1968 Porsche 911 R Coupe Tribute 2.5L Twin Plug High Compression Engine 1,987 lbs 200+ HP

In the fall of 1966, the Porsche mechanic who worked on James Dean’s 550 Spyder and was in the crash with him, proposed that the company build a special race car focused on horsepower to weight ratio.  The 911 R was born.  Fewer than 20 were ever built and as a result, values are in the 7-figure range.  This example was built as a tribute to that ethos.  Weight was reduced while power was increased.  Furthermore, modern components were integrated for an overall improved driving experience and reliability.

This 911 was originally delivered to the U.S. as a 1968 model, and the year 2.0L was normal.  Although not much is known about its early history, this car was a ground-up build taken on by G&W Motorsports (now Synergy Racing), a well-known and successful Grand Am Rolex Championship team.  The car was a personal build for team owner, Cole Scrogham.  The goal was to build an homage to the original 911 R incorporating original equipment with modern Porsche Supercup parts.  This no-expense build was completed in time for the 2008 PCA (Porsche Club of America) national parade where it won three concours awards: Performance Group Award, Concours 1^st Place, and Concours Division Award.  Shortly afterward, it was sold in April of 2009 to Roderick Ryan of Oxford, Maryland who rarely drove it.  Ryan kept this 911 hotrod for the next 7 years and used it lightly for local cars & coffee-type events.  He eventually sold it to Don Ahearn of Porsport who then sold it in the summer of 2016 to a local Orange County, CA enthusiast and collector.

This next caretaker is a longtime enthusiast who loves vintage race-style cars.  We’ve been fortunate to help him and his son sell their special cars and they are always in spectacular condition.  His goal with this 911 was to give it more of a street focus and enjoy it at various vintage shows and tours.  For the next 2-years, he ended up doing a fairly significant refurbishment to this 911 to achieve his goal.  He hired Henk at Carparc USA in Costa Mesa for the engine rebuild and other minor cosmetic work.  Highlights of the build include:

2.5L Engine Build (based on 1969 2.0L 911T case):

• New factory 86.7mm Mahle pistons & cylinders
• 10.6:1 compression ratio
• “S” connecting rods
• Piston squirters and oil bypass modifications
• Twin plug ported and polished matched heads
• 40mm intake ports and 37mm exhaust ports
• 46mm intake valves and 39mm exhaust valves
• 906 big valves
• 306/288 Elgin cams
• 906 big valves
• 2.4/2.7 counterbalanced crank
• Reconditioned S rods
• Port and polished oil pump (69-75) by Glenn Yee
• 46mm PMO carburetors
• Electromotive electronic twin plug ignition system
• Sachs sport clutch and balanced flywheel

Further tuning and oil cooling setup was performed by Aase Motors of Fullerton, California.  Final suspension tuning and setup was performed by Alignment of Torrance, California.

Other Mechanical Components:

•             Elephant Racing front oil cooler system with finned lines
•             New oil tank and relief valve
•             Custom exhaust headers
•             Dansk sports muffler
•             Rebuilt 901 gearbox with ZF 906 limited slip diff (gears GAKQV)
•             Full adjustable Bilstein coil over suspension with H&R springs
•             Dual brake master cylinder (if one chooses to adjust bias front to rear)
•             935-style rear spring plates
•             Adjustable front sway bar
•             Upper adjustable shock tower brace
•             Rebuilt S brake calipers
•             Wevo classic shifter and shift linkage
•             Corner balance (1,998 lbs with ½ tank of fuel)/alignment by Johnson Alignment

Exterior and Interior:

•             Partial refurbishment of exterior (light repaint and patch holes)
•             Install original factory steel doors
•             Restored chrome door/window trim
•             All new rubber seals
•             Fresh headliner
•             Removal of door bars of roll cage
•             Recaro sport seats with wool pepita inserts by Autos Int.
•             New dash pad/repainted dash around gauges
•             Restored S gauges and clock by Palo Alto Speedometer
•             New steering column with turn and wiper stalks
•             Momo Prototipo leather steering wheel
•             Fiberglass front fenders, hood, deck lid, rear wheel arch flares, and bumpers
•             Plexiglass windows all around except windshield (custom made)
•             R-style door panels with leather pull straps for plexi-windows.
•             Custom rubber floor mats
•             Cibie sealed beam headlights
•             911 R tail lights and front turn signals
•             R-style plastic exterior door handles
•             Factory 15×6 “Deep Sixes” Fuchs wheels
•             Avon Tires  (CR6 ZZ)
•             Anderson plug jump box (through brake duct) charger with two electrical shut-offs
•             Retractable front tow hook

The refurbishment was completed in March of 2019.  In total, this recent owner invested an additional $85,000+ bringing this 911 to the next level.  Well over $200k was spent in building this 911, not adjusting for inflation.

We sold this 911R Tribute for this Orange County enthusiast to another local mature enthusiast on December 17^th, 2019 with 47,200 miles on the odometer.  For the past 5+ years, this owner has added another 1,700 miles of strictly local weekend cruising to Cars & Coffee events.  Unfortunately, due to age and vision issues, he has to part with some of his toys.  During his care, he serviced this 911 at Aase Motors and Scott’s Independent, which included:

• Oil service, adjust valves, tune carbs, adjust rear master cylinder push rod (2/21 @ 48,130 miles)
• Repair brake bias (4/21@ 48,194 miles)
• Oil service (8/23 @ 48,500 miles)
• Repair fuel pump switch (1/24)

At a recent inspection, the mechanic noted the right front heim joint shows a slight bend only when the car is on the lift with wheels off the ground.  On the ground, it’s normal and does not affect performance/handling.  There is no fix for this, but rather it’s the nature of the suspension system.

The exterior looks fresh and with few miles since completion.  There are no significant signs of use.  The fit and finish of the panels are very good, especially with the use of lightweight fiberglass.  The windows look great.  These were all custom-made pieces of plexiglass.  They look like actual glass with no major scratches or flaws.  The windshield is glass and also fresh with no flaws.  The door frame chrome is also restored.  All the exterior light lenses have no cracks and the lights work.  The factory deep-six Fuchs are restored and wearing Avon tires mounted in 2019 with more than half-tread remaining.  The brake pads are near full-life.

The underside and engine bay are very tidy.  It appears that the floor was replaced during the 2005 phase of the restoration.  There are small areas here and there of repairs made over the years.  A more correct oil tank was installed and the previous 964 oil tank was removed and holes from that setup were recently repaired.  The chassis is very straight and dry.  The engine bay is also fresh with period period-correct amber fiberglass fan shroud and 906-style rain hats.  There are no signs of any significant oil leaks.

The interior is equally as nice.  The Recaro sport seat buckets were restored by Autos International using wool pepita inserts.  There are no signs of wear.  The door panels, custom rubber floor mats, and headliner are all new.  The dash is also new with no cracks or warping.  All the gauges have been restored by Palo Alto Speedometer including the clock, and they all work properly.  The leather window straps are a nice handcrafted detail as are the cloth-wrapped interior door pulls.

This 911 R tribute is a fun and focused driving experience.  It’s the distilled essence of everything that makes vintage Porsche 911s so special.  It’s a bit cold-blooded but will fire up once the carbs have fuel in them (fuel pump switch on the dash).  Because it has a small battery for weight savings, it also has an extra jump pack that nicely fits into the port behind the passenger brake duct.  We have not had to use it.  The power is impressively strong as it seems to have a nice power band throughout the rev range.  The car pulls very hard all the way to the red line.  There is no hesitation and the throttle response is immediate.  The close-ratio gearbox has a precise and notchy feel almost like a gated shifter.  It works fantastically.  There is no grinding or slipping.  Getting into reverse can be a bit tricky, but once you’re used to it, it’s easy.  The brakes have a strong initial bite with no fading or pulling.  The car tracks straight and the handling is telepathic and precise.  The communication between the car and the driver is immediate.

Although the car is Arizona-registered, it’s easily registered and smog-exempt here in California.

This Porsche 911R comes with extra keys (2-ignition keys/1-door key), a 3-ring binder of recent build records/receipts, a special battery jump pack, and a jack.

**Note: VIN and other numbers withheld to protect against fraud.  All numbers including VIN, Engine, and color will be provided to serious buyers.