WHO DUNNIT?

Who is responsible for inventing the hardcore special sports car? When did it catch on, and has the concept passed its peak?

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Seems like the simplest idea for squeezing a dollop more cash out of a sports car, doesn’t it? The stripped, striped track bred runout special. You’d imagine it was a notion five minutes younger than the car itself. That Karl Benz clambered down off his Patent-Motorwagen and declared it was time to add an adjustable rear wing and suede upholstered tiller.

But nein. It’s tricky to definitively pin down who deserves the credit for kickstarting the gold rush, but like a fair few motoring brainwaves, it’s probably German. More than likely had the engine in the back. You know where this is going, don’t you? Enter the 1973 Porsche 911 2.7 RS. All the elements are there – a (cute by modern standards) aero package climaxing in the first appearance of the ducktail spoiler. Stiffer Bilstein suspension, wider tyres, pumped out bodywork fashioned from thinner sheet metal. Soundproofing in the skip, more horses under the kicked up bootlid. Just like today’s GT3, buyers could choose between a more dailyable Touring (1,075kg) or a more extreme 960kg Sport.

Porsche expected to sell 500 – enough to tick the racecar homologation box and satisfy the FIA its new racing 911 is still road related. But the RS catches the company off guard: demand tripled the original allocation.

So you’d presume the flood gates would open... but no. The rest of the 1970s and entire 1980s are a barren zone for the track refugee.

‘RS’ doesn’t appear on a 911 again until 1992, on the 964 gen car. With no aircon, no power steering, a roll cage, road skimming ride height and even the cabin courtesy light binned, it shed 120kg and gained a handful of horsepower. But the ‘pay more, get less’ equation and sheer harshness of the RS didn’t add up. Reviews were vicious and sales stuttered. Naturally, a 964 RS is now a £250k unicorn – about half as much as you’ll pay for the 2.7 grandaddy.