In a bit of goodwill, Porsche Cars North America (PCNA) is teaming up with automotive auction house RM Sotheby’s to raise some money for COVID-19 virus relief by auctioning off the last-ever Porsche 991-series 911, a Speedster variant. Proceeds from the auction will be donated to United Way Worldwide’s Community Response and Recovery Fund, aimed at those affected by recent events.
The Porsche 911 Speedster up for bidding is a one-of-1,948 (1948 is when the Porsche marque was founded) examples of the 2019 Speedster model. It features GT Silver Metallic paint and has just 20 miles on the clock, and no previous registered owners. The engine is a GT3-spec, 502-horsepower, 4.0-liter flat-six with a 9,000-rpm redline, paired to a six-speed manual transmission. This special Speedster is optioned with the Heritage Design package and a number of unique touches, including a serialized plaque on the center console. The car was completed on Porsche’s Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen assembly line in December 2019 (we drove an earlier production car last year and fell in love).
Along with the 2019 Porsche 911 Speedster, the auction’s high bidder will also receive several interesting extras including a Swiss-made Porsche Design 911 Speedster Heritage Design Chronograph watch; it features the same Cognac leather used in the car’s interior. The winner also gets a book documenting the build of the last-ever 991-series 911. The Speedster’s new owner will be invited for a personal tour of Porsche’s Weissach proving grounds, along with some seat time on Porsche’s test track with Dr. Frank-Steffen Walliser and Andreas Preuninger, the heads of Porsche’s 911 and GT cars teams, respectively. Hand-off of the Speedster to its new owner will be done at a later date in the U.S., with Klaus Zellmer, PCNA’s president and CEO, handing over the keys himself.
“We are all profoundly affected by the current situation and the immediate impact it’s having on those most at risk in our communities,” Zellmer said in a statement. “United Way continues to step up to the plate and their response to this crisis has been quite impressive. So, we are proud to do our part. I also appreciate the swift support of RM Sotheby’s to make this possible, and I am hopeful that the sale of a very special Porsche will help in a small way.”
The 991-series 911 began production in 2011 and was the most commercially successful series of 911 ever, with nearly a quarter of a million cars (233,540 to be exact) built between then and December 2019. The Speedster is a classic Porsche variant, having started as a lower cost, stripped-down version of the 1950s Porsche 356, aimed at getting more American sales. Due to a more aerodynamic profile with its signature chopped-down windscreen and lighter curb weight, 356 Speedsters were well suited to racing, especially in amateur and club racing events. The Speedster name was first brought back with the G-series 911 and continued through several generations.
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Want to try a bid? You’ll want to head over to RM Sotheby’s website here and get yourself registered. If your cash is in a holding pattern these days, you can still follow along on the site to see how bidding comes along. The auction starts at 11 a.m. EDT on Wednesday, April 15, and bidding ends at 1 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, April 22.