Ooft, Nick Heidfeld’s restored Porsche 959 Sport is glorious

If we’re honest we’ll take every chance we get to ogle a Porsche 959, but this particular one is extra special, and not just because it’s owned by ex-F1 driver Nick Heidfeld…

What you’re looking at here is a 959 Sport – one of just 29 ever built by Porsche, with even more power and less weight than the ‘standard’ car. Oh, and it’s just undergone a full four-and-a-half year restoration by the boffins at Porsche Classic. Isn’t it lovely?

Larger turbos and higher boost pressure meant the 2.8-litre flat-six made 508bhp in the Sport, compared to 444bhp in Komfort trim. The S also forewent the self-levelling suspension of the standard car and left out the air conditioning, electric windows, rear seats and right-sided wing mirror to save weight. Top speed was up to 211mph. 

Heidfeld’s car apparently had just 2,600 miles on the clock when he had it dropped off at Porsche Classic in 2017, but it had been sat unused and needed a full powertrain and chassis overhaul. Not an easy task on a car that pioneered so much tech in the late 1980s.

“If such a technologically innovative car is not driven regularly, storage damage is, unfortunately, unavoidable," says Head of Factory Restoration Uwe Makrutzki.

“Covering around 100 kilometres in mixed operation at least once a month provides protection from damage due to standing still. That’s also what the feedback from our customers has shown.”

There you have it then – official confirmation that you should be driving your 959 regularly. Nick, if you’re busy we’re happy to take on the task for you…