Now four months into 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has flipped the switch on many industries. As a result, companies from across different business sectors have turned away from their traditional business practices and onto helping society combat this life-changing event. Porsche, for instance, donated €1.3 million to hospitals in Stuttgart to purchase necessary medical equipment. RMSotheby’s recently helped with the fight as well, through the sale of a very special Porsche.

Open to US-residents only, an auction was held through RMSotheby’s website to auction-off the final 991-generation 911. The money will be donated to United Way Worldwide, to help with its work for COVID-19 relief, minus taxes and fees. Following a period of seven-days and 32 bids, the final hammer price came out to be $500,000 USD. To top things off, Porsche Cars North America decided to match the winning bid, bringing the total money raised to $1 million.

“When we began this project, I wanted to use our voice to help raise awareness and funding for the incredible work of United Way. I’m pleased to have helped draw attention to their efforts and I’m deeply appreciative of the generosity and kindness of all the participants and the winning bidder. We are joining in that spirit by making our own donation on top of the winning bid for this special part of our history. We can now look forward to the funds raised making a direct difference to those who need it most right now.”

-Klaus Zellmer, President and CEO of PCNA

The car, 911 Speedster no.1897, is a Heritage Design Package car. Completed in December 2019, it has only done 30 miles in its 4 months of existence. Though unmentioned, it appears that the car has been in the possession of Porsche Cars North America since new. Besides the Speedster itself, the new owner will receive additional gifts. This includes the matching Porsche Design watch, as well as documentation of the car’s production process. There is also a tour of Porsche’s Weissach facility as the guest Dr. Frank-Steffen Walliser and Andreas Preuninger.

“Porsche’s generosity will make a real difference as we fight COVID-19 and prepare for the recovery phase in the communities that we serve,”

-Brian Gallagher, President and CEO of United Way Worldwide

The new owner will take delivery of the Speedster at an event to be hosted by Mr. Zellmer, yet to be schedules. It would have taken place at Monterrey Car Week in August , but it has now been cancelled. This leaves the owner with several options with respect to taking delivery.

 “The collaborative spirit and urgency with which this sale was arranged really brought out the best in each of the organizations involved – all with the aim of quickly and efficiently raising awareness and funding for the important work of the United Way. We’re proud to have been part of the sale – and thank PCNA for entrusting us with the process for an important cause. The bidding proved to be every bit as exciting and intense as we’d hoped, with seven bids logged in the final minutes of the auction alone. It’s always fantastic to witness the generosity of the collector car community and we’d like to extend our sincere gratitude to all bidders and our congratulations to the eventual winner.”

-Kenneth Ahn, President, RM Sotheby’s

In all, hats off to RMSotheby’s and PCNA for working together in organizing this special auction. A car that would have likely been on permanent display is now helping towards an important cause. The question is, will its new owner drive it, or have it as a display piece? We will see with time. Surprisingly, this car is not number 1948, which confirms that the cars were not produced in serial order. With the market flooded with Heritage Speedsters, it would have been nice to see this car get treated to a unique specification. In fact, I would prefer a car that did not have the Heritage Appearance option. Look at Speedster listings and you could find cars without said option that would easily stand out more than cars that do have it. That being said, the new owner is getting one of the best Porsches in recent times, as well as experiences that Porsche owners and enthusiasts could dream of. If you would like to read more on the 991 Speedster, you can check out this post here.

Sincerely,
Juan Reyes-Abreu

Credit goes to:
Porsche Newsroom and RMSotheby’s for information on the car and the sale itself.