Porsche 911 Carrera 2.7

For Porschephiles, Carrera is a name that will be associated with the 911, as it has adorned the rump of every standard model for several years. However, this hasn’t always been the case, as it was once strongly associated with rare and special models. Porsche coined the phrase “Carrera” from their success in the famous Mexican road race, the Carrera Panamericana. “Carrera” in Spanish is “race,” and was initially a term used for their 4-cam racing engines, which had been so successful in this gruelling road race.

The Carrera name then went on to be placed on the back of the spiciest road-going Porsches: the 356 Carrera from the late 50s, and then the 911 Carrera from the ’70s. If you saw a 911 in the ’70s with Carrera on the back and bold script down the side, you knew it was a very special car, as it was in fact their top-performing model, held in high regard by drivers who knew their onions and motoring journalists alike.

When sales of the 911 were struggling in the mid-80s (hard to believe now), Porsche recognised the value of the Carrera badge, so when a revised 911 was launched in 1984, they called it the 911 Carrera, and the script remains on every standard 911 to this day.

If a 911 2.7 Carrera from the ’70s was still in production today, its equivalent would probably be the GT3 Touring. That reflects the regard the Carrera held in its day and attests to its special engine and lightweight components. Further testimony, still, is that it wasactually quicker on the road than a new standard 3.2 Carrera when launched a decade later. So, for the uninitiated, make no mistake: the 74 Carrera is a very special car and should not be confused with later lesser models.