Rare Porsche 911 Cabriolet Expected to Fetch $1 Million
Headed to Auction in 2017, ‘901’ is First 911 Convertible Ever Made and One of Only Two Remaining in the World
Porsche’s 911 Cabriolet — accurately called the 901 — speaks a lot about Porsche’s vision of the future. It is a company, like many others, that occasionally will gauge public interest with concept cars. Unlike other (Italian) auto manufacturers, the company doesn’t come out with wild and futuristic concepts, but rather with cars that come off as production-ready.
This 911 Cabriolet is a perfect example. It debuted in 1964, sitting proudly along side it’s closed roof counterpart. Filling the shoes of the outgoing 356, this 911 would be the new sports car in Porsche’s lineup, but the timing was not right for a cabriolet. U.S. safety regulations were making it quite difficult to produce and sell a convertible, and that would eat into a heavy chunk of Porsche’s sales. Porsche soon realized the convertible was simply becoming too complicated to produce. Thirteen rag-top 911s test mules were made before the idea was ultimately scrapped. Porsche’s iconic Targa models would take the place of a proper convertible for a number of years.
Chassis number 13360, the car you see here, is known to be the second-oldest 911 in existence. More importantly, it is the very first convertible 911 ever made. Even though the Karmann-designed sports car never reached production, it did serve as a template for the future Targa models. This car’s provenance, as one of the rarest Porsches ever, is undisputed.
Now, Road & Track reports that this rare gem is hitting the auction block early next year. The completely un-restored 901 is expected to fetch $1 million. Sotheby’s is the host of the auction, which takes place in France on Feb. 8. We look forward to seeing what it will ultimately go for.
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