Porsche 911 3.0 RS (1974)

To replace the highly revered and iconic 2.7 RS, a car with the countless successes and records to its name, Porsche had to push the bar ever higher. Having evolved the 2.7 RS to the motorsport-only 2.8 RSR specification through means of a homologation special to maintain the competitive edge, the 3.0 RS was launched the following year with the updated 3.0 powerplant and power up from 210 hp to 230 hp in the 3.0RS. The car received upgraded cylinder heads with larger inlet ports as well as a larger inlet and exhaust surfaces for the valve heads. To handle the increase in power, the crankcase material was upgraded from pressure-cast magnesium to the more durable die-cast aluminium alloy. With these upgrades in place, the competition 3.0 RSR specification was able to extract a further 100hp from the engine!

The chassis was ultimately an evolution of the 2.7, although stiffer from reinforced sway bars, an inch wider track all round and ventilated discs derived from the fierce Le Mans racing 917. The bodywork changes meant the 3.0RS stood apart from a 2.7. Elements of the 2.8RSR were introduced as well as some panelling from the G-series 911 introduced to production at the same time. To create a car, the chassis of a 2.7 was pulled from the production line ahead of being clothed by hand at Weissach. The bodywork, like that of a ‘first-500’ 2.7 was produced from thinner gauge 0.8mm steel. Front and rear valences were made from super lightweight glass-fibre and massive 8” and 9” Fuchs alloy wheels were fitted. The glass was lighter all around too meaning the 3.0 RS tipped the scales at just 900 kg. The trim was a la RSR with the full racing seats and lightweight materials.

Whilst the intended run of cars for the 2.7 RS had been just 500 examples, the success and demand meant that production ballooned to three times that, finally being capped at 1500 examples. The 3.0 RS, however, was produced in no such volume. Norbert Singer had found a loophole in the regulations meaning just 50 cars were needed to enter the car as an ‘evolution’ of the previous model. A description that can only be used in its very lightest sense! 55 road cars were produced before the production ceased with a further 51 produced to full RSR specification. It is important to understand that these 3-litre RS’s were very much ‘RSR’s for the road’, whereas the 2.7 litre was a hotted-up 911S. Everything on the car screams motorsport, from the aero package to the gearbox, which sports its own oil recirculation system using an oil cooler in the front wing. The cost of all of this was staggering and the 3 litre was double the price of the 2.7 car a year later!

Please note, this vehicle is no longer for sale.

Of the 55, just 6 examples were produced in right-hand drive. This example could claim to be the best-known and most revered of them all. It was ordered new by Lord Alexander Hesketh, proprietor of the eponymous Formula 1 team, for use by himself and his star driver, the late, great James Hunt. Delivered in light yellow (conveniently matching the famous Hesketh Racing teddy bear) with gold wheels and sidewinders, it was used by the pair to attend various Grand Prix during the 1974/75 seasons. The current owner vividly remembers watching the arrival of Hunt with supermodel girlfriend, Susie Miller in this very car at the 1975 British Grand Prix at Silverstone. A wonderful picture was printed in the Hesketh Team magazine of ‘Le Patron’ and James stopping at a handy chateau on their way to the French Grand Prix in 1974 – a week after the car was delivered to its, no doubt, excited new owner.

Lord Hesketh sold the car to Lord Bamford at the end of the 1975 season, where it formed part of his stupendous collection of cars for the next ten years. It has been in the care of very few long-term owners in the UK ever since and it is now offered from one of the world’s great car collections, where it has resided for the last ten years.

Presenting superbly, this matching numbers 3.0 RS is available to view at our showrooms outside London immediately, accompanied by its history file and original drivers supplement. The car has covered a mere 40,000 miles from new, and the engine has done less than 5000 miles since a full rebuild. The dyno sheet records that it produced 258 bhp at 6300 rpm – these 3 litre RS engines really were special, and the power quoted from them, ‘conservative’ to say the least, which is not an adjective that can be used to describe one of these great cars.

Statistics
1 of Just 55 Road Cars
1 of Just 6 RHD Examples
Weight: 900kg
Power: 230hp
Torque: 280 nm
0-60: 4.9 sec
80% More expensive than the 2.7 RS the previous year