It's no secret that part of Porsche's secret sauce is bred in competition. Since its earliest days, Porsche let their hunger for excellence in motorsport refine the perfect recipe for its road-ready models. Six decades of success in racing and over 30,000 victories didn't only translate into their automotive DNA, but also their cultural identity.

This spirit continues today, not only looking forward, but also looking back. Porsche dealers, including the 11 Porsche Classic Partners, across the United States participate in a yearly competition, the Porsche Restoration Challenge, where Porsche competes with, well, Porsche.

How it works

In total, over 60 Porsche dealerships across the country source, restore, and present a car of their choosing in one of three categories: restoration, preservation, and personalization. First, cars are judged at Porsche-centric events by region (Area West, Area East, and Area South/Central). These winners then compete against each other at Rennsport Reunion 7 to win the national title.

Meet a 2022 winner

Last year, Porsche Palm Springs took home the Area West prize by tackling the build you see here — a 1982 911 SC with good bones, but even better potential. When it was first procured by their team, it presented well but on further inspection required refinement in key areas to return it to its former glory.

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The before.

While it was fairly original, the paint was faded, trim and components were warped, and the power and performance needed an overhaul. Starting with the body, the SC was stripped to bare metal to evaluate and repair rust in the B-pillar, door and window frames. It was then refinished in its original color of Platinum Metallic.

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The after.

The approach was methodical — salvage and refurbish as many original components as possible while leveraging Porsche's catalogue of over 60,000 genuine parts (and 7,100 available for G Body models) for the ultimate finished product. The windshield was kept. Original hardware and tin ware were zinc-cad coated and the sheet metal was stripped and powder coated.

Taking inspiration from the options available on the 992 911, the interior was upgraded to a two-tone cocoa brown with black accents.

Then came the engine. New Porsche pistons, cylinders, bearings, camshafts and rocker arms were installed utilizing RS seals. Seals, gaskets, and sensors, check. New Porsche heat exchangers and muffler were used, and fuel lines were rebuilt with fuel distributor and all new injectors.

Next was the transmission overhaul. It was disassembled and machined for oversized support bearings, then the housing was vapor honed. New hydraulics, brake calipers, and suspension components were installed straight from the Porsche Classic catalogue.

Lastly, the final touches. When Porsche Palm Springs first acquired the car it came fitted with an aftermarket steering wheel, stereo and Ruf wheels, all of which were swapped for genuine Porsche parts including the painted Fuchs you see here.

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Join us at Werks Reunion

The team at Marqued will be at Werks Reunion during Monterey Car Week showcasing this 911 SC and providing live coverage of this year's Area West competition—come by and say hi or follow along on our Instagram!

More about Porsche Palm Springs

You can follow Porsche Palm Springs on Instagram to check in on their latest projects.