» TRACKDAY CARS

In Porsche circles, there is a delicate dichotomy – those who revel in owning the latest, greatest slice of Stuttgart’s sweetest (GT3RS, 997 Turbo etc) and purists who swear Porsche perfection ended in the early ’80s, when lightweight, lithe sports cars gave way to over-blown, over-weight, OTT Thatcherite‘ loads-a-money’ 911s.

But what if you could have the best of both worlds? Imagine combining an old school (late ’70s, early ’80s), lightweight, compact, lively, unassisted, torsion-bar-equipped purist’s 911 with some of the best modern-day trappings. Surely, that would be a cracking driver’s car? Possibly the ultimate 911?

That’s certainly what Sean Lockyear (hence, SL), rally driver and luxury sportscar dealer (28 years nowas a VAG dealer, then 10 years – becoming increasingly specialised – at his base in Skipton, North Yorkshire), has tried to achieve with his first prototype ‘SL Clubsport’ 911, chassis 001. ‘My concept with the SL Clubsportwas to produce a light, reliable, usable and exciting car for the track that could still be used on the road,’ says project creator Sean. ‘I wanted to create a 911 that Porsche itself would like to build, but can no longer do so, due to modern car-building restrictions.

"For me, the fun in a car is getting it to its limits, and beyond, safely"

I have sold a lot of GT3s and RSs,which are truly great cars, but there is a growing number of Porsche fans who find them too big and heavy, and that their limits –with such incredible grip – are so high that owners require extensive driver tuition to even begin to push their performance envelope. ‘For me, the fun in a car is getting it to its limits, and beyond, safely. GT3s require one hell of a lot of driver skill to do that,which few folk have. And, if you do make a mistake, the chances are that you will have a very big off.’

Combine Sean’s intelligent philosophy with the seemingly growing number of enthusiasts who are starting to again appreciate the simplicity of engineering, lightweight element and unassisted driving pleasure of the early torsion-bar 911s, and you can see why he is so excited and proud of his new SL Clubsport brand. ‘The SL Clubsport is my own personal interpretation of what an old Porsche should feel like,with the benefit of a few, key modern elements and a rally-style bare-shell rebuild technique,making the car competitive in a modern track day environment.’

Sean created the SL Clubsport concept a year ago,with input from Metro 6R4 rally legend, Alistair Sutherland (who works closely with XS Racing in Chesterfield,which Sean has chosen to build the SL Clubsport cars). Never a replica, and ‘not just another wide-body ’80s 911with old school, lithe bodywork added’, this is, as they say in rallying circles, ‘a proper job’. The original plan was to create a 911 offering a wet weight of no more than 950kg, power in the ‘high 200s’ (not OTT, for reliability and budget) and with a brilliant power-to-weight ratio, far in excess of many modern supercars. Additionally, the car was to maintain its narrow body – for the classic 911 retro aesthetics, and narrow(but modern) tyres,making the grip limit that bit lower and adding to driver involvement.

"The plan was to create a 911 with a wet weight of no more than 950kg
…with a brilliant power-to-weight ratio"

With the concept clear and a large proportion of the parts already picked by Sean from XS Racing’s tried-and-tested 911 rally car builds, the nine-month gestation began. Sean provided XS with the shell – a left-hooker 1976 3.0-litremodel in dark blue, purchased off eBay, and the project commenced.

The car is built to XS’s exacting rally car standards and quality, just with less of the gubbins associated with rally cars (like flat floors, plumbed-in fire extinguishers, chassis-strengthening bars, etc), but all of the know-how and quality. Using rally-car building techniques, the 1976 car was first stripped to a bare shell, before being acid-dipped to remove all excess sound deadening – and a surprising amount of weight. Then the chassis was strengthened at key joins, like the suspension turrets, torsion tubes and chassis ‘skids’. A custom-made roll cage was then seam-welded to the chassis to add torsional rigidity.

Then it was off to the body shop, where customer choice dictates the colour. As it’s Sean’s own ‘demo’ vehicle, he has gone for something unmissable. Nice! As are the lightweight, old-shape Carrera bumpers, also added at this stage. While the car was at the body shop, XS sorted through the rest of the parts. This meant a full clean-up, shot-blast, repaint, rebuild and general tidy up of all the OE parts going back on – like steering rack, brakes and the (beefed up to 19mm front and 26mmrear) torsion bars and Bilsteins. These, and other key modern items were fitted once the shell was back from the paint shop, including a full set of polyurethane suspension bushes, radically reducing the inertia losses associated with the OE rubber items.

The SL Clubsport also got a full brake, oil and fuel line upgrade from braided line experts, Earls – these all now run inside the car, competition style. There is also a ‘Red Top uprated fuel pump in the renovated fuel tank under the lightweight bonnet. The old wiring loom has been replaced by a bespoke competition loom,modernizing the electrics and doing away with a whole heap of wires, leaving only what is needed to survive. But don’t for a minute think that the SL Clubsport – although incredibly minimalist – is without creature comforts. Sean has thought of everything, including a Cat 1 immobilizer, bayonet catches for locking gear away under the hood, user-friendly switch gear (beautifully mounted on the alcantara-topped dash), easy-access fuse box (behind bespoke chassis no. plate where the glove box was), front and rear towing eyes, electric windows, door pockets, heated windscreen, heater, rally-style jacking points in the chassis, beautiful light Kevlar Motordrive bucket seat with embossed Porsche logo and Schroth harnesses – plus Momo steering wheel with much-needed over steer tape. Everything is 100 per cent quality, all in situ to enhance the ‘modern retro’ feel and add to the unique driving experience the SL Clubsport offers. This is highlighted by the firing-up sequence, which really gets you in the mood. Battery isolator off, de-immobilise with key fob, flick ignition and fuel pump switches, pump the throttle and hit the starter button. Very special stage.

"Everything is 100% quality … adding to the unique driving experience"

The Clubsport’s mix of old and new school is clearly highlighted within key areas of the car. The wheels are classic Fuchs alloys, but wrapped in the very latest Dunlop Direzza trackday tyres. The engine is another example. Yes, it’s still a standard 3.2-litre six-pot, but expert JZMachtech has breathed new life into it, using all-new internals. Then, to eke out the sort of ‘high 200s’ power Sean was aiming for with this 001model, on has gone a set of frankly enormous 46mmPMO downdraught carbs, producing a dyno-tested 270bhp, and ‘even more torque’. ‘The key here is reliability. In using new standard parts,we can enable the car to run trouble-free, easily creating enough power and torque,without stressing things out, yet having more than enough grunt to enjoy,’ adds Sean.

In essence, this modification is a microcosm of the macrocosm that is this SL Clubsport – refreshing old technology with trick new technology, tried and tested on Sean’s own rally cars. Such mods provide the backbone and, crucially, the feel required to create Sean’s ultimate 911. And feel is what this incredible 911 is all about, as Sean kindly demonstrated at an RMA Paddock Club day here at a soaking wet, very slippery Rockingham. I first saw Sean driving at the ’Ring,when he cut past me, heading up a line of GT3s, fully sideways one way, then the other, at speeds I could not believe. As RMA boss, Graham Clarke says: ‘He is probably our best driver in the club.’ Nuff said.

The 3.2-litre engine barks into life with serious intent, sound resonating through the immaculate, spartan cockpit. Sean snicks first and we leave the pits, diff rattling behind us. It feels, er, lively. We exit the paddock and Sean opens her up, resulting in a tidal wave of torque, a slight squirm from the back end and an instant assault on the horizon as revs built smoothly, swiftly. It may ‘only’ have 270bhp but, thanks to the lack of weight being humped about, this 911 feels very, very quick.

The lack of weight also tells when approaching the first bend,where speed so swiftly achieved is shaved off in a flash,with a quick (left foot, of course, being a rally guy!) dab of the brakes. But it’s the turn-in that blows me away. Even on a dry set-up, in very wet conditions, the Clubsport turns, hunt its apex and exits with serious aplomb. And its ability to change direction is amazing, as is Sean’s car control – catching huge tail slides with a talented mix of lightning-fast steering input and left-foot braking.

Two or three times in these awful conditions, in dramatic oversteer, it looks like we are certainly grass bound (like most of the rest of the cars on the circuit,which looks like automotive ballet today, rather than fast driving), but Sean miraculously pulls the Clubsport back from beyond the edge. Boy, can he steer, and is he in his element behind the wheel of this sublime, driver-focused 911!

'The SL Clubsport car is aimed at people who aspire to the prestige of owning and driving an early 911, but want a car full of the right technology to make it a decent drive in this modern era of GT3s. Crucially, however, they also want a car that they can drive from the seat of their pants,’ says Sean, rather aptly. Back in the paddock, RMA chief Graham Clarke sums it up nicely: ‘My laps in Sean’s Clubsport are the most fun I have ever had driving a car – offering a unique 911 experience that’s totally driver focused.’ Says it all, really.