Russell Built Fabrication’s ‘Baja 911’ Is an Off-road SEMA Centerpiece
If a Safari-style 911 isn’t extreme enough for you, then you need a Baja 911.
CTEK, the company known for quality battery chargers, is hosting the 2020 Builder Challenge to find the most talented automotive fabricator around. TJ Russell of Russell Built Fabrication has our vote.
Russell got his start building and maintaining movie prop cars in California in the early 2000s. Six years ago, he went into business for himself and started Russell Built Fabrication. He’s built a lot of incredible cars since then, but recently, he built a car that would be of particular interest to us here at Rennlist.
In addition to his movie car work, Russell spent nine years working for a Porsche aftermarket company as head of fabrication. As Russell says, “In that time, I built 170 different cars, and that’s where my interest and love for the Porsche came in. I love sand dunes, motocross and I’m a big fan of desert racing, and Porsche has this history of off-road racing from the 1980s.”
Birth of the Baja
Russell started with a 1991 Porsche 911 and transformed it into an off-road-ready monster. Safari-style Porsche 911 builds are all the rage now, but this is a far more serious machine. That much is clear the moment you take a look at it.
According to Russell, nearly every component of this car has been modified and reworked. He thinks there are only around five totally original parts on the entire car. Despite the extreme transformation, though, Russell ensured that it still looked – and felt – like a Porsche.
In his words, “From the cockpit, it’s still a 911 – a tiny, nimble sports car. But with the suspension and body roll, you’ve got a race feel. It’s all new to your driving senses.” Although the body modifications are functional, care was taken to ensure that they were well integrated into the classic 911 shape.
Russell explains, “It’s really easy to make a body kit on a car look horrific. You can put parts on a car that look foreign, but this looks Porsche-y from every angle.” He’s really found the ideal balance of form and function. Now, he’s working hard on building Baja 911s for other people. Could yours be next?
Photos: Russell Built Fabrication
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