Porsche has restored this glorious 911 racer

Some cars end up in the weirdest places. Take the one above for example, that’s a Porsche 911 2.5 S/T from 1972. It also happens to be a class winner at Le Mans.

A legend. And a slice of Porsche history that should be cherished and celebrated. So it makes you wonder how it ended up being crawled over, jumped on and torn apart by kids in an American playground.

Up until three years ago, that very car spent most of its day as a toy in a playground. Hopelessly sitting there as kids trampled in and around it as it waited for its date with the big car graveyard in the sky.

That was until an avid collector and Porschephile discovered the decrepit 911. On a mission, it was rescued away from those pesky kids, and transported into the safe hands of Porsche’s Classic department. They then undertook a full and amazing restoration that’s taken two and a half years to complete.

It’s one we’ve got all the juicy details on. So click forth and see the transformation from rust bucket to exquisitely and meticulously restored racer.

First, some nerdy history. The 911 2.5 S/T was a modified version of the 911 made in house by Porsche strictly for racing, built for the big boy stuff: Targa Florio, Nurburgring, Le Mans as well as rally racing.

But this 911 is a real gem: only 24 of this type (based on the 911 2.4 S Coupé) were ever built. Plus, the man who hustled it round those legendary tracks was non other than 1977 Le Mans overall winner, Jürgen Barth.

The car has a racing history auctioneers would die for. In 1972 alone, Jürgen Barth raced the 911 2.5 S/T in the Daytona 6 Hours, Sebring 12 Hours, Targa Florio as well as the 1000-km race at the Nürburgring. Then, under team Louis Mezanarie, took a class victory for GT cars up to three-litres at Le Mans. But not only that, also crossed the line 13th overall.

Its life after racing wasn’t so glamorous. Mysteriously, it fell into the wrong hands and eventually ended up in that playground.

When the white coats at Porsche inspected the chassis, they discovered a car that not only had been converted to 'G-model' spec, but had a rear cross member pilfered with and abused bodywork. It generally looked a sorry state of affairs.

Most worryingly, they found it had suffered from a significant shunt somewhere in its life. To bend the wonky car back into shape, it was fitted to a straightening bench ­ – basically, a medieval torture rack for cars.

Once strapped down, alignment brackets were fitted and special metal plates fixed to the body. Then, parts of the body were stretched out using hydraulic dozes and steel chains until it was less rickety.

Being a car from the 70s that spent its later life sat in the elements, many of the 911s panels had got irreparably rusty.

The wheel housing panels, tunnel and the roof were particularly bad. So when it came to removing the paint, these sections that wouldn’t survive a dip in an alkaline paint removal bath had to be binned.

Once dunked, the body had to be built back up, section by section – a painstaking process done purely by hand that takes over 1000 hours.

Using original Porsche body jigs and sheet metal tools, the resurrectors were able to perfectly replicate the original 911 2.5 S/T.

Admittedly, some parts had to be fabricated. But it was done using the original Porsche drawings that dated back to the Seventies.

Particularly challenging sections included the conversion and reconstruction of original flared wing extensions, a new roof and fuel tank.

Next, the 911 was treated to some high-tech from the 21st Century. It was sent to the same line that all modern Porsches go through for proper corrosion protection at the Porsche plant in Zuffenhausen.

Cathodic dip painting ­– a process where water-based paint and direct current are used to apply anti-rust paint particles to the car – were applied so it should remain rust free.

Then came the time for proper paint.

First, the body – including the underbody, engine compartment, boot and interior – were painted with primer.

Afterwards, an actual human painted the whole car perfectly by hand in a gorgeous mellow yellow.  FYI, it’s paint code 117 if you fancy lacquering your bedroom walls in it.

The car was then left for eight weeks to cure. Once the paint had dried, final assembly began. Every single nut, bolt and part was gone through and verified as genuine so the car can be ratified for historic racing.

Now, check out the details. Just like the original, the classic Porsche ‘frunk’ is occupied by a 110-litre plastic racing tank, the front and rear mudguards have been widened, bucket seats are in place and a padded racy 380mm sports steering wheel complete the look.

And here it is, the finished car – a mere two and a half years later. Gorgeous isn’t it?

Well, if you want to have a snoop around it for yourself, it’s currently centre stage at the Techno Classica motor show in Essen, Germany. If you’re in town, we’d highly recommend dropping in to soak up the details and the superb craftsmanship. Well done, Porsche.