www.QV500.com - Porsche 964 Part 4: 964 Carrera RS
 
Porsche's 964 line up was further enhanced in August 1991 with the arrival of a rear-drive-only Carrera RS. Having debuted that March at the Geneva Salon, the RS was a homologation special designed to qualify the 964 for racing. Continuing a legacy started by the 2.7-litre RS of 1972, many of the features seen on this latest variant had already been developed on the Carrera Cup racers. For starters they were equipped with stiffer springs and dampers, extra cross-bracing and thicker anti-roll bars (adjustable at the rear).
   

The brakes were also upgraded, now Turbo-spec items with re-tuned ABS. Wider 17-inch Cup Design magnesium wheels were shod with low profile rubber. Porsche installed a more powerful version of the 3.6-litre engine on solid rubber mounts, these Typ M64/03 units getting re-mapped engine management and a lighter flywheel. An extra 10bhp was the result, 260bhp being developed at 6100rpm. On the face of it, this wasn't a massive gain, but when combined with an overall weight reduction of 175kg, the RS was substantially quicker than the regular Carrera 2 Coupe. Top speed was up from 158 to 162mph, 0-60 shrinking from 5.8 to just 5.4 seconds. Outside, all four wheelarches were subtly flared to accommodate the wider wheels and tyres, ride-height having been dropped by 40mm. Manually-adjustable teardrop exterior mirrors were also fitted along with a lightweight aluminium front lid and rear bumper. The body shell was seam-welded for extra rigidity. Inside, most of the luxurious fittings found in the regular Carrera's had been junked, RS customers having got the basic Sport specification as standard. This saw the normal seats, glass, electric windows, door trim, sound insulation, central locking and alarm discarded. In their place, Porsche installed a pair of fire-proof Recaro bucket seats, thin carpet trim and fabric looped door pulls. Furthermore, all the underbody sealing was left off, a decision that resulted in the normal ten year corrosion warranty being reduced to just three.

 
 
Customers could further enhance their cars by selecting one of three upgrades; Cup (option number M001); Touring (M002) or Competition (M003). Ticking the M001 Cup upgrade got you a racer for use in Porsche's one-make championship. M002 Touring spec included sound-proofing, electric windows, more luxurious sports seats (fully electrically adjustable and heated seats were a further option) plus central locking. Furthermore, the normal Carrera 2 door panels were re-instated and the underbody re-sealed. Meanwhile, the M003 Competition pack turned the RS into a track-only racer and these variants, like the Cup cars, are covered elsewhere. The RS was produced for 12 months between the summer of 1991 and '92, during which time 2282 were manufactured. Around 100 of these were Touring versions, 300 or so competition cars and the remainder, Sport's. That wasn't quite the end of the story though as like so many homologation specials, the RS wasn't legal for sale in the US. The thinner side glass and lack of door impact beams breached Federal safety legislation, but not wanting to miss out on the most lucrative of all markets, Porsche launched an RS specifically for North America. Produced alongside the regular RS from October 1991, the RS America (option code M504) cost around 30% less but still incorporated many desirable additions. Identical sports suspension, anti-roll bars and Cup Design alloys were used although the engine remained in standard 250bhp trim.
 
Teardrop mirrors and a fixed lightweight rear spoiler came fitted as standard whilst the air-conditioning was removed (optional), as was the power steering, the rear seats and a good deal of sound insulation. The lightweight RS door trim and bucket seats remained but electric windows were now standard. Weighing in 100kg heavier than the Carrera RS, this was nevertheless a respectable 75kg lighter than the regular Carrera 2 Coupe. 701 were manufactured between 1991 and 1993, all of which were left-hand drive.