1970 UK RHD 911 2.2S - Diary

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Re: 1970 UK RHD 911 2.2S - Diary

Post by one-two »

I do love a happy ending. Well done for sticking with it Joe and make sure you enjoy it. Best wishes, Robert
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Re: 1970 UK RHD 911 2.2S - Diary

Post by Midlifecrisis »

Well done Joe, I expect you spent nearly that much in the restaurant....
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1974 Peugeot 304S RHD
1962 356B Notch
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Re: 1970 UK RHD 911 2.2S - Diary

Post by squirejo »

Another day another adventure. RMA trackday at Brands GP. England's own Spa, just a bit smaller. A day always starts well with the sound of a flat 6. Or 2.

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All that 911 Goodwood-ery, I couldn't resist a few laps.

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It's also not an everyday occurrence to park on a circuit. More on that next week......

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911 nirvana?

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And I have now upgraded the lights to RPM Technic's LED kit. The car will be located in the Cotswolds for the period ahead so those dark country roads won't be a problem any more.

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1970 911 2.2 S
2004 996 GT3 mk II
Renault 5 GT Turbo
BMW i3 REX
Jaguar F-Pace S 3.0 supercharged.
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Re: 1970 UK RHD 911 2.2S - Diary

Post by squirejo »

Part of the joy of an early 911 is the number of people who have memories of them or respond well to them. I had many people popping by the garage saying nice things like "the nicest car here"! (In spite of the FF corse teametc...).

I had taken the car to Brands to meet RPM technik and have the led headlights fitted. They were there supporting the gt3 cup racer that follows in these pics. Small world- I almost signed up to join this team last year - a 4-ball effort- but busy lives and young kids don't allow. This is the second year and one of last years owner/ drivers Nigel now has a mate driving with him. This was effectively a test day for them. Nigel also has a Tuthill hotrod. Lovely thing.

While having a chat it turned out a photographer had arranged to shoot their car during lunch. And wouldn't it be nice to have the old one along too.

The following therefore is courtesy of Wayne Lennon who writes it all up http://www.waynelennon.com/blog/

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1970 911 2.2 S
2004 996 GT3 mk II
Renault 5 GT Turbo
BMW i3 REX
Jaguar F-Pace S 3.0 supercharged.
McLaren 12C spider
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Re: 1970 UK RHD 911 2.2S - Diary

Post by DustyM »

Great set of pictures to have
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Re: 1970 UK RHD 911 2.2S - Diary

Post by inaglasshouse »

Looking good.
I like the ones with your 70S (tasty looking minnow) in front. Cup car (shark, obv) looks like it's about to pounce and eat it. Or perhaps that's just me - I've been inhaling paint stripper fumes this afternoon.
Cheers, Richard.
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Re: 1970 UK RHD 911 2.2S - Diary

Post by squirejo »

This is not a value thread - but with ever moving values I thought I would say the following:
My insurance, with Hagerty, was updated at renewal and with a valuation certificate to 150k.

Autofarm now have a RHD 2.2S for sale and are testing the market circa 210k. The DK Eng 2.0 car was > 200k as are asking of several PS cars.

With that in mind Hagerty have increased my agreed value mid-term without another valuation certificate. In exchange for a small premium increase of course. They noted that they are keeping a very close eye on several cars (we all know they have their online analytics) and that the 70's 911 were one vehicle they were happy to increasse based on their market experience - and that they had a good number of cars already insured >200k. They could not have been more helpful. With some of these thefts going on, I implore fellow owners to update your insured values when it's this easy.....
1970 911 2.2 S
2004 996 GT3 mk II
Renault 5 GT Turbo
BMW i3 REX
Jaguar F-Pace S 3.0 supercharged.
McLaren 12C spider
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Re: 1970 UK RHD 911 2.2S - Diary

Post by Winston Teague »

So there i was, family weekend away, with our friends the Whites (Bri had Lionel Stretton's old 72E a while back and still regrets selling it) in our vintage Vauxhalls, leaning on a wall drooling all over a sublime 2.2s at Lower Mill Estate............

You have a VERY beautiful car there!

All the best, Winston
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Re: 1970 UK RHD 911 2.2S - Diary

Post by squirejo »

How funny, what a small world- and thank you for the compliment! I relocated the car there recently as we are there a lot from spring time and it's always a joy to drive straight out onto those country roads.

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I saw one of the cars earlier in the day- looking like a usable classic!

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You should have mentioned the DDK connection- and I should spend 5 mins getting my DDK grille badge back on again! We were taking advantage of my mothers grandchild sitting skills to go for a bit of a razz and a good job too. Although Darren65 and his vans are everywhere :

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We were due to go for a Sunday morning blast but as the weather resembled a blustery October, we stayed in bed. Not together. I have now fitted the new wiper arms and blades from the US of A- very good they are too.

500 miles under the wheels since the engine rebuild- the car drives like never before, it really is terrific all the way to the red line and the step up at 5k RPM is a great characteristic of the engine.

I also stopped in at Historit (based at Bicester Heritage) and have booked a space for over- winter storage this year; there are many places around but this is very convenient for me as the train runs from Marylebone, close to my workplace and all the associated businesses on the park or nearby (neil bainbridge, autofarm, Tuthills) should make it easy to get winter jobs knocked off. Not that there are any at the moment, it's perfect!
1970 911 2.2 S
2004 996 GT3 mk II
Renault 5 GT Turbo
BMW i3 REX
Jaguar F-Pace S 3.0 supercharged.
McLaren 12C spider
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Re: 1970 UK RHD 911 2.2S - Diary

Post by Winston Teague »

Yes! thats our Vauxhall, very useable indeed, as long as you forget fuel consumption. I guess that pic ought to go in Members Others! We are from west Worcestershire so found the beautiful roads a bit busy, but had a lovely evening run back from Stadhampton on Saturday night in the dark. W
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Re: 1970 UK RHD 911 2.2S - Diary

Post by squirejo »

I have recently relocated the car to be Cotswolds where it gets a better sort of use. I introduce the Cotswolds Triangle. A combination of fast well sighted A roads and narrower lanes, where it's often better to take 2 sides of a triangle to reach the pub:

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Isn't it pretty?
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I also met up with a random dude off the Internet and let him drive my car, more on which later......
1970 911 2.2 S
2004 996 GT3 mk II
Renault 5 GT Turbo
BMW i3 REX
Jaguar F-Pace S 3.0 supercharged.
McLaren 12C spider
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Re: 1970 UK RHD 911 2.2S - Diary

Post by left4dead »

Intriguing. :?:
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Re: 1970 UK RHD 911 2.2S - Diary

Post by squirejo »

As we all know from the support Bootsy has received, DDK is THE best motoring forum.

The other popular one tends to be a school playground, and is not an early car mecca - but I had recently enjoyed reading some enthusiastic amateur writeups of owners cars in the Porsche forum that one contributor had done.

I also thought that he should have the chance to drive one of the cars we all love. So I broke with all the usual conventions about meeting up with strangers off the internet and at the weekend met Jeremy. Thoroughly decent chap, we had a fun morning with him doing most of the driving. This is his writeup of my car:

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topi ... 28731&nmt= which I have now been able to replicate below using the original text and photo links:

______________________________________________________________________________________
Here we go again.

I'll ditch the usual preamble. For a background on how this series of posts started see the first two installments below:

Driving IMI A's 3.2 Carrera and 964 C2

Driving SlippyDiff's 996.1 GT3

And I haven't forgotten to credit the owner for the generously provided access to this stupendous car. Discretion was preferred in this instance.


=The car=

1970 UK-supplied 2.2S. Silver on black. Period Recaros. Thoroughly OEM.

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Well, except for a few dictionary-definition-of-detail upgrades like a subtle LED headlamps installed behind original lenses. You know, so you can actually see at night.

Condition-wise, inside the expectation at this age is probably either a bit shagged or over restored and thus a bit Disney, if you know what I mean. But no. Somehow it manages to thread the needle and simply present as bloody nicely preserved whatever the reality. Outside it's obviously been restored and it's a heart breaker - as in it's just damned lovely. I believe some people debate the merits of original versus restored. Sod that.

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Anyway, riding on 185-section rears, this thing is the ultimate in anti-bling. It's hard to imagine it was ever vulgar, even brand new in 1970. Contrast that with a modern SUV-sized, uber-badged "Porsche 911 Carrera 4 GTS"...

Speaking of size, with each of the cars I've driven so far there have been some stand out themes and what really strikes me about this particular Porker are two P's – packaging and poise.

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Everyone knows these things are small. But I don't care if you actually own one, I'm still going to remind you how bloody small it is. Or rather how bloody small it seems.

The subjectives count because from behind the wheel this narrowest of narrow bodies somehow feels even smaller than later cars like IMI A's 3.2 and 964. Cabin-wise that makes no sense since the interior architecture is identical. But it's true and it gets you thinking about the car's overall packaging.

Consider for a moment that the 911S's teensy shell houses a flat-six engine and four seats. In the context of the Imperial Destroyer proportions of a 991, it's hard to get your head around how that's actually possible.

For me, the best bit of the packaging is around the rear axle line viewed side on.

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It's a combination of the flow of the rear deck and knowledge of the engine installation and orientation. It's so very right and so very tight. I get a strong sense of the powertrain as a super-compact and self-contained package. Love it.

As a physical object there are a couple of other things that strike you – well, me - about this 911S. On the one hand there's the tech. The magnesium engine casing and magnesium front brake callipers, the 7,000rpm rev range, even the electric windows. Ancient and shonky it ain't.

On the other, there's the overall design, so clean, uncluttered and coherent on the outside. Inside, I particularly dig the way texture is repeated across the doors, Recaro seats and dash. The door cards really rock. Just look at 'em!

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The cosmetic revisions of the later air cooled cars seem a little piecemeal in comparison. Actually, that's probably an illusion. Seasoned air-cooled cork sniffers no doubt curl their noses at the 'upgrades' implemented for this 2.2-litre long-wheel base barge versus the original 911. But ya know, whatever.

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Then there's the steering wheel. It's like a microcosm of the car as a whole. Dated and spindly at first glance, it's elegant, intricate and timeless industrial design on closer inspection.

Ditto, the car generally. Pointedly period at a glance, the very notion of it being dated falls away with familiarity. Put those elements together - the surprisingly contemporary technology, the visual purity - and you can easily imagine someone banging out 911S's today as design and engineering classics with ageless appeal, a bit like like a Rolex Oyster watch case, an Aga oven, Riva speed boat, whatever. They got it right, so why change it?

Singers? Arriviste compared to a pukka period 2.2S!

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Still, if you've been brain washed by the pseudo quality of soft-touch plastics and laser-guided shutlines like I have, there's an extent to which you need to recalibrate to really appreciate this thing as a physical object. It's worth the effort.

=The drive=

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This is all about that second 'P', poise. It takes about 15 seconds and a small speed bump to realise this 45-year-old thing has the capacity to make moderns seem silly. It's compliant, you see.

What you don't necessarily anticipate is that there's isn't really a flip side to the compliance. The S isn't baggy or loose or clumsy or disjointed. OK, the body control isn't iron fisted in the modern idiom. But it moves down the road with a very particular flow and composure. In that regard, it simply doesn't feel old.

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Things get a little more complicated with the primary controls and that 7k engine. The control weights are in a completely different post code to a 3.2 Carrera on dishy Fuchs. The steering is unassisted. And yet it's finger light at anything beyond walking speed. Quite extraordinary, especially compared to IMI A's uber manly 3.2 which requires some serious muscle at speed. No doubt you can thank a couple of hundred fewer kilos and those pencil-thin boots for that.

That's the easy bit. What's hard to capture is the nuance of the S's rack. High-geared pointy precision in the modern sense isn't on the menu, but equally you couldn't call it vague or crude or spoiled by kick back. Completely transparent and lacking in contrived weighting probably covers it. It's an interesting contrast with the best hydraulic racks I've experienced. No actually better. Not actually worse. Just different and very engaging.

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The brake pedal, meanwhile, still requires a proper shove. But like the 3.2 once you get past a little dead travel, the pedal rapidly firms up and the feedback is properly noice. In that context the level of actual stopping power is borderline irrelevant. With the wrong expectations, it'll give you a heart attack. With proper planning it's plenty for the power and pace of the car, I reckon.

Then there's gearbox. The bloody gearbox. It's a dogleg, which is a first for me as far as I can remember. That's fine. The learning curve isn't that steep and once you're on the move, it's that much easier to swap between the 'fun' gears - 2nd and 3rd - on a good road.

But the throw is pretty epic and it's not the last word in precision and gate definition, even if it's less vague than the (probably shagged) 915 box in the Porsche GB 3.2 I drove a while back. If this was the only way to have a genuinely mechanical and feelsome shift, I'd be fine with it. But IMI A's 964 proves you can have proper man-and-machine shift tactility in a more precise short-throw package.

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Maybe long term my perspective would change. Three days with the 3.2 certainly did that. But my suspicion is that it would remain something I'd live with rather than savour. The brakes, the steering, the chassis, the engine? Delicious. The shift? Not so much.

Oh yeah, the engine. I've driven a few small sixes of various flavours – BMW and Pork, primarily – and that had me in mind of a certain sweetness. I was thinking 986 2.7 musicality. The S is much sharper, more aggressive and more mechanical than that. More chainsaw and less violin. Basically, it's an angry little engine in an otherwise conspicuously couth car.

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More predicatable is the power delivery, both in the sense that it wants you to rev the snot out of it and you knew or at least hoped for that and also in the sense that the pick up is so clean and the delivery so linear.

The way it picks up above 5,000rpm is absolutely key to the appeal of the car for me. A breathless lump that gave up at 5.5k would make the S feel old and tired. With a proper 7k rev range and a razor-sharp soundtrack, the it feels absolutely alive.

Is it quick? Nope. Does it matter? Not even remotely.

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Overall, the 911S is a really intriguing mix. As a thing, it's completely lovely. As something to drive, it's nothing if not intellectual. You have to think yourself past kneejerk reactions to some of the period characteristics that would otherwise have you wondering what the fuss is all about.

The sharpness of the engine note and the associated levels of NVH place it firmly in period. As does the shift quality. At the other end of the spectrum is the gait of the car, its flow down the road, the rev range of the engine, the detail engineering. All remarkable for a car of this vintage. Then there are elements that really transcend time, like the packaging and the industrial design.

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In the long run, I suspect all that translates into much greater satisfaction – more effort equals more reward.

As for how these cars are all stacking up, it's almost vulgar to compare them. I also think there would never be one 911 that ticked all my boxes. If there's anything the 911S lacks it's the sheer sense of engineering heft and precision of IMI A's 964, a characteristic I find pretty compelling.

The 3.2 meanwhile had a visceral physicality that makes you feel like a hero when you get on top of it. What the S has that both the 964 and the 3.2 can't match is a lithe purity both aesthetically and dynamically. As for Slippy's GT3, it's just such a different proposition and takes the man-machine mind meld to another level altogether. Pays your money. Takes your choice.

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I'll take all of them plus a pot of anti-radar paint, please.

=Getting back into the Croc=
These drives aren't making my life any easier! Getting back into my Cayman the sense of both reassuring shared DNA and disappointing dumbing down is rebooted.

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The bottom line is that I've put the Croc up for sale. Fingers crossed I have the gumption to go through with it.

Finally, thanks again to the S's owner for sharing this delightful car and to both IMI A and Slippy for sharing their cars and enabling all of this. It's been a huge privilege to drive such fantastic examples of these bucket-list cars.

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As before,enjoy your Pork while you can, everyone!
1970 911 2.2 S
2004 996 GT3 mk II
Renault 5 GT Turbo
BMW i3 REX
Jaguar F-Pace S 3.0 supercharged.
McLaren 12C spider
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Re: 1970 UK RHD 911 2.2S - Diary

Post by Midlifecrisis »

Great write up and looks sweet.
Jos

1970 911T LHD (Gone)
1974 Peugeot 304S RHD
1962 356B Notch
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Re: 1970 UK RHD 911 2.2S - Diary

Post by Tp81 »

Excellent, thanks for posting. Brilliant pictures, your car look immaculate.
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