A Little Carrera History
by Mike Willis

The Carrera debuted in the fall of 1955 with a four-cam engine at Frankfurt
auto show. The Carrera was recognizable by dual exhaust, oil tank peering
out from the left rear wheel opening, gold colored script "Carrera" on the
rear deck and front fenders. It was the first 1.5 liter production car to
reach 200 km/h (124.3 mph). The four-cam roller bearing engine could easily
reach 7500 rpm which in 1955 was quite a feat.

The 1957 Carrera coupes or speedster body were available. Also a deluxe was
available with "heaters" for the passengers. During 1958 to boost sagging
sales, a redesign of the Carrera was made to make it more road worthy for
the street driver.

1958 Reutter GT Carrera doors and deck lids were of aluminum; engine cover
louvered at the sides for cool air ducted to the carburetor air intakes;
seats were made of aluminum (not steel); aluminum wheels with steel centers;
spacers were used to increase track width; aluminum hub caps (not usually
used); and Koni shocks used at all four corners. The engine was a 1.6 liter,
now with plain bearings but retaining the 4 overhead cams. Change for the
sake of making the car more streetable.

The 1959 Carrera had more sound insulation, and was the heaviest Porsche
built to date. The acceleration times also suffered some because of the
additional weight. A twelve-volt system was used for the first time in
production car.

From 1955-60 700 Carreras of all kinds were produced. Most of these were
race cars. In 1960-61 the Carrera started to phase out. The only ones built
were for racers and hard core street users.

1960-62 saw the "Abarth Carrera", a much sleeker version of the 356 and was
strictly a racing Porsche for European sports car circuits.

The 356B/2000 GS Carrera 2 entered production in April 1962 and was targeted
toward the racer and elite Porsche buyer. Porsche planned to produce only
100 but eventually made 310 of the B Model and 126 356C Models. They had a
1966cc 4-cam engine with 9.5 compression ratio, 130 hp, and disk brakes.

The 904, or Carrera GTS, entered the racing world in 1964 and later (1966)
Porsche introduced the Carrera 6 (a.k.a. Type 906), an entirely new
tube-frame chassis with a six-cylinder engine. The 904s used the 4 cam
engines, fiberglass bodies with coil over shocks for the suspension at each
corner. Disks brakes were standard. Both the 904 and 906 were build for
racing and were not intended as street cars.

During the "60"s the Carrera name was applied to specialty racing cars and
not until the "70"s did the Carrera nameplate return to the high performance
variant of the production Porsche. 

The Carrera nameplate returned in late 1972 with the 1973 Carrera RS and RST
(touring). Also, 60 RS Porsches were turned into RSRs (Rennsport Racing).
History was made at Daytona as a RSR won the race (Peter Gregg). The 906,
907, and 917 had been "ruled" out of race in 1971. Old racing axiom: if you
can't beat a Porsche, change the rules. 

 The rear duck tail and Carrera side script were the hallmarks of the model
RS and RSTs. The touring version was fitted with 911S interior and other
fittings.

In 1973 Porsche supplied the cars for the IROC (International Race of
Champions). These were identically prepared RSRs. Each had the 1974 3.0
engine. The larger turbo-style whale tail was used on these cars. 

In 1974 Porsche added a Carrera coupe and Targa to the line. This was
basically the 911 S with different rear spoiler (duck tail), 7 and 8 inch
wheels standard, and the  factory options as standard equipment. The engines 
were the 911S engine with no special treatment. The U.S. 1975 Carreras were 
similar to the 1974's in that no special engine differences were made. There 
wasn't a U.S. Carrera model in 1976-77.

The 1975-77 European Carreras were another story.  They had the 3.0 turbo
engine without the turbo and were called the Carrera 3. During these years the Turbo was also
referred to as the Turbo Carrera.

The Carrera did not reappear until 1984 with the introduction of the Carrera
with a 214-horsepower 3.2 liter engine. The interior included standard
leather appointments and was truly a street car. The Carrera was the
designation for the 911.  From this point forward the Carrera designation
has become the model, not the ultimate performance car as was so true in the 
past. Lost is the super performance designation for the Porsche Carrera.

In 1990 the Carrera 4 was introduced and carried a 247-horsepower 3.6 liter
engine. A new look was also present with redesigned front and rear bumpers
and rocker panels. Also included was full time four wheel drive with
traction control. For the first time power steering was included. The
suspension was also changed from torsion bars to coil-over shocks on each
corner. Also in 1990 the Carrera 2 was part of Porsche model line. Similar
to the Carrera 4 but with 2 wheel drive.

In 1994 Porsche introduced the new 1995 911 Carrera known as the 993. The car
has reduced front fender height, wheel arches are sculptured, body is
widened, and the headlights are flatter and raked back. The front of the car
has a 959 resemblance. The engine is still 3.6 liters but has a revised
intake system, free flow exhaust, new electronics and a multitude of
internal changes making the horsepower now at 270 hp. The engine also has
hydraulic lifters.   All this for a mere $60,000 suggested retail.

The 1995 Carrera 4 is also available for the paltry sum of $65,900 which is
$3,600 less than the original Carrera 4 when introduced. The four wheel
drive aspect will cost $11,000 more than the Carrera 2.

During these years Porsche continued to use the Carrera name for its racing
RSR's The Cup RSR's are called Carrera RSR to help continue the tradition of
the Carrera name.

If you have any comments please let me know.  Also use as you wish just give me credit for any published versions.

Mike Willis
Sacramento Valley Region - PCA
mswillis@ix.netcom.com