Don’t you wish you could build your dream car? That was Ferdinand Porsche’s dream. “I couldn’t find the sports car of my dreams, so I built it myself.” That’s what he said. And that’s what Chris Runge said when he decided to build the R2. This is his vision of a 1990s supercar built on a chassis and bodywork of his own design, but with Porsche suspension and powertrain doing a lot of the heavy lifting. If you were to wrap a 993 in a hand-hammered polished aluminum supercar body, you’d get a Rünge R2. This thing has been in the works for a few years now, but after all that time in the workshop, Chris has finally wheeled the thing out into the sunlight for a spin. And from what we can tell, the effort has been worth it.
This is an odd one. Obviously this is a 1990s take on a distinctly 1950s influenced design. You’ve got 993 power with 993 Speedline wheels and swoopy supercar good looks, but then there’s a 1950s prototype look to the inside of the car with gauges that have been re-done to look like they’re straight out of a 356 or performance Beetle. It makes for an interesting juxtaposition, but somehow in the R2 it works exceedingly well. Given the Audi-ish concept exterior hand-hammered into shape, it’s already reminiscent of the hot rods and heroic sports prototypes of the late 40s and early 50s. Who would have thought? I guess just Chris, because he built it.
From a performance standpoint, it’s going to be hard to beat a car like this. With just over 300 horsepower combined with its diminutive size and relative lightweight, this car is an absolute screamer from start to finish. While the finished product isn’t quite what Chris originally drew up years ago, it’s probably a decent bit more useable than the more low-slung design. Based on the mix of low driving position and central weight, and the massive amount of grip provided by the 18″ Michelins, this car looks like it’ll handle a lot better than anything Porsche ever sold through a showroom.
Chris says in the video that the R2 was designed to be simple and purposeful. What more could you possibly want from a sports car?