun with T,E, S or RS early engines and gearboxes and if they have been put together well, will rev happily all day and take you home with a smile on your face.

Porsche 911 2.2 S engine 1970

As our early cars are becoming more and more valuable every year it becomes less and less attractive to modify them in ways which are hard to reverse in the future. At the same time it is such a waste not to spank your early 911 now and then. Actually, they need that to stay healthy. So what can you do to modify your early 911 without destroying its inherent value? TwinSpark has been around that block a few times and we are going to be sharing some of our experiences with you in a few steps over the next few weeks.

The Green Meanie, beautifully restored 1972 2.4E, months after its acquisition in 2007.

The sample car we’ll use is the Viper Green 911 2.4E from 1972 which I used to own until 2,5 years ago. This was a bog-standard car, well restored, especially mechanically. I remember taking it on a road trip to the Oldtimer Grand Prix, a trip which John Glynn will remember vividly. As we are doing 170 km/h in the left lane on the Autobahn, a sweeping left hand curve comes up and we end up in the right hand lane of three without much steering input! Having been used to a more sporty set up in Silverado, our rally car, I realized that this car needed some mild upgrades to improve the handling. Like: putting sway bars under it!

Porsche Handling pad 1968

So, lesson number 1 is: the early 911 tracks from its rear wheels. Improving the rear suspension a bit has a huge effect on the way the car handles. So that’s the least you can do to get a more balanced feel and tracking. As I felt the car really needed sway bars front and back though, we welded U-brackets both on the front and rear suspension arms and equipped the car with an 18mm sway bar rear and a 15mm sway bar front. These are relatively simple measures, but the car was transformed and still within original period spec! Write to us at info@twinsparkracing for advice on using WEVO Rear Anti Roll Bar brackets for this modification.