Porsche is a company that doesn’t often give in to superfluous special editions. That might explain why cars like this Porsche 924 Martini Championship Edition are one of only a few models ever to be sold with some decals and no performance upgrades. Of course, the commemoration itself was respectable, as Porsche wanted to give a shout-out to Martini for overseeing the Porsche World Championship. The seller’s car is a runner that needs some level of restoration, but you could also live with the shortcomings and drive it as-is. Find the 924 here on eBay with bids to $1,626 and the reserve unmet.
The Martini edition was given a branding treatment to make it a rolling billboard for the vermouth company, including the aforementioned decals on the exterior and the orange carpeting and seat inserts inside. In addition, the buckets got a light blue piping and there were some upgraded materials on the dash, like leather covers around the instrument cluster and a leather-wrapped steering wheel. Of course, you also got a commemorative plaque. Only 3,000 examples were sent to the U.S. so it’s a rare bird, but we still see a few pop up for sale each year.
They almost always seem to be in this sort of condition, too. Not past the point of saving, but also not kept in the garage under a car cover for 30 years. The 924 was an interesting choice for a special edition model like this, as it came with the 95 horsepower mill shared with Volkswagen at the time. It just seemed like a missed opportunity to highlight Porsche’s racing prowess by using a vehicle that was at the bottom of the Porsche pecking order. The seller reports that his car “…runs, drives, stops, and steers normally,” and that he drives the car often without issue.
The only rust he mentions is in the battery tray. Otherwise, let’s assume the flaws of the cosmetic sort are limited to the 924 just being really filthy. The color-coded white wheels are still accounted for, and there’s really very little evidence of this 924 being messed with outside of whatever the seller has attempted to resolve. He says he’s been working on it on weekends but doesn’t detail what his efforts has entailed; regardless, his attention has clearly been focused somewhere other than washing and waxing. Have you ever seen a Championship Edition 924 in the flesh?
I like my Martini shaken, not rusty.
I remember Jim Miller the famed automotive historian and all around very bright man having one back when we both worked at Bowman& Rivers. Very pretty car, but I bet he’s sorry he traded his fire breathing triple Weber Datsun 240Z for it. It was a bargain basement way to Porsche ownership without having to drive something that looked like the crate it was shipped in (sorry, 914 owners)
Maybe the seller would be interested in offers on the far more interesting car in the background, a Lotus Europa.
I owned one for a couple of years. It was slow, handled well, but was hard to start when it was warm. Zub-zero nor problem, but hot you needed to wait until it was cold or pop clutch. Also had two different fuel pump fuses, bit hard to change but very difficult to find the first time. Like my 944 much better. Now have a Boxster S and love it!
Loved our ’77. Blue tinted maroon with gold wheels and gold stripe down the sides. Also had a very healthy ’78 European special edition engine which made a huge difference. A little fiddling with the air sensor and fuel distributor and it really moved things down the road.
The same engine found its way into the AMC Gremlin in 1977, albeit with a carburetor instead of fuel injection. Part of the deal was AMC was not permitted to identify where the engine came from. (It was a pretty open “secret” though, anyone reading the automotive press at the time would know about it.)
The 924 is the worst POS that Porsche ever produced. Period
I’m more interested in the Lotus Europa behind it.
Hmm, this is my car too… It’s interesting how my cars always pop up for sale on this Barn find website. I’m surprised no one commented about the Rumble Bee in the background..
About the Porsche, I’ve owned 380+ cars, from Italian exotics down to a 1984 Diesel Nissan Sentra; and this Porsche sits perfectly into the era it was designed for. From the thin plastic interior, to the non-technologically advanced design and handling charasteristics, this car is all 1977… It’s alot of fun to drive on the country roads with the gigantic roof off. My wife and I were just talking about it last night, how we’re going to miss it, but hopefully the next steward of the car will bring it up to the next level of restoration and preserve it.