With only 1,151 North American-market Carrera Targa examples produced during Porsche’s 993-generation 911 series, any example of this superb and versatile air-cooled model is already well on its way to being called a “rare bird.” However, the White Collection’s example offered here, is—per the common curatorial theme which unites exceptional rarity and excellent condition—more special than any run-of-the-mill Carrera Targa that a scrupulous Porsche enthusiast might find elsewhere on the secondary market.
Accompanying documentation on file illustrates that this outstanding and uniquely configured 993 Targa was custom-ordered via Porsche of Beverly Hills in Los Angeles, California. Befitting this glamorous location, the car’s exterior Grand Prix White (908/P5) paintwork is suitably contrasted, with beautiful results, by an interior cabin rendered in trim-to-sample Supple Provence Blue (G43) leather with Dark Rootwood accents and matching Provence Blue carpets. Even the headliner, dashboard, transmission tunnel, and gear knob trim have been upholstered to match, while a small complement of interior pieces have been executed in black leather—such as the gauge suite surround panel.
The first buyer’s extravagant tailoring requirements were enriched by the generous selection of many desirable factory options, including a six-speed manual transmission, Hi-Fi sound package, cruise control, heated, power-adjustable seats with lumbar support, xenon headlamps, six-disc CD changer, Porsche CDR-210 cassette radio, Technic package, 17-inch Targa wheels, and stainless-steel exhaust. This is surely the only 993 Targa built to these specifications.
Regular service entries by the originating dealer show that the first owner likely retained their custom-ordered Carrera Targa (registered in California as “6FWD932”) until January 2016, when it was exported to Alberta, Canada and tucked away inside a private collection.
In March 2021, the White Collection procured this Targa from its previous Canadian owner, and its odometer is recorded as having shown just 28,484 miles at the time of its reimportation to the United States. Since entering the collection, it has been started monthly and run to operating temperature, and also supplied with a NOS set of staggered 17-inch Targa wheels sourced through Porsche of North Houston.
Representing the end of an era for the 911, the air-cooled 993-generation has achieved exceptional collectible status, not only for its place in Porsche history, but for its overall reliability and usability. With 272 horsepower on tap from its Variocam-equipped 3.6-liter flat-six engine, the 993-generation Targa has always offered confident performance and assured handling dynamics alongside its characteristic gearbox ratios which favor rapid acceleration.
While Porsche’s high-horsepower models are often found preserved in collections, the more standard models were generally put into regular use by their first owners. Today, two decades after production officially ended, finding such a uniquely specified, moderately used, and well-kept example of the distinctive 911 Carrera Targa is nigh impossible.
