1970-73 Porsche 911S

by Scott Johnston

A restored 911S can top $20K.

The E-type and the 911 share the distinction as two of the most recognizable sports car shapes of all time. Both cars conceptually leapt ahead of the competition when introduced and both had teething troubles in their infancy. But after eight years of production, the E-type had lost its edge and had become somewhat dated, while the 911 was just reaching the first of several pinnacles in its long history. Porsche’s continual refining of the original 911 concept is precisely what makes the 2.2-liter and 2.4-liter such appealing cars today. With the introduction of the 2.2-liter S in the 1970 model year and the 2.4-liter S in 1972, gone was Porsche’s previous standard of attempting to extract the maximum horsepower per liter from its production engines. The 1969 2.0 S with 85 hp/L had the highest output for any normally aspirated standard production Porsche. These super peaky engines had to be revved mercilessly and were too noisy and tiresome for most...