Benjamin David still has “new” Porsche 964s and 993s available

In Hamburg’s Wandsbek district, Benjamin David has created DAVID Finest Sports Cars, an address that is now internationally renowned in the Porsche world. What began as a sports car dealership is now a business with its own workshop and restoration department. Here, air-cooled Porsches in like-new condition are created for all those who value the charm of days gone by more highly than the technical superiority of modern sports cars.

During an exclusive look behind the scenes, Benjamin David explained to us why he now sees himself as an automotive “all-round caretaker” and why his “Jorge” project proves to him that the automotive future lies in rethinking old vehicles with today’s standards.

Benjamin David decided to take the rocky road

During his training as an automobile salesman, Benjamin David took a liking to sales early on. The path from the first conversation, leading to the search for a suitable vehicle, which finally climaxed in the moment when the wish became a car was what drove the typically North German, direct David. He sold new cars at the Porsche Center Hamburg for several years – until he asked himself whether this job would fulfill him in the long term.

At some point, I asked myself whether I wanted to do this for the next 40 years.

Benjamin David, DAVID Finest Sports Cars

At the end of 2016, Benjamin David decided to make a new start and set up his own business, DAVID Finest Sports Cars, initially as a one-man operation. David photographed the cars himself, took care of the preparation, registration and deregistration. “The first two years of self-employment were incredibly difficult. If I had known beforehand how difficult it would be, I probably wouldn’t have taken the plunge,” says the now 38-year-old. Ten years ago, the prices of classic Porsches were falling significantly and the risk was high.

The breakthrough came with the GT3 Touring

David achieved commercial success in 2018 by focusing on the smallest possible niche. At times, the Hamburg native specialized in a single model. “I was very lucky that the 911 GT3 Touring came onto the market in 2018. There was a brief phase in which cars in special colors were extremely popular. Due to what were certainly fortunate circumstances and perhaps a bit of hard work, I had eleven of them with us at one point,” recalls the entrepreneur.

People were writing in forums at the time: “If you want to buy or sell a car like this, go to David in Hamburg.

Benjamin David, DAVID Finest Sports Cars

Thanks to the focus on this one model, DAVID Finest Sports Cars grew rapidly. “At some point, I was so present in this small market segment that I was able to estimate fairly accurately: There’s about 220,000 euros for the alexa grey car, 211,000 for Brewster green, 207,000 for Irish green. that was the market then.”

“You take away people’s toys”

During this time, David also learned how demanding the sports car business is in terms of interpersonal relationships. “The sports car trade is very personal. If you want to buy a car from someone, you’re taking away people’s toys. You have to be empathetic.” Benjamin David makes a very interesting point here. After all, a Porsche is rarely just a car. It is a reward, a childhood dream, sometimes even a piece of life’s work. That’s why trust always comes first for the Hamburg businessman.

For this reason, DAVID Finest Sports Cars also operates a specialized workshop with a team of eight specialists. “Sales alone are not enough with these cars. Many models are already over 30 years old. There’s always something wrong with them,” says the self-confessed G-model fan. “By having our own workshop, we can ensure the quality of the vehicles on offer ourselves and thus protect the trust placed in us. We’d rather invest another 5,000 euros more and end up with the better car.”

The future lies in the past

The more Benjamin David became involved with special and air-cooled Porsche cars, the more one conviction came to the fore: for him, the most emotional cars do not necessarily come from the present day. “Modern 911s have become faster, safer and more capable in every discipline. The cars have become more perfect, but not necessarily more touching. Overbearing safety features, particulate filters and touchscreens have changed the sports car dramatically,” concludes the Hamburg native.

“Our cars are Porsche 964s and 993s. Many of our generation no longer have any real connection to the 356 or F-model. We like them, but they weren’t our dream cars,” says the Hamburg-based sports car expert, reflecting on the changing market situation. At the same time, many customers are no longer prepared to pay well over 200,000 euros for a new 911. “A customer once told me that he would have liked to have ordered a new 993 in 1997, but he was still too young back then. To be able to buy a car like that new today would be an absolute dream come true for him. That got me thinking,” David remembers today.

Speed is subjective. Many of our customers say to me: I don’t need 500 or 600 hp. I want a car that I enjoy driving. I want a car that lives.

Benjamin David, DAVID Finest Sports Cars

The entrepreneur then spoke intensively with service manager Oliver Bornhöft, authorized signatory Mirko Riekers and the workshop team led by Jan-Dustin Pohl. David sought advice from scene experts such as Thomas Nater from AP Car Design and forged a plan. “From our point of view, the best and most emotional cars have already been built. Even today, people still watch movies like Bad Boys just because of the 964 Turbo. So how can we make these old cars come alive again? By rebuilding them!” – Thus the idea was born to restore cars in such a way that the handover feels like picking up a new, air-cooled 911.

DAVID Finest Sports Cars’ listed Porsches on Elferspot

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Understatement is the top priority

Everyone in Hamburg quickly agreed that they wanted to take a typically northern German approach: “Companies such as Singer, Kaege and Gunther Werks already do an excellent job with backdates and restomods. We were therefore more interested in the question of how to stay as close as possible to the original visually, while modernizing the technology where it would benefit the experience,” says Benjamin David, summarizing the philosophy.

I don’t want people to immediately recognize that it’s a completely rebuilt car. We think about what can be improved without it being obvious. Because that’s actually what we northern Germans are known for: Understatement.

Benjamin David, DAVID Finest Sports Cars

The lines of the original model remain untouched in DAVID Finest Sports Cars projects. Technically, however, the Hamburg-based company allows itself and its customers a certain amount of freedom. “We want to enable customers to equip their car with everything that would have been possible with Porsche Exclusive in the past – and a little bit more. However, it should not be visible from the outside,” emphasizes Benjamin David.

Porsche 964 Carrera 2

1992

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Jorge, the first Porsche restored by DAVID Finest Sports Cars, is like a best-of 964

DFSC, as the company is called in short, recently completed its first project of this kind, codenamed Jorge. At first glance, Jorge does not look like a radical conversion. And that is precisely the intention. Only true Porsche connoisseurs will notice the changes to the Porsche 964 Carrera 2 built in 1992. The Jet Green Metallic exterior color was not available until the end of the 2000s. David’s first project also features the air intakes of the 964 Carrera RS in the front bumper, the RS rear bumper and its thin glass rear window.

To give Jorge’s interior a slightly sportier touch, David’s team once again drew on the 964 Carrera RS. Door panels, Recaro Pole Position seats and the Porsche Classic Performance steering wheel with 12 o’clock markings underline the philosophy. The interior is finished in tasteful bi-color leather upholstery in bottle green and black. All these refinements make Jorge a kind of best-of of the entire Porsche 964 series.

The still 3.6-liter boxer engine was given modified camshafts, larger intake valves and a suitable tuning. Output increased from 250 to 313 hp. Thanks to a lighter flywheel, it also revs up more spontaneously and sounds throatier than the standard unit thanks to the Cup car pipe. Deceleration is provided by a large 993 Turbo brake system at the front and 964 RS brakes at the rear. David and his team opted for a KW V3 suspension with hydraulic lift system so as not to risk any bottoming out on the sometimes poor roads of South Tyrol – where the future owner lives – without having to sacrifice sporty directness.

DAVID Finest Sports Cars plans to deliver three to four “new” Porsche 964s or 993s per year in future

However, the real quality of Jorge lies not in the sum of its parts, but in emphasizing its original identity. “We’re not interested in reinterpreting an air-cooled 911 or changing its character. People want the typical sound when they close the door. What they don’t want is to drive through the Hamburg fish market on a Sunday and it rattles. Anyone who picks up a 964 that we have built should get the feeling of the past, but with the quality of today,” summarizes David.

The last ten percent costs fifty percent. We adjust the chassis using wheel load scales, adapt the insulation in the interior using modern materials – and as long as we are not completely satisfied, the car won’t be delivered.

Benjamin David, DAVID Finest Sports Cars

Jorge is not just a feasibility study. Everything is designed to ensure that this 964 Carrera 2 can be used every day. “These cars are meant to drive. Our idea is not to ‘buy and put away’, but to offer the maximum driving experience.” In future, Benjamin David would like to realize three to four such projects per year. The next one is already being planned: “A Porsche 993 in dark green with a brown interior and really everything that would have been theoretically feasible at Porsche Exclusive at the end of the 1990s,” the boss lets us know.

Photos: Tobias Barton for DAVID Finest Sports Cars