Steve McQueen's 1970 Porsche 911S available for purchase
 

No affiliation, just a 'heads up' for anyone in the market for the most famous Porsche street car (un-wrecked). Too bad it's a respray:

http://www.rmauctions.com/FeatureCar...arID=r105&fc=0

Estimate:
$950,000-$1,350,000 US
AUCTION DATE:
To be auctioned on
Friday, August 19, 2011
200 DIN horsepower @ 6,500 rpm, 7,300 rpm redline, 2,195 cc / 133.9 cubic inch horizontally opposed six-cylinder engine, five-speed manual transmission, independent front and rear suspension. Wheelbase: 102.4" [WRONG. 89.3 in is correct]

- Delivered new to Steve McQueen on the set of the iconic motorsport movie Le Mans
- Built to the highest available specification offered by Porsche for street models
- Invoiced and assigned by the Property Master for use during filming and for McQueen’s personal use
- Four owners from new, including McQueen’s personal collection in California
- Excellent in highly original preserved condition
- Well documented with invoices and correspondence corroborating absolute authenticity

For the first three minutes and 40 seconds, Steve McQueen isn’t the only star of the 1971 film Le Mans. The steely-eyed McQueen’s co-star for the film’s memorable opening scenes is a Slate Gray 1970 Porsche 911S. This magnetic pair opens the film in convincing fashion, and the tranquil images of McQueen driving the snarling 911 through the bucolic French countryside, contemplating the complex and shifting equations of life and death in competition, are in stark contrast to the racing action that would follow.

Le Mans

Indeed, this film, for all its production challenges and cutting edge, budget-busting production hurdles, is considered by most motoring enthusiasts as the best racing motion picture ever filmed, joined perhaps only by James Garner’s Grand Prix. It is a film that not only allowed Steve McQueen to exercise his creative potential on his life’s foremost passion but, from a cinematic standpoint, also accurately depicted the era, the dangers of endurance racing and the magic of Circuit de La Sarthe in the French countryside, to which the American moviegoer had heretofore never been exposed. McQueen’s expressive face and limited dialogue practically play a supporting role to the visceral, high-revving wails of Porsche 917s and Ferrari 512s as they speed through sun and rain, night and day, cheating death on the 240-mph Mulsanne Straight to claim victory in the historic “24 Heures du Mans.” Such was the importance of this film, with all its real-life footage, that in the car collecting hobby, virtually any item associated with Steve McQueen – and more specifically his major films, Le Mans included – attract tremendous attention, and rightfully so. Be it something as small as the attractive Heuer Monaco wrist watch his character wore or as significant as the 917 (chassis 022) he drove, liveried in iconic Gulf Oil colors, there are certain images of motoring that are at once uniquely “McQueen” and perpetually desirable. The 917, incidentally, was sold at RM’s Monterey auction in 2000 and is now presently owned by none other than Jerry Seinfeld.

McQueen’s Ownership

In Hollywood, few celebrities have ever amassed a car, motorcycle and airplane collection as impressive as that of Steve McQueen. Be it a Porsche 356 Speedster, a Jaguar XK-SS, a Ferrari 250 GT Lusso Berlinetta or even a host of Von Dutch customized utility vehicles, his cars are not only legendary and highly valuable but have also been extensively written about.

Porsche’s Slate Gray was a particular favorite, as he owned several Porsches in this color. The car we have the pleasure of offering here, which figures so prominently in Le Mans, was similar to a 911S McQueen already had at home, which was the same model and color but just one year older. It was likely easier, however, to acquire another car in Europe than ship his own 1969 911S twice across the Atlantic. It is also quite plausible that Porsche, which was involved in the production of Le Mans, wanted him to showcase its latest model. The car seen in the memorable opening sequences, and in several other scenes, was invoiced to Solar Productions on June 1, 1970. It was a more heavily optioned car than McQueen’s own ’69 model, including rare factory-installed air-conditioning, muffler apron, tinted glass, a Blaupunkt Frankfurt radio, the Comfort Group (which includes leather upholstery and other interior upgrades) and front fog lamps with the then-required-in-France yellow lenses. The total cost of this machine, which was the top of the 911 street machine range in 1970 with a significant horsepower increase over the base model, cost just over 30,000 DM, or $8,338.61 to be exact, a princely sum at the time.

According to a letter from Porsche, “The car was driven as is directly to Le Mans by our people, for use by Steve and the Solar Productions crew. At a later date, the car was returned to our repair shop for modifications,” which included the installation of a limited-slip differential and revised gear ratios.

After its starring role in McQueen’s motorsport magnum opus, during which time it was extensively photographed on the movie set in France, with McQueen always near it or aboard, the car was shipped home to Los Angeles in January 1971. Sometime later, McQueen elected to sell this one instead of his ’69. There is no clear reason why he chose one over the other, but it is widely believed that he already had installed an upgraded and costly stereo system in his first car. The Le Mans car was advertised in the Los Angeles Times and was purchased by an L.A.-based attorney. He kept the car, largely in secret, for more than three decades, during which time he documented virtually everything about the car, as letters from Solar Productions and Porsche attest. Another Southern California resident, Judge Jesse Rodriquez, then purchased it in April 2005, who has since sold it on to its current owner, a noted Porsche collector in his own right.

Other than one repaint in the factory color, reupholstered front seats, new shock absorbers and a fresh windshield, it is completely original. The engine and transmission are original with all numbers matching, and the car has never suffered any rust or accident damage – a wonderful example of preservation versus restoration. It wears its original, and correctly sized, factory-installed Fuchs alloy wheels, and the odometer currently indicates less than 12,400 miles. (Total mileage is believed to be around 112,400 from new.) The car has been freshly serviced and detailed, drives on the button and has been the subject of many recent magazine stories.

The ’70 “S” was viewed as such an impressive performer in its time that it was routinely compared, by contemporary magazine road testers, with the Ferrari 246 Dino and other high-end exotics. The 911, itself a successor to the wildly popular 356, entered production for 1964 and took the racing world by storm. The “S” variant was the first high performance version for the street and engendered a long line of pavement-pounding Nürburgring weapons to come, including the road-going Carreras, RS and RSRs, as well as of course the iconic Turbo.

An Opportunity Not to be Missed

It is rare that we are able to offer a machine so impressive on at least three different levels. Early, chrome bumper 911Ss have become extremely valuable and are prized and much sought after by Porsche aficionados the world over. Second, this car comes with an impressive file of original documentation, including letters from the Porsche factory, plus the original invoice and numerous documents authored and signed by McQueen himself. Finally, this car’s incomparable Hollywood movie and ownership provenance make it that much more an historic proposition. Steve McQueen, who passed away in 1980, was not only Hollywood’s highest paid actor with such films as Papillon, The Great Escape, The Thomas Crown Affair, Bullitt and of course Le Mans to his credit, but he was also a truly talented and highly successful racing driver on sand, road, track and everything in between. Furthermore, his reputation as the “King of Cool” – the composed anti-hero who frequently performed his own stunts – has made him a pop culture icon of Elvis Presley proportions who not only inspires Hollywood actors to this day but everything from new production cars (consider the “Bullitt Edition” Ford Mustang) and movie remakes (The Thomas Crown Affair) to fashion magazines that use his likeness to tout a turtleneck, desert boots and Persol sunglasses as the quintessentially American “look.” It is this type of attraction that renders this car quite possibly the world’s best known, most significant non-racing Porsche 911.

Is it the most charismatic Porsche ever? Absolutely. It played a leading role among the to-die-for machinery in Le Mans, to many the ultimate motor racing film. Driven in the movie by its real life owner, the undisputed King of Cool Steve McQueen, it is hard to imagine another car with such glamorous, exceptional and meticulously documented provenance.

I don't see it fetch even half that estimate and anyway, I'd rather have a 70/71 2.2 Targa version.

http://www.pocg.eu/pages/historie/Mo...rie/bild_1.jpg

If someone put a gun to my head and forced me to buy a targa, I would get the 993 targa. The original 901 roof line is sacrosanct, IMO.

Targa 911
 

Seen your thread on Steve mcQeen although I like the Targa and owed a 914 2.0L(poor man's Porsche) I prefer his stearman. I remembered it when I worked at the Santa Paula Airport in Ca. I even detailed it, but that was 6yrs after his death. Anyways nice thread

defo the better looking Porsche of all times :-) chromed frames and bits made it SO sexy!

Ha ha! Back in the day, pre-digital, cars had mechanical odometers which showed 5 full numerals (and a couple past the decimal point) which meant that 99,999.99 miles was the largest mileage you would ever see displayed. Going on past that was rare back then as metallurgy, lubrication and machining weren't as advanced as they are now - and getting past the magic 99,999 was known as going around the clock.

So here we go:
Old sports car, shagged out - once property of film star, even more shagged out. One million quid or near offer. Rich fools only need apply.

That car would look so cool with 22 inch wheels and spinny things on the hubs. :D

I've had a soft spot for Porches all my life. I'm just not that soft to pay that much for one, and it eems like an awful lot of money to spend to scratch an itch. She is a beauty though, and I'd absolutely love to take her for a ride.

My childhood neighbor had a beauteous 911, and he never took care of it. At the time I didn't have a license so purchasing it wasn't much of an option for me and by the time I did it was virtually worthless. What a waste.

oh the blasphemy!! :shock:

There should be a law against pimping old cars or turning them into hot-rods lol

what a beautiful cars...
unfortunately
i've got this yaris t-sport

exactly the same with the same engine modifications

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3eLZ...eature=related

I'm more of an american muscle car kind of guy, but it's tough not to love the old 911's. There's one sitting at a dealer I pass by regularly that has had a whale tail added and a new nose with square headlights in the airdam .........hideous. I like 'em as God intended.

Very nice...

Now where can i get that loan?

LOL. I hear you. I agree, though I do like a good teasing once in a while. I remember seeing a 69 Vette on an F 250 truck frame. It had monster truck wheels and a light bar on top. God killed a few kittens the day that car was finished. Talk about REDNECK! It made the General Lee look urban.

I'm faithful to the Italian tradition of motoring, and push an Alfa Romeo Brera, a beefy 2.4lt 5 pots diesel which had a bit of reworking and now develops 265hp and enough torque to move a mountain!

mine is the same as this:

http://www.seriouswheels.com/pics-20...p-1280x960.jpg

Reassuringly typical, in that it looks simply divine yet is absurdly poorly packaged and disappointing to drive. It's exasperating that Alfa can't seem to nail this stuff.

http://www.topgear.com/uk/alfa-romeo/brera

What's that front-mounted smelly diesel burning water heater doing in a thread about the most brilliantly engineered, elegant and successful Sports-GT in history??

Lol, points of view man, you should try mine first, the stock car needs some tweaking with suspensions and remapping, and diesel engines might not sound exciting (mine actually does, the overrun is fantastic!), but have SO much torque and are way more reliable than petrol engines.. 0-60 in 5.8 and top speed in excess of 140mph. As for your beloved Top Gear, they destroyed a 911 some years ago..

To me a car is not just about performance, the looks (or "head-turning factor" as my friend says) are more important, but if I wanted a performing car I'd rather buy me a Nissan GT-R or an Ariel Atom, which both kick the rear end of ANY Porsche for less than half the price.. uh, and honestly, Porsche's look is appalling, nothing more than a "beefed up Beetle" ;)

Unlike Alfa Romeo, Porsche is a (pretentious) brand statement, which doesn't seem to excel neither in looks or performance (or better, performance/price balance). At least Alfas look cool ;)

One thing is for sure though: if Porsche had the Alfa Romeo designers, or Alfa Romeo had the Porsche engineers, we wouldn't need to walk anymore..

Ah, Italian cars...beautiful to look at and great to drive...when not in the workshops! ;-)

I'll stick with German engineering personally.

Top Gear is fun to watch, personally I love it as an enterntainment show, but if I was buying a car I wouldn't take Clarkson's advice, that's for sure. I mean, what does he really know about cars when you think about it? I like the guy, but he's just an entertainer.

Now Tiff Needell, rather boring as he may be sometimes, actually knows his stuff.

lol true man (although it's way better than it used to be), it's all about feeling, and frankly nothing makes me feel better than driving an Italian car like this. IMHO German cars have no soul, they're cold machines, but then again, each to their own I say ;)


Indeed, Clarkson is a clown, but a funny guy nonetheless :)

When it comes to cars I personally stick to what I feel right, not what they say on a magazine or a TV show: heck, I bought a 1965 Ford Mustang 5 years ago, it doesn't drive very well, it's not super fast, but man, what a noise, what a fantastic look.. to me cars are about emotions, not just performance!

Clarkson is a bit of a Tool...Top Gear bores the shyte out of me with its scripted banter...has some good rides but even thats not enough to temp me watching it

Porshe (Turbo) are great cars. You can't figure what's in there beyond the brand and the blond guys with sunny glasses overreving the engine at traffic lights unless you just drive one (turbo).

But 1M$ for a 60's regular model just because some Steve put his butt inside...Is that a Women or gays only auction ?!! :confused:

By the way I hve never seen this movie. A thing I hve to do right now it seems

Regarding movies :
- Bullit
- Vanishing Point and
- Gone in 60 sec (original)
what your favorite ?

Well, German cars have soul but nothing like Italian cars I agree. I actually have a lot of time for Alfas...when I was a teen my mother owned three in succession and a family friend of ours is a lifelong Alfa fan, so I do understand what they're all about. I was just tweaking your nose a little. :-P

I would love a '65 Mustang! To me, there is very little to beat the sound of an American V8, either small block or big block. I just love 'em. I once tried restoring a '68 Camaro, but I lost the energy, time, money and patience to see it through.

One day, money permitting, I'd love to try and restore another muscle car. But we'll see.

Hard to say...I haven't really seen too many car movies. Blasphemy I know, but I never did see either Bullit or Vanishing Point. :| (Actually, I think I'll get these from Amazon tomorrow.)

I liked Duel, but that wasn't really a car movie. I enjoyed the first Fast and the Furious, but that got old very quickly with stupid sequels. Biker Boyz was complete rubbish.
Christine wasn't a car movie either (great movie though) so...I'm actually quite stumped!

I think best car movies ever made are Grand Prix and Le mans :cool:

Yeah the fast and furious as gone strange with retarded scenario and Il2ish physics. But still I hve seen each one of the episode. :oops:

Christine was great too. It had for long haunted my teenage dreams (the Plymouth not the girl ;-) )

But my choice of title was more in concordance of the 60's although they are still among the greatest movies I hve seen

What about Knight Rider..:-P

LOL

I recently got both Blu Rays of Grand Prix and Le Mans.....never gets old,just love those movies....can't wait to see Senna

I would love to see your pretty Italian kettle keeping up with my old "beefed up Beetle" for a day of flat out driving on the track. The clouds of steam and smoke from your radiator and brakes after a couple hours would be most entertaining :-D

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6.../993-track.jpg

LOL! Let's try to be respectful guys, and remember we're talking about another man's religion here.

I remember fitting keys to a Lamborghini that Mike Tyson owned, Everything inside the cockpit was broken! I mean it was a disaster. I guess it just wasn't up to a brute like that. While I love to look at Italian cars, I just hate working on them. I think we should make a deal and let the Italians concentrate on food and wine (and the French for that matter) and let the Germans and us Yanks concentrate on the rolling stock.

Of course I'm a little prejudiced.

Steve McQueen ? State of the art, made in Germany 2011.....

http://bilder.bild.de/fotos-skaliert...h=343.bild.jpg

http://bilder.bild.de/fotos-skaliert...h=343.bild.jpg

Six-cylinder boxer engine, 3,4l cubic capacity with 350 HP.... http://www.german-freelancer-club.de.../iconos/25.png

Did you get to meet him?

Well I just ordered Bullit and Vanishing Point, and threw in The Great Escape as a bonus. :cool: I haven't seen that one in many years.

Typical Porsche mentality, you think you drive the best of what's around :rolleyes:

Diesel engines have been kicking all kinds of ar$e and winning in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, I wouldn't go there in terms of endurance.. As for the brakes, I have upgraded performance brakes installed on mine, I'm sure it would cope just fine.. mine's not a rear wheel drive, but you appreciate that on a long track day you don't necessarily need that..

Porsche drivers are no different than other petrolheads, the delusional aspect is that they really think they drive the best cars in the world. Truth is that there are better performing, better looking and above all cheaper cars on the market, so get over it, Porsche is overrated.

So yes, I reckon my car would cope just fine on a track day, and in the end you'd still be driving a butt ugly car ;)

there's something about Alfa that you can't really explain unless you owned one: there's a sense of happening, a spirit that is unrivalled.

yeah, it's a great car, but then again, it's a motoring statement more than a performer, and man it drinks like a fish..

Seems we will not see you on any server for a couple of days ;-) . You'd better ask the wife to keep the remote with her to prevent you from abusing the <replay> button (on the remote).

IMHO I think any diesel powered private cars is an absurdity. And really I know what I mean. But Alpha are great cars and nervous enough for European roads although I found by experience that the quoted 265hp does not seems to help the car to lift off that much.

Here is quick comparison btw an old Eu model and the new Breda (3.2/260) http://www.zeperfs.com/duel2555-339.htm

Hve a look at the Power per weight value and the accel value even if the table quote a coupe vs a 5 door saloon . You can have such a Saab for 3k€ on the used market. I have ever wondered what has happened to Saab that their model were so poorly low rated by the press Automag (that lead us to the TopGear discussion)

Oh the fittings and interior are comparable that's why I choose this contender for the test.

But for sure the Alpha are more sexy ;-)

that chart is somehow wrong, the stock 3.2 V6 does 0-100km in 6.5 secs, not 8secs.

Diesel can be an absurdity here in the UK where it's more expensive than petrol, but diesel engines are way more reliable than petrol ones and require less maintenance. A Euro5 diesel causes less pollution than petrol, and the consumptions are way better. I average 36mpg on my big engine, which is unrivalled.

The prob is not in carbon consumption or with the price of a gallon but with particles and Nox emission witch directly arms ppl and degrade the ozone layer. This is a well known fact since 1996/2001 era. There is nothing you can do against it unless keeping optimizing the regime what is not compatible with a private car that constantly revs up or down.

Regarding the spec stated, this website choose to quote only the low range of perf stated in the press. The Saab is also faster (at least the coupe as I knew it) with a perf in the 6sec range for 0 to 60mph.

ah ok, it was a bit deceiving cos it mentioned the 3.2 engine :-)

Is the Saab RWD?

neg


@baronWastelan : the car looks great ! Is that a stock intake under the front bumper?

Thank you, yes everything you see on the car (base Carrera) is as it was built in 1996 (MY97), except the ride height was lowered to European RS spec when I had the M030 sport suspension package installed. Also the previous owner had the windows tinted and I added the transponder on the windscreen :-P

OK one other thing I changed was I painted the black headlight washers silver with some silver touch-up paint from the corner auto parts store. :grin:

A 1997 Carrera S spotted in Moscow!! Same color and same Porsche 18" Technology wheels as on mine. You can tell by the metal valve stems and caps. The spokes are hollow, can you believe it? Super strong and light, aircraft grade really.

http://s2.images.drive2.ru/car.photo...d925-large.jpg

The consensus among the Porsche Aristocracy (993 owners), is that the 991 is the worthy successor to the 993. Well done Porsche!!

http://files.porsche.com/filestore.a...zoom&version=1

I'm going to risk being run off. I was a mechanic in a Mercedez dealership as a young man. A collector had just bought Clark Gable's gullwing Mercedez and wanted some door handles slapped onto it so he could drop the car into his car museum. Our service manager yells out to our smart-assed, red headed mechanic, Chris, a ham by all measures, who grins all the way up to the service desk, grabs the service clipboard, and saunters back through all of us out to the car while purring: "Well, look who got the assignment. Couldn't have picked a better guy."

A minute later, this classic car rumbles in, a bit of grind in the tranny, a hint of blue smoke from the pipe. Then--CRUNCH--as Chris drives the car onto his lift.

We break into loud applause.

Now, the collector has a car with nice, new door handles, a noisy tranny, a smoky engine...

and a bent belly pan.