I’d like to report on the delivery process and my impressions from test driving the Porsche 911 (964 model) of my good friend TAKURO, which was finally delivered.

964 Delivery

Last autumn, one morning while casually browsing Instagram, I saw a story from a certain shop announcing that a 964 with a manual transmission had arrived.

I captured the screen and immediately emailed TAKURO, who had been searching for a 964.

He quickly contacted the shop and within a few days had already gone to see the car and finalized the deal. As expected, a capable man acts fast.

This particular car had been sleeping in a barn for over a decade, with mileage in the 20,000 km range. The shop planned a full restoration including suspension, engine, and transmission overhaul, as well as complete interior and exterior refurbishment before selling it.

About four months later, the delivery day finally arrived.

Since TAKURO had accompanied me when I took delivery of my Carrera 4 GTS before, this time I joined him.

We took the Shinkansen to Hiroshima and arrived at the shop.

There, a pristinely polished, exquisite 964 was majestically waiting.

The body was fully repainted with zero scratches, and the front even had a protective film applied.

The interior had all the small rubber parts replaced and was beautifully restored.

I wondered if the new 964 looked like this back in 1990, as I felt like I had traveled back in time.

After receiving the keys, we set off to drive back to Kansai. Since the engine and other parts had been overhauled, we planned to keep the revs below about 3,000 rpm to break it in gently.

At first, TAKURO was nervous with the unfamiliar manual transmission, but as we covered distance, his driving became smoother. The engine felt very torquey and powerful, fresh from the rebuild. The strong acceleration when pressing the gas in third gear was especially impressive.

Most notably, the mechanical noise was remarkably quiet. From startup to idling and driving, this was the quietest 964 I’ve ever experienced. This is likely due to many new parts and updated insulators providing excellent soundproofing.

Trouble Discovered Just After Delivery

While driving through town for lunch, a CAT warning light appeared on the meter panel.

CAT is the exhaust temperature warning light, required by Japanese law at the time and unique to Japanese-spec models. Generally, even if it lights up, as long as oil temperature is normal, it’s usually nothing serious and often caused by faulty relays or sensors.

Still, the light flickering on and off isn’t great for peace of mind. We contacted the dealer but decided to keep an eye on it while driving.

The highway driving was very stable. Although I wanted to rev in third or fourth gear during acceleration, I held back and kept steady on the Sanyo Expressway.

At a certain speed range, we felt vibrations in the steering wheel. Adjusting speed made the vibrations stop, revealing a wheel balance issue. That was the second problem discovered.

While cruising, we noticed the clock on the meter panel wasn’t working (sweat).

At a service area stop, the oil gauge needle moved sluggishly and barely budged, and the oil temperature gauge also behaved suspiciously. This was the third problem.

Then TAKURO mentioned the seat was shifting slightly back and forth. Apparently, the seat was moving subtly with front-to-back G-forces. This was the fourth issue.

Then, a Critical Problem…

Despite these issues, we arrived safely in Kansai without trouble. Right after exiting the highway, we filled the tank, and to celebrate the delivery, we decided to have sushi for dinner.

After dinner, when we returned to the parking lot, we noticed a black stain under the 964’s trunk. At first, we thought it was coolant, but since it’s air-cooled, there’s no coolant. Then we suspected oil, but after touching and smelling it, it was gasoline. Yes, gasoline was leaking.

We panicked. We couldn’t start the engine, so we opened the trunk and peeled back the carpet to find gasoline leaking around the spare tire area. The car was undrivable. We immediately arranged for a tow truck and contacted the dealer.

So, the 964 had to be sent back to the dealer as-is, ruining what should have been a perfect delivery day (cry).