2007 RS Spyder Heading for Pebble Beach Auction
RS Spyder is one of six built for the 2007 racing season.
Porsche has long been a part of endurance racing since the 550 Spyder first rushed out of the Le Mans starting row in the early 1950s. The 904 Carrera GTS set the stage for the two-time Le Mans champion 917, a car that would gain a second life in Can-Am. The 956/962 twins absolutely dominated Group C and IMSA GTP in the Eighties. Even the 911 threw its weight around on the endurance circuit in the late 1990s.
A few years into the new millennium, Porsche decided to take on the then-new Le Mans Prototype 2 category with a collaboration with Team Penske: the RS Spyder. And now, you can have a chance to own this 2007 RS Spyder when it hits the auction block at Pebble Beach August 24 and 25, 2018.
One of the last six RS Spyders to be assembled for the 2007 endurance racing season, Chassis No. 9R6.706 is part of an “exceptional selection of Porsche Spyders” set to hit the beach at auction house Gooding & Company’s 15th annual auction.
The RS Spyder was delivered to CET Solaroli Motorsports in Jacksonville, Florida, where it would remain until it became part of an “important private collection” in 2014. Though the car has seen little track time, it has been exhibited in Monterey, California, twice: Rennsport Reunion V in 2015, and Monterey Motorsports Reunion in 2016.
The current owner says the RS Spyder “is the last prototype racing car a collector will be able to buy from Porsche, and you don’t need a team of people to run it.” And what a car it is. A 3.4-liter DOHC V8 delivers 503 horses to the rear wheels through the six-speed sequential gearbox at 10,300 RPM, while six-caliper carbon ceramic brakes help slow this demon down.
Whomever comes away with the winning bid will have a wonderful machine on their hands. Plus, the RS Spyder’s bare carbon fiber makes a great canvas for a period-correct wrap, such as the DHL livery used by Team Penske from 2005 through 2008.
