Looking for THE book..

[flying.tomato.6]

Hey guys. I would love to know if there is a book on the market that shows and depicts what exactly each Porsche model looked like stock. There seems to be so many different rebuilds/variants/tributes, and I simply would like to be more knowledgable about each car. Someone told me about "Porsche 911 Red Book, 1965-1999, by Patrick Paternie" but I think that is more engine and technical oriented read. Not sure. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks.

[Chuck Miller]

Well, there kind'a isn't THE book. And like most of the obsessed on this board we invest in MANY books for varied and collective information...

Something that will get you in the ballpark, that I believe is still in print, is Randy Leffingwell's 'Porsche 911 Buyer's Guide'
http://www.amazon.com/Porsche-Buyers.../dp/B005IUYFI0

There are MUCH more numerous and expensive alternatives we can help with as well.........

Hope this helps

[Silverbullit]

I'm afraid Chuck is right...there is no ONE comprehensive, all-telling compendium of Porsche particulars. Like many of us have, you just have to do a ton of research. This forum is loaded with valuable minutia.

[911T1971]

Depending on what you look for, Yes, imo there is one.

Peter Morgan, "Original Porsche 911, The Guide to all production models 1963-1998" (newest edition).

I started with this very book 10 years ago and its still on my book shelf.

Beautiful color pics of stock 911's including their interiors (starting with 2.0l, 2.2l, 2.4l…plus all the way up to aircooled 993's ) including all option codes, all color codes including Special order colors, all VIN codes and production changes for each Model Year 64-73. Never found a fault in infos (maybe some production data are since revised), contrary to other books.

If you want however much more infos in english, then you should also get the books written by Karl Ludvigsen as well as two written editions (63-71, 71-77) by Brian Long.

[StephenAcworth]

A couple which are fairly well illustrated:

Peter Morgan: Collector's Originality Guide



http://www.amazon.com/Collectors-Ori...087782&sr=1-12


B. Johnson's Porsche restorer's authenticity guide



http://www.amazon.com/911-912-Porsch...ohnson+porsche

[Jens]

Yup, all good advice. Morgan, Johnson, and Paternie will get you all you want to know. You can go much deeper with Ludvigsen, Leffingwell, and Aichele if you want to spend the money.

Now you owe us some photos of the flying tomato. Is it a 911?

[jaldeguer]

I agree with the above suggestions. A good start would be Morgan's and Johnson's books. And even after a couple of dozen other books, I still find myself referring to these two. Although not 100% infallible (who is??), they would be the most highly recommended.

Good luck.

[flying.tomato.6]

Thanks everyone for their input. I went on and ordered "The Used 911 Story, 8th Edition, by P.Zimmermann" and "Restorer's Authenticity Guide by B.Johnson" .. I think that will be a good start. .. Also wanted to get the "Collector's Originality Guide by P.Morgan" as recommended above, but $2,099.00 for a book is definitely out of my price range.

[StephenAcworth]

Also wanted to get the "Collector's Originality Guide by P.Morgan" as recommended above, but $2,099.00 for a book is definitely out of my price range.

You can have mine for $1999...
No idea where those stupid prices come from. I bought my copy from Amazon about 2 years ago for around $30...

[Jim Breazeale]

A book that hasn't been mentioned. It is a great primer and I highly recommend it to those wanting to familiarize themselves with early 911s and 912s.
I do have to admit that it is written by a good friend of mine.