Recreation/Replica

The vehicle in detail

It’s lightweight and very raw. Enter via the tiny door and fold your frame into the sparse, tubular cockpit. Buckle yourself into the slender seats and grip the banjo style steering wheel. Depress the start button and the mid-rear mounted engine fires into life with an ear drum-busting bark from the single exit exhaust. This is no toy; this is authentic seat-of-your-pants theatre.

This is one of 3 alloy bodied examples from the workshop of ‘Outlaw 718’ Paul Foreman. A tubular chassis, enveloped in hand-crafted aluminium bodywork, produced the old-fashioned way with an English wheel over a wooden buck by concours award winning coachbuilders Ashley & James.

The 914 1.7 litre air cooled 4 cylinder was rebuilt and bored out to 2.1 litres, breathing through a pair of Dellorto carbs and converted to upright cooling for authenticity and more room in the engine bay. Drive is sent to the rear wheels via a 914 side-shift 5-speed ‘box.

The incredible power-to-weight ratio (approx. 130 hp to 650 kg) echoes the performance of the original ‘Giant Killer’ racing Spyders, which famously humbled far more powerful Mercedes, Ferrari, and Maserati of the time.

Finished in period correct French blue, it pays tribute to the lightweight Porsche 550 RS customer Spyders delivered new to France in mid-1955.

Figures suggest just 90 examples of the ‘real thing’ were built. Many were destroyed during their racing careers, pushing the values of those remaining to eye-watering auction figures of £2-£5 million. And whilst this recreation isn’t the cheapest, it’s certainly not a huge ask for a hand-built car of this quality.

Currently UK registered (with a 550-style number plate) and supplied with a colour-matched Pacto Carrera vintage racing helmet.

Odometer reads: 00333 km