This car was likely built for the US market.
Many exotic cars were on display at this year’s Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este ( see related links block below). One of these was the Porsche 959 model, which is quite rare. This car is also rarer because it was made in a limited run of 29.
Automotive Mike was at the location to film one those 29 cars. This red Porsche 959 has only 542 miles on it’s original odometer. This Porsche 959 comes from the Sport specification. It was originally built in an unsuccessful attempt to bring the supercar to America during the second half 1980s. The vehicle looks brand new and is in impeccable condition.
The 959 was the first production car to be launched in the world. The 959 was capable of traveling 197 mph (317 km/h), with some modifications achieving 211 mph (339 KPH). These are impressive numbers, even by modern standards. It was the world’s most technologically advanced vehicle, thanks to its twin-turbocharged engine as well as other advanced solutions.
The 959, which was the predecessor of all future Porsche flagship cars, was the first performance car to have an all-wheel drive. The Stuttgart-based automaker was able to pioneer the use of all-wheel drive as a standard feature on its 911 Turbo models. It also introduced twin-turbo technology in future Porsche production cars.
Porsche tried to import the 959 to America in the 1980s but decided to not design safety features that would meet the safety standards of the NHTSA. Only a handful of examples were exported to America, and their owners had pay storage fees to keep them within the so-called Foreign Trade Zones.
As the 959 was considered important for car culture, legal registration was allowed by the Show and Display law in 1999. All 959 examples produced are over 25 years of age and can now be registered in the United States.