Porsche 911 'Black Snake': Showpiece of the Week
What happens when you take a 993 RS body, a GT2 powertrain and a need for speed at the Nurburgring?
Saturation has made it very easy to be blasé about the Nurburgring, about the claimed lap times and about what it takes to triumphantly get round there. In 2019 so many very quick cars exist, claiming seven minute this and new record that, all with accompanying videos that make it look so easy, that anything lapping in more than eight minutes looks a bit sluggish. When it most certainly is not.
Combine all that with various theories about hooky tyres, sped up footage and the sheer irrelevance of it all, and what was once seen as a staggering technical achievement for a car is now regarded as little more than a willy-waving PR exercise. There are now hundreds of very fortunate people in the world in possession of cars that can lap the Nordschleife in less than seven minutes. Which is bonkers.
It wasn't always like this. Once upon a time, before YouTube and Gran Turismo, the Nurburgring was a mystical, unfamiliar place; a racetrack of great infamy that precious few knew about. And anything that lapped the track in less than eight minutes was truly a mad machine indeed.
Step forward, then, the Porsche 911 Black Snake. Now, we're all well aware of the innumerable examples of 911 capable of going very fast around you-know-where - a GT2 RS Manthey is the quickest production car there and even a 992 Carrera S will do 7:25 - but the Black Snake was a new one on us.
Devised by SHK Motorsport in the 1990s, it took a 993 Carrera RS - already a very focused 911 - and swapped its engine for the twin-turbo flat-six as found in the GT2 Evo. The gearbox and four-wheel drive system were from a Turbo, the outrageous arch extensions pinched off an RSR and all unnecessary weight jettisoned: the windows were Lexan, the interior stripped and the wheels swapped for these gorgeous Cargraphics cross-spokes. The ad claims the Black Snake was less than 1,400kg at the kerb - and when you bear in mind that an outgoing 991 Turbo S was officially making 580hp, as well as weighing another 200kg, you get some idea of just how stupendously rapid a Black Snake must've been.
In 1998, with sportauto legend Horst von Sauma at the wheel, the Black Snake lapped the Nurburgring in 7min 46sec. Says a lot of what we've come to expect now that it doesn't sound all that fast, but bear in mind this was with the tyre, suspension and brake technology of the mid-1990s; a set of stickier tyres - like the Pirelli Trofeo Rs it now has, in fact - and more modern brakes would surely make the Black Snake quicker still.
Well, that's what you'd assume anyway. But for one reason or another, the car is now running a 530hp version of that GT2 engine and while the tyres no doubt improve cornering performance, it seems a shame that they can't be combined with the full fury of that Evo motor. Perhaps something for the next owner to investigate...
They'll need a quarter of a million quid for the privilege, the Black Snake currently for sale at £244,950. Obviously it's being suggested as a worthwhile addition to a collection, though the temptation to experience just what a 650hp 993 is like must surely be great. Even more so when a regular 993 Turbo can now command more than £200k - yes, really - and the sole GT2 on PH is currently the best part of £1.5m. Given this car is unique, has a fascinating back story and looks - let's be honest about this - absolutely bloody fabulous, that initially alarming asking price does look like rather better value.
Prospective buyers are surely in a win-win situation: for those that want to drive it, this is potentially the fastest, most focused 993 out there (definitely so with 650hp back in business). For the collectors, this is a genuine one-off; not a Porsche one-off, granted, but unique nonetheless. And never underestimate the appeal of exclusivity in the classic car market.
This is a car I have seen when using the auto trader app after playing the lotto and if I had £250k it would be a mint 993 turbo s....and to drive on track a 991 gt3
For me, I'd be looking at a RHD 360 Challenge Stradale, or maybe an early GT3 RS.
The engine was 580hp (IIRC) unit built specially by SHK for the very wealthy owner of German company that supplied components to the motor industry. If in doubt, contact SHK, they’re still in business.
It is a Frankenstein car, but it’s based on a LHD 993 Clubsport, one of the rarest iterations if the 993 produced.
Whilst the original SHK built engine has long since gone, it was replaced by an RS Tuning unit. RS Tuning
http://www.rs-tuning.de
are THE go to company for Porsche RACE engines (both aircooled and watercooled) I think this unit has their 530hp conversion.
Rest assured it will have every one of the claimed horsepower, and a wall of torque too.
The car clearly isn’t as light as a 993 Clubsport, but the weight of its turbo engine and 4WD system will have been nullified by the various lightweight panels and the simply massive increase in Hp and torque over the original wheezy 3.8 unit...
It runs a full Bilstein GT2 race car damper/spring remote canister set up, and IIRC the various suspension wishbones and links are all straight from the Motorsport Dept’s catalogue.
It is a proper piece of kit, and even by today’s standards would be fiercely quick.
I came very close to buying it 2-3 years ago (and rest assured I could have bought it for a LOT less than the current asking price)
I wobbled and bailed out at the eleventh hour, figuring if I should need to sell it, I’d take a bath financially (even at the price I could have bought it for)
Much as I still lust over it, I think with hindsight I made the right decision.
It’s provenance is unquestionable, as is its build spec. The only sticking point is it’s value ...
The car was featured in a well known UK Porsche magazine. If you want to know anymore about what is a very unique 911, speak to Matt at Fearnsport, he maintained it for a previous owner for several years up until 2-3 years ago.
Likely this will sell (for less) to someone who will either take it back to 993RS spec or (more likely) turn it into a proper GT2 replica. Either one would take deep pockets and you'd need, what, £100k minimum off the price for it to make sense.
The engine was 580hp (IIRC) unit built specially by SHK for the very wealthy owner of German company that supplied components to the motor industry. If in doubt, contact SHK, they’re still in business.
It is a Frankenstein car, but it’s based on a LHD 993 Clubsport, one of the rarest iterations if the 993 produced.
Whilst the original SHK built engine has long since gone, it was replaced by an RS Tuning unit. RS Tuning
http://www.rs-tuning.de
are THE go to company for Porsche RACE engines (both aircooled and watercooled) I think this unit has their 530hp conversion.
Rest assured it will have every one of the claimed horsepower, and a wall of torque too.
The car clearly isn’t as light as a 993 Clubsport, but the weight of its turbo engine and 4WD system will have been nullified by the various lightweight panels and the simply massive increase in Hp and torque over the original wheezy 3.8 unit...
It runs a full Bilstein GT2 race car damper/spring remote canister set up, and IIRC the various suspension wishbones and links are all straight from the Motorsport Dept’s catalogue.
It is a proper piece of kit, and even by today’s standards would be fiercely quick.
I came very close to buying it 2-3 years ago (and rest assured I could have bought it for a LOT less than the current asking price)
I wobbled and bailed out at the eleventh hour, figuring if I should need to sell it, I’d take a bath financially (even at the price I could have bought it for)
Much as I still lust over it, I think with hindsight I made the right decision.
It’s provenance is unquestionable, as is its build spec. The only sticking point is it’s value ...
The car was featured in a well known UK Porsche magazine. If you want to know anymore about what is a very unique 911, speak to Matt at Fearnsport, he maintained it for a previous owner for several years up until 2-3 years ago.
tty dealers.
Likely this will sell (for less) to someone who will either take it back to 993RS spec or (more likely) turn it into a proper GT2 replica. Either one would take deep pockets and you'd need, what, £100k minimum off the price for it to make sense.
I suspect you’re not a million miles off in your estimate of what it would need to be purchased for to make any project to return it back to standard, viable.
But finding parts such as the correct closer ratio gearbox would be neither easy or cheap (unless you’re happy to pay Freisinger’s exorbitant prices).
With the initial purchase price, the cost of parts and the labour to rebuild it (including what would be a huge bill to return the shell back to its former glory)
I’m doubtful the numbers would stack up, all the moreso as it’s never going to be an “original” car that the collectors now seek.
I did a similar project on the yellow ex-Techart Essen Show 964 RS. It was a labour of love, the end result was stunning, and whilst I made money in what was a rapidly rising market that had just gone past its peak come sale time, it was always going to be a limited market as the car was not original panel.
If as you say, if the Black Snake was £150k it would find it’s way into the hands of an enthusiast who wouldn’t be bothered by its lack of originality, and would actually use and enjoy it for road and track use.
The minute the RS engine was upgraded to GT2 spec and 4wd added all originality was lost. The fact it has a detuned RS Tuning engine is a bonus as it will run better than the original unit which was designed for setting a lap record not longevity.
How people can drop £250k in to a new GT3 RS and feel this is over priced? This is much nicer or am I missing something? Magnus Walker should buy her
The minute the RS engine was upgraded to GT2 spec and 4wd added all originality was lost. The fact it has a detuned RS Tuning engine is a bonus as it will run better than the original unit which was designed for setting a lap record not longevity.
How people can drop £250k in to a new GT3 RS and feel this is over priced? This is much nicer or am I missing something? Magnus Walker should buy her
for about 10 minutes, before I got very bored. Whereas I'd suggest I'd never get bored of this 993
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