Porsche 930 Turbo review

‘Exclusive. Explosive. Expensive.’ So ran Porsche marketing material for the 911 Turbo during its Seventies introduction. In 1975, it’d set you back a mite over £15,000 in Great Britain before options, which made it 50 per cent pricier than an average home. Mind, the tables have turned and the 911 is now the comparative bargain. The average UK house price is now well over £250,000, which is more than enough to buy a low-mileage 930 Turbo. Or a modern-day 992 Turbo S with a reckless run through the options list.

That's a simplified way of demonstrating which way the Turbo has gone in Porsche’s range across its eight generations; from its wildest slice of exotica to something a mite more affordable and useable. Perhaps the halo position is now better occupied by Porsche Motorsport models like the GT3 RS and scintillating new 911 S/T, ironically the only 911s now sold without turbochargers.

I want to buy the classic!

Make sure you’re not doing so solely as a driving machine. If you crave on-road thrills at accessible speeds you’re better off with a more modern 911. But this is an icon and if you love the looks and don’t mind your forays into its true potency being prudent and infrequent, then what a car to add to your collection.

It’s safe to say you need to set aside a bit of time to properly inspect and drive any car(s) you plan to buy. These count as proper investments now and you’ll want to know which bills lie around the corner if you’re perusing the cheaper end of the market. Mind, ‘cheap’ here means a £100,000 entry point for an example wearing over 100,000 miles. Feel free to ignore anything that looks shabby or needs big resto work – this is a special car and they should have all been looked after.

Most sit somewhere between £100,000 and £200,000. Turbos made between 1975 and ’78 have the early 3.0-litre engine and are the true collector’s items. A boost gauge, larger 16in wheels and stronger brakes arrived in ’77. Most in the classifieds will have been registered between ’78 and ’88 and thus use a larger 3.3-litre engine with another 40bhp, though still allied to a four-speed gearbox. Greater potency calls for their new ‘tea tray’ rear spoiler rather than the original whale tail.

Later models allowed you to combine turbo power with Targa and Cabriolet bodies, while the final year of production, 1989, saw a five-speed manual with slicker synchromesh introduced. It’ll give a dash of modernity to operating the car at all speeds.

Any other tips?

All right-hand-drive cars came with zinc panels and lengthy anti-corrosion warranties when new, but minor accidents or clumsy resto jobs could have led to rust in the years since. So have a thorough look in every nook and cranny – or pay an expert to get their hands dirty on your behalf. Indeed, employing a specialist to properly wade into the history of any example is likely money well spent.

A quarter of a million upwards is where the rarer Turbo specials appear. Koenig and pop-up lamp Flachbau (Flatnose) models can command up to half a million pounds, at least in classified list price alone. Don’t just pay it because they’re asking, though we can understand the appeal of something that looks less like every other 911 at this sort of outlay.