- The last of the air-cooled 911 Turbos is bound to attract big money, and this even rarer S model certainly should.
- With bigger turbos and more boost than the standard version, it's the ultimate air-cooled Turbo.
- Only 176 of these cars were originally sold in U.S. spec.
Last week, a Ferrari 550 Maranello formerly owned by Michael Jordan cropped up for auction, which prompted a car-spotting rewatch of ESPN's The Last Dance documentary. Among the sweet rides seen on screen was a Guards Red Porsche 911 Turbo S, a connoisseur's choice made by His Airness.
Now, the near-twin to that car has turned up over at Bring A Trailer, which, like Car and Driver, is owned by Hearst Autos. It's a 1997 Porsche 911 Turbo S, and while it's not the one MJ drove, it looks like the bids it will fetch are going to go as sky-high as his dunks did. Could this 911 Turbo S hit a new record sale price for the breed?
If you're a non-Porschephile, spending this kind of money for a car that's occasionally mocked as the ultimate Volkswagen Beetle can seem a bit silly. However, Porsche's air-cooled era has been firing up the collector-car market for ages now, and there aren't any bargains left. The more exclusive the cars get, the bigger the price tag.
For something like the last-of-the-breed 993-chassis Turbo S, we're basically talking Kills Wallets Fast. Under 200 of these cars came to the U.S. market towards the tail-end of the air-cooled 911 era, and when they change hands, it's for big money.
This example is finished in classic Guards Red over a black leather interior, and it has 24,000 miles on the odometer. Its papers are all in order, with a Porsche Certificate of Authenticity, and despite the low mileage, it was thoroughly overhauled in 2023. Various perishable belts and seals were replaced at this time, and it's ready to hit the road.
The S designation saw some improvements over the standard Turbo model, with larger turbochargers and the supporting cooling and engine management adaptations to handle more boost. Power was up to 424 horsepower, delivered through a six-speed manual gearbox to all four wheels.
Arguably, there are more sport-oriented 911s than this if you're looking for a track-day car, but as an ultimate all-weather grand tourer, a Turbo S is about as good as it gets. Here, it's also a literal investment vehicle, the kind of car that's just not being built anymore. You could drive it sparingly, and the value would still go up.
Of course, first you'd have to pony up to buy in. At the time of writing, the high bid on this car is already at $650,000. Doing the math, that's enough to buy two modern 911 Turbo S models, and ones with plenty of options.
How high will things go? Judging by the initial interest, it seems like it won't only be Michael Jordan who is legendary for getting big air.
The auction ends September 18.
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Brendan McAleer is a freelance writer and photographer based in North Vancouver, B.C., Canada. He grew up splitting his knuckles on British automobiles, came of age in the golden era of Japanese sport-compact performance, and began writing about cars and people in 2008. His particular interest is the intersection between humanity and machinery, whether it is the racing career of Walter Cronkite or Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki's half-century obsession with the Citroën 2CV. He has taught both of his young daughters how to shift a manual transmission and is grateful for the excuse they provide to be perpetually buying Hot Wheels.
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