Porsche 993 and 911SC page

Chris's Porsche Page

1963 was a good year

In September 1963, at the Frankfurt International Auto Show, Porsche introduced a new and unique car - a car that was to destined to become an automotive icon, The Porsche 911 - three months later I was born.....

Impressionable Youth

The Porsche bug bit me at an early age, my father had a 1955 Continental cabriolet (after much discussion and a little more research I found that the Contintental badged cars which came to US were mechanically Pre-A 356 models even though the first 356A's appeared in 1955) it was well driven (and missing the front bumper) and my father sold it to a couple of University of Miami students for $500 dollars. The family always had many types of VW's: bugs, transporters, fastbacks, even a dune buggy. For years I thought all cars had rear mounted, air-cooled engines !

A 1955 356 Cabriolet

Another 1955 356 Cabriolet

Yet another 1955 356 Cabriolet

Miami, Florida in the late 1960's - My Sister and I - Grandma and Mom - Cocoanut palms in the front yard,
You gotta be careful where you park !!

My family also rented a room to a guy going to medical school, he had a race car that my sister and I used to sit and play in. After seeing pictures of this car years later, I realized that I had been playing in what is probably a type 718 RSK Spyder, or maybe an RS60 - I can recall holding the thin steering wheel, shifting the spindly gearshift, and climbing on the tube frame ! I wonder where this car is now ???

Porsche Race car

718 RSK

Me and my sister , and a car I wish I owned today !
(the other girl in the linked picture is my other MUCH younger sister)
(Note the Miami Dolphins shirt with the number 12 - remember that guy ??)

Other Cars ...

From the age's of 16 to 24 I owned a myriad of other automobiles (term used loosely in some cases) - My first car was a Dodge Colt GT, this is the car that I learned about blown headgaskets, slipped timing chains, bondo, and received my first speeding ticket in. Later I owned a Karmann Ghia, an MG Midget, a Chevy Monza (with a small block V8), an assortment of Datsuns and Nissans, and the one and only new car I ever purchased, a 1987 Chrysler Conquest TSi. All of these cars taught me a lot about working on cars and driving (especially the MG, what a nightmare, almost all the photos have of it the hood is open). Other Cars

There is NO Substitute

I remember my first ride in a friends 911S on University Blvd, near the University of Central Florida. We hit about 125 mph with the sunroof open - I felt like if I hadn't had my seatbelt on I would have been sucked out the roof. I was totally blown away by the solid ride and smooth power delivery - with this ride my latent Porsche gene was fully activated and I started shopping for a 911, I read all the books and test drove a couple of 2.7 litre cars, it wasn't a question of if... it was when. And when finally happened in 1988, a 1983 911SC Targa that was owned by a disgruntled former Corvette owner (and used car salesman) who had wanted something different and was NOT a Porsche type of guy, I was more than happy to dump my DSM turbo rice burner and relieve him of the burden of Porsche ownership :-)

At last... A 911 of my own...

1983 Porsche 911SC Targa

When I purchased the car it had 64K miles on it - A typical 1983 911SC Targa with a genuine Turbo "Whale Tail" and front chin spoiler. The car is a very rare color, in fact it is Mercedes Benz Glacier Blue, The color is very light blue with a tint of green similar to the original Crest Toothpaste color. The interior is tastefully done in dark blue leather and complements the body color nicely.

About a month after I had the car the transmission self destructed on A1A in Cocoa Beach - apparently the previous owner (most likely the aforementioned Corvette driver) didn't know how to shift properly. I decided to jump right in and removed my engine and transmission and carried the 915 tranny to a local Porsche shop. The first gear synchro had 1 tooth left on it and the second gear synchro had 5. $800 dollars later my car was shifting like...well like a 911.

At 227K miles I had the motor rebuilt - new rings, valves, valve guides, heads cleaned up, new main bearings etc.. about $1300 parts and labor. The car now has over 320K and is still going strong - German engineering is truly awsome...It may even be a conspiracy...

World Domination

And...A 1995 Carrera finds a new home. ..

Somehow in late 2001 I convinced my wife that I needed a replacement car (could be I was whining about not having working A/C in the 911SC) and Lady Luck saw fit to present me with a golden opportunity to purchase a 1995 Carrera Coupe on E-Bay.

A really black 993 Coupe

THE END

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