How Body-in-white 911s Birthed The Seven-figure Porsche Restomod

S.Candide/Shutterstock

The connection restomod is simply a mashup of restoration and modification. The thought is to thatch aged cars caller tricks, imbuing them pinch modern features and reliability, while preserving their vintage style and vibe. Restomods are not replicas. Original mill specs are mostly tossed retired nan model successful favour of new, civilization interpretations, utilizing original bodies and bones. By that standard, Alois Ruf, Jr., isn't really a restomodder. But nan modern world of Porsche restomods mightiness not beryllium what it is without him. 

By 1987, erstwhile Herr Ruf placed his dreams successful nan body-in-white ammunition of a modern Porsche 911, he had complete a decade of Porsche 930 Turbo tuning wizardry nether his belt, and decades of automotive passion successful his blood. RUF Automobile was founded successful 1939 by Alois Ruf, Sr., and nan institution was recognized arsenic a bona fide shaper successful 1981 — meaning RUFs would person their ain VIN codes. This would beryllium captious to RUF's later success.

When making that jump from tuner to builder, starting pinch a body-in-white (BiW) gives you a caput start. It's a blank slate, a tried-and-tested skeleton, a safe and rigid monocoque aliases framework structure, factory-designed and -built, waiting for an engine, brakes, and different type components chosen to suit their ain needs, wants, aliases visions. Alois's imagination was to build a amended Porsche 911, starting pinch BiWs, purchased from a trader for illustration immoderate different part. With nan 1987 RUF CTR, he not only succeeded, but cleared a way for others to return nan Porsche restomod segment to caller heights.

Sam Moores/Shutterstock

Racing teams will bargain and usage BiWs to customize a car to their liking — but, arsenic these travel without a VIN, they aren't ineligible for nationalist roads. RUF had that caveat covered. To create a CTR from a caller Porsche 911 BiW, Ruf added a unsocial suspension, interior, assemblage sculpting, and, astir importantly, a 3.2-liter turbocharged flat-six that churned retired 463 horsepower. 

For context, erstwhile nan Porsche 911 Turbo — known by its exemplary codification 930 — debuted successful 1974, it had 256 hp and could deed 60 miles an hr from a standstill successful 5.4 seconds. It came to beryllium known arsenic nan Widowmaker for its characteristic on/off boost that, coupled pinch its rear-engine weight bias, could induce astonishment rotation events. In 1987, nan 930 had (only) 282 hp; nan CTR was perfectly bonkers. Dubbed nan Yellow Bird in a Road & Track test, it famously deed 100 mph successful 7.3 seconds, and topped retired astatine 211 mph, making it nan fastest accumulation car successful nan world. It lives connected successful lore arsenic nan Yellowbird, and its skeleton has evolved. 

With BiW bones, nan first RUF CTRs weren't technically restomods, truthful overmuch arsenic divergent lives borne from nan aforesaid transportation room. But erstwhile Porsche factories went robot, it became impractical to get BiWs, truthful RUF had to bargain caller 911s arsenic philanthropist cars, portion them down, and rebuild. Around a decade ago, RUF started utilizing its ain chassis design. Like nan original CTR, a modern RUF whitethorn person Porsche DNA, but it's very overmuch its ain animal. Want a factory-fresh RUF that hearkens backmost to nan Yellowbird? RUF builds conscionable nan thing: nan 2026 RUF Tribute. It goes for $1.7 million.  

dimcars/Shutterstock

RUF wasn't nan only Porsche tuning crippled successful municipality successful nan 1980s. TechArt was founded successful 1987, and Gemballa launched its flat-nose rendition of nan mill 911 Turbo Slantnose successful 1981. There were others, but RUF shifted nan industry, carving a way for basking rod Porsches to come.   

Amongst nan astir well-known of these is Singer Vehicle Design. Singer is not affiliated successful immoderate measurement pinch Porsche, but it's successful nan business of reimagining what a vintage Porsche tin be, for illustration this 930 Turbo Tribute. In 2025, different illustration of its creations, nan Singer Dynamics and Lightweight Study (DLS), went for $3 cardinal astatine auction. If that's excessively steep for you, a caller Porsche 911 Carrera Coupe Reimagined by Singer runs astir $500,000. It starts pinch a reclaimed 1984-to-1994 era 964 philanthropist car.

Gunther Werks besides specializes successful 911 reinterpretations, while Emory Motorsports will painstakingly build you 1 of its "outlaw" civilization restomods retired of your Porsche 356 donor. Russell Built, meanwhile, specializes successful creations that salary tribute to Porsche's off-road racing heritage. 

As for RUF, it now offers respective different models, built to suit individual tastes, pinch roots that trace backmost to nan original. They physically lucifer Porsches, but they're RUFs. If you'd for illustration to instrumentality pinch thing civilization that's 100% factory, Porsche will gladly return requests done its Sonderwunsch program. Whatever you do, if you tin spend immoderate of these machines, thrust them for illustration they're meant to beryllium driven — which is what nan original Porsche vibe that inspired them was each astir successful nan first place.