The Impossible Dream?

Surely everybody has dreamed of classic car ownership with everyday practicality? Has Paul Stephens answered our prayers?

It seems suspiciously like having your cake and eating it: the aesthetic appeal of a jenner-whine classic vee-hickle, with the turn-key reliability and user-friendly personality of a car from the modern era. There's no doubt that early Porsches – the pre '73 posse – have a certain cachet. The purity of line, as yet uncluttered by crash regulations or aerodynamic needs, still wows today.

Rare, collectible and ever more costly, early Porsche 911s are, often times, expensive to buy, expensive to run and for many, not a realistic prospect for everyday transportation (cue argumentative correspondence!). The idea of aping the more famous early 911s – I'm particularly thinking of the 2.7 RS here – is not a new one, and several replicas are available.

But here we are at Paul Stephens in leafy Suffolk to sample a slightly different way of doing things. Paul and his team have not tried to faithfully replicate a selection of old favourites as others have – not that that isn't a perfectly feasible route to take – but rather to offer the flavour of the old timers.

Under the PS Autoart moniker, Paul has spawned a range of classic-looking 911s, but with the more affordable, readily available and durable underpinnings of more modern machinery. Paul's own mission statement reads as follows: "The vision was 'to create a range of sports cars that combine the original and timeless elegance of the 70's classics, with the performance, features and reliability of the modern day sports cars."

The range starts with the Classic. Based on an SC's galvanised chassis (or, conceivably, a 3.2 Carrera) the actual skeleton is un-butchered – the idea being that if the SC ever became rare and desirable, it could be returned to its original state. The bodywork and interior can be tweaked to suit individual requirements, while the engine is available in a number of states of tune.

We are here to sample the other branch of the PS Autoart range – the so called Retro. The sale pitch on the company website makes a compelling case. "The Retro series, A rebuilt car based on the '90s 964 series, the 'Retro' has classic styling but offers a modern driving experience. It can be based on a coupé, targa or cabriolet. With standard and optional features including 3.6 or 3.8 engine, PAS, ABS, enhanced corrosion protection, air conditioning, trip computer, Tiptronic gearbox and two or four wheel drive options."

Paul is keen to stress that these cars are not the definitive article. Building these three distinctly different demonstrators has been a very steep learning curve. He admits he didn't realise quite how much work would be involved and how long it would take to iron out the teething problems. Getting the custom plastic fillets to fit, or creating the right look for the mirrors or side skirts. Seals that have to be redesigned. And unlike the older car, the 964 has all sorts of oil lines and crash protection to deal with under the skin. Paul's team has had to work with the original bodywork where necessary.

Bespoke is an oft-used term in this industry, but these cars truly re. Paul says it is pointless offering a fixed price because each project will be different to the next. From the moment the original car is stripped down things can go off the scale, and if you are working to a set budget there is a risk of cutting corners – something Paul is not prepared to do. He would rather find out what the customer really wants then do the best job possible. What it costs is what it costs.

"You are probably looking somewhere around the £30,000 mark for one of these conversions, but it really does vary." Those variables range from the base-model used to the customers' appetite for retro. The red Targa has a stock standard interior while the blue and orange machine has bucket seats, retro clocks, roll-cage – the whole works.

The company is also working on a 'basket-weave' interior for those that fancy it. Paul wants to show what is possible but it is down to the individual to set the agenda.

Paul is also keen to talk about wheels. At first glance I had assumed the cars were wearing Fuchs wheels... but on second thoughts they do look awfully big. In fact, a couple are sporting what looks like 18-inch versions. Not possible! Here again, Paul has found a neat solution to a tricky problem. Fuchs wheels don't come in a big enough size for many of the applications (they won't clear the brakes), and the off sets are incorrect for a 964 anyway. So he got his own wheel made: a modern homage to the classic rim but a two piece design available with the rim bolts either hidden inside or outside on display. It can be made in any offset and with sizes up to 20+ inches, you could even have them on your Cayenne!

Photographer Darren Maybury is getting impatient to crack on, so we swap talk for action. We turn our attention to the red Targa. With the stock rollover bar stripped back to a brushed metal finish and chrome detailing all over the car – check out those dinky mirrors! - it looks every bit an old-timer. The black and metal Fuchs a-like rims still require a definite double take.

Yet climbing in makes you feel like Alice through the looking glass. It's completely standard in here. Get out. Yep, it's an old fashioned 911 dripping with chrome work and Seventies style. Get in. Now its an everyday 964. Weird.

The Targa is a joy to drive. It feels chunky and solid – as you would expect from a 964 – but because the company stripped so much weight out during the refit, it then had to fit slightly lower springs to stop it looking like a Paris – Dakar contender! As a result, the ride height is now a bit lower than standard, the body control a little tauter and it actually feels more nimble than I thought it would. There is still a bit of body roll to let you know when you are pressing on, and most importantly the set up retains good compliance. This means the Targa flows nicely over your average British B-road, feeling sure-footed and communicative into the bargain.

Other road users semm to like it too. You get the thumbs-up, swivelling necks, plus – and I bet this doesn't happen any where nearly as often in a normal 964 - people always let you out of junctions.

I used to run a BMW 2002 as an everyday runabout and could not believe how many people reacted positively to it on the roads. People would chat, wave and generally treat you with respect, courtesy and, occasionally reference. Would a mid-90's 3 Series have the same effect? I think not.

So it goes with Porsches: somehow the classics manage to be charming, or interesting and inspire nostalgia where other more modern Porsches might incite pangs of envy.

Next we try the duck-tailed 3.8-litre RS-style PS300. This is a different kind of animal. Bigger wheels, more rubber, more power, more noise. The logo'd roll-cage, hip-hugging seats and RS-inspired door-pulls all flick the right subconscious switches. Not one for the purists, perhaps, but there's no doubt that the character of the Renn Sport is effectively recreated, and that's what Stephens really wanted.

The 3.8-litre air-cooled lump throbs away behind you and the forward motion is of the immediate and remarkably potent variety, the noise that trademark Boxer woofle.

The engine, although still in development and not running 'customer' tune, has been heavily reworked and will pump out between 280 and 300 bhp. Given that the 964 has shed plenty of weight in the rebuild with the removal of sound deadening, excessive carpeting and the restyling process (like the Targa lowering springs were needed to redress the balance) it's little wonder that the PS300R feels so sprightly. 964 RS performance with a 2.7 RS looks. Killer combo.

It feels more hefty and heavy duty than the targa, sure-footed and very grippy on dry country lanes. The exhaust offers magnificent aural accompaniment every time you pin the throttle and judging by the reactions of other drivers and pedestrians this cars has a massive road presence.

There are also RS-spec brakes - which are mighty - but the car retains the standard C2 dampers, so it is much more user-friendly cross-country machine than the 964 RS would be on these routes.

If you like to participate in the odd track day, this car would no doubt surprise a few more modern machines as well as eliciting a few curious glances from the pit lane! I also have to admit that there would be a certain warped appeal about producing a car that looks and goes like this, but has four-wheel drive and a Tiptronic transmission. It's perfectly possible...

We park up on a deserted Suffolk lane which is lined with trees on one side, stretching into the middle distance. The sun glistens off the gleaming blue flank, orange wheels glowing. It reminds Le Mans veteran Maybury and myself of watching from Tertre Rouge as the cars pour onto the Mulsanne….evocative stuff.

And there is the point, perhaps. You buy a Porsche because it has emotional value. These Paul Stephens creations pluck at the heart strings, evoke the desire for those impossible cool pre-‘73 machines. They are putting on a pair of rose-tinted spectacles but without the nightmare of endless servicing, oil on the driveway and misted-up windscreens. You won't panic every time it rains, you won't worry when the roads are salted in the winter.

This is not the definitive final verdict of these cars. They are still prototypes, work and development on them is very muchl ongoing and we will almost certainly be revisiting the cars when Paul is finally 100 percent satisfied. But we wanted to get a flavour for these machines an the philosophy behind them. They were warmly received at the Porsche Clubs Brand Hatch extravaganza and the Targa was already sold when we visited, so Paul is sure that a small but actibe marketi is out there. So can you have your cake and eat it? I'll have double – chocolate fudge supreme, thanks, with extra cream

Kindly reproduced with the permission of

GT Purely Porsche