Singer has revealed the first of two spectacular re-imagined 911s as part of an all-new All-Terrain Competition Study undertaken with legendary UK rally specialist, Richard Tuthill. The 964-based cars – each getting a bespoke setup for different rally scenarios – are inspired by two icons of the eighties, the SC/RS and 959.
As you’d expect, there’s as much to drool over on the spec list as there is on the fit and finish of the completed builds. The first car, the Parallax White machine you see jumping and diving here, is engineered to handle high-speed desert rally competition, the sort that Tuthill has dominated, as evidenced by a win at the 2019 East African Safari Classic. The company certainly knows its stuff in this department, given it was involved in the original SC/RS’s development. The second car, a Corsica Red car not yet finished, is slightly closer to home for Singer as it is set up with tarmac events in mind.
Both cars have been commissioned by a single customer. The 964 base come from a 1990 car, bearing a Mezger air-cooled 3.6 flat-six with twin symmetrical turbochargers and fly-by-wire individual throttle bodies. Power is rated at 450hp and 420lb ft of torque, with power sent to all four wheels via a five-speed sequential dog-box and mechanical, plated limited slip-differentials located on the front, centre and rear of the driveline. Proper stuff.
The 964 chassis is, of course, suitably matched to that lot, with “core-strengthening” to the monocoque, FIA roll cage and carbon fibre body panels, with long-travel, five-way adjustable dampers all-round. There are eight shocks, with two on each corner, while the 16-inch wheels are forged aluminium with BF Goodrich treaded boots. Braking is handled by four-piston monobloc steel discs and the car gets a WRC-spec hydraulic handbrake – practically a Richard Tuthill requirement. There’s also a long-range fuel tank so the fun needn’t stop anytime soon.
Predictably, the whole car’s design and cabin layout is authentically Safari-grade; it’s all apparently certified for actual competition, too, with FIA-approved, bespoke competition seats inside, a rehydration system for the driver and co-driver, and a GPS navigation system. You won’t need us to tell you that it looks the part, with all the beauty and presence of an eighties or nineties competition Porsche, added to the allure of a Tuthill seal of approval and a heavy dose of Singer polish. The good news is the design study won’t be exclusive to the one customer either; Singer has permission to build more off the back of this first pair, albeit for an undisclosed price well beyond most people's means.
“So much of what we’ve done for the last decade has been inspired by Porsche’s competition success and the All-terrain Competition Study provides us the opportunity to showcase that idea literally and vividly,” said founder and executive chairman of the Singer Group, Rob Dickinson. “We’ve taken particular inspiration from the iconic Rothmans-sponsored 911 SC/RSs and 959s that conquered events like the Qatar International Rally and Paris-Dakar in the mid-eighties and, at the request of our client, have reimagined these all-terrain 911’s in their honour while utilising fresh perspectives and state of the art know-how.”
“This collaboration brings together the best of innovation, cutting-edge technology and decades of real rallying experience into one, amazingly capable, all-terrain off-road racing vehicle,” added Tuthill. “In the 1980s we partnered with Prodrive to prepare bodyshells for the Rothmans 911 SC/RS that was part of the inspiration for ACS. I am delighted to have now partnered with Rob and the team at Singer to bring this incredible machine to life and look forward to working with them in the future. I am incredibly proud of what we have achieved.”
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