9WERKS Radio : The Porsche and Car Podcast Mar 23, 2026

20 Years, One Carrera GT: the truth of CGT ownership!

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69:34

Brand

NineWorks Radio

This is the name of the podcast/show. It’s connected to a Porsche-focused marketplace that sells or highlights Porsche cars and parts.

Company

NineWorks Marketplace

They mention a marketplace that’s part of the NineWorks brand. It’s basically where Porsche stuff is featured or sold.

Car

Porsche 356

The Porsche 356 is an early classic Porsche from the 1950s/60s. It’s a way of saying they cover both old-school and newer Porsches.

Concept

bespoke lighting

They’re talking about custom lighting made specifically for the car. The goal is to make it look great for photos and videos.

Term

cup holders

They’re talking about the cup holders in the center console. The interesting part is that when the cup holder pops out, another panel can shift back in afterward.

Term

cup holder panel

They’re talking about a cup holder in the dashboard that pops out when you press a panel. There’s also a piece that can be put back in so it looks better and stays in place.

Term

A heated steering wheel uses an embedded heating element to warm the steering rim for comfort in cold weather. On some Porsche models, the control button can be tucked away, so owners may not realize it’s available.

Concept

shop around

The takeaway is to compare prices from different places. You might find the same kind of part for a lot less money.

Company

Porsche Bournemouth

That’s a Porsche dealership location. The host is saying they got parts there that you might not find at other shops, and sometimes the dealer pricing is better than you’d expect.

Car

Carrera GT

The Porsche Carrera GT is a special, high-end supercar from Porsche. People really want it because it’s rare and has a big “dream car” reputation, and the episode is talking about what it’s like to own one long-term.

Car

Ferrari Enzo

The Ferrari Enzo is one of Ferrari’s most famous supercars. In this discussion, it’s being compared to the Porsche Carrera GT to explain why the Porsche still looks more modern.

Concept

Paris Motor Show

The Paris Motor Show is a big car event where brands show off new ideas and prototypes. The speaker is saying the design story started there before it became a real car.

Concept

concept car

A concept car is like a “preview” car. It’s shown to show what a company might build next, and it may not be exactly what you can buy.

Concept

British GT

British GT is a major UK sports-car racing championship featuring GT3/GT4-style cars and professional drivers. Winning it in 2000 is a strong credibility marker for the speaker’s racing background and helps explain how they got access to high-profile Porsche events.

Concept

main dealer

A “main dealer” is the official dealership for that car brand. If you’re buying something rare, the dealer is usually the channel that can place the order and handle the paperwork correctly.

Concept

Geneva Motor Show

The Geneva Motor Show (Salon International de l’Auto) was one of the world’s most important auto events, especially for major launches and press previews. Mentioning it here highlights how Porsche used major international shows to debut and promote new supercar information.

Term

5.5 litres

“5.5 litres” is the engine’s size—how much space the cylinders have. Bigger displacement can change how the engine makes power and how it drives.

Term

5.7 in capacity

“5.7” is the final engine size for production cars. That kind of change usually means the engineers adjusted the engine to meet the final goals for the car.

Part

carbon fibre chassis

Carbon fiber is a strong, lightweight material used in high-performance cars. Here they’re talking about the carbon-fiber chassis and how they install a metal piece into it during production.

Term

heated for expansion / frozen for contraction

They use temperature to make parts change size: heat makes one part expand, and cooling makes another part shrink. That makes assembly easier, and then it locks in place afterward.

Concept

stillborn project

A “stillborn project” means they tried to build something, but it never really got off the ground. It was basically stopped before it could succeed.

Term

world's first ceramic two-plate dry clutch

A clutch is what connects and disconnects the engine’s power to the transmission. A ceramic two-plate dry clutch is a special, high-performance version designed to handle heat and stress better than simpler clutch designs.

Term

centre locking wheels

Instead of several lug nuts, the wheel is held on by one central lock. It can make wheel changes quicker and is a more race-style setup.

Term

stalling

Stalling is when the engine turns off unexpectedly. Here, they’re saying the car’s setup makes it easier for the engine to drop speed too far and shut off.

Concept

roof-off driving

Driving with the roof off makes the car feel more connected to the outside world. You hear more of the engine and it often feels more fun and less “sealed off.”

Term

PDK

PDK is Porsche’s “fast-shifting” automatic gearbox. It uses two clutches to get the next gear ready, so the car can shift quickly without you using a clutch pedal.

Car

Porsche 959

The Porsche 959 is a famous older Porsche supercar. The host is saying it’s surprisingly easy to drive, and that its tech helped shape later Porsches.

Concept

flipped the car

To “flip” a car means buy it and then sell it soon after, usually to make money. Porsche was concerned the buyer might do that instead of keeping the car.

Term

Ruby stone

Ruby stone is a Porsche paint color referenced here as the car’s specific exterior finish. Color matters on classic and collectible Porsches because it affects perceived rarity, desirability, and resale appeal.

Concept

box fresh

“Box fresh” means the car is basically brand new, with hardly any miles. The point here is that it’s so new it should be driven, not hidden away.

Term

convertible

A convertible is a car where you can open the roof. That can make the cabin feel cooler and more open, especially in warm weather.

Term

Vanadium Grey Metallic

Vanadium Grey Metallic is a specific Porsche paint color name, indicating both the hue and that it uses metallic flake. Color names matter for matching and for evaluating how the car will look under different lighting.

Term

driver memory function

This feature saves your preferred seat position. When you get in again, the car can move the seat back to where you like it.

Term

park assist with surround view

This is a camera system that shows you what’s around the car from above or from multiple angles. It helps you park by making it easier to see obstacles you might miss.

LIVE

Andy B, I've got a question for you in these soft starts that we're doing now.

I want to see if I can ask you a question every week.

Would you rather have an air-cooled engine in a water-cooled Porsche

or a water-cooled engine in an air-cooled Porsche?

Oh my God.

Can I have a GT3 engine in an air-cooled Porsche, please?

Okay, which air-cooled generation are you saying?

I think Rean got it quite right, putting it in a 964.

Really?

You've had experience of that. I mean, how good was that?

So good. So good. That was kind of like where my mind went.

Because I've thought about this question quite a lot, as you can imagine.

And that was such a compelling argument to have a water-pumper in a Luft shell.

Yeah, I think that just about is allowable in my head.

Yeah.

Just, yeah, because it's a Metzger engine, because it's, I don't know, it feels right in some ways.

But yeah, every other combination doesn't feel right to me.

That's the only one that allows it for me.

Maybe a turbo.

997 turbo engine in a 993.

Yeah, 997.1 turbo.

Again, it's a Metzger engine, so you've got this sort of ease of doing it.

I think my engineering brain is going as well, I guess.

So yeah, yeah, yeah, that would be another, yeah.

So 993 with a 997.1 turbo engine.

That'd be quite a beast, wouldn't it?

It would.

Yeah, and a 964 with a GT3 engine.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Imagine putting a 997 turbo engine into like a long bonnet air called Targa.

I mean, they're so flimsy and floppy bodies anyway.

You put the foot down and the thing would scrunch up like a bit of paper, I think.

Yeah, it's not going to be a good combination, is it?

No, no.

And then obviously the other way round of that is like a breathy early T engine in a 992 turbo cab body.

See what I mean?

It wouldn't move.

There's not much that actually works, is there?

No.

No, I didn't think that.

I did like it because I was thinking of that Rean car and thinking GT engine in a, I'd probably go 993 body,

but then I also thought, well, a 993 RS engine in a 996, just C2 shell because it's the lightest,

here we go, pumping up.

Oh, here we go.

It's the lightest water cooled body.

Do you know what I mean?

And then sticking that engine in, it's a six-speed gearbox anyway.

I think that would just be phenomenal and you'd have the sound as well.

Oh my God.

Yeah.

I thought about it too much.

Shall we get on with the pod?

All right, come on.

Let's do it.

This is NineWorks Radio, brought to you by the NineWorks Marketplace and powered by the

Driven Not Hidden Collective.

NineWorks Radio is brought to you in association with Heritage Park Centre.

Get up to 10% off your basket for all manner of Porsches from 356 to 997 inclusive, plus

the mid-engine and transaxle Porsches by using the code NineWorks10 at heritagepartcenter.com.

That's the code NineWorks10 at heritagepartcenter.com.

Amazing, right.

Yeah, away from weird swaps.

How are you doing, Andy B?

I'm very well.

Thank you, Mr Sibley.

How are you?

Dandy.

Dandy, you know, the sun has finally come out in the UK.

I don't want to start a podcast.

Does it feel that way, doesn't it?

Yeah.

Yeah, I don't want to start a podcast talking about the weather, but we recently, Saturday

Spring events in association with RPM Technic.

It was Saturday Sixes at the new, I say the new RPM Technic premises.

They've extended to include a really rad new hangout, bigger showroom with, yeah, like

for want of a better word, like a bar, social breakout hangout area sitting above it.

Really, really awesome.

Yeah, take me through it because I unfortunately couldn't make it due to family reasons.

Yeah, yeah.

But yeah, I'd love to hear what that, the new area's like.

Where is it in relation to the old showroom?

Because the old showroom, you walked in the front door.

There was that bit that had two or three cars in it, the reception area.

There was a little bar area.

You could sit there and do your work and stuff.

And then you went through the door with quite a few cars in that, yeah, in that sort of

area, probably up to 10, I think.

So where's the new bit?

So as you go in the main door by reception, it's straight ahead of you now.

So the showroom...

So I've taken out the back.

Yes.

The unit of the back, okay.

That's it.

So the showroom floor space has probably doubled, to be fair.

It's now got like an air-cooled corner, which is quite nice, slightly different flooring.

It's got the buying boots room, I'm calling it.

It's a bit like a goldfish bowl, glass walls.

And when you're completing your deal with the RPM Technic team, that's where you're

sitting there.

So it's the buying boots room.

I wonder if they give you like a...

You know, look, when you go to a spa day and they give you a set of sliders, I wonder

if they give you some like, you know, some boots just for the task.

The RPM sliders coming up.

Yeah, yeah.

Yeah.

The sale sliders to complete the deal sheet.

And yeah, they're next to that.

They've got, yeah, just like a separate area, which they want to have like a car of high

interest.

There's like a...

So is that rather than 959s apart at the moment?

No, that's somewhere else.

It's not really been in too many photos yet, in fairness.

I did cover it on a recent Tool Shop Tour video.

There wasn't a car in that area at the time, but it's got some kind of bespoke lighting

above the car.

There's a telly on the wall next to it.

So the idea is any media work that's done around the car, or just any media at all.

I mean, imagine like a little roof CTR sitting in the corner there with then like the fascination

video on the telly above it.

I mean, you know, you talk about inspiration.

So that would be cool.

And then like the social area is kind of up in the eaves in the middle of the showroom.

If that makes sense, you can see out either side.

It's got a massive, I think it's 100 inch TV, which is going to be awesome for like your

Le Mans, your Daytona's and everything else.

Loads of seating, coffee bar.

Zero beer is there as well if that kind of partakes and tickles your fancy.

So I don't think the RPM Technic team had naming the bar, but I did ask on my Tool Shop

Tour video if you've got any suggestions to just pop it in the comments below.

And there were a few crackers.

My favorite one by Country Mile was calling the bar 5pm Technic.

I just think that is so inspired.

So yeah, so great setup and the team have got many events planned for this year.

And we were super, super privileged to be the first kind of third party in there.

If that makes sense, the first third party.

Good turnout.

Really good.

So we had 40 cars.

The weather turned out too, didn't it?

Yeah, and this is what I mean, Andy, right.

So we had 40 cars from the collective that was limited just due to space on the industrial

state on a Saturday morning, which is still like a working arena.

And yeah, like obviously, as you well know, those tickets, which were free, but we asked

people to grab a ticket just to honour their pledge to turn up because there's coffees to

be made and all the rest of it.

So yeah, 40 cars, great mix.

The sun was shining, Andy, and it makes such a difference, you know, having lots of different

conversations with so many different people.

I really felt that everybody was truly basking and having some sunshine, and it felt like

the first shoot of spring.

It really did.

It just makes all the difference, you know.

Yeah.

And as ever, there was some distance drivers, I guess.

Yep.

So we had Ben, Alex and Seb came down from up north.

Again, I don't know where you define up north.

For you and I residing on the south coast, that's pretty much above Winchester as the

long standing joke goes.

But yeah, those guys came down from Cheshire and Yorkshire, respectively.

We had Owen came from Wales, great effort.

So he's popped abroad for the day.

Yeah.

Bristol P came from the obvious.

James came from Suffolk.

Andre came from Essex.

All over, mate.

All over.

Yeah, it's quite a few from Essex, wasn't it?

Really good, mate.

Yeah.

Proper job.

Lovely.

So yeah, like it was just the most outstanding day, and many amazing conversations had.

I have a confession, Andy, because you gave me the podcast kit, didn't you?

Oh, yes.

Yeah, yeah.

How'd it go?

Did you record any?

Well, put it this way.

What you're about to hear is what we got.

Okay.

And thank you for listening.

Sorry.

Do you know what?

I got the kit out.

Yeah.

I put it down by the front door as I was setting up the flags.

Yeah.

And then I completely forgot about the podcast kit until I was going home.

And I was packing the flags away again and thought, oh my God, that's our podcast kit there.

Kudos, I'd say, to the collective because there's a bag with the best part.

A 500 quid's worth of podcast tech just chilling on the floor for the entire show.

And yeah, nobody lifted it.

So that's great.

So yeah.

So I didn't get any podcast snippets, unfortunately.

And similarly, I got zero pictures really.

Just more.

You did way too, though.

There were some great pictures taken.

I've seen on the WhatsApp group.

There was.

That comes to mind Ben and Ollie and there was somebody else that's posted some as well.

They're amazing.

Ben's pictures are amazing.

Ollie's pictures are absolutely amazing.

There's a few people taking some snaps.

Max was having a day off I saw, so that was good.

No camera.

I think he was too busy telling everyone about his battery woes.

Oh yeah.

But yeah, do you know what?

I mean, fantastic guys.

Thank you for taking those pictures.

That's really helped us out in order to share them.

But I personally really enjoyed putting the phone away and not trying to gather content

for people that weren't there, but actually being present for the people that were there.

So that's a bit of a theme for me these days.

And yeah, again, just the reward of that was so many wonderful conversations.

So thank you to everybody for coming along and thank you to RPM Technic for hosting us as well.

As I said, we were the first independent community through the door there.

So it was really, really awesome.

Great work. Glad it went well.

Amazing, mate.

I've got a couple of other notes just off of WhatsApp this week.

And I think this may be useful to everybody else, or some people listening.

I know what you're going to say.

Cup holders.

I mean, how thrilling has the WhatsApp chat been this week for the DNHC?

We had some chat on cup holders, but it stemmed from Ben basically

realizing only in the last week that on the 9x7 and forward,

the cup holders, when it pops out, that central panel can pop back in

once the cup holder has flopped out for one of a slightly dodgy term.

I didn't realize that until maybe last year sometime.

Really? Yeah.

But then I've not got a car.

It's not my, I don't drive around in it, do it?

It's just, I think it was when we did that twin test.

Do you remember the GTS and the S?

Four S, wasn't it?

I think it was then that I realized.

Yeah.

I mean, it's like, well, you've got an excuse, haven't you?

Because you haven't got the car sitting on your drive.

But it made me laugh.

It made me laugh.

And it just also caused me to ponder.

I wonder how many other people potentially listening to this podcast

who are driving around with a 9x7 or 98199718.

And don't realize that when you press that cup holder panel

above the glove box and the cup holder pops out,

if you could pop that central bit back in,

not only does it look aesthetically way more pleasing,

but it also holds the cup holder in place.

Yeah.

I don't know.

I was watching a video the other day of yours

and it was, I think it was the 991 cab

and you said about this heated steering wheel.

Yeah.

How many people realize that there's a,

you know, they may not realize they've got a heated steering wheel

because the button's hidden away somewhere, isn't it?

On this column or on the back of the steering wheel, where is it?

Yeah.

So on, I mean, yeah, it's always at the base of the centre of the steering wheel

on the, like the modern stuff,

it's literally right at the base at the back of the wheel.

So just when you're, when you're holding the steering wheel

at six o'clock round the other side,

there's a tiny little nib in between for like the 992s and 718s.

It's like a twin, if you've got the sport wheel, isn't it?

Twin spoke at the bottom.

And there's a tiny little nib of a button at the base of that.

With the 997s, it's a little bit more pronounced.

It's basically in the middle of that kind of vertical,

what do you call it?

Not column, spoke.

Spoke, yeah.

Yeah, so just put your finger round the back,

have a press and see what happens.

And yeah, some people may be rocking a heated steering wheel,

which is a delightful, delightful addition to any car.

I may not realise it.

I wonder how many other little nuggets there are like that,

that people don't realise.

Shout if you think of anything that should be more publicly aware.

Definitely, definitely.

I wonder how many people drive their car, particularly obviously,

actually it's obvious if they've not specced the car from new,

but maybe don't realise it even has rear axle steering.

Yeah.

You know, it can happen.

It can happen, I'm sure.

So yeah, if there's any other little bits and pieces that other people

should know, please, please do let us know.

Yeah, absolutely.

So on the subject as well of every day being a school day

and learning things, I'd like to give a shout out to Alec,

because he learned in the last week or so that shopping with

our friends at Heritage Park Centre can save you a lot of money.

He has, yeah, an early Boxster that needs a little bit of work.

He was quoted 420 quid plus VAT for genuine inner tie rod items.

I found the same part for him inner tie rods from Myla

at Heritage Park Centre coming with a two-year unlimited Myla's warranty,

both sides for 50 quid all in 10% of the price.

What's this?

So yeah, it just pays to shop around.

Shop around.

It's always worth shopping around.

Yeah.

I've just got a load of parts actually for finishing my engine.

Little project off.

Pick those up today.

So I've got lots of new parts that I picked up from Porsche Bournemouth.

So yeah, looking forward to getting those on.

And as we've said before, shop around because a lot of the parts

that I've picked up today aren't available at other places.

They're only available through Porsche, but they're actually a lot cheaper

than you would think rather than trying to get good secondhand parts

or whatever, or trying to fudge something.

You'll be surprised how available parts are and how you can,

they're not as expensive as you might think.

Yeah.

And it definitely pays to shop around.

I mean, if you're looking at, you know, my build, for example,

with Little Irish and that huge spreadsheet shopping around,

as we've realised, you know, you have to go to the right place

for the right part.

Exactly.

Yeah.

You know, there's not one fit for all.

No.

And so it requires a little bit of work and a little bit of digging.

But I mean, yeah, we've saved so much money in shopping around

rather than just going on the internet and clicking the first part you see.

So it depends what you value more really, you know, cash or convenience

ultimately, but it's so worth it.

And we're quite lucky as enthusiasts that there are kind of so many different

outlets and destinations for us to pick these parts up from.

So just, yeah, do a bit of digging.

We dive into the main crux of the feature,

or shall we talk about some buying boots?

Let's do the main crux.

Shall we come back to buying boots?

Well, I like it.

Leaving a bit on the table for later.

Absolutely.

Yeah.

So 2025 last year, that celebrated a quarter of a century of the concept

of the Carrera GT because the show car was revealed in Paris in 2000

with Walter Roll driving down the Chandelier in the lashing it down rain

with no roof.

And obviously that was when they realized Porsche realized the roof needed

to be added into the mix of the Carrera GT's repertoire.

Well, obviously a lot of time has passed since then.

The value of the Carrera GT has gone up and up and up

and it's firmly cemented itself as the middle car of the Porsche Holy Trinity.

The 959 before it, the 918 thereafter.

Well, we're very lucky enough to know someone here at Numbwaite's Radio

who's owned a Carrera GT from New, still owns it today

and is happy to sit down and talk to us about just what it's like

to own one of those Holy Trinity cars for a prolonged period of time.

It's Mark Sumter at Paragon Porsche.

Thanks for joining us.

Hello.

Thank you.

And in between us, it does feel like we are quite a gulf away,

but the reason is we've got Porsche's Type 980 in between us

as we discuss the car on what is from its concept a 25th anniversary this year.

It's unbelievable, isn't it?

Slipped under the radar.

Mark, you have a wealth of knowledge on these cars as owner, enthusiast

and someone that's done many miles in them.

Probably more than your average, I would say.

Yeah.

I mean, there's one guy, John Chester, do you know John?

I don't.

He's over 100,000 kilometres on here, so yeah, I'm nowhere near that.

Yeah.

Since it's been in for the recall, I think there's quite a few of us owners

that think we've got to plan a trip.

We sort of get back out there with it.

But yeah, I'm not trying to keep the mileage down,

but life gets in the way sometimes.

Yeah.

So just checking some notes here from previous work we've done with NineWorks.

So Tony Hatter, designer of the Carrera GT,

he called it a very cost-conscious project which nearly didn't make it.

A quarter of a century on, how do you reflect on the Carrera GT?

Yeah, it's weird.

I mean, I remember them talking about the KN,

the success of the KN sort of helping out with this car.

But is that right?

Yeah.

Well, it's only financially.

Yeah, financially.

Yeah, definitely.

Because it was sort of, there was a bit of kickback, wasn't there,

when the Cayenne, SUV, Porsche doing an SUV and all of that.

But at the time when we were talking to them about this,

they were sort of saying that projects like the Cayenne

would pay for halo cars like this, you know, or subsidise if you like.

Because I don't think they made any money on the Carrera GT project.

Well, I mean, again, like where Tony had said previously,

where it nearly didn't make it, I fully believe him on it.

He describes it as a cost-conscious project.

You know, I think, well, there's carbon monocoque in there,

there's Kevlar panels, there is ceramic on the brakes,

you've got a small ceramic diameter clutch,

and so many different materials and such like an exotic use of them.

I'm not sure it's cost-conscious.

No, I hadn't heard that quote, actually, until you told me.

But it doesn't seem it, does it?

It seems like they went all out to build the best car.

I mean, if you, you know, the cars at the time of the SLR, this,

and the Enzo with the sort of trilogy,

I mean, they didn't really name them like that at that time.

But if you, you know, nothing against Ferrari,

but if you park a Carrera GT next to an Enzo,

this looks a decade newer in the design.

You know, the Ferrari's still sort of box-sectioned.

You know, the way the engine sits high in the back of the car,

and Carrera GT just looks light years ahead of it,

and I think performed better.

You know, I mean, definitely was the quicker of the three cars

when they tried to man the, around the Nurburgring thing.

Yeah.

I mean, there's, you know, there's a lot of things on this car

that even today look pretty modern 25 years later.

It's a great point, you know, looking at it as we are on the video currently.

You know, it does still, to me at least, it does feel like,

it has a fresh, modern look about it.

It really does.

I spoke to somebody, it wasn't Tony,

but it was somebody at the factory,

and they planned to build 1,500 cars.

Yes.

And they had to stop production because of the federalization,

or I think it was the pedestrian crash testing,

which is when the fronts of the cars then became a bit sort of snubbier,

nose if you like, so this low front, this,

the sort of strike height of the front number plate and things like that

wouldn't have passed those tests.

And I know with the Ford GT program, if you read about that,

which is similar time, they also ceased production

at exactly the same time as the Carrera GT.

Wow.

And cut short the planned production numbers.

And I think that this, you know, this car had to stop in,

in and around sort of mid-2006,

because by the end of 2006, it was an illegal car to sell in many places.

Wow.

Okay. See, I didn't know that.

I've had that on my notes here about, yeah, 1,270 made

with the initial target being 1,500,

given its kind of production time between 2003 and 2006,

I had assimilated that to being, well, 996RS

was a bit of a struggle numbers-wise at the time,

and I'd assumed that maybe they overreact the omelette,

if you like, on their target.

But evidently, I didn't know that, so that's great knowledge.

Yeah, I mean, you might know, but I think that,

I think it was just they ran out of time

for the cars being legal with these crash test,

you know, the pedestrian crash test.

They obviously wanted to use that production line as well.

I think for SUVs straight afterwards,

when the last car came off the line, I think that's what they did with it.

Yeah.

So there's probably pressure to get going.

Yeah, because obviously this was made at Leipzig,

or Leipzig, let me check the pronunciation of that,

which was like the new factory at the time for Porsche.

It was first, the concept was first shown to the world

at the Paris Motor Show, that was Grant Larson's concept car,

which had, it was a boxed-the-base with a version

of the V10 engine in it.

Walter Roll driving down the Chandelier, quite famously,

very early in the morning, it was raining,

and it was at that point where the team realised,

well, we need to put a roof on this thing.

Yeah.

That was in, yeah, March, spring of 2000.

When was the first time you saw the car?

Well, it seems unbelievable now

that I didn't really see any of that.

You know, although that's what I was doing as a day job.

I must have seen pictures, but it was a shock to me

when I saw it.

We were lucky enough, we won the British GT in 2000.

So we got invited to the night of champions at Viscac,

which was amazing.

Very cool.

Amazing event to go to.

Yeah, I felt like a bit of an imposter there, really,

but I was sitting, you know, there were about a thousand

Porsche VIPs there and racing drivers from around the world,

and they were sitting at a table with Dick Barber,

Dick Barber racing and his lead driver, Luca Riccatelli.

And behind me, about 10 foot behind me was the car,

the prototype.

And I got a sore neck from, I should have been looking

at the stage and I was just kept looking at this car,

not really knowing what it was,

because it's obviously, it was no social media back then,

and I hadn't kept up with the, I hadn't been to Paris

to the motor show and I didn't really know anything about it.

I didn't feel that bad about not knowing much about it,

because when I came back, I phoned my main dealer,

sort of trusted guy that I use, we still use now,

said, I've seen this car and whatever it is, I want one,

it just says GT on the back and I don't,

and he didn't know what it was either.

So it's quite weird, isn't it?

We obviously soon worked out what it was and did some research,

but it's not, you know, you sort of forget today

that you can't miss anything if you've got a phone or a computer.

It's thrust at you, isn't it?

You don't miss the launch of a couple of weeks ago,

the new turbo and we all saw it probably within 24 hours.

But back then, 25 years ago, you had to look for stuff

and I hadn't seen it.

But yeah, so I put my request in knowing nothing about it

right at the end of 2000, so December 2000.

Yeah, okay, interesting.

So that's near on nine months before your first, you know,

like eyeball exposure to the car.

And four and a half years before they let me buy it,

this is May 2005.

But I mean, back then, once they'd taken my order,

they really looked after it.

They privately gested me over to the factory twice.

I went to the Geneva Motor Show where they had another launch

for the following year.

We went, I drove the test car, went out with,

I think it was the German sideways champion or something

that took me out in a yellow one,

which had no synchromesh is left on the gearbox.

But we were going along about 100 miles an hour

and he just asked me if I liked sideways.

I went, yeah.

And he just threw the thing sideways.

It was amazing.

But yeah, the VIP treatment that you got

taking one of these cars was amazing.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Okay, very, very, very interesting

to have our minds cast back to that time.

The production car, and you alluded to this off camera mark,

so it's, I mean, 610 horsepower,

their production spec of the engine,

it was slightly, slightly larger.

Or not. 611 or 6...

Well, you know what, on the...

Some people said...

Okay, there we go, there we go.

Thanks, Kay, for that.

Yeah, you should...

Which was absolutely mind-blowing.

And now 100 horsepower less than the latest turbo, isn't it?

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Wow, wow.

But V10, kind of crucially, the production...

Or the prototype cars you alluded to off camera,

that was 5.5 litres, it's gone up to 5.7 in capacity

for production.

Again, I wasn't aware of this,

but there's some stuff you're mentioning off camera

in terms of the dynamics and the layout of the vehicle

and that kind of low overall centre of gravity.

Yeah, I mean, it's...

Whenever I lift the bootlid and show someone the engine,

it just amazes me, the cylinder head is basically knee height.

The top of, you know, 5.7 V10 engine is knee height.

Yeah.

I think that the centre line of the crankshaft

is about eight inches off the tarmac,

you know, when the car's sitting on its wheels.

Yeah.

Yeah, it's really special.

And if you look, the rear wheels are right at the back of the car,

there's not a great deal of rear overhang.

The engine's quite a long way forward from the drive shaft,

so yeah, it's immense.

I'd never appreciated dynamically exactly that

and from a road car that really is quite special.

Yeah, and they were super proud.

I remember going down the production line

and they had this big red hot,

sort of like a massive oversized soldering iron,

which has heated the carbon fibre chassis up,

a hole in the carbon fibre chassis.

And then another engineer came out,

there was a freezer and they'd frozen a lump of steel,

I guess it is, a gush,

and they came out and dropped it, you know,

in the hole that had been heated for expansion.

Yeah.

Obviously frozen for contraction.

And they just said,

that was for the life of the car, that will never move now,

just as an interference fit once they married to each other.

And that is because it's got the push-rod rear suspension.

That's the main points that they rock.

And to see them doing that, the factoring was pretty special.

Yeah, yeah, very cool.

I wondered if 918 customers had that sort of exposure.

Again, you'll know more than me,

but it's a little bit of a common misconception

from my understanding with Garza the Engine,

it was destined for a Formula 1 car.

It was actually an LMP car that's successor to the GT1.

I actually saw the car,

they ran up the hill at Goodwood two years ago,

and I happened to be part of it and had it in the bay next to it.

So I saw a lot of the car.

They produced a car, I think they did.

I think Anna McNish was in a magazine recently,

saying that he did one or two days testing,

even though it was a sort of stillborn project.

They'd spent so much money on it,

he said, let's take it out for one day, it runs, it works.

And they killed the project,

but gave them enough money to sort of run the team for another month

just to prove it would work.

5.5 litre, which they increased, as you say, 5.7,

I guess just to make it a bit more tractable for the road.

It still feels like a racing car engine.

When you switch it off,

because there's no inertia,

because there's obviously very little flywheel,

it stops like a Formula 1 engine.

It stops like it's seized as you turn the key off.

It's quite funny, there's no sort of overrun.

And the noise is, I think,

maybe the Gordon Murray car now supersedes it with its revs and things,

but up until that, to me, it's the best engine,

best sounding road car engine ever.

It's fascinating to get the insight

and we'll come on to how it drives,

but just those nuances that separate this,

not just from any other road car, but any other Porsche,

like production Porsche, really.

I mean, there are some other technical highlights to go through here.

Yeah, carbon monocoque, Kevlar seats, carbon ceramic brakes.

It had the world's first ceramic two-plate dry clutch

with a diameter of just 169 millimetres.

We'll talk about the clutch shortly.

The Beechwood shifter, which is, again, a nod to the 9117, as we all know,

the centre locking wheels with the, obviously, the nut that came with the car.

There are a lot of firsts.

Again, you know, that first, wherever I put it,

first carbon fibre standard production Porsche.

So it kind of chimes with what you're saying,

where it does feel like a bit of a race car on the road.

Yeah.

Which, yeah, again, for Porsche to produce this car

less than five years after it very nearly went out of business

is quite the economic turnaround

and logistical mastermind, really.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Can we talk about the clutch, everybody?

I'm sure it's the first question somebody asks you.

So for the 1 millionth time, you know,

how difficult is the clutch, really?

It's...

So the first year I had the car,

I was racing abroad in Group C racing.

So a truck would go down with the car

and I could put all my luggage on it,

because this isn't great for luggage space.

And I got really quite good at driving it

because I was in it, you know, for long journeys.

So I haven't driven it enough recently.

So when I get back in it now, you do feel awkward in it

when you're first on the first trip.

The second day, you don't think about it.

But it's one of those things.

The more you think about it, the more awkward it is.

Okay, yeah, yeah.

It's not an easy clutch to use.

If you trust the anti-store with it, it's easier.

But because it looks like such a fast car,

people let you out of a junction

and expect you to go and you just need a bit of time.

Because you have to slowly let the pedal up

and then let the anti-store work and then go.

Okay.

It's the awkward part of the car.

If you were sat in a traffic jam

and you could suddenly press a button

and turn it into PDK for 10 minutes, you would.

I know.

Yes.

It is awkward.

But I suppose, for me, you know, it's an analog supercar.

It almost should feel a bit awkward.

It's sort of all part of its charm.

It rewards in other areas.

You know, as I say, the pickup,

because it doesn't have much for a flywheel,

which is why, because it's not actually,

people talk about the clutch, but it's a lack of flywheel.

That's the problem.

There's just, there's zero.

It's so easy to store because there's no flywheel.

You know, there's hardly any flywheel.

You haven't got that low engine speeds.

It's really easy to kill the engine.

It's not so much the clutch, you know.

Yeah, the clutch is heavy,

but the pedal was the same as an early nine,

you know, it's like an early 9-11 pedal.

It's more the fact of lack of flywheel.

Yeah.

So it is another car that has like a reputation

for being pretty prone to stalling.

It's like the 964 RS with single mass flywheel.

Where does this ranking comparison to that, for example?

Quite a bit worse.

Is it really? Yeah.

Wow, okay.

Okay, interesting.

Very interesting.

Yeah, you know, it is tricky.

I mean, but when you obviously, at the time,

as an owner, you tend to study the market

and you never want to lose money and things like that.

And early on, there were a lot of cars.

So North America took about half the production

and they really didn't get on with them in America.

You know, it's loads and loads and loads of them got sold.

I think there's rumors that Porsche ended up buying quite a few

or having quite a few back from unsold cars from America

just to try and protect the market.

But I do remember on American eBay,

there were 30 or 40 delivery mileage cars under list

for quite a while.

You know, they went down in value before they went up in value.

And the Americans seemed to prefer the SLR, you know,

because it was an easy car to live with and or obviously enter.

But like a lot of things, like I guess that's, you know,

a lot of cars that become sort of cult type cars

have their sort of difficult or, you know,

four balls or whatever, you know, GT2s,

all these sort of things that people maybe say

have a difficult to live with as they get older,

that becomes part of the charm, doesn't even know why, I think.

But yeah, it's not, it doesn't do, you have to drive it.

It feels, you know, you have to warm the gearbox up.

You've sort of got to warm the tyres up.

It's, yeah, it's a bit of a beast.

Yeah, yeah.

So we're getting, it feels like a race car on the road.

Yeah.

Noise unlike no other, if you said.

You've also said the clutch is difficult.

Like it's not hyperbole behind that.

And not great for luggage space.

So possibly not a, not a Torah.

No, but interestingly and sort of disappointingly,

that the early, that the plans early on were, was to keep,

you know, the early cars, they promised a big luggage space.

And I think that some way through final testing

decided that certain, certain countries and certain places

that needed more cooling.

So I think it initially had the sort of three radiators

across the front, like a GT3 or something.

And then they decided that that wasn't enough.

So they put a big rad and basically you lost your boot space

through that sort of later design of that, that radiator.

That's how I understand it.

Yeah, okay.

Which is a bit of a shame.

You can get more in it than you'd think, but yeah, it is limited.

You get suit bags.

I mean, I think that's why they ended up with such a lovely

luggage set because they needed, needed to squeeze in as much

as they could for the customers.

But it is, it's limited on luggage space,

which is a bit of a shame.

Have you had from York as it's, it's 20 years, I guess,

of ownership for you then, which is incredible.

And there are any, yeah, like highlights and things that you

remember from it?

Well, I think the first, the first year definitely,

because I was, as I say, I was racing in 962.

So I wasn't, I was never scared of the power of it.

You know, it was, so, and it was, I was driving it a lot in

countries where you might get fined if you were going slightly

over the speed limit, but you weren't as worried, you know,

early on, I mean, now in the UK, we're all worried about cameras

and things like that.

So I think it really comes into its own when you're in Europe with

it, because obviously they're all left hand drive.

So it's easier because, you know, it seems to open up the vision.

It's a different car with a roof off as well.

If you take the roof off, I've done some quite a lot of mileage

with the roof off.

And obviously, you get the noise of the engine, but it just seems

to just sort of, yeah, it's quite a small car inside.

And when the roof off, it just feels, it was a nicer thing to drive.

I guess designed for the roof to be off from its concept.

Obviously, once the roof's off, you've got zero luggage space

because that fits in the front there.

But yeah, I think it's definitely, it's an awkward car just to jump in

and do low mileage sort of shops and back trip.

It's not that car.

It's a car to really plan.

You've obviously got a plan where you stay as well.

Mine, my car still has its standard suspension.

So I'm sort of in two minds whether to go for the KW.

I don't, I like the suspension.

I like the feel of the car, but it would be handy to have a lift on it

because it's obviously that was never offered to have a lift on it

and the nose is quite low.

Yeah, yeah.

The KW kit, I think lifts both axles.

Lifts the whole car.

Yeah, yeah.

It could be fantastic.

So I probably will do that.

Okay.

Nice.

I've actually been chatting to our friend Oli at RPM Technic

because they've done quite a few and I trust his judgment.

And we're just talking about having a bespoke set done to look like factory

because I like the factory look.

I don't want to put different color springs and different color dampers on.

So I think Oli's trying to talk to his good friends at KW and CFL

to, you know, analyze them in, in the old colors.

So I don't want to highlight the facts.

I've changed anything.

Yeah.

But I do think that that would give you the confidence to, you know,

when I'm, if you're phoning up hotels and asking for the gradients

of their approach angles in departure.

Or, you know, you can get on a ferry.

It would be quite nice if you could do that, I think.

Well, it, you know, it, that is so lovely to hear because in,

in going down that road, you're obviously that is with a view to usability

and perhaps, you know, a wider use case, which is fantastic for such a,

for such a halo product.

It'd be nice to talk about values, obviously.

I mean, I remember when these were about 300K.

Yeah.

We sold, we sold an American spec car early on for just over 200.

We sold a UK car with less than a thousand miles for 235.

Yeah.

And we've recently sold a car for 1.25 million.

So, you know, that, yeah, it's been definitely appreciated.

It doesn't help.

It only helps if you're thinking of selling.

It doesn't help you otherwise.

It just makes it a bit more of a headache, really, doesn't it?

You just wish you had two.

I mean, when I first started at Total 9-11, I remember chatting to a guy

who was umming and arming between a Carrera GT or a 997 RS 4-litre

and they were sort of much for muchness.

Yeah.

And ultimately, neither of them had turned out to be bad decisions, of course.

But, you know, like where these are currently, do you still feel like

if you, if you look at its rivals outside of a Porsche stable?

Is it fair to say these have still got a little bit more?

I think it's undervalued.

Yeah, I know.

That sounds like a crazy thing to say, but if you, my car's done 13,000 miles

and it's worth, say 1.1, 1.2, the equivalent Enzo would be high two,

probably nearly 3 million.

Equivalent F40 would be 2.5 to 2.7, F50s would be 4 million.

Okay, they've got Ferrari Mystique around those cars,

but they built more F40s than they did, or similar F40s had actually to this.

Yeah, I think it's got scope to be appreciating a little bit more.

I sort of half hope it doesn't because it's a huge amount of money

and it becomes a bit of a liability on insurance

and where you can leave it at the parking and use it and things.

But having said that, you look at McLaren F1 owners

and they still seem to go and do trips with those cars.

Yeah, yeah.

I think you've just got to be a bit careful where you use it.

Yeah, long may it continue.

I know there's a WhatsApp group for Carrera GT owners

and I can't imagine that the conversation is rife

with how many times have you polished your car this year?

It's about using them in the tradition of what a Porsche sports car

or super sports car should be, really.

Yeah, I mean, in some respects, you think, okay,

so if the car appreciates and you double the mileage,

it might just stand still if you like.

Whereas if you put a high mileage on certain cars,

you kill the value, maybe one counteracts the other one.

I don't know.

But I try not to think too much about that.

Unless we're selling one.

Yeah, of course.

Of course, the values kicked on even through that stop-drive period,

which is quite interesting.

It'd be great, Mark, if you're able to clarify for the everyman

and woman that perhaps wasn't o-fay with this at the time,

but clarify what the notice was for and how it concluded, really.

Yeah, I mean, I didn't delve too deeply into it, but obviously,

no little bit, but they had some reports of some fractured

suspension brackets.

And it's a component that holds the A-frame,

so the main suspension arm to the carbon fibre chassis.

And there had been some cases where they saw some hairline cracks

and a couple of cars, a few cars.

So for safety reasons, first of all, they were going to check all the cars

and then they said, well, the problem is we can check in today,

but they could crack tomorrow.

So it's not really, we're not happy, their lawyers weren't happy with that.

So eventually, they just, after about a month or two,

sort of talking to owners and trying to work out what to do,

they said, no, we've got a stop-drive campaign with the cars,

which lasted about 18 months.

They had to redesign the components, test components,

put the components into production, new replacement ones.

They were pretty good, pretty good with communications,

and they did it all free of charge, serviced the cars, replaced the tyres.

But it took a while.

I think Redin did just over 100.

So although they were only, I think there were 49 UK cars sold new,

but obviously there's been cars imported into the UK.

So I think currently there's just over 100 in the UK.

So they got through all of them in about six months, which is pretty good.

And they were great to deal with.

And yeah, I think that, I think whilst that was happening,

a few people that had just thought cars were a bit upset.

But as soon as you knew that Porsche were putting their arms around you

and going to deal with this, you know, bearing in mind the cars were all 20 years old by then,

other manufacturers would have said you're on your own.

I think it was dealt with as well and as quickly as can be expected really.

And I think that in, you know, there's a lot of talk about Carrera GTs in that time.

And I think quite a few people, I think in some respects,

it made people think, well, it's quite nice that Porsche are supporting their cars.

And I think if any, I think maybe the values flattened off whilst that was happening,

but they didn't go down and they seem to have gone up a little bit.

There seems to be quite a lot of activity now, whether or not it's because the cars are all, you know,

the 25th birthday and all that sort of thing.

But there's a, there's quite a buzz around the cars at the moment.

And I think people maybe get groups or planning trips with them.

And yeah, it seems to...

So it should be.

It feels like, you know, among the wider enthusiasts, the stock of these cars has really risen.

It's just continued to rise over the last 10 years.

So this is an important pillar in the history of Porsche

and in that pantheon of top elite Porsche production road cars.

Obviously, it's stable, mate.

So the 959 prior to it and the 918 thereafter.

Where do you think this car sits among that trio?

Is it possible to rank them in any way?

Well, yeah, I mean, it's, you know, I think the 918 is an amazing car as well.

This, to me, is the last sort of muscle car, super car from like, you know, it's...

F50 and Carrera GT were, you know, it's big engine, manual gearbox, very little electronic control.

You know, it's got some traction control, but it's pretty crude.

You know, it's sort of fire-breathing super car.

And that's nothing against technology.

You know, I mean, PDK is amazing.

And, you know, 918 would be easier to live with if you want to drive it out of central London

and down the M4 or something, you know.

And I think the 918 is aging really well as well.

But this feels to me like a modern F40, you know.

It feels like it's all about as lightweight as possible, you know, big horsepower, manual gearbox.

Yes, old-school super car, I feel like.

So it feels like sort of end of an era.

And I remember even when it was new, some people were surprised that they had chosen a six-speed manual gearbox.

You know, when, if you think that it was Ferrari were really embracing, paddled, you know.

Although now when you drive any of those early Ferraris with a paddle shift, it's a very slow gear change.

But at the time, they were looking forwards and they thought that this car was sort of looking backwards.

And I think the wooden gear knob is almost, you know, sort of endorses that in some respect.

But this was a lot about a sort of celebration of the great stuff that they've done previously.

It's a weird car, it's quite, because you've got all the carbon fibre bits going on,

but then they chose the six-speed manual.

But I'm so glad they did.

Yes, yeah, I mean, obviously it was the titanic box at the time as well.

But I know, yeah, PDK probably came into it.

But maybe they could have done something, you know, they had already done PDK in the Group C.

The race cars, yeah.

So, you know, they probably could have, with everything they put into this car,

they probably could have married it up to a version of PDK to them, I think.

Yeah, I think...

But it would have been now, it would have really aged out.

Without doubt.

Whereas a six-speed manual is six-speed manual.

The gear change is beautiful.

You know, it hasn't, it's, if you drove a 911, 992 ST today and then drove this,

the gear changes are both beautiful.

Okay.

So it doesn't, it hasn't aged like an MZO gearbox, has it?

Yeah, yeah.

There's, I mean, that's really interesting, Mark.

I mean, I've been lucky enough to drive a 959 and a 918.

Example of never driven the Carrera GT in the middle.

What I can say for the 959 in particular, I actually think the 959 is one of the easiest

Porsches to drive, especially for a classic.

And I think that's one of the greatest compliments you can give the car.

It's a 200-mile-an-hour car that I would be comfortable conceptually driving it to the shops.

It's an easier car in some ways to drive than the 3.2 Carrera of the time.

And the 918, again, as you've alluded to, is definitely an easier proposition around town,

for example.

And again, is a very...

The other thing I'd say with the 959 and the 918 is they are forward-thinking cars.

The tentacles of the 959's technology are still evident in the 911 lineup today.

The 918's story in regards to that, I think, is still unraveling and still to be told.

And that mixture of hybridization with internal combustion, but certainly, you know, PDK,

the mode wheel that debuted on the 918.

Whereas this car, as you said, is very different because it's a celebration of what was,

rather than is what's coming up.

And clearly, as you were saying, it's not easy to drive in the way those other cars are.

Don't get me wrong.

Once you're doing five miles an hour, it's fine.

It's just that hill starts, that sort of thing, in a car like this with basically like a race car engine

and a very, very small light flywheel and this clutch that's the difference between

engaged and not-engaged about a twitch of a big toe.

So it's a knack and you sort of get used to it and you mustn't rush it.

But once it's rolling, it's actually fine.

And then gear changes are really super fast and everything else and it's lovely.

It's just, you know, it doesn't want to be driving in town.

Yeah, yeah.

I mean, when you come up to, you know, you see a traffic light that's red and you just try and roll up to it

because ideally, you just want to be just slightly moving when it goes green.

Yeah, yeah.

You try not to stop basically.

We really value your insights having owned one of the most special production Porsche's

for such a long time and able to put us behind the driving seat, really,

just to find out what the reality of it's like and those extra information you've supplied.

So thank you for taking the time to talk to us on that much radio.

Thank you very much.

I've got a question to ask you for the soft start next week on Carrera GT.

You'll have to remind me.

OK.

You'll have to remind me.

I will do.

Yeah, yeah.

Mark can't play the game because he already owns one.

But yeah, yeah, yeah.

We're super grateful to Mark for his insight.

I found it quite funny how he got one of the last ones because in being a car dealer,

Porsche was worried that he might have flipped the car.

Yeah, but he's kept it all those years.

Completely proven that.

Quite the opposite.

Yeah, definitely.

Have you ever driven a Carrera GT or been in one?

I think I've sat in the...

I'm not even sure if I've sat in one actually.

Really?

Surely you'll remember if you have.

Yeah.

Well, I know I've not been in one when it's been moving, but I wonder if I just popped

a bottom in one for a quick look, see.

Yeah.

Yeah, but yeah, I've not been...

I don't think I've been a passenger or definitely not a driver.

Yeah, yeah.

Yeah, you?

Yeah, well, Mark took me out in his car directly after that interview actually, which was awesome.

I mean, the interview itself, that took place, I think it was end of November.

We shared it months ago for works and hero drivers in the driven or hidden collective.

So, yeah, like roads quite greasy.

I think it was just before rush hour as well.

But yeah, Mark knows some fantastic roads around Paragon and we went out in it.

And I mean, it was a fascinating exercise because there truly is no other Porsche like

a Carrera GT.

I don't know if that sounds silly, Andy, but you try to compare it to models of the time.

A bit, you know, like if you look at a 959, you can see elements of 32 Carrera in there

of 964 even, later 993 design, you know, there's a...

You can see where it is in the storyboard of Porsche.

The Carrera GT, you look at it and you go, OK, the instrument binocles then appeared in

like the 40th anniversary.

There's some 996 and 997 like subtle trinkets all over the car, but in terms of like the

way it drives, the way it sounds, the way it goes, there is nothing else before or since

that is remotely like that car.

It's completely out on its own and it is absolutely spectacular.

It is spectacular.

Outworldly, isn't it?

I remember my first encounter of one.

I was in Southampton and it would have been, I think it was probably when they first came

out.

What year was that?

What was production models?

2003?

Yeah, three.

So, yeah, it would have been 2003 time and I was going round Southampton, there's kind

of not a ring road, but it's like a fairly busy road that goes around the courts and stuff

like that.

I just remember hearing this noise, this, that's exactly it.

Yeah, yeah.

What the hell is that?

Where's that coming from?

And then in front of me, I think it was one or two cars in front, was this large Boxster

that I didn't understand what the hell was going on.

Why did it sound like that?

Why did it look slightly different?

And yeah, I just never forget that noise and the excitement from just seeing it.

It's pretty crazy.

Yeah, yeah.

Yeah.

I think like ultimately the Carrera GT's epitaph when you look back will be the most convincing

and exquisite hammering home of the point that Porsche made cars other than 911s.

Yeah.

You know, and it's not just an outstanding Porsche, it's just one of the most outstanding

super sports cars ever made, you know, and values of the rising values over the last

couple of years have reflected that even amidst the stop drive notice that many owners

had.

But, you know, they've not done badly out of it, have they?

God, this seems to be going up and up, don't they?

Yeah.

From what I've seen lately.

Yeah.

Madness.

Do you know, just on that note, I won't name the person, but I was speaking to a dealer

within the industry recently and we were talking about values of cars and they said,

I think a 911 is underrated.

I said, really?

And he said, yeah, if you look at where Carrera GTs are going, if you look where the 959

is going, if you look where like equivalent Ferrari F40s, 50s and all the rest of it are.

Yeah.

911 is undervalued and can only head in that trajectory and direction.

I thought, that's quite interesting.

And then they joked, yeah, I actually am half tempted to sell my house rent and buy one.

Wow.

They are like, they are that convinced.

Yeah.

Wow.

That's commitment.

Yeah.

Interesting.

Yeah.

Very good.

I'm not sure if I could sell my house that I'd be able to afford a 911.

Might get a baggy old 986 box there.

That would do.

On that note, can we just mention some buying boots?

Yeah.

What you got listed, there's been a few, isn't there again?

There has, not as many as a couple of weeks ago, that really was like.

Record.

Yeah, awesome.

First of March, boom, everybody's back in business.

But yeah, we've got some really cool cars to mention here.

David picked up his 964 RS recreation.

Did you see that car?

Yeah, that's cool.

What's the color?

Ruby stone.

Well done.

The most famous Porsche color there is.

Yeah.

What's it called?

My brain was going pink, but yeah, it is.

It is Ruby stone.

It is.

Yeah.

An absolutely stunning car.

I believe the engine is an RS engine.

I don't know the details to be honest, but yeah, it looks lovely.

It does.

Very usable.

Yeah.

Really, really awesome.

So congrats, David.

That's such a cool car.

Matt with his 992.2 GT3.

Now, Matt's collected that car on Saturday, which was his birthday.

And Matt straight from collection at a Porsche dealer drove it to RPM Technic for our Saturday

Sixes event in terms of first miles on that awesome car.

That's pretty epic.

Cool.

He made it then before you.

Yeah.

As promised, got there for pretty much bang on 11 o'clock.

And yeah, it was awesome to see you, Matt.

It was awesome to see that lovely 992.2 GT3.

Matt's wanted one for a while.

So that's the realization of a dream which came true on a birthday.

So that's a great day out indeed.

I also want to say Andre, he bought his 992.2 GT3 along.

Andre is not in the collective, but he's one of my dad's friends.

And for years has said he's going to buy GT3.

And now he has one.

And I think everybody deserves their day in the sun with something like that.

And on a similar vein as well, Gilbert.

Gilbert, if you're listening, it was such a pleasure to meet you at RPM Technic on Saturday.

Gilbert and Angie combined the day really.

It was a double header.

It was Saturday Sixes at RPM Technic with NineWorks.

It was also Collection Day for his 991.2 GT3.

That car, Andy, it's about 2000 miles on the clock.

If he's box fresh, it's ready to be driven, not hidden.

And yeah, it was so chuffed to meet you, Gilbert, hear your story,

and have you show us around the car as well.

So a massive congratulations.

Well, it must have been a bit overwhelming because it's a new member of the DNHC

picking up his car, like meeting lots of different people.

Yeah, it must have been like crazy day, crazy day for him.

Yeah, about 50 people watching you drive off in your new to you, in your new to you Porsche.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Well, luckily it's PDK.

Oh, is it PDK?

Yeah, it makes it very easy.

Yeah, that is such a great car.

So what was great as well is Gilbert had his Bind Boots t-shirt on.

Did he?

Oh, good man.

Pulling in six for it.

So love that.

And yeah, if you're if you're unaware to date, then if you buy any car

from the Nine Might's Marketplace, get in contact to let us know

and you can get yourself a Money Can't Buy Nine Works

iStrapped on my Buying Boots t-shirt just that Andy and I know.

Brilliant.

Love it.

Good work.

Andy B, you've got a car of the week for us from the Nine Might's Marketplace.

I have.

It's something that I'm intrigued about.

The Carrera T in convertible form.

RPM Technic of what one?

I just would really be interested to see what that's like,

because obviously I love the Coupe T.

I thought that was a brilliant car.

Wonder how that translates across into convertible form

and whether it feels the same sort of sort of thing

that we felt in the in the in the Coupe.

Yeah, I guess so.

I guess so.

I mean, like modern Cabralase, we discussed it on a recent Nine Might's TV video.

They're so good.

You have to be really, really pushing on to for the concept of it

to start falling apart dynamically, you know, in relation to a Coupe these days.

So I can imagine it's not as bizarre as the concept may appear at first.

Yeah, if that makes sense.

It kind of feels all totally wrong, doesn't it, to start with,

but then it's like, oh, actually, it could be really cool.

I think the big draw is that manual gearbox, that six-speed manual gearbox,

but it could actually be a really ace car.

Yeah.

I'm quite intrigued by that.

It looks nice as well.

Nice colour.

I do like the cloth inserts on those tees.

I think it's, you know, it's great, especially as it being a convertible.

You're not going to burn the back of your legs on on the seats.

Yeah, yeah.

Yeah, definitely.

For those that would like to know, it's Vanadium Grey Metallic.

The hood is blue, interestingly.

Oh, is it?

The seat centres that you're referring to, Andy,

like the usual mix of Sport-Tex, Carrera T,

Sport seats, 18-way adjustment with driver function,

driver memory function and heating.

It's got bows, park assist with surround view,

which I think you need on the bigger cars that they are these days.

Power steering plus, I've said before,

I think that's highly underrated and a useful optional extra.

What else has it got on there?

24 months warranty, which will be Porsche main dealer.

Yeah.

Baby mileage only a thousand miles covered,

so it's as good as new, to be honest.

It's a bit like Gilbert's car I picked up at the weekend.

Yeah.

So, and yeah, I mean, again, just the way,

the way that six-speed shifter is presented,

it's almost like that transmission tunnel is the stage

and the shifter is the main character sitting above it.

You know, I feel like when you look at that 992 interior,

your eyes just drawn.

Oh, straight away, yeah.

So, the bowser effects would shifter.

Yeah.

So, yeah, really cool idea that.

Price-wise, a fiver under 125K.

It's available via RPM Technic,

alongside a host of other cars on the Narmworks Marketplace.

Check it all out at narmworks.co.uk forward slash Porsche Marketplace.

Lovely.

Superb.

Can I just say, so we've had such great feedback on the Carnundrum feature,

but we are lacking actual Carnundrums.

Yeah, come on, guys.

Come on.

Come on, yeah.

So, whether you're in the collective or otherwise,

what I will say, the collective,

where there's been no Carnundrums for a while,

everybody's quite steadfast and dedicated

to whatever steer they're into at the moment.

So, I think we should rename the DNHC as

Devoted Not Helping Carnundrum.

Paul Presland.

Actra and King.

Yeah, so we need some Carnundrums, please,

so that we can debate and hopefully help you out.

Yeah, there could be some danger there

that we might actually be useful.

So, yeah, send your Carnundrums in, please.

We'd love to help you out.

Please do.

Right.

You're off this weekend,

Paul, you'll actually be back by the time this podcast is live.

You're going up north this week,

Ken, for the Northumberland Road Trip.

Yeah, yeah.

Have a great one.

Thank you, mate.

First DNHC Road Trip of 2026.

First one in four months, I think,

since the December jawn into the south of France.

Can't wait.

The WhatsApp group is bubbling with excitement.

Buzzing, buzzing, indeed.

It's going to be so good as many of us know.

The roads up there are amazing.

We've got some great places to stay,

some great stop-offs and bloody lovely roads.

So, yeah, bring it on, Andy B, bring it on.

Oh, I have a wonderful time.

Shame I can't make it.

Absolutely.

We are on the next one, aren't we, I believe?

Yeah, Wales is bubbling too.

Coming up.

Not far off.

Yeah.

In regards to just very quickly our fifth anniversary road trip,

because people are still asking,

and it's so lovely that so many people want to be involved,

we are chasing the third party that is helping us out ultimately

to try and put something on that's really cool.

We do keep pressing to just get that over the line.

We've not forgotten it.

Just bear with this for a little bit longer,

just a smidgen longer, if you don't mind.

It's coming, it's coming.

Right, have a great weekend.

Nice one, Andy B.

Drive safe.

We'll do.

See you on the other side.

See you later.

Bye.

About this episode

A lively mix of Porsche ownership talk and community updates kicks off with a playful “engine swap” debate (air-cooled vs water-cooled) before the show dives into the big feature: 20 years of Carrera GT ownership. Mark Sumter (Paragon Porsche) shares how the GT came together for him—VIP factory visits, the car’s race-car feel, and why the clutch is genuinely tricky due to minimal flywheel. They also cover the 2000s legality/production cut short, the stop-drive recall, and where the CGT sits versus the 959 and 918. The episode ends with buying tips and marketplace picks, including a Carrera T convertible.

5.5 litres 5.7 in capacity bespoke lighting box fresh British GT carbon fibre chassis centre locking wheels concept car convertible cup holder

Ferrari Enzo Porsche 356 Porsche 959 Porsche Carrera GT

Original notes

What is it really like to live with a V10-powered analog masterpiece for two decades? In this episode of 9WERKS Radio, we are joined by a man who needs little introduction to the Porsche community: Mark Sumpter, founder of Paragon Porsche and a veteran of the British GT Championship.

While most Carrera GTs are treated as static financial instruments, tucked away in climate-controlled bubbles with delivery mileage, Mark’s story is the antithesis of the "investment" mindset. He has owned his silver CGT for over 20 years, experiencing everything from the initial excitement of its 2004 launch to the long-term realities of maintaining a car with a Le Mans-derived heart.

In this episode, we dive into:

The Acquisition: How Mark secured his car and why he chose it over the 911 GT2s of the era.
The Driving Experience: Mark describes the physical demands of the ceramic twin-plate clutch and why the 5.7L V10 remains the greatest engine ever put in a road car.
Long-Term Maintenance: The reality of the "Major Service." We discuss the technical challenges of the carbon-fiber monocoque and what it takes to keep a Carrera GT in peak health after 20 years.
The Market Evolution: Mark shares his perspective as a specialist dealer on how the CGT went from a "difficult sell" to a multi-million pound icon.

Driven Not Hidden: Why Mark continues to take his car on European road trips and why he believes these cars "die" if they aren't driven.

Technical Deep Dive: The CGT Components

Owning a Carrera GT is a commitment to precision engineering. During the interview, Mark touches on the specific components that define the ownership experience:

The PCCC (Porsche Ceramic Composite Clutch): Why its reputation for being "difficult" is misunderstood, and how to drive it properly to ensure longevity.
The Pushrod Suspension: How the racing-derived setup handles real-world B-roads.

Service Requirements: From engine-out valve clearances to the specialized magnesium wheels.

Find your dream Porsche on the 9WERKS Marketplace: 9werks.co.uk/marketplace

Thanks to our friends heritagepartscentre.com for sponsoring this podcast, get up to 10% off your basket by entering the code ‘9WERKS10’ at the checkout on heritagepartscentre.com

‘9WERKS Radio’ @9werks.radio is your dedicated Porsche and car podcast, taking you closer than ever to the world’s finest sports cars and the culture and history behind them.

The show is brought to you by 9werks.co.uk, the innovative online platform for Porsche enthusiasts. Hosted by Porsche Journalist Lee Sibley @9werks_lee, and 911 owner and engineer Andy Brookes @993andy, with special input from friends and experts around the industry, including you, our valued listeners.

If you enjoy the podcast and would like to support us by joining the 9WERKS Driven Not Hidden Collective you can do so by hitting the link below, your support would be greatly appreciated.

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Andy Brookes, Lee Sibley, Max Newman

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