In the world of aircooled Porsches, the 964 has traditionally been viewed as the unwanted child of the bunch. For years this was a Porsche that was seen as too similar to the earlier Carrera 3.2, and not quite as good as the 993 that followed it. It was a weird middle-ground kind of car that didn’t have a following like the others had garnered. As the prices of 993s and impact-bumper Porsches have gone through the roof lately, the 964 was seen as the last remaining ‘inexpensive’ air-cooled, and prices started to go up. If you look at prices today, 964 Carrera 2 Coupes have followed a “hockey stick” type trajectory, while their Carrera 4 and Cabriolet cousins have risen only slight. So the question is, can a 964 Carrera 4 actually be any good to drive?
The Porsche featured in this video is stellar to look at, featuring motorsport-inspired visuals like the BBS wheels, Toyo R888 tires, bumper-mount brake ducts, a set of sport bucket seats, and a proper roll bar. It’s a good indication of what can be done with the 964 Carrera 4 chassis to make it a better performance machine.
It is worth noting that Larry Kosilla of Ammo NYC has also built a Carrera 4 track car. Now, Larry’s reasoning was to increase his 964’s year-round usefulness in the North East where he lives, and is forced to drive in snow, every winter. Larry’s Porsche is possibly the best of all worlds, creating a great track car that can be used all summer, then simply raise the suspension a bit and put the 964 on proper snow tires, and you’ve got a great 4-wheel-drive winter car that still sounds like a Porsche.
We don’t suspect Carrera 4 values will stay deflated for long, soon following their C2 brothers up the money spectrum, so if you were looking at buying one, it’d be better to bite that bullet sooner rather than later. When correctly set up, 964s can be great track-focused sports cars, and still manage a bit of inclement weather when the going calls for it.
