Government Auction Find: 1977 Porsche 911 Turbo

Many of you know by now that I love a good story. The more intriguing a car’s history is, the more likely I am to buy it. The seller of this 1977 Porsche 911 Turbo (930) was apparently claimed via a government auction in Columbia, which – I mean, c’mon, the jokes practically write themselves regarding automatic weapons and private jets – and the wonkiness of some of the registration documents suggests a previous owner wanted to present it as a far less desirable specimen. The seller contends it is actually a 1982-1984 Turbo model, and that the features and small details help establish its true identity. Find it here on eBay for $139,000 or best offer.

Now, first of all, I am not going to play internet detective and attempt to give or take away credence to the seller’s story. There are people who are far more experienced with this era of air-cooled Porsche products to assess its validity. To my amateur eyes, however, it looks like a real-deal Turbo with the flares in the right places and staggered Fuchs wheels, along with the chunky front spoiler. However, we all know how many cars were converted to Turbo status via bodykits (some of them with proper steel flares) and other cosmetic touches, so any prospective owners will want to track down an official COA to confirm its production configuration.

The seller notes the Columbian registration documents show it listed as a 1977 Targa model. He chalks this up to administrative errors, which still happens today with modern Carfax reports, so it’s certainly not far-fetched to imagine a government office that was likely easily influenced in 1970s-1980s Columbia would change this to a lower tier model to reduce the tax burden on its owner. All of that is hearsay, so it’s up to the future owners to  perform their own due diligence before plunking down the cash. The chocolate brown interior is in spectacular condition, and the seller points to extensive restoration work as essential in bringing it back to top form.

The seller reports that it was originally red but was refinished to white at a later date, adding to the intrigue – especially since mileage is low, at just 41,048 kilometers. Incredibly, the seller reports that they did not touch the engine in the restoration process, simply replacing the starter motor and that the rest of the engine ran as designed. I am certainly one who believes many 911 engines are needlessly torn down due to ambitious restoration shops and uninformed owners who don’t like seeing a drop of oil on the ground, but a leak-down test would still make good sense here. This 911 Turbo sounds like a fascinating find, and if the owner is open to a lower off, a fantastic deal as well.