Gunther Werks shows 993 Speedster Remastered
Drop-top 911s tend to be rare in the restomod scene - that might change now
Gunther Werks enjoys a formidable reputation in classic Porsche circles; not only because of the speed - its most recent 993 took two seconds from the air-cooled Laguna Seca lap record - but also because of the experience. When PH drove a 400R back in 2017, the verdict was unequivocal: "Driving it is an immersive, sensation-rich experience that's utterly contemporary in its performance, but retrospective in its engagement", which sounds like restomod nirvana. And now there's a new one...
The firm describes its new 993 Speedster Remastered as a car that "not only heightens the experience with the rush of wind through your hair, but also pushes the boundaries of performance to build a stronger, lighter, faster car." That's because, in what's become par for the GW course, they aren't doing thing by halves. As we all know, lopping the roof off a car harms its torsional rigidity; to combat this, Gunther Werks has stiffened the chassis with reinforcement in place of the rear seats and fitted an integrated roll cage with roll hoop. To help offset that weight gain, a new bonnet that's more than 25 per cent lighter is being used, hollow carbon seats are fitted, and forged wheels - including the Fuchs-style centrelocks seen here - are available.
But, of course, nobody will want a Gunther Werks Speedster for the weight saving measures - they'll buy it because it promises the best open 993 experience there's ever been. To that end the windscreen has a lower rake (or can be deleted entirely), there's no roof save the car cover, the interior is kitted out with weatherproof materials and the Senna-style seats have been dropped to keep driver and passenger out of the airflow. They'll sit in a revised Gunther Werks interior, too, with a centre console engineered from a single piece of aluminium, LED shift lights and a new pedal setup with "more ergonomic positioning than the OEM assembly." Music to the ears of anyone who's tried to contort their feet to properly push old Porsche pedals.
There'll be a lot for feet to do on throttle, brake and clutch in this Speedster, too, as it's more powerful than any previous Gunther Werks 993. No specific figures have yet been released, though "modest" power and torque increases over 440hp and 335lb ft are promised thanks to the input of Rothsport Racing. Suspension uses the expertise of both Eisenlohr Racing and JRZ.
If you're into the whole air-cooled Porsche thing, it's a tremendously exciting development. Because the Speedster is essentially promising all of the precocious talent evidenced in the 400R, but with the additional thrill of roofless Porsche motoring alongside. Whether it will quite turn out that way it's impossible to say, though the track record is impressive. Gunther Werks will build 25 Speedsters, as it has so far only built 25 of each coupe commissions; there isn't yet a word on price, but if the latest batch of hypercar roadsters doesn't tickle your pickle, the Remastered 993 should offer the ideal antidote. Just don't expect it to be much cheaper...
I love aircooled pork and i love the whole restomod scene, but I honestly can't pick out a single thing I like on that car compared to a standard 993. Credit to them for trying something different from the usual RSR/ST path, but its a big expensive pile of nope as far as i'm concerned.
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