Closing date June issue -> April 21
Porsche 911 Turbo (1982). Style in steel for Kees Boersma
A boy's dream
What exactly is a boy's dream? They're desires that preoccupy you for years. Dreams you think about often, dreams you want to know everything about. They sometimes fade into the background, only to resurface unexpectedly. For many, it remains a desire, but for Kees Boersma, that dream became reality.
This is the story of his quest for a 1982 Porsche 911 Turbo, a car seen by many as the ultimate dream on wheels.
The history
In 1982, this Porsche 911 Turbo was newly registered in Canada, in the province of British Columbia. The first owner owned a large crane company. For him, the car was likely a symbol of success and financial prosperity, but also a hobby car whose design is considered pure art.
Extensive documentation shows that the car was exported to the United States after a few years. The owner also owned a home there and had the Porsche modified to comply with US regulations. He retained the car until 2016.
The second owner was a collector from Germany. He imported the Porsche back to Europe and had it rebuilt to European standards.
The most remarkable detail: the odometer reads only 28.000 kilometers. That seems almost unbelievable, but the extensive documentation leaves no room for doubt.
German reliability?
Kees explains: "I'd been searching for this masterpiece of art for ages and found it online. My passion for German brands is also reflected in my Volkswagen Beetle Convertible, which I use for summertime roofless fun."
Of course, there was a financial hurdle to overcome, but in practice, it's also a sound investment. It's a rolling tribute to pure sportiness. The Porsche 911 is actually an evolution: you can immediately tell it's a 911. Whether it's from 1982 or 2026, the silhouette remains unmistakable.
Car for enthusiasts
According to Kees, the Porsche 911 Turbo is the ultimate car for true enthusiasts: "If you love it and enjoy the feeling, then this is the best car there is. There's simply no other car like it. It's a classic with a rich history; dozens of books have been written about this global dream car. The balance between tradition, innovation, and performance is perfect."
Pure power and respect
The 1982 Porsche 911 Turbo is the 930 generation with the familiar 3,3-liter turbocharged flat-six engine. Since the introduction of this 3.3 in 1978, it had an air-cooled engine with an intercooler and an output of 300 hp (DIN specification for Europe). This allowed the car to sprint to 100 km/h (62 mph) in approximately 5,2 seconds and reach a top speed of around 260 km/h (160 mph), figures that were truly impressive in the early 1980s.
Early Turbos are known for their notorious turbo lag: initially, seemingly little happens, and then the power arrives in one sharp surge. This could catch inexperienced drivers off guard, especially when combined with rear-wheel drive and the characteristic rear-biased weight.
To manage the power, the 3.3 received the iconic "whale tail" rear spoiler, which accommodated the intercooler and simultaneously generated additional downforce. The wider rear fenders, larger Fuchs wheels, and more powerful brakes underscored that this was no ordinary 911, but the top of the range.
In its day, the Porsche 911 Turbo was among the fastest production cars in the world. It commanded respect on both the road and the track. This is a car that can only truly be tamed by skilled hands at the wheel.
Emotion
The photos accompanying this story are truly captivating. They give a man's heart that extra thump, an extremely pleasant feeling.
Kees concludes: "Driving is emotion. That comes primarily from the engine; that 'heart' speaks directly to mine. And then that blood-curdling sound... For me, this is pure beauty. I was able to buy the car I've always dreamed of. Art is timeless, even on wheels."
(Additional photos are below.)
In the late 60s, I worked at PON in Badhoevedorp, the Porsche department, and I was allowed to work on Johan Cruyff's 911. He had an American model with an afterburner; I still remember the sounds of the bangs, though unfortunately, they're a bit out of my budget.
I once drove a 911. Fantastic experience. The eager steering, and then what the Germans call "die Geräusch Coulisse" (the Geräusch Coulisse). That swelling sound from the rear when the accelerator is enthusiastically floored. Unforgettable.
All very nice, and certainly a very recognizable car, which is far too expensive to maintain, (@marketing): because it's still a beat-up Beetle after all. Buy a lighter Corvette, for example; normal maintenance costs the same as a regular car.
Driving a Porsche 911 Turbo requires experience and skill, because in the hands of the average driver, it's a suicide machine. Those kinds of people would indeed be better off buying a Corvette.
Even the other way around. The torque of the 3,3 turbo is so high that the 5-speed gearbox was scrapped. The mechanism had to be housed in the same housing as the 4-speed gearbox. This meant that the bearings and gears of the 5-speed gearbox were less robust than those of the 4-speed gearbox.
“kind” Jan, what kind of “kind” are you?
@ Anonymously (?)
I'm not the type who constantly calls a 911 a flattened Beetle. That's lame, poorly thought out, outdated, and also not true. A Beetle is more like a blown-up 911…
In the early 80s I went to school at the South Station in Brussels, where many wholesalers were located.
There were quite a few rusty, dented and neglected 911s parked along the streets.
At the time, the new 928 was very hip, but no one wanted to be found dead in a 911.
Times are changing….
Beautiful example! It's remarkable that the Turbo still had a "normal" four-speed gearbox, while its Italian competitors, especially, had had five gears for at least a decade.
I meant to say a decade.
Porsche thought the 911 Turbo's torque was high enough for a 4-speed gearbox…
Nice fast car, but I prefer this one!
Well, there's no accounting for taste.