1988 Porsche 911 Turbo 3.3

Model history

It is easy to forget quite how radical Porsche’s 911 Turbo was when it was first produced. A direct product of the experimentation going on in Porsche’s racing programme, it was one of the very first applications of turbocharging in a road car. Faster accelerating than anything Ferrari or Lamborghini could produce at the time, it remained completely usable as an everyday car.

In 1978, Porsche increased the displacement of the turbo engine from 3.0L to 3.3L pushing the performance to 300 bhp at 5,500 rpm and 304 ft lbs at 4,000 rpm allowing the car to accelerate to 60 mph from a standstill in 5.4 seconds and take it to a top speed of 160 mph.

Forty years on, advances in electronics mean that most drivers would be hard pressed to tell whether a Porsche was turbocharged or not. In our view that’s a shame. Sure, the early cars suffer from turbo lag but that’s what makes them so engaging to drive. Docile at part throttle, they totally change character on-boost and deliver a great shove of torque from the middle of the rev range right up to the red line. They are cars that reward being driven well and with respect.

This car

Chassis WP0ZZZ93ZJS000516 is a matching numbers UK market car that was specified in Marine Blue Metallic over Venetian Blue leather interior with heated sports seats and electric sunroof.

The car has been continually serviced by specialists in the south of England as documented in the history file. More recently, the car has benefitted from extensive mechanical work including a full engine and gearbox rebuild. With the help of Paragon Porsche and BS Motorsport, the car has received a quick spool K27 turbo upgrade which reduces the turbo lag and hits harder when on boost, increasing peak power to 400 bhp.