Coachbuilt 911 Convertible

1966 Porsche 911 Spyder by Bertone

Offered by Gooding & Company | Pebble Beach, California | August 25, 2018

Photo – Gooding & Company

The first Porsche 911 went on sale in 1964, replacing the 356 series of cars. Upon introduction, only a two-door coupe was offered. A removable-top Targa joined the lineup in 1966 and the first 911 convertible didn’t arrive on the scene until 1982. So what was a well-heeled Porsche fanatic to do in the 60s?

Let’s start by not forgetting that Karmann came up with a 911 Cabriolet Prototype in 1964. So then, in 1966, a Southern California Porsche dealer wanted an open-top 911 for his customers and commissioned Bertone to build one. They started with a bare 911 chassis, which did not include the “S” 160 horsepower, 2.0-liter flat-six that the car carries today. Back then it had a stock 130 horse variant.

Rear-engined convertibles tend to seem a little bulky at the back and it’s funny that Gooding & Company draws parallels to the Fiat 850 Spider, which is the exact car I see when I look at this. The final result here is quite nice and nothing about it says “Porsche.” It looks Italian. The current owner acquired this car in 1993 and it’s been on static display for quite some time, so it will require a little attention to make roadworthy. It should bring between $700,000-$1,000,000. Click here for more info and here for more from Gooding & Company.

Update: Sold $1,430,000.

Tell Us What You Think!

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.