Rare Porsche 959 prototype to auction in Monaco
A super-rare Porsche 959 prototype is be sold by RM Auctions, one of the world’s most-renowned classic car auctioneers, at their annual Monaco sale on 10 May. The Porsche supercar is believed to be one of just ten such prototype 959s still in existence.
The 1985 Porsche 959 prototype, one of just seven pre-production ‘V’ coded cars, was used at Porsche’s Nardo facility (and Minerva in France) during ABS testing ahead of the 959’s release in late 1986.
While many of these prototypes (also coded with the letters ‘F’ and ‘N’) are no longer in circulation, ‘V1KOM’ was returned to the factory after the 959’s production run came to an end in 1989. Here it was completely refurbished before being sold on to a succession of Japanese owners.
The white 959 prototype (complete with white Denloc centre-locking alloys) has less than 400 kilometres (250 miles) showing on the odometer and is offered in as-new condition, making it an attractive proposition for any Porsche collector.
A notable difference to the production specification on the ‘V1KOM’ prototype is the three-tone fabric seats. While production ‘Sport’ 959s were equipped with the lighter fabric (and an internal roll-cage), the ‘Komfort’ specification was offered with leather seats.
With 450bhp, an electronically controlled four-wheel drive system, and sequential twin turbochargers to reduce lag, the Porsche 959 was a technological marvel during the Eighties, and still holds its own today.
Many of the developments made for the 959 project (that started with the Gruppe B prototype displayed at Frankfurt in 1983) found their way later onto the mainstream 911 platform, most notably with the adoption of a (different) four-wheel drive transmission on the first Porsche 964s in 1989.
The front-end styling is also mirrored by the later 993-Type 911s while its incredible performance, with a 0-62mph time of 3.7 seconds and a top speed of 195mph in ‘Komfort’ spec, is rarely matched by many modern 911s, including some of the 991 variants.
The sale on 10 May, held during the Monaco Historique race festival, sees a number of beautiful Porsches for sale, with the 959 expected to make between €430,000-€500,000. You can see a full list of their Zuffenhausen-made lots here.
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