Race Cars and Rarities Roll Out for the Porsche 70th Anniversary Sale
Porsche enthusiasts and collectors alike will want to flip their calendars ahead to next fall and lock in a trip to Atlanta, Ga., in time for the Porsche 70th Anniversary Sale on October 27. Hosted by RM Sotheby’s and Porsche Cars North America (PCNA), the automotive gathering will mesh the auctioning of 70 prized Porsches with special events that take full advantage of PCNA’s customer-focused Porsche Experience Center.
“As a backdrop for a Porsche auction, it just doesn’t get any better than PCNA,” says RM Sotheby’s Ian Kelleher, who is busying himself with the admittedly pleasurable task of finding gems from the German marque that best represent its 70th anniversary this year—from 356s to special-edition, water-cooled 991.2s. “Given there’s a lot going on in the vintage Porsche world in 2018, we wanted to alert fans early to our weekend.”
Kelleher is referring not only to August’s staple stampede to the Monterey Peninsula for the annual Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, but also the two Porsche-only events that will be magnets for the faithful. On April 22 in Los Angeles, there’s Luftgekuhlt V—a lovefest for air-cooled Porsches that was started by racer Patrick Long. Then, from September 27 through 30, there’s the sixth edition of Porsche Rennsport Reunion—a celebration of racing machines at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in Salinas, Calif.
RM Sotheby’s plans to leverage the lavish Porsche Experience Center—which boasts a hotel, restaurants, a museum, and a Porsche Classic restoration shop—for its event, which will include a dinner, a historical symposium, and possibly a special automobile exhibition from Porsche’s pantheon.
Although Kelleher doesn’t have the list of cars set to cross the auction block as of yet, he says that many will undoubtedly be doing hot laps at the Porsche Experience Center’s circuit. (The company also has a similar facility in Carson, Calif., a reflection of the role California has always played in Porsche sales and enthusiast fervor.)
“Having some of these cars out on the track really will bring home what the marque is all about,” says Kelleher. “Don’t be surprised if you see a [911] RSR or a 962 racing car out there.”
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