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1994 Speedster Widebody?

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Old 10-23-2014, 10:25 AM
  #106  
brian_s_henry
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Default Need some help with this one....

Morning!

Noob here! I've read several of the forums regarding the Strosek factory/conversions and stumbled upon the VIN's you mentioned below. Trying to find out exactly what this 1994 Speedster Strosek 964 'is' and if anyone has a provenance on this particular vehicle. VIN 465068 and I know the vehicle is painted in Maritime Blue. I crawled under the car and confirmed suspension is Strosek. See attached photos. Any information would be greatly appreciated!


Originally Posted by cumd20
Semperis, thanks.

Interesting - and this could be pure coincidence ..... but I have completed extensive research on the Strosek mega wide body speedster since I made that post above. As stated I own the 1994 black Strosek speedster shown above in this thread (and many other pics if you search this site) commissioned by Fred Opert in NJ and converted at Strosek Design GMBH of Munich.

This is a conversation or a question - not a statement, but I wonder if the so called "factory 15" is something different. If you search this site there are people who are adamant that the Porsche factory states that their factory did not ever make 1994 wide body speedsters. Yet there are correctly references to magazines that talk about 15 "factory" 1994 wide body speedsters.

When the word "factory" gets used in the context of the wide body Strosek - we are usually referring to the Strosek factory. Strosek completed a number of factory conversions of brand new never driven speedsters, but there are also some after market Strosek conversions that are not "factory". This seperation is really important - the factory Strosek conversions are completed with an approach that is very different and their factory process was designed with Porsche guidance and input and was subject to a Porsche quality control assessment, not so for any after market conversions (or so Strosek tell me). Strosek and Opert tell me that if you have seen a factory conversion and an after market conversion they tell you that they are very discernible.

Another twist is that all of the Strosek Speedster molds were destroyed in a Factory Fire at their Munich plant (I once had a link to the news story but cannot find it right now). This basically means it is impossible to obtain Strosek factory molded panels - unless someone had inventory, Strosek tell me they kept all inventory that survived the fire and ran out of most of it a long time ago.

Strosek have confirmed to me in writing that there were 15 1994 speedsters converted to mega wide body speedsters at the Strosek "factory". These cars were shipped to the Strosek factory from wherever they were when the base speedster was acquired (in my case shipped back to Germany from the USA for the conversion, then returned to Opert for finishing).

I have tried to keep a track of where the 15 original 1994 factory Strosek speedsters are registered and only 8 of the 15 were converted for the North American market and all of those were commissioned by Fred Opert who is the exlusive north american agent of Strosek (a worker at Opert qualified that 8 number also since I got this info). I got this detail below from Strosek in Germany and traced the VIN numbers. If the VIN is not included below I can assure you it is not a Strosek factory conversion (unless imported from elsewhere since its birth and assuming Stroseks records themselves are good).

VIN....465067- Currently titled in Alaska
465006 - no information available in the USA so I assume it was never brought to America though it was purchased by an American company
465465 - A red model recently sold through exotic motors in August 2014 (listed at $160k)
465225 - Silver- No reports in the usa since 2007 when it seems it was exported, (I cannot confirm its current Location however)
465256 - This vehicle is registered as White, was involved in a serious accident in 2000 and was sold as salvage in 2012 to a gentleman and shipped to the uk
465118 - one owner example last registered with less than 15k miles and titled in ohio
465293 - 2 owner California car with 90k+ miles reported
465403 - my car in black with red detail registered in wa. state (btw mine and one of the other above was bought by the same husband and wife originally as a matching pair)

The 8 above are the only North American factory wide body speedster conversions. As above one of the 8 was exported and is in the UK, one is not traceable from a USA registration perspective so I assume is gone or is a garage queen. The rest are somewhere else on the planet unless they have died since - or were subsequently imported to North America.

I wonder if it is a coincidence that the books that are referenced as evidence of the 1994 factory wide body speedster talk about 15 factory speedster wide body cars - and that is the exact same number of official factory conversions completed by Strosek.

The Mystery grows :-)
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Old 10-23-2014, 11:05 AM
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That one left the factory as a US-VIN speedster. It could have been converted by Strosek after the fact, but it seems odd that the VIN is one digit away from the Maritime Blue Strosek car in Alaska.
Old 10-23-2014, 11:08 AM
  #108  
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Originally Posted by XR4Tim
That one left the factory as a US-VIN speedster. It could have been converted by Strosek after the fact, but it seems odd that the VIN is one digit away from the Maritime Blue Strosek car in Alaska.
Appreciate your thoughts. I've searched the VIN on numerous sites and can't find any past history on the car? I left a voice mail for Opert to see if they handled the car at anytime. I'm trying to gather as much information as possible to create a valid listing for the vehicle prior to sale.

Thank you again!
Old 10-29-2014, 12:19 PM
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Anyone have any idea if and when this conversion was completed? Trying to gather information and at a stand still. Left two voice mails for Mr. Fred Opert and haven't received a call back. Any help is appreciated!
Old 11-04-2014, 09:39 AM
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Originally Posted by cumd20
Semperis, thanks.

Interesting - and this could be pure coincidence ..... but I have completed extensive research on the Strosek mega wide body speedster since I made that post above. As stated I own the 1994 black Strosek speedster shown above in this thread (and many other pics if you search this site) commissioned by Fred Opert in NJ and converted at Strosek Design GMBH of Munich.

This is a conversation or a question - not a statement, but I wonder if the so called "factory 15" is something different. If you search this site there are people who are adamant that the Porsche factory states that their factory did not ever make 1994 wide body speedsters. Yet there are correctly references to magazines that talk about 15 "factory" 1994 wide body speedsters.

When the word "factory" gets used in the context of the wide body Strosek - we are usually referring to the Strosek factory. Strosek completed a number of factory conversions of brand new never driven speedsters, but there are also some after market Strosek conversions that are not "factory". This seperation is really important - the factory Strosek conversions are completed with an approach that is very different and their factory process was designed with Porsche guidance and input and was subject to a Porsche quality control assessment, not so for any after market conversions (or so Strosek tell me). Strosek and Opert tell me that if you have seen a factory conversion and an after market conversion they tell you that they are very discernible.

Another twist is that all of the Strosek Speedster molds were destroyed in a Factory Fire at their Munich plant (I once had a link to the news story but cannot find it right now). This basically means it is impossible to obtain Strosek factory molded panels - unless someone had inventory, Strosek tell me they kept all inventory that survived the fire and ran out of most of it a long time ago.

Strosek have confirmed to me in writing that there were 15 1994 speedsters converted to mega wide body speedsters at the Strosek "factory". These cars were shipped to the Strosek factory from wherever they were when the base speedster was acquired (in my case shipped back to Germany from the USA for the conversion, then returned to Opert for finishing).

I have tried to keep a track of where the 15 original 1994 factory Strosek speedsters are registered and only 8 of the 15 were converted for the North American market and all of those were commissioned by Fred Opert who is the exlusive north american agent of Strosek (a worker at Opert qualified that 8 number also since I got this info). I got this detail below from Strosek in Germany and traced the VIN numbers. If the VIN is not included below I can assure you it is not a Strosek factory conversion (unless imported from elsewhere since its birth and assuming Stroseks records themselves are good).

VIN....465067- Currently titled in Alaska
465006 - no information available in the USA so I assume it was never brought to America though it was purchased by an American company
465465 - A red model recently sold through exotic motors in August 2014 (listed at $160k)
465225 - Silver- No reports in the usa since 2007 when it seems it was exported, (I cannot confirm its current Location however)
465256 - This vehicle is registered as White, was involved in a serious accident in 2000 and was sold as salvage in 2012 to a gentleman and shipped to the uk
465118 - one owner example last registered with less than 15k miles and titled in ohio
465293 - 2 owner California car with 90k+ miles reported
465403 - my car in black with red detail registered in wa. state (btw mine and one of the other above was bought by the same husband and wife originally as a matching pair)

The 8 above are the only North American factory wide body speedster conversions. As above one of the 8 was exported and is in the UK, one is not traceable from a USA registration perspective so I assume is gone or is a garage queen. The rest are somewhere else on the planet unless they have died since - or were subsequently imported to North America.

I wonder if it is a coincidence that the books that are referenced as evidence of the 1994 factory wide body speedster talk about 15 factory speedster wide body cars - and that is the exact same number of official factory conversions completed by Strosek.

The Mystery grows :-)
Well, I know have confirmation the Strosek in our showroom was originally converted at Strosek then shipped to the US c/o Fred Opert Racing!

So maybe the Alaska car 465067 is really 465068?

I was able to get a hold of Fred Opert Racing yesterday. Great conversation and a great guy! He said he'd follow up to see if they have a file on the car!

More info to come...
Old 11-04-2014, 10:48 AM
  #111  
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Originally Posted by brian_s_henry
Well, I know have confirmation the Strosek in our showroom was originally converted at Strosek then shipped to the US c/o Fred Opert Racing!

So maybe the Alaska car 465067 is really 465068?

I was able to get a hold of Fred Opert Racing yesterday. Great conversation and a great guy! He said he'd follow up to see if they have a file on the car!

More info to come...
I saw the Alaska car about 3 years ago, and it did not have the Strosek headlights, so I do not think they are the same car.
Old 11-04-2014, 11:04 AM
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Originally Posted by XR4Tim
I saw the Alaska car about 3 years ago, and it did not have the Strosek headlights, so I do not think they are the same car.
Now I'm confused on how Midwest Exotics classified the Red one they had as 1 of 3? Strosek confirmed this car to be a converted Mega Speedster completed in 1993. I thought there were 8 in the US? Is this an additional VIN added to the 8?

I'd like to find out how many were originally converted and shipped to the US, and not shipped back for conversion then again to the US.

Hopefully I can find out more information from Fred Opert Racing soon!
Old 11-10-2014, 05:22 PM
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Originally Posted by brian_s_henry
Now I'm confused on how Midwest Exotics classified the Red one they had as 1 of 3? Strosek confirmed this car to be a converted Mega Speedster completed in 1993. I thought there were 8 in the US? Is this an additional VIN added to the 8?

I'd like to find out how many were originally converted and shipped to the US, and not shipped back for conversion then again to the US.

Hopefully I can find out more information from Fred Opert Racing soon!
The first part is easy, Exotics got it plain wrong (or had some poetic license for advertising profile purpose) - I had thought about buying that car and it was their advert (also repeated in the DuPont registry who I used to have more faith in) that triggered my dialogue with Strosek in Germany themselves and with Fred Opert.

The second part I can only speculate - Alaska VIN number ending may be a simple transpose error, that blue car above (VIN end 5330) is not a factory strosek speedster - I own one of them and have driven two others. It may be a non factory conversion though.

Best bet - speak to in Strosek, I have PM'd you with a Strosek email for the person accountable for records and she will confirm one way or another. In my mind if you have both Opert and Strosek saying VIN 8 was a Strosek GMBH factory conversion you are as solid as I can imagine you being.

Insofar as buying a new car and having the car converted from the factory floor to a strosek at Strosek GMBH factory without first having been shipped to the end market (like the USA), I feel it is unlikely you will find that level of detail. It is hard enough to get any verified detail.

One other thing - I was told by Fred himself some years ago that one that they converted was a white speedster and the owner insisted on it being painted blue (the blue yours is I believe).
He explained that usually the commissioning owner would always sue the same base color for the end product and this was an exception. Easy way to check on that is by checking the Speedster VIN number and frunk label.
Old 11-10-2014, 05:28 PM
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Double post - sorry
Old 11-10-2014, 05:31 PM
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Originally Posted by brian_s_henry
Appreciate your thoughts. I've searched the VIN on numerous sites and can't find any past history on the car? I left a voice mail for Opert to see if they handled the car at anytime. I'm trying to gather as much information as possible to create a valid listing for the vehicle prior to sale.

Thank you again!
Originally Posted by XR4Tim
That one left the factory as a US-VIN speedster. It could have been converted by Strosek after the fact, but it seems odd that the VIN is one digit away from the Maritime Blue Strosek car in Alaska.
Bear in mind - ALL Strosek speedsters left the Porsche factory as a Speedster VIN - so as a minimum if you are thinking of buying you want to be able to verify it was first an original speedster, then an original conversion of that speedster at the Strosek Factory. There could be some special wishes cars also of course but I doubt strosek converted any of those.
Old 11-10-2014, 05:47 PM
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Originally Posted by cumd20
The first part is easy, Exotics got it plain wrong (or had some poetic license for advertising profile purpose) - I had thought about buying that car and it was their advert (also repeated in the DuPont registry who I used to have more faith in) that triggered my dialogue with Strosek in Germany themselves and with Fred Opert.

I was made aware of 2 original Stroseks in Maritime blue.

The second part I can only speculate - Alaska VIN number ending may be a simple transpose error, that blue car above (VIN end 5330) is not a factory strosek speedster - I own one of them and have driven two others. It may be a non factory conversion though.

They are absolutely gorgeous and a joy to drive!

Best bet - speak to in Strosek, I have PM'd you with a Strosek email for the person accountable for records and she will confirm one way or another. In my mind if you have both Opert and Strosek saying VIN 8 was a Strosek GMBH factory conversion you are as solid as I can imagine you being.

I now have written confirmation from Strosek that this car is original and sold through Opert. I also confirmed with Bob from Opert that they sold this vehicle new to an owner in CA.

Insofar as buying a new car and having the car converted from the factory floor to a strosek at Strosek GMBH factory without first having been shipped to the end market (like the USA), I feel it is unlikely you will find that level of detail. It is hard enough to get any verified detail.

Strosek did confirm and emailed me that the car was completed in their workshop and then sent to Opert.
-

One other thing - I was told by Fred himself some years ago that one that they converted was a white speedster and the owner insisted on it being painted blue (the blue yours is I believe).
He explained that usually the commissioning owner would always sue the same base color for the end product and this was an exception. Easy way to check on that is by checking the Speedster VIN number and frunk label.
Trunk label shows original color in Maritime Blue.

Thank you so much for your input and I greatly appreciate your help! I believe I've been able to find as much information as possible to generate an appropriate listing.
Old 03-30-2015, 02:36 AM
  #117  
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Originally Posted by brian_s_henry

I'm trying to create a listing for sale.
Originally Posted by brian_s_henry

I've been able to generate an appropriate listing.
Brian-- Update? Listed for sale?
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Old 04-02-2015, 01:04 AM
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Old 07-04-2015, 11:43 PM
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Old 07-05-2015, 10:03 AM
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Originally Posted by TL-Register

factory build widebody Speedster in Austria ...


Best

Norbert

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