Porsche 911 Carrera 4 GTS British Legends Edition

Porsche is the most successful marque in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, with an unrivalled 19 wins in the French endurance race. British drivers have played an important role in delivering these historical achievements, and in celebration of this success, and in honour of three Britons who have helped deliver these victories, a special limited edition model – the 911 Carrera 4 GTS British Legends Edition – was launched this week.

Designed by the drivers who each took historic wins in the 24 Hours of Le Mans for the factory Porsche team – Richard Attwood (winner 1970), Derek Bell MBE (winner 1981, 1982, 1986, 1987) and Nick Tandy (winner 2015) – this new model has been developed by Porsche Cars GB together with Porsche Exclusive Manufaktur at the factory in Stuttgart, Germany.

Derek Bell is Britain’s most successful race driver in the Le Mans 24 Hours, with a total of five wins overall and four triumphs with Porsche. His British Legends Edition celebrates his 1982 victory in the debut season for the iconic 956 racing car. There is a 911 Carrera 4 GTS British Legends Edition unique to each driver, identified by the number of their winning Porsche racing car and its colour scheme incorporated into the livery. A Union Jack symbol combined with the driver’s signature is a further motorsport-inspired leitmotif, and highlights the car’s heritage.

Using the design of the winning race cars as the starting point of each car, joint workshops between Porsche Cars GB and each of the drivers, ensured their passion was built into each 911. The ideas were then taken forward by the design team at Style Porsche in Weissach and the craftsmen at Porsche Exclusive Manufaktur in Stuttgart. Each British Legends Edition is finished by hand in the new Porsche Exclusive Manufaktur workshop. Each model is offered with the choice of a manual gearbox or the Porsche Doppelkupplungsgetriebe (PDK) double-clutch transmission.

The models

1970 Le Mans winner – Richard Attwood

Porsche 917 #23 580bhp, flat-12 cylinder, 4.5-litre, 340km/h top speed

‘Porsche Salzburg’ red and white livery

British Legends Edition Guards Red

1982 Le Mans winner – Derek Bell

Porsche 956 #1 680bhp, flat-six cylinder, twin-turbo, 2.8-litre, 350km/h top speed

‘Rothmans’ blue, white, red and gold livery

British Legends Edition Sapphire Blue Metallic

2015 Le Mans winner – Nick Tandy

Porsche 919 Hybrid LMP1 #19 >900bhp, V4, single turbo, 2.0-litre, 360km/h top speed

‘DMG MORI’ white, black, grey livery

Race to road technology transfer

Porsche 917; Porsche 956; Porsche 919 Hybrid – three icons, each with a common link – victory in the Le Mans 24 Hours. Each of these racing cars has also played a valuable role in bringing track technology to the road.

The British Legends Edition also recognises the British motor sport fans’ generous spirit through the years, cheering on Porsche from the trackside. During the development of the British Legends Edition, it became clear to the racing drivers, that it was important that a performance-oriented 911 would result, one that expressed its distinctive motorsport character in sound, appearance and dynamics.

Derek Bell commented; “I expect Porsche to give me the best chassis when I race, and I expect the same from my road car.” In support of this, rear axle steering and Porsche Dynamic Chassis Control are both standard. Bearing in mind the all-weather, day and night rigours that success at Le Mans places on a car and driver, driving safety and comfort features are also key priorities. Thus, LED headlights (as fitted to the 919 Hybrid), along with 18-way adjustable sports seats and automatic rain-sensing windscreen wipers are fitted. A distinct motorsport ambience is a feature of the interior, with the use of Alcantara and carbon materials.

Porsche 911 Carrera 4 GTS British Legends Edition in detail

The 3.0-litre flat-six cylinder boxer engine in the 911 GTS offers 450bhp (331kW). Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM) is standard on GTS models and the British Legends Edition features PASM sports suspension and PDCC, lowering the body by 10mm. The GTS also features the Sport Chrono Package incorporating dynamic engine mounts and steering wheel-mounted mode switch, plus a switchable, modified sports exhaust system.

The Porsche Traction Management (PTM) all-wheel drive delivers all-weather traction, and leads to the 911 Carrera 4 GTS being the fastest sprinter in the 911 Carrera family. Fitted with the optional PDK transmission, it can accelerate from zero to 62 mph in 3.6 seconds with Launch Control activated.

The 911 Carrera 4 GTS British Legends Edition also features the following

Chassis
Rear axle steering
Sport PASM chassis including Porsche Dynamic Chassis Control (PDCC)
Exterior
Decal set in contrasting colour
LED headlights in black with Porsche Dynamic Light System Plus
SportDesign package featuring extended rear spoiler
SportDesign mirrors painted in Satin black finish
Rear engine lid air intake grilles painted in the exterior colour
Interior
Door sill guards in carbon with a Union Jack motif and ‘911 Carrera 4 GTS British Legends Edition’ lettering
Door panel trim and centre console finish in carbon
Dashboard trim in carbon with Union Jack motif and ‘911 Carrera 4 GTS British Legends Edition’ lettering
Alcantara GTS interior package, GT sports steering wheel in Alcantara and 12 o’clock marking in red, steering column cover in Alcantara
Adaptive Sports seats Plus with 18-way powered adjustment and memory package
Automatically dimming exterior and interior mirrors with integrated rain sensor
Cruise control

The 911 Carrera 4 GTS British Legends Edition is on sale from 9 October priced as follows

Guards Red	£122,376.00 RRP (incl. VAT)
Sapphire Blue	£123,210.00 RRP (incl. VAT)
Carrera White	£123,210.00 RRP (incl. VAT)

Customers will also be invited to explore the potential of their new car, and further develop their own skills behind the wheel, by participating in a bespoke driving experience around the tracks at the Porsche Experience Centre, Silverstone.

Edited by: Glen Smale
Images by: Porsche