It’s a well-known fact that every Porsche 911 ever made came from the same location at Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen. Over 1.2 million 911s have rolled off the production line at Werk II since 1963, finding their way to every far-flung corner of the globe. Porsche estimates more than 70% of these cars are still on the road today.
For any owner of these fine sports cars, a return to Porscheplatz is a very special homecoming indeed: a pilgrimage, if you like, for both man and machine, to the place where our 911 was lovingly assembled, and rolled its wheels onto terra firma for the very first time.
Many miles will have rolled under those flared arches since, with a rich collection of memories made along the way – but taking a 911 ‘home’ could well top the lot. It was precisely this prospect which gave us a buzz of excitement as we packed up and prepared our 1982 Porsche 911 SC at our Classic Retrofit UK headquarters for its Stuttgart homecoming.
Typically, It’s cold and wet on a February morning deep in the East Sussex countryside. The 4am start is necessary to catch the early LeShuttle we have booked to cross the channel, the SC’s bassy idle echoing into the dark winter morning.
Our team for the trip consists of Classic Retrofit founder, Jonny Hart, who’s at the wheel, accompanied by staffer Matt Pickering inside the classic 911’s compact cabin. Our presence is required in Stuttgart for an important meeting – more on this another time! – but the road trip will serve to test our latest development product, the Classic Retrofiit heat pump kit, which we’ve been trialing on our Delphi green metallic 911 SC (it’s a factory 914 colour, incase you’re wondering). It’s an exciting development: having supplied our cooling electric air conditioning products to enthusiasts, restomod companies and race teams around the globe for ten years now, we’ve taken that proven concept and added heat to the equation.
As you know, the traditional heating system of an air-cooled Porsche 911 uses the heat from its exhaust manifolds to warm the car’s cabin. Air is pushed over the manifold tubes within the heat exchangers along the sills of the car and up into the air control box inside the dashboard. However, the air can be stinky if your heat exchangers are a bit leaky, and a malfunction in the numerous valves and tubing can also cause the system to either not heat your toes, or fry them! Besides, the system isn’t exactly user friendly – you’re likely to learn Morse Code quicker than grasping how those dash-mounted heating levers are meant to operate.
So, what are the advantages of our new system? Simply put, you’ll have greater and more efficient control over both hot and cold air delivered into the interior of your air-cooled 911, with a quick warm-up time. Weight savings are also possible, as you can change to lighter exhaust manifolds, with removal of all the now superfluous control valves and tubing funnelling air from the back to the front of your Porsche.
As is typical for the UK at this time of year, the morning is both cold and wet, with a late sunrise. The mercury is hovering at two-degrees celsius, and there’s fog in the air as Jonny points the Porsche towards Folkestone and our crossing to mainland Europe. The inclement weather makes for the perfect environment in which to test our product: Jonny selects the required heat level and directs the air towards the SC’s front screen using the new Classic Retrofit control panel; it looks like the factory panel, but its function is simplified. Warmth can be felt and the screen is demisted quickly, allowing us to press on in comfort.
The first leg of our trip takes us across the rural roads of Sussex and onto the motorway down to LeShuttle’s terminal at Felixstowe. We are warm inside the SC, but note it’s a different type of warmth to the traditional system in a 911, where the sills act as a radiator. Now, the heat comes from the front, as with a modern car, and with temperatures of between 23-26 degrees in the cabin with low draw on the electrical system, it’s highly effective too.
It’s not without some challenges though. Modern cars' HVAC systems rely on highly insulated, sealed passenger compartments. A classic 911 has some interesting air-flow related challenges which become more apparent with this new heating set up, especially in areas like the front bulkhead and through the door cards.
The journey through France and Germany continues without incident, the SC’s 3.0-litre flat six happy to sit at a cruising speed as the kilometers slip by. The low winter sun bleaches the topography with a yellow tint, but outside is still fresh with highs of just five degrees, as is typical for this time of year. We’re able to enjoy the scenery with perfect clarity though the SC’s windows which are kept mist-free, belying this classic 911’s four-decades-plus of existence.
It's easy to manage the amount of heating needed via our new control panel and the servo-controlled valves in the new heater box… apart from when the demo control valves we had fitted got stuck! We decided it would be a great idea to have translucent covers and paint the valves red to enable easy viewing of the system for customers, however the red paint got a little sticky when heated and stuck the valves – a typical research and development challenge that was quickly overcome as we beared down on Stuttgart in front of a setting sun.
Rolling onto Porscheplatz was a special experience: the SC back on the very spot where, 43 years and 170,000 miles earlier, it began its adventure on planet earth. The Platz is dominated by the stunning Porsche Museum building, and we managed to bag a parking spot under its impressive canopy, offering an extra if accidental Museum piece for enthusiasts to enjoy.
If you haven't made a pilgrimage to the Porsche Museum as yet, you really need to put it on your list. The display of cars from throughout the company’s 77-year history is mind-blowing, as is the sense of heritage which Porsche AG strives to protect.
Museum visit done, we popped down the road for a top-secret meeting (we’ll reveal more in due course!), before heading over to the brilliant Retro Messe in Stuttgart. This ‘oldtimer’ show is huge with over 1,600 exhibitors – including many of our clients – and we were particularly keen to see Max Carstensen from revive-automotive with his Irish Green EV conversion of an early 911 sporting our A/C system made specifically for 911 EV conversions. 
A few days later, our SC had delivered us safely back home to the UK and Classic Retrofit HQ. A most memorable road trip encompassing three tanks of fuel, four days of smiles and laughter, many happy customers and 1,116 trouble-free, warm miles (apart from those sticky valve moments). A most memorable pilgrimage to Porscheplatz indeed!
Keep a lookout for the official launch of our production heat pump kit later this year - sign up to our mailing list here to stay informed!
Words: Lee Sibley & Andy Brookes