Aston Martin DB5, Mercedes 300 SL Gullwing and/or Roadster, Dino 246, Lamborghini Miura, Ferrari Daytona, Porsche 911 Carrera RS 2.7 – pack your auction catalogue with either perfect or barn-fresh examples of this familiar A-list and youre guaranteed a good sale. Everyone seems to want them, in fact buyers are prepared to pay ever more each time they come up for sale. They all obey the first law of classic appeal – theyre all stunning to look at – but do they obey the second? Are they any good? Ive already talked about my Daytona experiences, how the right combination of fast, sweeping roads and a big weekend trip allowed Ferraris hero car to overcome my doubts, until I returned to the local B-roads that is. So, what of the RS 2.7? I had another chance to drive one this summer on the historic rally preceding the Schloss Bensberg Concours in Germany. The last time was more than a decade earlier in the hills around Adelaide, Australia. In the intervening years values have jumped ten fold and Ive driven a lot of other cars, both of which could have changed my view. But the crisp and fresh-feeling example from the Porsche Museum underlined why the RS 2.7 represent the distilled essence of all the greatest 911 virtues. Amble along and, aside from the offset pedals and long-throw and strangely waggly-feeling Type 915 gearbox, it feels like a thoroughly civilized and user-friendly sports coupé, far more modern than its ancestry suggests. Drop it in to second, lean on the floor-hinged throttle pedal and this car comes alive in your hands, granular snarl of the flat six hardening into the goosebump zone beyond 4000rpm, weight shifting hard onto the rear tyres as you lunge forwards, wings bobbing eagerly over every road imperfection and steering fidgeting busily. The first time I drove an air-cooled 911 I found this phase unnerving, like Id unleashed something that was barely in control, but now I savour the rush of sensations, confident that if I keep the RS loaded up under throttle the front wheels will nip into the next corner faithfully and the rears will follow. Go in a little too hard and it will warn you with understeer, get brutal with it, or wimp out and lift off and you have to confront the 911s reputation for scary oversteer. Its a car that rewards commitment and precision when you want to play, yet allows you to relax when you simply want to cover short or vast distances in swift comfort. By which point youll have adopted those offset pedals and waggly gearshift as your new best friends. If youre beginning to get the impression that I still hold the RS 2.7 up as one of the greats, youd be right. Phil Bell, editor, Classic Cars magazine
Posted on: Thu, 11 Dec 2014 17:00:00 +0000